Snipe open meeting at Stone Sailing Club

Start - Snipe open meeting at Stone © Mike Stone

With big winds in the forecast, 16 Snipes headed to Stone Sailing Club in Essex for the annual open meeting, looking forward to an exciting weekend's sailing.

Two of the junior team heading to the Junior Worlds were also in attendance. Brothers Harry and George Burgess were competing together in only their second senior Snipe event, while Adam Aziz and George Gillespie were at their first. Adam helmed for 2018 National Champion Mark Antonelli, and George crewed for reigning National Champion Yohei Koso, gaining valuable experience ahead of the championships.

Before the event began on Friday, a few boats headed out for some training and tuning. Tim and Kay Tavinor, Peter Wolstenholme, Lloyd Roberts and Eric Paalman all took part, with support from Steve Hall of Allen Brothers and Paul Manning on the RIB. As the rest of the fleet arrived that evening, a delicious Chinese meal prepared by club chef Mark was followed by a weigh-in for a couple of boats heading to the Senior Worlds in September.

Saturday morning brought heavy rain and plenty of wind. After some discussion with Race Officer Neil Fulchure about whether conditions were above the class limit, with the forecast showing 25 knots and gusts of 35-plus by the planned 12:30 start, the fleet launched for three scheduled races on a triangular course. From shore, conditions looked perfectly manageable, but the offshore wind and low tide proved deceptive.

Out on the water it was blustery, shifty and challenging. Right on cue, just two minutes before the start signal, the forecast breeze arrived. Two boats were taken out before the start, while the rest of the fleet sensibly gave each other plenty of room on the line.

Adam and Mark made the best of the first beat, rounding the windward mark in the lead. Unfortunately, a broken tiller extension caused a crash gybe on the first reach, sending them for a swim. Richard Marshall and Ewan Harris then took over at the front before their pole snapped, allowing Yohei and George through into the lead. They held on to take the win, with the Race Officer sensibly shortening the race to one lap and sending the fleet ashore.

Richard and Ewan finished close behind in second. A 35-knot gust at the gybe mark put another two boats over, allowing Matthew Wolstenholme and Freddie Scott to thread their way through the chaos into third. Joe and Mike Warwicker snuck inside Tim and Kay, and Peter and Cassandra Shand, at the leeward mark to claim fourth.

After another excellent meal, this time chicken wraps prepared by chef Mark, and a few well-earned beers, the boats heading to the Worlds carried out a moment of inertia test to position their ballast as effectively as possible within the class rules. After some lengthy debate over the correct value to use for the spring constant, the boats were signed off and the sailors returned to the bar.

Run - Snipe open meeting at Stone - photo © Mike Stone

Sunday brought a much nicer day, with more moderate breeze and the sun beginning to break through the clouds. The start time was brought forward to 10:00 to allow a fourth race to be added to the schedule. Neil once again set a triangular course for the first two races, with the forecast still suggesting that the wind would build as the races go under way.

The first race on Sunday started in a pleasant 10 knots, gusting 15. With the tide still ebbing, Adam and Mark again led at the first windward mark, having successfully headed inshore out of the tide, pursued by Joe and Mike. Alan Williams and Liz Pike made the best of the second beat, taking advantage of a 20-degree wind shift to tack offshore while others prioritised the tide. Their decision paid off, and they moved into the lead. Yohei and George took second, with Joe and Mike third.

Race three was another close contest. As the tide eased, more boats were able to follow Alan and Liz's example from the previous race, playing the shifts in the channel and looking for pressure. Yohei and George led from start to finish, with Joe and Mike second and Matthew and Freddie third, all finishing within a few boat lengths of each other.

For race four, Neil switched to a windward-leeward course, as the wind had not yet increased as forecast. Sod's law dictated that this was exactly when the breeze did begin to build, but at 14 knots gusting 18, conditions remained suitable for the course, so it stayed in place for the rest of the day.

After one recall, the second start got away under U flag, catching out Peter and Cas. At the windward mark, the leading boats chose the left-hand side of the run, while many further back spotted a gust on the right and sailed around the leaders. Matthew and Freddie took the lead ahead of Tim and Kay at the leeward mark. Tim and Kay reversed the advantage on the second beat, moving into the lead at the next windward mark, with Yohei and George climbing to third.

Those positions held to the finish, despite never being separated by more than a couple of boat lengths.

Podium - Snipe open meeting at Stone - photo © Mike Stone

By the final race, Yohei and George had already secured an unassailable lead, but the next four or five boats could still reach the podium if they got the race right.

Joe and Mike led at the windward mark, but Yohei and George took the lead on the run and held it to the finish, signing off the regatta in style. Behind them, there was plenty of place-changing, with Alan and Liz, and Tim and Kay, both moving into second at various mark roundings. Joe and Mike ultimately took second on the line after a well-sailed final leg, moving up from fourth at the leeward mark to secure second overall.

Matthew and Freddie went the other way, slipping from fifth to seventh, but did just enough to hold on to the final step of the podium.

Congratulations to Yohei and George on a commanding victory, and a huge thank you to Stone Sailing Club and everyone involved for once again putting on a fantastic event. The fleet is looking forward to returning next year.

Next up for the UK Snipe fleet is Bough Beech on 4-5 July. We hope to see you there, and good luck to the British boats heading to the Italian Nationals and the European Cup in Poland in the meantime.

First Women's team - Snipe open meeting at Stone - photo © Mike Stone

Overall Results: