Cadet Nationals at Pwllheli Sailing Club - Overall
by Tony Jaffa 2 Aug 2007 11:15 BST
28 July - 1 August 2007
Michal and Agata Tomaszewski in POL 9354 were the deserved and convincing winners of the UK Open Championship, with runners-up Josh Pistol and Jack Wilson in Pintail becoming the 2007 UK National Champions.
The 4th day of the regatta dawned without the sunshine that had previously shone on Pwllheli, but with a moderate breeze blowing from the West, the conditions looked set for a dramatic finale.
Racing commenced with the leading crews all fighting for podium places, with only a handful of points between 2nd and 6th. Michal and Agata started the day with a virtually unassailable lead, and confirmed their top of the table ranking with a score-line of DSQ, 2, 3 in the day’s three races. The disqualification dented their points lead, but did not put their overall win at risk.
Meanwhile, the battle for the remaining top spots was becoming very interesting. By the end of the day, it was Josh and Jack in Pintail who were able to put together a domestic championship winning set of results, scoring 6, 2, 7, and so take the national title.
Their nearest GBR contenders, Katrina and Christopher Brewer in Executrix, started the day in 4th place overall, but they had a disastrous start to the day by being black flagged in race 1. However, they made amends by finishing 1st and 2nd in the remaining heats, and secured 3rd overall, 5 points behind Pintail.
The reverse was true for Lukasz Kawinski and Damian Frank in POL 9065, who started the day in 3rd place overall. They were looking good with a 3rd in heat one, but their scores of 17th and 20th in the other two races meant they dropped to 4th behind Executrix.
Charlie Matthews and Chris Sycamore in Grim Reaper rounded off a pretty consistent regatta by scoring 1, 6, and 12 to secure a well deserved 5th place overall, with Chris Videlo and Maddie Harris in Mostly Harmless taking 6th overall with final day results of 4, 9, and 15.
Michal and Agata Tomaszewski were clearly the fastest and most consistent crew in the Regatta, and their concincing win shows they will be a team to be reckoned with in the Worlds, which start on Saturday.
From a GBR perspective, Josh Pistol and Jack Wilson deservedly are the 2007 National Champions, having been the most successful crew this year. In a regatta sailed in a variety of challenging conditions, they put together a consistent series and can prepare for the Worlds in a confident frame of mind.
Thanks must go to all the many helpers who made the Regatta run so smoothly. There are too many people to thank individually, but praise should go to Race Officers Roger and Jenny Wilson, who coped with some very tricky and shifty breezes; the army of parents who gave up their time to support the event in too many ways to mention individually; the RYA, for their practical and logistical support; and Pwllheli SC, for hosting such a first class and highly enjoyable championship.
And finally, competitors and parents alike recognise the work of the UKNCCA Committee and secretariat, chaired by Steve Proffitt, who have spent the last 12 months or so organising the combined National and World Championships.
Well done to all of you – one championship down, just one more to go!
Click here for full results. (Click here to fill in Gear Guide information)
Click here for regatta fleet results.