International 14 Walker Trophy at Itchenor Sailing Club
by Tom Partington 10 May 2011 17:01 BST
7-8 May 2011
Saturday morning provided 13 I14s with 10-14 knots from an unfavourable South Easterly direction with the daunting prospect of 5 short course races to contest the prestigious Walker Trophy.
A short windward-leeward course was set up with a strong flooding tide. The
first race got away cleanly but with many boats struggling to make the pin end
of the line. The Partington's had the best of the start but were narrowly beaten
to windward mark by Gilbert/McGrane with Nurton/Ash a close third. The top 3
remained unchanged for the remainder of the race. The 2nd race followed similar
fashion with Gilbert/McGrane, followed by The Partingtons and Mark Tait with
stand in helm, Mason Woodworth, 3rd.
Gilbert/McGrane continued their dominance for the remained of the day, The Partingtons backed them up in with consistent 2nd and 3rds and another consistent score line from the Loan Boat team of Richard Bone and Chris Rodway. The gusty conditions did provide some spills for a few of the fleet but luckily limited damage was caused as the crews were tested throughout the day.
Day two dawned and with another 5 races scheduled, it was going to be a tough
day for all involved. For Race one there was 13-15 knots from a Southerly
direction which allowed the race committee to set a slightly longer course up the
main channel. Gilbert/ McGrane lead from start to finish, despite recovering
from being over the line. The Partingtons finished 2nd and Nurton/Ash 3rd. The
second race of the day, in now slightly less breeze, provided the same top
three.
With the breeze now down to a patchier 10 knots, Gilbert/McGrane managed another race win, with the improving Woodworth/ Tait 2nd and Penman/Kennard, displaying some good boat speed, 3rd. Race 4, in a similar breeze, Gilbert/McGrane narrowly beat The Partingtons, sneaking past on the beat to the
line, with Hillary/Ash 3rd. The last race of the Walker Cup provided the lightest conditions of the weekend. Larkin/Jenkins benefited from the most pressure on the right hand side of the course to build up a commanding lead by the end of the first lap, but Gilbert/McGrane were chasing hard and managed to get inside them at the last leeward mark to take the finish gun.
That left Gilbert/McGrane with a perfect score line for the event, with the
Partingtons a solid second and after some great consistency, in only their 2nd
event in the Loan boat, Bone/Rodway were 3rd.
Event Video:
Overall Results:
1st GBR 1541, Roger Gilbert/Ben McGrane, 8pts
2nd GBR 1540, Andy/ Tom Partington, 19pts
3rd GBR 1498, Richard Bone / Chris Rodway, 33pts
4th GBR 1499, Matt Larkin/ Paul Jenkins, 38pts
5th GBR 1500, Harvey Hillary / Damian Ash, 42pts