Hurricane 5.9 Open at Minnis Bay Sailing Club
by John Tuckwell 9 Apr 2006 22:53 BST
8-9 April 2006
The second event of the Hurricane 5.9 open meeting circuit attracted a total of 16 boats, 10 in SX mode and 6 in standard 2 sail mode. Minnis Bay is a favourite venue and this was reflected in the turn out.
The weekend was dominated by two Stone Yacht Club boats, Neil Connelly sailing with Toby Harris and the long standing pairing of Richard Hanmore and Mat Gregg. Both these crews are new to SX sailing both having achieved success last season in 2 sail mode. On the Saturday in classic Hurricane conditions with winds of 4 to 5 Connelly won all three races and Hanmore came second in all of them. The legendary Andy Webb could not make any gains on either of these two crews with a Did not Finish in the first race and two 3rds in the remaining 2 races.
Sunday saw lighter conditions and saw Webb posting a 1st and a 2nd but with Hanmore posting a 2nd and a 1st this meant that Hanmore’s second place was secure and Webb had to be content with 3rd, something he is not normally used to.
The open meeting was sponsored by Mont Blanc Cycle Carriers and they kindly supplied a carrier for this event. All the competitors was placed into a hat and the lucky winner was John Tuckwell
This was a good open meeting and as always well run. With the first designated SX nationals less than 3 months away it would be a brave man who would start to pick a favourite at this stage of the season.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | Club | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 432 | Neil Connelly | Toby Harris | Stone | 6 |
| 2nd | 370 | Richard Hanmore | Mat Gregg | Stone | 7 |
| 3rd | 454 | Andy Webb | Oli Egan | Harwich | 9 |
| 4th | 411 | Kym Leatt | Mandy Cox | Minnis Bay | 17 |
| 5th | 456 | John Tuckwell | Chris Hanmore | Stone | 19 |