National 12 Open Meeting, Vintage Championships and Training Day at Whitefriars Sailing Club

Training kicked off with a briefing in the club house by Graham Camm on the structure and plans for the day, following which the nine boats were split into two groups based on ability and experience.

Each boat was then inspected onshore for rig and controls set up and any necessary tweaks and adjustments made before the on the water sessions commenced. In the morning the two groups were put through their paces by the coaching teams of Graham Camm and Toby Owen and Kevin Iles, Ed Willett and Sarah Robinson. Classroom debrief and tuition sessions followed analysing the on-the-water film footage.

Race 3 start action - photo © Oscar Lee

Following lunch training resumed albeit with fewer boats as the first races of the Vintage Championships kicked off with three races run to the Derwent handicap system for the J&T Hancock trophy. This system allows for a first calibration race run on a scratch basis. The following two races are then effectively pursuit races with start times determined by the finishing gaps in the first race with the slowest boat going off first and the race length determined by the time last boat finished the first race - in this case 50 minutes. Having comfortably won the first race, David Peacock and Lesly Iles (2620) had to start with a 12 minute deficit to Rob Owen and Gianluca Corrado (1650) but nevertheless steadily worked their way through the other competitors to post three comfortable wins.

That evening the hot and weary sailors relaxed at the Whitefriars clubhouse for a BBQ cooked up by club members - huge thanks and credit to Simon Portman, Gianluca Corrado and Helen Parkin, and everyone else who mucked in especially Dom and Gilly Horner for tidying up and getting all the dishes done.

Jamie Grigor and Eli Baxter (3467) with Ed and Matt Firth (3244) - photo © Oscar Lee

Sunday 31st May, Open Meeting and Day Two of the Vintage Championships

Sundays forecast had promised more wind and less heat and the weather gods duly smiled upon the event by providing a squally force 4 which steadily increased through the day even creating (unusually for Whitefriars) waves at the bottom of the lake.

Sunday Rcae 1 start - photo © Gilly Horner

With 20 entries including 8 visitors the racing promised to be busy and exciting. Club stalwart and long time N12 sailor Jim Aldis was Race Officer and set a long beat the full length of the lake followed by tricky fetch, a gybe on to a dead run followed by a fast broad reach to another gybe mark at the bottom of the lake followed by another fetch and back on to the beat. The windward mark was particularly challenging for the competitors with dramatic wind shifts and gusts and huge gains/losses could be made here.

Sunday Race 1 first beat action - photo © Gilly Horner

In race one the vintage boats showed that they could still hold their own with their modern counterparts and David Peacock & Lesley Iles (2620) and Ed Willett & Sarah Robinson (1833) rounded the windward mark together, clear ahead of the rest of the fleet. David and Lesley built an almost unassailable lead before being advised by the Safety Boat that they were OCS and so retired to let Chris & Seb Day (3526) into the lead which they comfortably held to the finish to take the first win of the day ahead of another on-form father-son team of Steve & Austin Burgoine (3489). Meanwhile Kevin Iles & Iolanthe Iosiphedes (3527) having noted the OCS flag, went back thus starting last. They climbed back to 3rd but then hit a mark and dropped back to 5th, got back to 2nd but then had to do turns after an incident with Steve & Austin dropping them back to 5th again before finally finishing a very close 3rd. The irony being that they weren't over the line at all and it was Kevin's wife who was OCS (crewing with David in 2620) perhaps costing Kevin & Iolanthe the overall win!

Windward mark action - photo © Oscar Lee

In race 2 Chris & Seb made no mistake and rounded the windward mark in first, with Ed & Sarah again hot on their heels in their vintage 12. Chris & Seb sailed off into a huge lead to take their second win of the day whilst the modern foiled rudder boats soon came past the vintage boat on the fast offwind legs and Kevin & Iolanthe posted 2nd with the super light pairing of Tre & Jax Jacobs (3429) coming in 3rd.

Following a lunch break ashore the tired sailors went afloat again and race 3 commenced with Tre & Jax showing their form by coming through to take the win ahead of Kevin & Iolanthe and Chris & Seb.

Trystan Leonard and Lyla Jacobs in N3458 - photo © Oscar Lee

The final race was the windiest and the sailors were keen to get going, so much so that they had their first general recall of the day with the Safety boat having to round up those who either didnt hear the signal or chose not to! Once the race finally got going Kevin & Iolanthe posted their first win of the day having led at the windward mark, with Steve & Austin notching up another 2nd place and Robbie & Charlotte Stewart (3501) coming through to take 3rd after Tre and Jax had capsized.

The overall Open Meeting win went to Chris & Seb on count back, with Kevin & Iolanthe 2nd and a delighted Steve & Austin in 3rd.

Simon Portman and Bronwen Morris - photo © Oscar Lee

Notable performances from David Harris & Daniel Sadler (3290) posting two 4ths to take 6th overall in the first non-foiling 12 and Trystan Leonard & Lyla Jacobs (3458) taking 8th overall and placing 5th in the final race and being the highest placed home boat in that race.

Robert and Charlotte Stewart in N3501 - photo © Oscar Lee

Credit is also due to the Vintage 12 sailors (and boats for surviving!) for persevering through Day Two of their championships as the conditions made for very tiring sailing - congratulations to John Sears & Robin O'Keefe (1903) for winning day two of the Vintage champs. They had a race long tussle with Ed & Sarah in the first race, finally catching them and taking the win right on the finish line. In race 2 they posted a 3rd, but (with David & Lesley electing to not sail the afternoon) were back in front for race 3, cementing the overall win in race 4 which Ed & Sarah sat out, and indeed were the only vintage boat to finish that race as Alan Mason & Peter Goodwin (1607) unfortunately capsized - which was no shame as they were just one of many capsizes on the day.

Oops! (Tre and Jax Jacobs) - photo © Oscar Lee

Prizes were also awarded to the top three home boats to encourage participation in the Class and event. David & Daniel unsurprisingly took 1st place however it was truly impressive to see young Trystan Leonard take 2nd, inspired no doubt by crew Lyla's influence and enthusiasm and a fantastic 3rd place went to the mum and daughter team of Emma & Chloe Brisley (3234) who are now showing excellent form and becoming a force to reckoned with.

Richard and Sophie Trevithick in N2679 - photo © Oscar Lee

Also noteworthy performances from Jamie Grigor & Eli Baxter sailing a N12 for the very first time and finishing all four races despite some capsizes, together with Simon Portman whose crew Bronwen Morris had last sailed a N12 some 38 years ago!

Overall an excellent weekend of N12 sailing to what is fast becoming a popular fixture on the N12 calendar.

Emma and Chloe Brisley in N3234 - photo © Oscar Lee

Huge thanks to our sponsor Blood Red Clothing for providing additional prizes and especially all from Whitefriars who made the event happen - Jim Aldis as Race Officer on both days, Miriam Parkman as ARO on Sunday, Barry Hargreaves as Safety Officer both days with Nick Ardagh-Walter ASO on Saturday and James Borg ASO on Sunday together with Dick and James Bradford as additional Safety on Sunday.

John Sears and Robin O'Keefe, with Ed Willett (centre) and sponsor David Harris (left) - photo © Lyla Jacobs

Kevin Iles and Iolanthe Iosephedes at prizegiving with Ed Willett (centre) and david Harris of Blood Red (left) - photo © Lyla Jacobs

Lesley Iles accepts the JandT Hancock trophy from Ed Willett - photo © Lyla Jacobs

Overall winners, Chris and Seb Day, with Ed Willett (right) and David Harris (left) - photo © Lyla Jacobs

Overall Results: