29er Coached Racing Weekend at Plas Heli Welsh National Sailing Academy
by Merrion Edwards 15 Sep 2020 15:45 AEST
5-6 September 2020
29er coached racing weekend at Pwllheli © Will Willett & Paul Burke
On the weekend of 5th/6th September several of the top 29ers in the UK came to Plas Heli, the Welsh National Sailing Academy and Events Centre in Pwllheli, for a weekend of coached racing on a full championship course using Plas Heli's race equipment facilities.
Due to the COVID lockdown, for all boats this was the first time that they had raced on a championship course since February and so it was a great way to hone their skiff racing skills ready for the first 29er Grand Prix of the year in late September. And Pwllheli did not disappoint: Day 1 delivered four tight races in glamour conditions of 15 to 21 knots with sunshine and plenty of waves to spice up the gybes.
On Day 2 no sail rigging was needed thanks to 5-star indoor parking in the Plas Heli hanger, so the 29ers launched quickly and early, sailing out into a quiet bay with dramatic cloudy skies and a greeting from 3 dolphin pods having mackerel for breakfast.
Four closely contested races were held to complete the series of 8 in an 11-17 kt breeze with testing shifts off the land. Overall winners of the event were the Welsh/Scottish pairing of Elodie Edwards and Ewan Wilson, 2nd and 3rd place went to Aled Llewelyn-Jones/Ben Bradley and Tom Storey/Ben Willett. The 29er sailors would like to express their thanks to Pwllheli Sailing Club and Plas Heli for welcoming them again to their world-class sailing venue. Many thanks also to RYA Wales/Cymru for their support for the event.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | R8 | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 2905 | Elodie Edwards | Ewan Wilson | 1 | ‑2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| 2nd | 2898 | Aled Llewelyn‑Jones | Ben Bradley | 3 | 1 | ‑5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 18 |
| 3rd | 2982 | Tom Storey | Ben Willett | 2 | 3 | 2 | 4 | ‑5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 19 |
| 4th | 2753 | Sian Talbot | Maddie Bristow | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | ‑6 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 22 |
| 5th | 1286 | Maxi Tustain | Alfie Coggar | 5 | ‑7 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 36 |
| 6th | 2806 | Tom Burke | Tommy Willett | 6 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 7 | (RET) | 39 |
| 7th | 1490 | Tasmyn Green | Tyler Green | ‑7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 42 |