ILCA 7 Rooster / Noble Marine Qualifier 5 at the WPNSA

Of the 170 entries, 41 ILCA 7s registered for the ILCA UK Qualifier 5 at WPNSA, the competitors were all set for an exciting weekend of racing. However, with Sunday's forecast predicting gusts of up to 50 knots, it was clear Saturday would likely be the only day of racing.

In response to the forecast, the Race Committee scheduled 4 races for Day 1 in Portland Harbour. Fortunately, the sailors were treated to clear skies and a lovely breeze of 8-14 knots. The wind, starting from a WNW direction, ensured this wouldn't be tour typical "smash left" day, offering plenty of opportunities and tight racing across the fleet.

ILCAuk Rooster/ Noble Marine Qualifier 5 at the WPNSA - photo © Steven Angell

Race 1 - saw Micky Beckett take the win, Ewan McMahon 2nd and Elliot Hanson 3rd.
Race 2 had Finley Dickinson and Tim Evans black flagged. Arthur Farley 1st, Ewan McMahon 2nd and Luke Anstey 3rd. Sam Grayton had his best race of the day with an 8th.
Race 3 - Elliot Hanson 1st, Sebastian Kempe 2nd and James Foster 3rd.
Race 4 - Alastair Brown 1st, Eillot Hanson 2nd and James Juhasz 3rd.

ILCAuk Rooster/ Noble Marine Qualifier 5 at the WPNSA - photo © Steven Angell

ILCAuk Rooster/ Noble Marine Qualifier 5 at the WPNSA - photo © Steven Angell

Elliot Hanson

Today we did 4 races in the harbour in a backing breeze which was really tricky. I'm struggling to remember a day in the harbour as challenging - often in the autumn, when the water is still quite warm and the air moves over, it can be deceptive, but we also had a 30 degrees left shift (which was forecast) and therefore we had to change the strategy in every race. But what we had in the ILCA7 fleet was one shift first beats - this meant that overtaking was difficult. Especially in flat water 8 to 10 knots and when boat speeds are so similar. You could argue that 270°/280°the right is good then if it goes to 250° /260° then it's the left. Sure, it certainly wasn't straightforward.

(taken from Jon Emmett's video interview)

A big thank you goes out to all ILCAuk's sponsors and a special mention to Rooster and Noble Marine who sponsored the weekend's racing.

Overall Results: