420 Autumn Championship at Datchet Water Sailing Club

420 Autumn Championship at Datchet Water © Tom Jones / Ben Rayner

24 boats gathered on Saturday morning and talk in the boat park was mainly about the drastic change in the weather - it was decidedly chillier that the weekend before, marking the end of the summer and time to get used to rigging with cold hands again.

Datchet Water was looking fresh with Windsor Castle behind, and we were grateful to the club for stepping in at short notice to host our Autumn Champs.

Day one

The forecast looked good for Saturday and lighter on Sunday so the fleet launched wondering if Race Officer David Baddeley would go for 4 races on the first day. He got the first race under way quickly with a well laid course in a shifting breeze The wind was gradually going left on the first upwind beat with no one spotting it better than Tilly Brayshay and Charlie Howard who capitalised on the shift leading them to round windward in first and they continued to dominate for the rest of the race with Henry and Oscar taking second and Harry and Ralph third.

420 Autumn Championship at Datchet Water - photo © Tom Jones / Ben Rayner

David Baddeley got the next race under way swiftly, and there were a lot of boats over. The wind switched to go right on the second race which led to some tight racing at the front with Noa and Gabs winning, Arwen and Mathew second and Angus and Arthur third.

The warning flag went up for the third race, this time with a bit of time to grab a snack break. The wind was still going right with the occasional left shift, and this was seen no clearer then on the second upwind beat when you could nearly lay the mark from the bottom gate. Anyone spotting this early enough was bound to have a good race. 1st place in the end went to Arwen and Mathew with Imogen and Hugo second and Harry and Ralph third.

There was a bit of a wait between race three and four with the big right shift making it hard to lay the course, but never-the-less David Baddeley got us away on a nice course and the breeze settled into a steadier shifting pattern. The upwind legs were vital in this race as the downwind was only one gybe, it was all out on the last race with Imogen and Hugo taking first, Harry and Ralph second and Joe and Hennie third.

420 Autumn Championship at Datchet Water - photo © Tom Jones / Ben Rayner

Points at the end of the first day were tight.

Day two

There was forecast to be very little wind on the Sunday but fortunately we got lucky and had a shifty eight knots, which although bought an initial delay as it was hard for the Race Office to lay the course, once racing got under way the course was bang on.

Race 5 saw 3 UFD's with Henry and Oscar, Tom and Pat, and Isla and India all being caught over the line. The course was very shifty and very hard to read which led to some initial dominant performances and then some incredible comebacks but in the end the positions were locked out with Harry and Ralph taking first, Arwen and Mathew second and Zac sailing the final day with Haydn Sewell in Third.

Race 6 was away swiftly with no UFD's and racing was very close. Yet again with the wind going far right it was those who got across into the clear air that benefitted. Those who couldn't got stuck out on the left which was a disaster especially on the second upwind beat. The result consisted of Noa and Gabs first, Tilly and Charlie second and Zac and Haydn again in third.

420 Autumn Championship at Datchet Water - photo © Tom Jones / Ben Rayner

The final race was an interesting one. Finally, the wind had stopped going right and started going slightly left for the first upwind beat which led to a switch around in the front three boats. The downwind had the fleet totally split giving the opportunity to gain places. The second upwind beat went right again which caught some people out who had opted for left after the first upwind - it then moved at least a further 30 degrees right with Imogen and Hugo taking first, Henry and Oscar second and Zach and Hadyn again coming in third.

This concluded a high scoring regatta, with close racing, and many changes in position showing the breadth of sailing skill in the 420 class whether in male, mixed or female pairings. Newcomer Tabitha Davies sailing with Cadet sailor, Sophia Sfaxi, in her first 420 event put in a great performance and will be ones to watch in the future, along with Zac Shepherd and Arthur Southall who are rapidly rising up the score sheet. However, it was consistency that was key here and the continued impressive performance of Harry and Ralph saw them crowned Autumn Champs, first males and first U17 for the second year in a row. Noa and Gabs took second place and were first females with third place and first mixed going to Hennie and Joe.

Next stop is Grafham on the 11th/12th November for the End of Seasons, and with training at the same venue the weekend before and the legendary fancy dress social on the Saturday night it will be one not to miss.

Overall Results: