Streaker Open at Hornsea Sailing Club
by Dave Metcalfe 5 May 2008 20:33 BST
3 May 2008
24 entries for the Streaker open at Hornsea © Dave Berger
With the 15 visitors augmented by 9 home boats, this was the best-attended Streaker Open of the year so far. The day was pleasantly sunny, though with the light south-easterly wind straight off the North Sea there was a slight chill in the air.
All three races got away without incident. In race 1, Ian Bradley reached the windward mark in front of the fleet. He was followed by Dave Smith, Tom Gillard, and the first of the home club sailors, Mike Mooney, sailing the venerable 24-year old Nik Nak. It was soon obvious that young Gillard was several leagues above the rest of the fleet as he surged through to the front and pulled out a lead that the word ‘commanding’ does not do justice to. Finishing order was Gillard, Bradley, Smith, with former National Champion Nick Lovell coming through from behind to take fourth.
After lunch two races were sailed back-to-back. Some of the older (and heavier) front-of-the-fleet sailors might have hoped that Gillard’s nine-and-a-half stones would prove insufficient in the freshening breeze, but it was a vain hope as he once again showed the assembled throng a clean pair of heels, leaving them to gaze in wonder and envy at his precocious talent. Finishing order was Gillard, Bradley, Lovell and Smith.
Race 3, sailed in a wind that had freshened to the top end of force 3, looked as if it might have a different finishing order as Gillard touched the windward mark, only to hit it again as he re-rounded. This dropped him back to mid-fleet, but he didn’t stay there long as he set about overtaking everybody else. At the beginning of the last beat he was 80 metres behind Bradley, who had himself built up a considerable lead on the rest. Alas, the distance was not enough as Gillard used every shift he could find to pull back Bradley and overtake him just before the line. Mike Mooney finished third, with Dave Smith beating Hornsea sailor Dave Metcalfe by just two seconds for fourth place.
Overall Results:
1st 1581, Tom Gillard (Sheffield Vikings SC) 2 pts
2nd 1619, Ian Bradley (Ouse Amateur SC) 4 pts
3rd 1625, Dave Smith (Welton SC) 7 pts
4th 1541, Nick Lovell (Ouse Amateur SC) 7 pts
5th 1296, Mike Mooney (Hornsea SC) 9 pts