Sika Weymouth Dinghy Regatta 2019 at Castle Cove Sailing Club
by Tony Dobbs 18 Jul 2019 00:02 PDT
13-14 July 2019
Sika Weymouth Dinghy Regatta © Richard White
Last weekend, 13th and 14th July, Castle Cove Sailing Club hosted the 2019 Sika Weymouth Open Dinghy Regatta. It was very well attended with just under 100 boats competing, and many more supporters and spectators from all over the UK using club facilities over the weekend.
The event is the biggest open event of the year for the Club and involves a massive effort from volunteers. The Club Commodore, Neil Stroud, undertook the catering with his wife Leah and volunteers. He said, "The catering involved long hours and plenty of planning. We sold 500 rolls and 122 lasagnas, among other things. But overall the feedback from our visitors was excellent with many saying it is the best location, and was a well run event both on and off the water; this made it all worthwhile."
There were six classes competing in a total of six races; three on Saturday and three on Sunday, all run back to back. Conditions on Saturday in Weymouth Bay were challenging, with northerly winds resulting in waves and swell in opposite directions. As a result, one boat returned with a seasick crew! On Sunday conditions in Portland harbour were more stable, with south-easterly wind of 10 to 12 knots for most of the time.
The final results in the different classes were as follows. In the Asymmetric class, A and J Peters from the Queen Mary SC were first in a fleet of 16 boats. In the Fast handicap class, G Truswell from Poole was first from 15 boats. In the smallest class of 11 craft, Fireballs, A and C Tyler from Lyme Regis were the winners. In the Ospreys class, D Edwards of Mounts Bay SC, Marazion and M Greig, Tata SC Port Talbot, were the winners in a very close competition with 18 boats.
In the largest class, the Scorpions with 22 boats, the winners were A McKee and S Graham from Dovestone SC, Oldham. In the Slow Handicap Class, from 17 competitors the clear winner was A Snell from the Army Sailing Association.
Find out more at www.weymouthdinghyregatta.uk