Horning Sailing Club Open Dinghy Weekend 2016
by Holly Hancock 26 Sep 2016 07:51 BST
24-25 September 2016
HSC Open Dinghy weekend was a lively event, held over the weekend of 24/25th September with plenty of action. The Club was holding special celebrations to recognise the Enterprise Dinghy's 60th Anniversary and the focus was very much on the bright blue sails, with several of the Enterprise fleet from its heyday in the 1960s returning to the club to share photographs and memories. The weekend was very much a convergence of old and new – with four boats over 58 years old, yet many sailed by younger sailors, largely under 16 years old. The event also celebrated the family spirit of the Enterprise class, with three generations of the Edwards family on the water, racing at the same time.
Saturday afternoon's blustery conditions saw sailing take place on Hoveton Little Broad, with Enterprises, Lasers and a Splash taking part. In the shifty winds most of the action took place amongst the Enterprises - largely sailed by youngsters from HSC's Training Centre, although there were several spectacular capsizes from the Lasers. On the first race Thomas Wildman fell out of the boat whilst crewing Jack Copping, the young team doing well to finish third behind Thomas' brother Edward, crewed by William Symonds, who were second, and Kevin and Pippa Edwards who were first. The second race was not without event, early race leader Kevin found himself taking penalty turns on the first lap which allowed Jack Barnham, crewed by his father – Vice Commodore Andy, to sail past and lead for most of the second lap, although eventually finishing in second place behind Kevin. Edward and William capsized whilst in the top three boats, putting an early end to their race, despite showing enterprising spirit as after righting the boat, the helm jumped out to make it easier for the crew to bail the water, however unfortunately there was too much for it to have the desired effect. Meanwhile, in the Allcomers B fleet, Jonas Osborn started strongly with two wins in his Laser.
Sunday saw a several new crews added to the equation – including number of visiting boats from Hickling and Barton. In light of the forecast strong winds, the Race Officer took the decision to move the racing to the river outside the Clubhouse. Eight Enterprises made it to the start line of the first race to compete for the Woodcock Salver event, although two retired shortly after, as the winds suddenly picked up causing one to almost capsize and fill with water, while Pippa Edwards was left to practice a man overboard drill after sister Ellie fell out of the boat whilst helming. During the race the drama continued, the lead three boats taking the second buoy the wrong way, with only one, Kevin unwinding to finish third, behind visitors Benjy Jefferies and Oscar Norris who were second, and home sailors Edward and William who were first. The remainder of the races were less eventful, but nonetheless provided close racing, with Kevin and Pippa taking two further first places, the Flying Enterprise Trophy and the Flirtatious Cup for helm and crew. Jack Copping received a further two second places, with Edward Wildman and Joel Bailey each receiving a third and fourth place during the day. The Cadet Trophy for under 16s and Broads Area Trophy for Under 20s both went to Edward Wildman and William Symonds.
By Sunday the Allcomers B fleet had expanded from Lasers and a Splash to include a Feva, Wayfarer and an RS300. Jonas consolidated his lead from Saturday with three further first places, making it a clean sweep of results and picking up the Onyx Barometer, Hannant Trophy and Tino Trophy. Joint second overall were the Lasers of Dominic Copping and Luke Knight. The two visiting Bitterns enjoyed close racing, with John Atkinson and Leona Levine sailing double-handed against Bruce Thompson who sailed single-handedly. Three wins for John & Leona sailing Boomer was enough to secure them the Bittern Trophy for their efforts.
Overall Results:
Flying Enterprise Trophy
1st Sharkie (Kevin Edwards/Pippa Edwards)
2nd Club Enterprise (Edward Wildman/William Symonds)
3rd Timshell (Jack Copping/Thomas Wildman)
Cadet Trophy (Under 16) & Broads Area Trophy (Under 20)
1st Club Enterprise (Edward Wildman/William Symonds)
2nd Timshell (Jack Copping/Thomas Wildman)
3rd Apache (Joel Bailey/Daisy Snow)
Onyx Barometer, Hannant Trophy & Tino Trophy
1st Laserblade (Jonas Osborn)
2nd= Sabre (Luke Knight)
2nd= Laser 179803 (Dominic Copping)
Bittern Trophy
1st Boomer (John Atkinson/Leona Levine)
2nd Kedgy Gal (Bruce Thompson)
Flirtatious Cup for helm & Crew
1st Sharkie (Kevin & Pippa Edwards)
2nd Club Enterprise (Edward Wildman & William Symonds)
3rd Timshell (Jack Copping & Thomas Wildman)