Laser Open
Royal Harwich Yacht Club Laser Open 2nd October 2011
Twenty-five Lasers arrived at the Royal Harwich Yacht Club in Woolverstone on Sunday morning. The solid home fleet of ten lasers and visitors were greeted by some fantastic temperatures and sunshine, with a few signs of a light south-westerly breeze. This year the fleet was in the good hands of Race Officer Chris Brown who set three excellent courses on the River Orwell.
To get things moving quickly Chris Brown set a windward-leeward course with the tide flooding. The starts were hotly contested, and after a recall with too many keen starters over the line, the fleet got away in a nice breeze.
After a good first beat local sailor Steve Elias rounded first, followed by fellow Royal Harwich member Chris Mayhew. Elias led to the leeward mark but was overtaken on the beat by Mayhew who extended his lead to the finish.
A good number of competitors were under 18's, from local clubs, Adam Fuller showing some good form in light breeze from the Orwell Yacht club and local sailor Daniel Patten in his first Laser Open in his 4.7 class, both Topper sailors new to the Laser class. The Royal Hospital School sent a strong fleet from just down the road.
The second race again had a close start, this time Royal Harwich sailor Peter Richardson had a good first beat to round first, followed by David Summerville from Hertford County Yacht Club and Mayhew. The course was now a familiar sausage-triangle-sausage, with the OOD keeping the fleet on their toes. It was all close at the end of the first sausage, but Mayhew again showed some upwind performance to lead clearly by the windward mark for the triangle lap. Mayhew maintained his lead to the finish with Richardson and Summerville fighting for second and third respectively.
The Race Officer and team had his work cut out for the third race, with the wind dropping and fluctuating. After a brief pause Chris Brown set an interesting course on the top of the tide and the wind was lighter but relatively steady. Those boats starting on the left of the line took an advantage of a bend in the wind on port tack lifting them to the first mark on port. Veronica Falat from Waveney and Oulton Broad led around the first mark followed by Summerville. The fleet bunched on the first run, with Adam Fuller showing an impressive downwind speed to move up into third place.
The wind backed on the next beat keeping places consistent before the wind began to drop on the reach. On the run a brief sea breeze killed the land breeze for a few frustrating moments, before racing resumed and the land breeze resumed. Falat eventually took line honours before the fleet returned for tea on the lawn to wrap up an amazingly sunny October sail.
Results:
1st 2 points 166624 Chris Mayhew - Royal Harwich Yacht Club
2nd 5 points 178382 Veronica Falat - Waveney and Oulton Broad Yacht
Club
3rd 7 points 27087 David Summerville - Hertford County Yacht Club
4th= 7 points 183200 Graham Ireland - Royal Harwich Yacht Club
4th= 7 points 185648 Peter Richardson - Royal Harwich Yacht Club
6th 8 points 78 Nikola Crujic - Royal Harwich Yacht Club
Under 18's
Adam Fuller - Orwell Yacht Club
