Hoosiers win the RYA National Team Racing Championship
Mixed conditions for 2015 title chase
The Royal
Forth Hoosiers were worthy winners of the 2015 RYA National Team Racing
Championship, hosted by the UK Team Racing Association and Rutland Sailing Club
on 21-22 March.
Twenty-four
of the best teams from across the UK were competing at the event, including the
recently selected GBR squad for the forthcoming ISAF Team Racing World
Championships – West Kirby Hawks (GBR 1), Royal Forth Hoosiers (GBR 2), and
Bristol University (GBR 3).
The ISAF Team Racing Worlds will also be held at Rutland Sailing Club from 19-24
July 2015.
The competition
started in a fresh 15-20 knot breeze on Saturday, necessitating the use of cut
down mainsails on the fleets of 12-foot Firefly dinghies. These were generously
loaned for the event by Uppingham, Oundle and Oakham Schools and Rutland
Sailing Club. All the boats remained in service throughout the weekend due to
the skill and dedicated effort of the boatswain team, headed by Tim Litt. The
wind eased a little in the afternoon allowing the use of the standard sail plan.
The first
stage of the Championship consisted of four seeded leagues, each comprising six
teams. The winners of the first round leagues were the West Kirby Hawks,
Hoosiers, Itchenor and Cambridge Blue with the Hoosiers (Tim Saxton, Rob
Friend, Mark Powell, Isobel Walker, George Clark, Holly Scott) showing
impressive form and not dropping a race.
After 60
races, the fleet was reclassified for the second stage into Gold, Silver and
Bronze leagues of eight teams each, by the end of Saturday 92 races had been
completed.
On Sunday
morning, the conditions had changed completely providing a light 3 – 6 knot breeze
to the relief of many crews. Unfortunately, as forecast, the breeze died during
the day, and, despite the best efforts of the Principal Race Officer Chris
Riley, only a further 23 races were able to be sailed. This did not permit
completion of the full second stage series or the final knockout heats.
The
Championship was decided on the results of the second stage races that had been
sailed. The Hoosiers were convincing winners, having not lost a race throughout
the competition, and were presented the Prince Philip Trophy.
Runners up
in the Gold league were Itchenor SC (George Yeoman,
Sophie Ormsby, Andy Shaw, Pippa Horne, Rob Struckett and Rosie Sibthorp) and third equal were the West Kirby Hawks and Cambridge Blue.
Winners of
the Silver league were Bristol Alumni with Manchester Purple heading up the
Bronze League.
Further
results and details of the event can be found at: https://sites.google.com/site/uktra2015
Over the
previous weekend, 14-15 March, Spinnaker Sailing Club hosted the 2015 RYA and
BUSA Ladies’ Team Racing Championship. The
standard of team racing was high across the board with Society (Claire Lasko,
Bethan Carden, Alexa Schuler, Nikki Russell, Rachel Jarvis, Emma Derby) taking
the win after beating Spinnaker 2-0 in the final.
The next major team racing competition will be the Wilson Trophy (the
unofficial British Open Team Racing Championship), which is being hosted by the
West Kirby SC on the Wirral, 8-10 May 2015.
Information
on the ISAF Team Racing World Championship, 19-24 July, is available at: www.rutlandteamracing.org.uk