ILCA Eastern GP Open at Waldringfield Sailing Club

A fleet of 35 sailors descended on Waldringfield on 27th April for our ILCA Open, the opening event on the new ILCA Eastern GP circuit.

It included 18 visitors coming from as far as Hickling and Burnham, with one even taking the coastal route from Orford.

ILCA Eastern GP Open at Waldringfield - photo © Alexis Smith

The forecast of light winds early on proved correct and a number of ILCA 4s took the chance to change up to 6s. With racing postponed, the fleet adopted the familiar meerkat pose of peering at the end of the river hoping for glimpses of breeze. Dark spots began appearing around midday and race officer Ian Videlo promptly sent us onto the water for the first of four races.

The wind quickly filled in to F3-4 and a windward-leeward course was set. With such large numbers the startline was a hectic affair and finding lanes was tricky but opportunities could be found with the shifts and occasional wind bend at the top of the course. It was close racing throughout the fleet with those getting ahead early and separating from the pack doing well. Soon after the first race, the tide changed and it was champagne sailing from there on beating with the current followed by long runs back to the leeward mark, with big gains and calamitous losses depending on which side of the river you took.

ILCA Eastern GP Open at Waldringfield - photo © Alexis Smith

Away at the top of the fleet it was also nip and tuck with Steve Videlo eventually winning the first three races, showing that 33 year old boats can still cut it in the right hands. Despite the dominance, it was tight racing all day with Nathan Russell, Dave Reason and Cameron Harris all having their moments. The most consistent challenge however came from Hamish Collingridge overtaking Steve on the last buoy of the day and taking a well-deserved second overall.

Congratulations to Steve who took the Laser Open Trophy for best overall and Hamish the Laser Challenge Trophy for best U21. Also many thanks to Ian and the team for helping the day go so smoothly.

ILCA Eastern GP Open at Waldringfield - photo © Alexis Smith

The next event on the Eastern GP circuit is at Royal Norfolk and Suffolk YC on 24th May.

Overall Results: