Solo Northern Series at Elton Sailing Club

Martin Honnor upwind during the Solo Northern Series at Elton © Trevor Ormerod

Solo Northern Series at Elton © Trevor Ormerod

Solo Northern Series at Elton © Trevor Ormerod

What more could you want from a sailing Open Meeting? A dedicated, friendly and technically proficient organisation, a pleasingly full patch of inland water, good breeze and joyous but tough competition throughout the fleet, all sponsored by Winder Boats who service the fleet with spares and support at events.

You can scour the world and spend eye watering sums of money for challenge and reward and the Solo offers events right on your door-step for a £15 entry fee and a few quid in the petrol tank.

Boats can stay competitive for over twenty years, an enthusiastic band of sailmakers provide sailors of varying sizes a set up that will allow them to be competitive. Getting to the start line with kit that's good enough to win can be a tiny fraction of the price of other classes.

It is s a hiking class so you have to be prepared to "pull the tripe out" if its gets windy and you want to hang in at the front, but the reward is a slippy slidy glidy rip downwind.

Innes Armstrong was the first to show his aptitude, quickly followed by ineptitude as he sailed off to the wrong mark, the chasing fleet kindly helped correct his error raising the alarm once the overtake was secured of course.

Martin Honnor took the honours and was clearly highly motivated to be first ashore for the pie. And by eck, what a pie. GO TO ELTON FOR THE PIE!

The youth of the fleet Stephen Denison slipped around (or did he) the starboard tack boats at the first windward mark and sailed to a comfortable win in race 2.

Any of five boats could win going into the last race and with places swapping and the front handful enjoying some classic nip and tuck inland racing. In the end, it was Honnor who was always in control and held off the challengers who claimed the win from Denison.

Solo Northern Series at Elton winners (l-r) Endeavour Prize David Gaunt, Ladies Prize Justine Davenport, Winner Martin Honnor, 2nd Stephen Denison, 3rd Paul Brotherton - photo © Innes Armstrong

A cracking day out, pound for pound the best sailing on the planet. Get one - and get involved.

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