Syman dominates Horowhenua Cup for Paper Tigers

by Rowdy Leatham on 26 Oct 2011
Glenn Syman (Evans Bay Yacht & Motor Boat Club) has won the first regatta in the Paper Tiger North Island Freshwater Series in a dominant display at the Horowhenua Cup at Lake Wairarapa over Labour weekend.

Lake Wairarapa put on zero to six knot conditions for the first regatta of the season with the race committee lead by Paul Davies doing well to get any races completed let alone the five that were finally finished by Sunday afternoon (with plenty of time left before the mighty All Blacks win!).

The regatta was again a taught fought contest as has become a feature of the series over the years, however Glenn Syman showed his light weather expertise by taking all five bullets during the regatta (even if one was by less than half a metre).

Saturday saw two races completed in very light conditions along with an awkward wave pattern running in the opposite direction to the minimal wind. Syman won the first race after showing some magnificent light downwind sailing skills along with picking some fantastic puffs up the second beat.

The second race came down to the wire with Syman taking the victory from John Thomson by less than half a boat length after the three leading boats rounded the final mark within three boat lengths.

Sunday dawned with very little wind again, with results so close on day one everything was to play for on the final day with both the Horowhenua Cup title up for grabs and points for the North Island Freshwater Series up for grabs. Race three, four and five saw Syman again show his dominance with three more victories. With the wind dropping, the rain threatening, time ticking away before the Rugby World Cup Final and a clear winner of the regatta it was time to call an end to racing.

The Paper Tiger North Island Freshwater Series is regatta series held over four regattas around the North Island (Lake Wairarapa, Lake Ngaroto, Turangi, and Taupo) during the season.

Points are tallied at each regatta, with no drops allowed at any individual regatta (making consistency essential).
The overall series winner is calculated by allowing each sailor to count 3 regattas from the 4 in the series.

Final results for the Horowhenua Cup:
1st Glenn Syman (Evans Bay Yacht & Motor Boat Club)
2nd Ryan (Rowdy) Leatham (New Plymouth Yacht Club)
3rd Scott Pedersen (Napier Sailing Club)

Full results can be found at http://papertiger.org.nz/results.htm

w: www.papertiger.org.nz