Buzz Inland Championship at Roadford Lake Sailing Club

Ian & Bridget Staples win the Buzz Inlands at Roadford Lake © Buzz class

After a highly successful national championships in Plymouth earlier this year the Buzz fleet returned to the south west for their inland championship which was held at Roadford Lake as part of the Goodacre Cup over the bank holiday weekend.

The first two races on Saturday were held in a shifty north westerly wind gusting up to 20mph making the courses challenging for the race officer to set and the sailors to negotiate. Stuart and Penny, the current national champions, and Ian and Bridget were vying for top spot throughout the first race where the tight reaches made flying the spinnaker successfully a little challenging. Stuart and Penny eventually came out on top with Ian and Bridget a close second and Matt, sailing with his nephew, third. The second race was held in similar conditions but this time Ian and Bridget managed to secure the win.

After a very enjoyable, and thankfully under cover, barbecue on Saturday evening, the racing resumed on Sunday with three races planned. Conditions were similar to Saturday with the gusts perhaps a little stronger. After a terrific start Jason and Walter found themselves in the lead and held it for some time before being overtaken. Ian and Bridget eventually managed to get away and took first place followed by Stuart and Penny. The second race on Sunday saw Ian and Bridget managing to pull away from the rest of the fleet to finish first. Sunday's third race was another close affair between Stuart and Penny and Ian and Bridget, with Stuart and Penny holding on to take the win.

After a very soggy Sunday evening, racing resumed on Monday, the wind now abated slightly and coming from a more northerly direction. Julian and Ali had a great start and were leading for several legs before heading for the wrong mark, taking Jason and Walter with them. Ian and Bridget took advantage and secured the win and the championship. The final race of the weekend saw Ian eject himself from the boat at the windward mark with Bridget so focussed on getting the spinnaker raised she never even noticed. After another close race Stuart and Penny held on to take line honours from Ian and Bridget.

A special mention to Josh Jones and his brother who made a special effort to attend on Monday despite work commitments preventing them participating in the rest of the event.

An excellent weekend was had by all and many thanks to RLSC for hosting the event.

Overall Results: