Laser 2000 Open at Dell Quay Sailing Club
by Liz Sagues 3 Sep 2012 09:50 BST
2 September 2012
The journey from Norfolk to Chichester Harbour proved a rewarding one for Fergus and Laura Barnham, as they carried away the top prize in Dell Quay SC's Laser 2000 open meeting.
Their convincing victory – sailing the Laser Performance demo boat, they won every one of the three races by a clear margin – was another family success, for last month the husband-and-wife Barnhams, Jasper and Laura, won the class national championships, while son Fergus, crewed by another member of their home club, Snettisham Beach SC, finished eighth overall.
A fortunate windshift just before racing started allowed the Dell Quay race officer to set a windward/leeward course rather than a more complex one which had looked necessary, and the wind stayed steady enough through the drizzly afternoon to give good racing. Heavyweights in the fleet would have preferred a stronger breeze, but behind the Barnhams competition was tight all through the 13-strong fleet.
Regular visitors from Weir Wood SC, Tim and Linda Hulley, had a consistent run of scores, second place in race one, followed by two thirds, to take second overall while Anne and Jim Norfolk held up Dell Quay honours, just a point behind.
That result could have been reversed, after the Norfolks made a well-judged port tack start in the final race and arrived at the windward mark first, only to be blanketed by following boats and pushed back to what turned out to be their worst position of the day.
To complete the list of four clubs in the first four places, Pete and Suzy Harrison from Chichester YC took fourth prize, their second place in the final race breaking a points tie with Dell Quay's Graham and Lucy Dalton, who had to be content with fifth overall.
And two more clubs were represented, though by the same boat – Ian Frogley and Liz Stewart, from Emsworth and Thorney Island SC's.
Overall Results:
1st Fergus and Laura Barnham (Snettisham Beach SC) 2pts
2nd Tim and Linda Hulley (Weir Wood SC) 5pts
3rd Anne and Jim Norfolk (Dell Quay SC) 6pts
4th Pete and Suzy Harrison (Chichester YC) 7pts
5th Graham and Lucy Dalton (Dell Quay SC) 7pts
6th Andrew Sloper and Katie Burridge (Weir Wood SC) 9pts