Noble Marine Ovington UKLA Qualifier 5 at Hayling Island Sailing Club

A note from UKLA: To all those who sail an ILCA 4. Don't forget the ILCA 4 isn't just for the younger sailors, it's a small rig ILCA designed for those sailors who are lighter and smaller than the average ILCA 6 sailor. UKLA invite all ILCA 4 sailors to join in the open qualifiers, they are for you.

Following qualifier 4 at Weymouth the weekend before, 191 ILCA sailors were excited and raring to go for the second Autumn qualifier 5 hosted by Hayling Island. 51 ILCA4 sailors were all set for a great weekend of serious and fun racing.

On day 1, the conditions in Hayling Bay were tricky due to the onshore breeze coming from the Northwest blowing through some big 30-degree shifts; this made it difficult for the race committee to set a fair course. When Race 1 finally got under way it was won comfortably by experienced ILCA 4 sailor Noah Evans, with Joe Rowe, a former Topper sailor, chasing behind.

Noble Marine Ovington UKLA Qualifier 5 at Hayling Island - photo © Peter Hickson

As the day went on, the wind strength began to vary making sailing into pressure a high priority. In race 2, Ciara Murphy got a great start leading everyone up to mark 1, however, on the second upwind leg, Archie Munro-Price benefited from a wind shift to take the lead for the last two legs of the course earning him a win just ahead of Ciara.

Race 3 was a close race for the front runners because the shifts oscillated more frequently towards the top mark resulting in the boats bunching up and an intense battle for the pole position on the downwind.

The day came to a finish with new sailors making new friends and catching up with other sailors across all three fleets.

Noble Marine Ovington UKLA Qualifier 5 at Hayling Island - photo © Peter Hickson

On day 2, there was a stronger breeze but with similar shifty conditions as the breeze was still onshore. In race 4, Tom Hakes was leading at the bottom mark but on the 2nd upwind, Noah went to the right hand side which paid and got his second bullet of the event.

In race 5 the wind was more consistent with more predictable shifts on the upwind making boat speed more important; Leo Yates earned himself his second victory of the event leaving a lot to sail for in the final race.

In race 6, the all-important last race, the wind had built significantly so the entire fleet was hiking and this allowed sailors to surf the waves going downwind to gain crucial speed for the last few vital points.

Noble Marine Ovington UKLA Qualifier 5 at Hayling Island - photo © Peter Hickson

Results were Noah Evans in first, Leo Yates in second and Archie Munro-Price in third. Top three girls were first Kaitlynn Wyatt in ninth overall, in second Amélie Hacker in 14th and third Ciara Murphy in 17th.

The ILCA 4 Fleet would like to thank all the volunteers who put on another great event hosted by HISC. A special thank you to Tim Hancock and the race committee and all at HISC.

Thanks also to our main weekend sponsors, Noble Marine and Ovington Boats 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. Ovington Boats are one of the biggest and best dinghy builders in the world and are now the official UK builders of ILCAs

Noble Marine Ovington UKLA Qualifier 5 at Hayling Island - photo © Peter Hickson

Overall Results:

Noble Marine Ovington UKLA Qualifier 5 at Hayling Island - photo © Peter Hickson