Zhik Cadet National Championship at Royal Torbay Yacht Club
by Jonathan Penn 7 Sep 2015 10:56 BST
28-31 August 2015
Zhik Cadet National Championship 2015 © Jean Border /
www.borderphotos2010.com
After 4 days of varying conditions on the beautiful waters of Torbay, the 65th International Cadet class National Championship reached an exciting climax in their 10 race series, as the two leading boats went head to head in a final race decider for the championship.
The 100 or so competitors, in these classic junior boats, with their colourful hulls and spinnakers created a wonderful spectacle against the Torbay backdrop. For many it was their first taste of championship racing, whilst for others it was their last time before they transition onto their youth classes. With an age range of 7-17, the cadet continues to teach young people to sail and race in a friendly yet competitive environment, and it is particularly encouraging to see so many new helms and crews coming through from their home clubs to compete at a national level.
Day 3
After the disappointment of losing two of the scheduled races on Day 2, the fleet set out onto Torbay with a spinnaker run down to the race course, signalling, as forecast, a northerly breeze, a notoriously tricky direction for Torbay, as the wind comes down over the hills of the town. Shifty conditions were to be expected, with a breeze of 6 - 8 knots developing.
Race 4
The fleet got underway cleanly with Chadwick/Simpson making a successful, if not rather cheeky port tack flyer just across Harris/Harris and Penn/Whittle, with Folkard/Folkard of the silver fleet looking good off the line. As the majority of the fleet worked up the right, those on the left benefitted from a big shift with the experience of Collyer/Bland showing as they worked the shifts well, to lead at the windward from Wilkinson/Taylor, with Anna Morgan/Jemma Hill in 3rd. Once again, King/Sfaxi of the silver fleet were well up in 4th as the group popped out clear of the chasing pack headed by Penn/Whittle, Collingridge/Collingridge, and Harris/Harris. By the time they reached the start of the 2nd beat, Collyer/Bland had pulled out a sizeable lead which they would hold to the finish, with Wilkinson/Taylor, well placed for an impressive 2nd, followed by Morgan/Hill in 3rd. King/Sfaxi, took the silver fleet honours with 6th place finish, while in bronze fleet, Wootton/Mayhew continued their dominance with a fourth straight win.
Race 5
With Torquay disappearing into the rain and murk of an English bank holiday weekend, the fleet, having consulted the Jim Saltonstall venue notes, knew, that as he suggested, they should have brought their prayer books with them! With the Committee boat end favoured, the fleet were once again cleanly away up what would become a tricky first beat. As they closed the windward mark those coming in from the left took the shift with Chadwick/Simpson leading from the now familiar sight of Collyer/Bland and Harris/Harris in close pursuit, with Wootton/White, well placed in 4th. With the normal port hand reach turning into a starboard hand run, the leaders bunched up around the wing mark, before a tight second reach, which saw Megan Ferguson/Yasmin Sfaxi climbing high to power though to round in 3rd with Wootton/White enjoying the tight reaching leg to close on the leaders. These teams worked hard up another tricky beat to maintain their positions to the finish, with Wilkinson\Taylor, taking three places at the bottom of the final run to take a good 4th ahead of Corby/Payne in 5th, with the two podium challengers Penn/Whittle and Harris/Harris, close behind. First in the silver fleet were Folkard/Folkard, while in the bronze fleet the now familiar sight of Wootton /Mayhew leading was maintained as they finished ahead of Slump/King.
Race 6
Following an on the water lunch break, the Cadets set off on their 3rd race of the day. While a good start is always vital, it seemed to be of less significance as the beat developed. Go left, go right, or head up the middle? Hard decisions with a Torbay northerly. Harris/Nunn, looked good from the middle of the startline, with Corby/Payne and Team Jannaty going well on the left. As the wind died to a fickle breeze slow motion racing developed. First out of the pot was Louis Mellor/Antonia Wilkinson, who had recovered well from a late start followed by Harris/Harris, with Collingridge/Collingridge in 3rd. Full course races, lasting up to 100 minutes, in the shifty conditions gave plenty of opportunity for place changes. Race 6 was no exception. With the leading group maintaining contact, no one could relax. The fleet split at the final gate mark as the leaders Mellor/Wilkinson chose to go left, taking the next three boats with them. Harris/Nunn and Penn/ Whittle went right in search of better pressure, a tactic which was to pay off. Penn/Whittle, having played the shifts, secured their second win of the champs ahead of Mellor/Wilkinson with Harris/Nunn going well to take a second podium finish in 3rd. Amy and Ben Goult finished an impressive 6th and first Silver fleet boat in their new BlueBlue. No surprises in Bronze as Wootton/Mayhew continued to impress with a further win, catching up with many in the main fleet in the process, with Dylan Wells/Aston Fennessay taking their best result of the week in 2nd.
Race 7
As the skies cleared and a steady 7/8 knot northerly breeze developed, the fourth race of a long day on the water, got underway. The opportunity for a port tack flyer wasn't taken as the leading group chose the committee boat end. Once again positions changed as the first beat developed through the continuing shifty conditions. This time, it was those on the left that showed well, with team Jannaty leading at the windward mark ahead of Chadwick/Simpson with the "bunch" in close attendance. Penalty turns for Chadwick/Simpson would prove costly, and allow the picturesque sight of three white kites with a diminishing number of blue stripes leading the fleet down the second reach. Back at the windward mark, there was considerable excitement in the bronze fleet as Toby Slump/Harrison King lead from local team of Lucy Rumblelow/ Molly Burns.
In the main fleet, the leaders worked the shifts up the left hand side of the course, with Harris/Harris and Penn/Whittle establishing a sizeable lead as the pair duelled up the final beat to take a 1,2 with Anderson/Pitcher coming through well to take 3rd ahead of Collingridge/Collingridge in 4th. In Silver fleet, Folkard/Folkard continued to strengthen their position with a further first place just ahead of Abbey Williams/Tom Stratton-Brown. As the bronze fleet reached the finish line, normal service had been resumed as Wootton/Mayhew recovered to secure the win ahead of Slump/King who took their third 2nd place of the regatta with Jessica Everson/Annabel Seabrook securing their third 3rd of the week. Thankfully the C course, with a final beat finish had delivered the fleet a relatively short sail home, nicely in time for the class AGM!
Day 4
Race 8
As the fleet set sail for the final day's racing, the leading boats of Penn/Whittle, Harris/Harris and Collyer/Bland were in a 3 way struggle for the overall win. The variable strength 5 to 10 knot northerly breeze would make for tricky racing and so it proved as the fleet got underway. As the arcing shifts proved hard to read, Morgan/Hill from the right arrived with a big lead from Colquitt/Colquitt with Issy/Emily Spears going well in 3rd. The championship leaders, unsurprisingly staying close together, were some way back. With holes in the breeze and continuing oscillations, there were many place changes with new race winners, Colquitt/Colquitt holding their nerve to take a clear gun with Spears/Spears making their debut on the podium in 2nd and Wilkinson/Taylor taking an impressive 3rd. The leading overall trio recovered to score reasonable top 7 results to keep the championship result open.
In silver fleet Folkard/Folkard continued their winning ways just ahead of Williams/Shartton-Brown, whilst in bronze the now familiar sight of Wootton/White lead home from Slump/King with Terkelsen/Cowling in 3rd.
Race 9
With the Torquay northerly breezes continuing to shift through an arc of 40 degrees, the fleet persevered with the "lottery of the first beat". The leading trio, sticking close together, opted for a mid-line start. Fortunes amongst the fleet were to vary as new names appeared leading at the windward. Coming in from the right were Harry and Faye Chatterton, who took a commanding lead ahead of silver fleet Folkhard/Folkhard with Phoebe Bradshaw/Mimi Slump popping out in 3rd ahead of experienced campaigners Colquitt/Colquitt in 4th. In the bronze fleet, local girls Emily Pollard/Emily Riley, making their debut in the cadets, led from Slump/King. At the second windward Harris/Harris had worked their way up from 6th to lead the fleet from Colquitt/Colquitt with Bradshaw/Slump holding on well in 3rd. Harris/Harris held their lead, with the last round belonging to Penn/Whittle who had moved through the fleet to push Colquitt/Colquitt for 2nd place, whilst Bradshaw/Slump again sailed well to hold onto 4th. Whilst Harris/Harris took their 2nd race win of the series, Penn/Whittle dived to leeward in the final run to the finish to take 2nd by a bow from Colquitt/Colquitt with Bradshaw/Slump completing the race of their lives with a 4th and taking the best silver fleet result of the week. Something of a turn up in bronze fleet as Pollard/Riley held onto break the Wootton/Mayhew dominance with an excellent race win from Slump/King in 2nd.
Race 10
With just one point separating the two leading boats, the 2015 championship would go down to the wire with a last race decider. As the course moved further out into the bay in an attempt to alleviate the shifty conditions created under the hills, Jamie Harris and Archie Penn prepared for the final showdown. As nerves began to jangle, the over enthusiastic fleet suffered only their 2nd general recall of the week, with the re-start being under an I-flag. Both leading boats executed near perfect pin end starts, tacking onto port as the gun went, with Archie to windward as the two boats lead the fleet up the left hand side. Those that had gone right also showed well at the windward mark as Harris/Harris led from Morgan/Hill with Penn/Whittle in 3rd, closely followed by Wootton/White and Mellor/Wilkinson. The front three began to pull away and once Penn/Whittle had squeezed their way past Morgan/Hill at the bottom of the run, the battle for the championship moved into its final phase. With the full course being sailed, the two boats matched each other up through the second half of the race. Harris/Harris always having the edge and matched every twist and turn that Penn/Whittle tried. At the finish, the 30 second lead was enough to secure the championship for Jamie and Bettine Harris with Archie Penn and Hazel Whittle securing 2nd overall. Ellie Wootton and Kate White took an impressive 3rd as they closed in on the leaders on the final beat and to secure 4th overall and 1st girl, whilst Tom Collier and Cara Bland secured the 3rd overall podium position. A new winner emerged in the silver fleet in the shape of Finbar Wormwell/Oscar Ferenczy. Overall winners in the silver fleet were Harry and Alice Folkhard with Abbey Williams and Tom Stratton-Brown in 2nd with Erin Marks/William Seabrook in 3rd. In the bronze fleet, Wootton/Mayhew had secured their 9th win out of the 10 races to take a convincing overall win, followed by Toby Slump and Harrison King in 2nd overall and Cally Terkleson/William Cowling 3rd after securing a further 3rd.
Prize Giving
As you would expect with a class with such a strong history there is an impressive haul of fine trophies and prizes which were duly dispensed by class chairman, Howard Warrington.
It's now only 2 weeks until the cadets are back in action at their Inland National Championship at Datchet Water Sailing Club over the weekend of 19th/20th September 2015.
Overall Results:
If you finished in the top ten at the Cadet nationals then enter your Gear Guide information here
Full results are available here (PDF format)