Weston Cat Open and Hobie TT
by Ruth Tayler 14 Nov 2003 07:48 GMT
November 8th,9th
A Hobie 16 flying a hull at the Weston Hobie TT © Ruth Tayler
Weston Sailing Club were the hosts of the final Hobie TT of the year. There were 6 races and each one involved some very close racing between the 14 Hobie 16s. On the Saturday after the first 3 races Ryan and Lewis Crawford put in a good performance to be the overnight leaders. The winds were a very gusty and shifty F3/4 which made the sailing considerably more challenging than normal, it was exciting and really made the Dragoons fly along, especially down wind. There were a few capsizes but they were righted quickly with the teams involved carrying on with the race. Richard and Andy Glover were sailing the new Dragoon Extreme with its larger sail area which took a little getting used to!
The winds calmed down a bit for the Sunday, which bunched the 16 fleet even closer together. There were a few incidents on the start line to keep everyone on their toes, and it was apparent that the people who studied the start line before the race usually got the best results because of it. It was Sam Newton and Nick Tayler’s first Hobie 16 TT and they certainly are to be reckoned with in the future. There was a lot of pressure on the top Hobies this weekend to try and get a good result to impress the world selectors for Mexico in May. Tom Phipps and Jon Cook sailed an impressive last day to take the victory overall in the Hobie 16.The first Dragoon home was Hannah Rowles and Stephanie Wall with Richard and Andy Glover in 2nd and Josh and Leo Chambers, 3rd.
The overall Hobie 16 TT winners were Ben Mansfield and Ben Hinks who have had a very consistent year. Sam Newton and Nick Tayler won the Hobie Dragoon TT series.
A big thanks goes to Weston Sailing Club and to Wildwind the TT sponsor for supplying the Hobie 16 and Dragoon TT winners, and the winners of the raffle a wonderful holiday next year.