Laser 2000 Nationals at Penzance Sailing Club – Overall

Sunshine and a F3 was the forecast and that is exactly what greeted the fleet for Race 8 on the final day of racing at Penzance. Determined that he would get three races in back to back, PRO Sam Kent showed the fleet that he was in charge and immediately brought out the black flag. This saw three boats scoring a DSQ whilst the rest of the fleet enjoyed close racing with much place changing all the way to the finish line.

By Race 9 the wind (now 20+kts) and the waves had picked up and with the black flag still in use the fleet got off to a clean start. Matt and Clare Sargent, in their element once again, challenged the leaders but Rob Burridge and Amy Hulley held on and won the race. In the chasing fleet there were many thrills and spills during the race and a lot of ‘whooping’ and ‘yeehas’ on the reach to the finish line.

The final race of the Championship saw the wind increase to a solid 25kts and, as a special treat (we thought he was having a laugh) Sam showed not only the black flag but five laps! Eight boats decided discretion was called for and headed for home whilst those remaining enjoyed the strong wind and ginormous waves.

Richard and Viv Parr worked hard in the conditions to round the windward mark with the leading pack but touched the mark and then capsized doing their penalty. On the second lap John and Pauline Cox, close behind the leaders, picked the wrong time to tack being held in irons and could only watch as several boats passed. With conditions not improving and an increasing number of capsized boats, Sam shortened the course to four laps and the fleet made their way back to the harbour and shelter.

During the week the 2000 fleet raced in winds ranging between 10 and 25kts and with gusts recorded to 35kts. Rob Burridge and Amy Hulley (Weir Wood SC) were deservedly crowned National Champions for 2008 and they now look forward to the Endeavour Trophy (Champion of Champions Event) in October.

Looking through the results you will see that the Laser 2000 Class Association is a family-friendly class with many crews sharing the same surname and a significant number of youths featuring in the top ten positions. The Nationals fleet includes entries spread from Scotland to the South Coast and from Wales to Norfolk, and the Association is also particularly pleased to welcome the growing number of ‘services’ teams taking part in events. Having been raced hard in testing conditions (for the boat & crews!) the ‘2k’ continues to prove itself as being bullet proof.

The Laser 2000 fleet would like to thank Penzance Sailing Club for a fantastic week, both on the water and onshore, also event sponsors Laser Direct and our supporters Noble Marine and Fotoboat.

2009 will be the 10th Anniversary of the Laser 2000 Class Association with the Nationals taking place at Hayling Island SC on 26-31 July.

The Tony Slade Memorial Trophy

The Tony Slade Trophy was presented by the widow of the founding Chairman to the Laser 2000 Class Association. The trophy is awarded annually to the person judged to have contributed most to the Class Association in the previous year.

Tony was convinced from the moment he first set eyes on the L2K that it made a great family racing dinghy. Sadly he did not live to demonstrate this himself but it is good to know that others are carrying on his enthusiasm as demonstrated by this year’s winner and recognised by the award.

This year's winner is Weir Wood sailor Tim Hulley and his citation reads:

Tim has been a member of the Class Association since its inception in 1999 and, through a combination of open meetings and training events, has played a pivotal role in developing what is probably the largest, most active and most successful Laser 2000 fleet at Weir Wood SC.

Tim has acted as Technical Officer to the Association for the last three years and remains committed to the development of both the class and individual skills through the sharing of knowledge and experience.

Despite fulfilling this key role, Tim describes himself as a “non-technical” sailor. He is a regular contributor to Millennium Mutterings and his basic message for members is “keep it simple, communicate with each other and try and avoid those basic errors”, a strategy which he has demonstrated to be effective on many occasions.

Tim still finds the time and enthusiasm to attend open meetings and championship events and was a deserved and popular winner of the Millennium Series Trophy in 2007. Although usually seen sailing with wife Linda, as part of a two-boat family he is now frequently challenged by daughter Amy, emphasising the family oriented nature of the Laser 2000 fleet.

Tim’s significant and ongoing contribution to the Class Association is to be commended.

Overall Results: