Rope4Boats RS400 Southern Tour 2023 - Congratulations to Tom Halhead and Paul Hilliar
by RS Class Association 28 Nov 2023 12:29 GMT
Tom Halhead and Paul Hilliar win the RS400 Southern Tour © RS Class Association
The Rope4Boats RS400 Southern Tour has now concluded and what a year it has been! The tour kicked off in mid-March at Queen Mary with a coaching/racing double header. The tight racing set the scene for the rest of the year.
Next up was Salcombe for the annual wacky races followed by a tidal test at Lee on Solent. Hayling Island pulled out all the stops delivering wall to wall sunshine and blistering heat.
Arun was the final event before the Nationals with patience being the key theme of the weekend! The post-nationals party at Lymington was eventful both on and off the water - 20 knots wind against tide on a hangover tested the fleet to the max. Finally it was back inland to Island Barn.
Congratulations to our tour winners Tom Halhead and Paul Hilliar!
Huge thanks goes to Rope4Boats for generously providing prizes throughout the season. A number of lucky boats are now sporting beautiful new tapered sheets. Thanks also to Christopher Eames for organising the tour, which remains hugely popular with 65 boats attending at least one event in 2023.
Plans are already afoot for the 2024 Southern Tour in what promises to be another bumper year in the class's 30th anniversary year. Keep your ears peeled for the schedule which will shortly be announced.
Overall Series Results: (boats who made 2 or more events)
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | QMary | Salc | Lee | Hayling | Arun | Lym | Island Barn SC | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 1535 | Tom Halhead | Paul Hilliar | 2 | | | 3 | 2 | | 2 | 9 |
| 2nd | 1528 | Christopher Eames | Rachel Tilley | 4 | | 2 | 4 | 3 | | | 13 |
| 3rd | 1481 | Howard Farbrother | Louise Hoskin / Jack Munnelly | | 2 | | 12 | 4 | | 1 | 19 |
| 4th | 1235 | Sam Pickering | Emily Heath | 6 | | 3 | 7 | | | 3 | 19 |
| 5th | 1539 | Steven Broomfield | Charlie Bell / Jenni Lewis | 7 | | 11 | ‑18 | 11 | 4 | | 33 |
| 6th | 1521 | Andy Powell | Chris Rolfe | 11 | | 18 | 24 | 8 | | | 61 |
| 7th | 1400 | James Stewart | Roger Gilbert / Sam Parker | 5 | | 6 | 5 | | | | 84 |
| 8th | 1377 | Neil Bevington | Alan Skeens | | | 5 | 8 | 5 | | | 86 |
| 9th | 1479 | Mick Whitmore | Sarah Whitmore | | 4 | | 16 | | | 5 | 93 |
| 10th | 1435 | Matt Sheahan | Ellie Sheahan | | | | 20 | 7 | | 7 | 102 |
| 11th | 1463 | Stewart Robertson | Sarah Robertson | | 3 | | | | 1 | | 140 |
| 12th | 1376 | Sam Knight | Chris Bownes | 3 | | | 1 | | | | 140 |
| 13th | 1192 | Jack Munnely | Lou Hosken / Rachel Tilley | | | 8 | | | 3 | | 147 |
| 14th | 1479 | Chris Webber | Nicola Webber | | | | 9 | 6 | | | 151 |
| 15th | 1447 | David Ryder | Michelle Ryder | 10 | | | | | | 6 | 152 |
| 16th | 880 | Tim Le Couilliard | James Le Couilliard | 8 | 12 | | | | | | 156 |
| 17th | 1470 | Ian Peace | Mike Barrett | 13 | | | | | | 9 | 158 |
| 18th | 1439 | Kevin Podger | Heather Chipperfield | | | 10 | 15 | | | | 161 |
| 19th | 1184 | Edward Smith | Christopher Spencer | | 14.5 | 12 | | | | | 162.5 |
| 20th | 765 | Andy Nicoll | Guy Halford | 12 | | 20 | | | | | 168 |
| 21st | 1324 | Grant Shoebridge | Richard Watney | | | | 25 | | | 10 | 171 |