Norfolk Punt Open at the Norfolk Punt Club
by Dick Roe 30 Jun 2023 16:51 BST
24-25 June 2023
Norfolk Punt Open at Barton Broad © Robin Myerscough
The Norfolk Punt class held there annual open meeting at the Norfolk Punt Club at Barton Broad in Norfolk over the weekend of the 24th/25th of June. A true test of boats, sailors and handicap system was provided by the conditions.
There was a light to non-existent, variable in direction breeze on the Saturday and a moderate to fresh south easterly blowing up the Broad on the Sunday.
The Norfolk Punt is a development class and there were a particularly wide range of boats sailing, with no particular design/type dominating the results, with 4 different race winners. Oldest boat racing was number 19 Prawn, a narrow carvel Walter Woods design 20 footer, built in 1918 and still sporting her original timber/bamboo gunter rig with no trapeze. Next in antiquity was number 25 Goldeneye, a clinker/hard chine George Marshall design 20 footer built in 1928, now carrying an alloy/carbon fat head mainsail Bermudian rig with single trapeze.
The oldest 22 footer sailing was number 46 Martin, a carvel Herbert Woods design built in 1947, still with her original hollow timber Bermudian pinhead rig. There were 3 Wyche and Coppock 'Hard Chine' designs sailing, number 98 Redwing, number 99 Woodpecker and number 102 Comet. All of composite/foam sandwich construction with carbon square top mainsail/assymetric spinnaker rigs with single trapeze. Also competing were two composite foam sandwich Phil Morrison designs, number 95 White Eagle and number 100 Jackdaw. Both sporting twin trapeze carbon square top/asymmetric spinnaker rigs.
The very light fluky conditions on Saturday suited the soft sails of Martin, on loan to Brian Wilkins and Michelle Ackroyd for the weekend, with wins in races 1 and 2. Race 3 was won by Redwing sailed by class chairman Rupert Reddington and Steve Mackay.
The stronger conditions on Sunday favoured the boats with modern hard sails and the long downwind legs gave those with asymmetric spinnakers something to get their teeth into. Race 4 was won by Goldeneye sailed by Dick Roe and N.P.C. vice commodore Kate Dulieu. With the wind increasing the consistent sailing of Richard Whitefoot and Paul Jarvey was finally rewarded with a win in race 5. This giving them overall victory for the event by 1 point from Goldeneye and possession of the beautiful 1928 Ardea trophy.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Boat Name | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | Comet | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
| 2 | Goldeneye | 2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 3 | Redwing | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 13 |
| 4 | Jackdaw | 6 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 13 |
| 5 | Martin | 1 | 1 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 14 |
| 6 | Woodpecker | 5 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 20 |
| 7 | Prawn | 7 | 4 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 26 |
| 8 | White Eagle | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 29 |