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Flying Fifteen Open at Dovestone Sailing Club

by Nik Lever 4 Jun 2024 09:58 BST 1-2 June 2024
Dovestone Flying Fifteen Open © Nik Lever

Great weather, warmth, sun and good winds ensured an enjoyable weekend sailing for all competitors at the Dovestone Open Meeting, the final event in the Northern Travellers Series.

Bacon (and vegi) butties in the morning fuelled the competitors for the endeavours. 5 Races were programmed for the weekend. On Saturday the northerly breeze provided challenging beats for the length of the reservoir and good long return runs.

In the first race 3805 (Graham and Chris Massey), had a perfect start towards the port end of the line to lead at the first mark. Throughout the race they were gradually hauled in by 4005 (Andrew McKee and Rich Jones), who just managed to achieve an inside overlap at the last mark and snatch first place at the finish. 4065 (David McKee and Mal Hartland), came 3rd. 3332 (Tim Allen and Iain McNeill), scored a 4th followed by 3733 (Michael and Sarah Harris of B&FYC).

A prompt turnaround for the second race saw 4065 lead at the first mark from 4005, but after splitting gybes on the first run 4005 gained the lead to take another win. 3332 had another strong race to finish 2nd. The classics 2125 (Gavin Cassidy and Anne Webb), and 496 (Rod Rowlands and Alice Morris) did well and posted 5th and 6th places.

After a break for a substantial afternoon tea and scones, the final race on Saturday got under way. 3805 again started well, although they were chased down by 4005 and 4065. A tight finish at the line between 3732 (Ian and Val Hockey B&FYC), a second ahead of the silver 3332, resulted in a reversal of their positions on handicap.

The club volunteers provided a mouth-watering array of culinary delights all weekend. On the Saturday night we had a party with a great meal including a tagine with all the trimmings. This was followed by the 'World Ice Cube Curling Championships'. 7 teams fought out a spectacular competition that was eventually won by the scratch team "Happy Quimpers", a team of DSC supporters at the recent FF Euro's in Morgat.

Sunday dawned with more sun and more butties. The wind had shifted to the west and a new course was set that included two beats and 2 offwind spinnaker legs. In the 4th race 4065 lead to the first mark but, after various tactical manoeuvres by both boats, resulted in position changes. 4005 gained the lead and held this to the finish. 2125 continued their good form with a 4th place. 496 banked another 6th place.

The final race was a continuation of the story of the event with 4005 and 4065 battling it out at the front, again going in favour of 4005 who completed their clean sweep. 3805 had another strong race to finish 3rd followed by 3732. Close finishes meant that the boat handicaps came strongly in to play with good results for the classic and silver boats overall.

After a delicious lunch time spread of Fajitas and loaded nachos, the Open and Travellers series prizes were awarded.

Overall Results:

PosSail NoHelmCrewClubR1R2R3R4R5Pts
1st4005Andrew McKeeRichard JonesDovestone SC‑111114
2nd4065David McKeeMal HartlandDovestone SC‑332229
3rd3805Graham MasseyChris MasseyDovestone SC2‑433311
4th3332Tim AllenIain McNeillDovestone SC42‑65617
5th2125Gavin CassidyAnne WebbDovestone SC‑9554519
6th3733Michael HarrisSarah HarrisB&FYC574‑10723
7th3732Ian HockeyVal HockeyB&FYC687‑8.5425
8th496Rod RowlandsAlice MorrisDovestone SC86‑96828
9th2584Howard WolstencroftJohn HestonDovestone SC7910‑11935
10th2864Ian ShawSonia KwiatkowskaNotts County SC101088.5(DNF)36.5
11th419Mick ScholesKathryn DickensonDovestone SC(DNC)DNCDNC71043
12th3683Ian JohnsonMark HealeyDovestone SC11(DNF)11121145

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