Serpentine Cup Team Racing at Tamesis Club
by John Dunkley 1 Apr 2008 07:50 BST
29 March 2008
Tamesis Club's first and second teams both won their way through to the final in some exciting sailing at the annual inter-club team race for the Serpentine Cup on Teddington reach on Saturday 29 March.
With a warning of gale force winds and heavy rain for later in the day, Race Officer Brian Southcott lost no time in getting the racing off to an early start and the first rounds were sailed in bright sunshine and a moderate to fresh south westerly wind. Even so one of the Thames SC boats unfortunately suffered two capsizes and that destroyed their chance of progressing further, leaving London Corinthian SC and Hampton SC to share equal third place.
The wind veered to the west and strengthened considerably for the final, which was won by Tamesis One, represented by Andrew Harris and Andy Douglas and Phil Plumtree and Charlie Morgan, in a fast thinking, fast moving contest described by Tamesis Commodore Peter Mason at the prizegiving as "like playing chess on the water".
They were presented with a magnum of champagne along with the Serpentine Cup by the Rear Commodore Sailing of the Royal Thames YC, Bernard Kinchin, who recalled that the Royal Thames had originally presented the cup for an inter-club event on the Serpentine where it had been won by Tamesis in three successive years. Tamesis was then deemed to have won it outright and re-presented the cup for an annual inter-club team race on the Thames.
The race was sailed by two boat teams in Merlin Rockets. The on the water umpires were Ricky Walters, Bernard Kinchin, David Law and Chris Simon.
Overall Results:
1st Tamesis One (Andrew Harris & Andy Douglas, Phil Plumtree & Charlie Morgan)
2nd Tamesis Two (David Vines & Joe Woods, John Adams & Doug Pope)
3rd= London Corinthian SC (Alan Beaney & Jess Holly, Rhys Triffitt & Simon Hills)
3rd= Hampton SC (John Bell & Duncan Bell, Phil Dalby & Suzi Bell)
5th Thames SC (Nick Hoskins & Chris Martin, Kevin Pearson & Nick Fribbins)