International Moth GP at the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy

The penultimate event of the 2022 British season, and the Moth class's final return to the host venue before the 2023 World Championships, saw a quality fleet of 23 sailors contest the weekend event.

The racing would prove to be dominated by the weather, Northerly wind's with warm air and sea temperature gave rise to unstable conditions with large changes in wind speed and direction. What might appear to be unfavourable conditions for foiling craft in fact lends itself to far more interesting racing and a great leveller in equipment and preparation. It is true that on occasions large gaps open up but the reality is these also close rapidly and the effect is extremely close racing with plenty of opportunities.

The Moth World championships attract a high level of sailor and with that a high profile and in turn this attracts high level race management. Keen to keep his eye on the game PRO David Campbell James returned to Portland and his adopted position high on the upper deck of Giranus.

Staying on point race one got under way without a second's delay and running to form was won by Simon Hiscocks closely followed by Alex Adams and Mike Lennon.

A quick turn around and race two was beginning to turn the form book around, the wind was starting to become less stable, suffering worse was Hiscocks well out of the top 3, with Eddie Bridle taking the race win to follow up with a 4th in the previous race just ahead of a consistent Lennon in 2nd and Adams, pushed hard by Matthew Lea in the latest Rocket design who started a run of 4th's.

Next came Lennon's turn with a well judged escape to the right to take a convincing race 3 victory, with Bridle second and Hiscocks sneaking back in to the top 3.

Starting race four without a delay really belies the change in conditions as the wind became increasingly variable, The leaders coming through the middle of the Castle Cove club race fleet must have been quite entertaining for some one, but only highlights how far past the edges of the course it paid to sail in order to secure the best wind. Bridle chased by Hiscocks led the way whilst Ben Clegg navigated his way around the pressure to pop in a well deserved 3rd ahead of Lennon who did well not to pick up a higher score.

That left 9 different designs of Moth in the first ten places including two owner, driver, designed and built. With budgets ranging from sub £10k to over £30. The cost of Moth racing isn't all it might seem.

Sunday dawned with significantly less wind, racing looked marginal at best. However a decent breeze did materialize and the fleet foiled out to the start line for the briefest of delays. CJ went for the start, perhaps every one foiled at least once, star of the day was undoubtedly Paul Gliddon who made a full lap and half, followed by David Jessop who managed to foil the downwind to the gate. With the rest of the fleet spread, in various states, across the course, sensibly, the race was abandoned and returned to shore. The obvious choice to call it a day and go home early wasn't the most taxing decision for CJ to make.

Overall this left Eddie with a well deserved win, Mike Second, Simon third just ahead of Alex and Josie Gliddon on top of the women's results.

Overall Results: