Andark Junior Regatta at Weston Sailing Club

Andark Junior Regatta at Weston 2014 © WSC

A great turnout of almost 40 sailors in 24 boats enjoyed a day of fun and competitive racing at Weston SC's Junior regatta, sponsored by Andark.

The race officer set a trapezoidal course, giving a great view to the many parents on shore in the sunshine. The shifty northerly breeze made for some interesting sailing and with the tide changing direction during the day, choosing the right plan at the start was critical. The faster Lasers and Vision were able to get themselves into clearer air, with some great sailing seen from the eventual winner, Josh Bakker in his Radial. Nine year old Oliver Crighton-Lee, with dad Steve as crew (adult crews allowed only for the youngest and least experienced sailors) put in a great performance only one point behind, with Jamie Brown chasing them and these three taking most of the top three places.

Many sailors were from King Edward's School, with their Fevas close together and Dan Stevens / Alex Everest doing particularly well in Race 1. There was also good competition between the Teras of Thomas Blake and Ben Harris who were not far behind the leaders on handicap. A little further back, the Toppers and Picos battled it out with the conditions proving challenging for many quite new to sailing, some racing for the first time and showing a lot of concentration and great enthusiasm. Results were very close, with a number of ties on points right through the fleet.

The generosity of sponsors Andark Diving and Watersports allowed many sailors to receive fantastic prizes of buoyancy aids, boots, gloves and vouchers, as well as discount vouchers for all competitors. We look forward to seeing even more young sailors both at club racing and at the 2015 event.

Overall Results:

1st Laser Radial - Joshua Bakker (5)
2nd RS Vision - Oliver Crighton-Lee (6)
3rd Laser - Jamie Brown (8)
4th RS Tera Sport - Thomas Blake (13)
5th RS Tera Sport - Ben Harris (15)
6th RS Feva - Dan Stevens & Alex Everest (19)
7th RS Feva - Jess Jarman & Mhairi (20)
8th RS Feva - Flo Peters Iona Howells (22)
9th Vago - Jack Lippold (32)
10th Topper - Ella Harris (35)
11th RS Feva - Harry Cowell & Oli Chapman (35)
12th Laser Radial - Charlie Waring (35)
13th Topper - Lice Hudson (35)
14th Pico - Moody & Billington (45)
15th Pico - Chis & Patrick (45)
16th Pico - Izzy H & Alice D (51)
17th Pico - Leon & Joe (53)
18th Pico - Sweeny & Nicholson (53)
19th Pico - Afzal Rahaman (54)
20th Pico - William Starkey & Ed Keller (60)
21st RS Tera Sport - David Tipper (61)
22nd Pico - Alex Topley & James Brook (64)
23rd Pico - Amir Rahman (67)
24th Pico - Matt Cam (67)