Noble Marine / Vaikobi UKLA Qualifier 4 at the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy

Noble Marine / Vaikobi UKLA Qualifier 4 at the WPNSA © Giles Smith

It was decided that UKLA ILCA Q4 should go ahead giving competitors, volunteers and supporters the chance to come together and show fitting respect for the Queen. Each boat flew a black ribbon from their mast heads in her memory.

175 boats arrived at Weymouth for a weekend of highly competitive racing. It also saw the annual Barts Bash race. Here, Norman Struthers reports on the 34 boat ILCA 7 fleet.

Day one of the UKLA Autumn Qualifier was sailed in Weymouth harbour. With wind from the West at 8 knots, it ended up being one of the tightest days of racing ever seen in the history of Weymouth qualifiers, with the whole fleet bunched together around the first windward.

The right was favoured throughout the day, which was seen clearly in the first race, with a majority of the fleet working up to that starboard lay line. Dan McGaughey and Dan Whiteley led around the windward but were caught around the bottom of the outer loop when the go right gate paid. The final finishing order was Sam Whaley, Finley Dickinson and James Percival-Cooke.

The right side was still paying for Race 2 so Dickinson took advantage of this and worked his way up the right to a lead at the windward, follow by Whaley and Kai Wolgram. After this, the course stayed mostly consistent with little opportunity to pass. Mr. Jake Farren-Price (aka Mr. Downwind Speed aka. Mr JFP) was able to clutch up the final downwind, turning on the downwind speed, leading to a final order of Dickinson, Whaley, and JFP.

Noble Marine / Vaikobi UKLA Qualifier 4 at the WPNSA - photo © Andrew Simpson Foundation / Lindsay Porter

Again, in race 3, the right paid up the beat. Nick Welbourn, aka Mr. Element 6, was on an absolute flyer, leading the way around the first mark. Nick was able to fight off the speedy Whaley behind him, showing that a sharp tool is always useful, but requires a skillful hand to be successful.

Day 2 the fleet finally got their wish and made the trip out to the famous Weymouth Bay. This led to the old guard of the fleet, Whaley and JFP, reminiscing of times when Qualifiers were always in the bay. Thank you to the Committee for amusing our wishes and letting us race out there!

Noble Marine / Vaikobi UKLA Qualifier 4 at the WPNSA - photo © Andrew Simpson Foundation / Lindsay Porter

In Race 4, the 7's got down to it and enjoyed some great conditions in the bay. 8-10 knots and wind from the south. Whaley picked it up right off the gun, with a great start from the pin leaving him launched. He held a commanding lead throughout the course. JFP and Norman Struthers, although behind at the first windward, were able to put together a fast first downwind and tactical second upwind to be 2nd and 3rd around the second windward and staying in these places to the finish line.

In Race 5, Whaley again was absolutely launched as the fleet caught up with the 6's up the first beat. Knowing the location of the rest of the fleet was difficult while navigating through the 6's, but once the two fleets rounded the bottom of the outer loop, positions were once again made clear. Following Whaley was a group of young guns including Arthur Farley, James Foster, Nick Welbourne and Charlie South who all took advantage of a nice lefty at the top of the first beat. This order stayed relatively the same around the course, ending in a Whaley, Farley, Foster top 3.

Noble Marine / Vaikobi UKLA Qualifier 4 at the WPNSA - photo © Andrew Simpson Foundation / Lindsay Porter

Race 6 was everyone's final chance to move on the leaderboard. With some positions very close in points and a little more wind, this spelled excitement. Whaley again had a successful start at the pin with a majority of the fleet lined up behind him, while Stormin Norman Struthers started on a flyer at the boat, taking advantage of some line sag. The fleet again worked their way to the left, with some others absolutely sending it to the right in hopes of a high-risk high reward strategy. In the end the left paid off, with Norman leading Sam and the rest of the fleet around the top.

Mr. Downwind Speed (Jake Farren-Price) had a blinder of a first downwind and jumped up from 8th to 3rd, leading to a Struthers, Whaley, Farren-Price bottom rounding. The threesome fought their way up the beat, but the order stayed the same. This set up a battle for the ages, with the threesome absolutely duking it out down the final downwind, taking waves and clearing weeds from their boards. In the end Whaley caught the final wave to the mark and rounded ahead, with Norman just getting room on JFP at the rounding. Whaley rounded first, and after a battle between JFP and Norman on the reach, JFP was victorious in an absolute photo finish. That final finish is definitely what makes ILCA racing so fun.

A special thank you to the Andrew Simpson Foundation and Lindsay Porter who help provide some excellent photos. Also our terrific sponsors, Noble Marine and Vaikobi who support the class so loyally:

• Noble Marine has crafted a very competitive and excellent insurance product for all Laser/ILCA sailors. A very personal service and an extremely useful website help make this the 'go to' company. www.noblemarine.co.uk
• Vaikobi - a brand born on the waters of Sydney Harbour, out of a passion for all ocean sports. Across the team, we paddle, Surfski, SUP, Wing Foil and Sail. www.vaikobi.com

The fleet would like to thank everyone who made this great event happen.

Overall Results: