Felpham Sailing Club Clubhouse, RNLI Pennant and King George V Trophies
by James Gerwat 22 Apr 2019 22:45 PDT
21-22 April 2019
Felpham Sailing Club Clubhouse Trophy © Ian King, Matt Twist, Andy Conway
The Easter weekend at Felpham Sailing Club never disappoints with the Clubhouse & RNLI Pennant Trophies up for grabs on the Sunday, and the King George V Trophy on Monday.
However, new for this season, a further two trophies were added for the Slow Fleet entries (At FSC, our Slow Fleet is for boats with a handicap of 1207 or higher).
On Sunday, 26 boats took to the water for the first race of the day: The Clubhouse Trophy. The wind was Force 3 from the North East & a trapezoid course was set. However, the wind was moving around & as the clock went in to the 10 seconds before the go, it decided to shift & the fleet was frantically trying to tack on to port.
And so it would be one of those races when you think it's all panning out well for you, only to find yourself the wrong side of the next shift. Doh!
Funny how the cream always find it's way to the top... The Lark of Martin & Connor Gillam appeared to have the race sown up but Guy Mayger (Solo) had it all under control & still won the Clubhouse Trophy by 50 seconds on corrected time. Richard Ganley (Blaze) came in a creditable 3rd.
Further back in the Slow Fleet, it was all very close. Yet another Mayger, this time Katie Mayger in her first race in the Laser 4.7 won the Clubhouse Trophy (Slow Fleet) by 9 seconds on corrected time over Paula Bentley (Byte C1).
The second race of the day was for the RNLI Pennant Trophy. The wind moved to the NNE & the race officer adjusted the course. We still had 23 boats come to the start line. The wind kept moving around & the tide came in to play making it all very tricky for those involved!
As in any sport, it's all about consistency. The first 3 places were exactly the same as the previous race; Guy Mayger (Solo), Martin & Connor Gillam (Lark) & Richard Ganley (Blaze). So Guy Mayger had a well deserved two trophy haul for the day.
In the Slow Fleet, the Byte C1s had a close battle for the RNLI Pennant (Slow Fleet) Trophy with Jo Andrews just pipping Paula Bentley by 3 seconds!
Easter Monday arrived with some cloud cover & a steady easterly breeze of 12 knots. Two races were scheduled, both to count for the King George V Trophy.
We had 32 boats come to the start line. Race Officer for the day (Guy Mayger) set a 'P' course and just as we got under way the wind decided to drop as the sun tried to battle through the clouds.
The RS600 of Tim Cutsforth disappeared in to the distance followed by the RS200 of Luke Mapley & Lauren Bentley. Not far behind was Martin Gillam in the Lark with new crew member Jim Butler.
Richard Ganley (Blaze) continued his excellent form from the day before & was kept under pressure by Callum Aldous (DZero), who appears to have now found speed in the light winds as well as the heavy winds.
Once the handicaps were applied, the top 5 positions after race 1 were; RS 200 (Luke Mapley & Lauren Bentley), Lark (Martin Gillam & Jim Butler), Blaze (Richard Ganley), DZero (Callum Aldous), Aero 7 (Jack Miller).
There were five Slow Fleet entries; 1 Pico, 2 RS Teras & 2 Toppers. The Pico of Sean Hull was 1st on corrected time, followed by Josie Kelly (RS Tera), Ollie Wattam (Topper), Mia Gray (RS Tera) & Luke Roberts (Topper 4.2).
For the second, deciding race, the course was adjusted as the wind had dropped. The first beat was much shorter than the previous race & anxiety set in amongst the sailors will there be carnage at the windward mark?
Getting off the line as quickly as possible & finding clear air was the aim. Once again, the RS200, the RS600, the Blaze (Mark Phillips) & the Lark executed this well, followed closely by the Supernova (James Gerwat).
The second beat mixed it all up again there were many losses & gains to be had. Despite a bad start, race of the day has to go to Callum Aldous (D-Zero), who nailed the second beat and managed to put pressure on the RS200 & the Blaze of Mark Phillips.
The Slow Fleet saw Sean Hull (Pico) win again. Followed by Ollie Wattam (Topper), Josie Kelly (RS Tera), Luke Roberts (Topper 4.2) & Mia Gray (RS Tera).
So the 2019 King George V Trophy goes to Luke Mapley & Lauren Bentley who won both races. With both Callum Aldous & Martin Gillam/Jim Butler finishing on 6 points, 2nd place overall was awarded to Callum Aldous on countback.
The Slow Fleet trophy winner (title of trophy to be decided) was Sean Hull in the Pico.
Overall Results:
Clubhouse Trophy
1st Guy Mayger
2nd Martin & Connor Gillam
3rd Richard Ganley
Slow Fleet
1st Katie Mayger
2nd Paula Bentley
3rd Jo Andrews
RNLI Pennant Trophy
1st Guy Mayger
2nd Martin & Connor Gillam
3rd Richard Ganley
Slow Fleet
1st Jo Andrews
2nd Paula Bentley
3rd Mia Gray
King George V Trophy
1st Luke Mapley & Lauren Bentley
2nd Callum Aldous
3rd Martin Gillam & Jim Butler
Slow Fleet
1st Sean Hull
2nd Ollie Wattam
3rd Josie Kelly
Full results can be found here.