Cadet Open Meeting 26 Jun 2007
On Saturday, we started sailing just beyond the barges.
In the morning there was a good breeze with Ollie Herve and Alex Warrington finishing in 1st place. Tye Wichard and Ben Thame were very far behind at the start and stormed ahead to achieve a 2nd but couldn’t quite get past Ollie. Billie Quinlan and Nick Sutton ended in 3rd place.
Before the second race was due, the wind was starting to drop which was good for some. Tye Wichard and Ben Thame achieved their 1st, our visitors Rebecca Longman and Alex Corby led most of the way, giving three members of the world team a run for their money – 2nd in the end, with Claire Dallimore and Sam Barr a well deserved 3rd.
The wind then dropped and shifted; we did attempt a 3rd start on the Saturday but with no one, to my knowledge, crossing the line when the start gun went and did not look as if they were about to, so the race was then abandoned. We waited to see if the wind would pick up but sadly it didn’t and we all had to be towed in, after a little swim. We finished the day with Tye Wichard and Ben Thame 1st, Ollie Herve and Alex Warrington 2nd and Rebecca Longman and Alex Corby 3rd.
Sunday was not the brightest with showers all day, which didn’t exactly excite the competitors but we all soon got ready to go. We sailed over to the Roach with consistent wind all day. The first race was a slow start with a few wind shifts at the beginning which added to the cold wet morning but after a few postponements and recalls we got started.
Tasmin Wichard and Harriet Ayre, who were reluctant to sail in the morning, got their best result, 7th with a 3rd around the windward mark but, unfortunately, they were no match for the amount of talent on the water. However, they certainly scared Tamsin’s brother, Tye, who then upped his game achieving a 3rd, with his crew Ben Thame working his hardest all the way round. Ollie Herve and Alex Warrington came 2nd and Charlie Matthews and Chris Sycamore got back into the running with a 1st.
Second race of the day, started with a general recall. Every boat was over the line with twenty seconds to go, with no signs of them slowing down or going back. William Kennedy and Katie Barr were not that far ahead in the beginning but slowly caught up and were neck and neck all round the race, changing positions all the time but William Kennedy and Aiofe Cahalane just got her on the line, coming 6th and Katie Barr and Ben Harden a very close 7th, very well done to the both of them! Once again our visitors, Rebecca Longman and Alex Corby, showed that you don’t need to be in the world team to do well, coming a close 3rd, Ollie Herve and Alex Warrington 2nd, Charlie Matthews and Chris Sycamore another 1st of the day.
So to the final race of the weekend. The Race Officer, wanting to get it over and done with, used the black flag; unfortunately for some this was not the best thing. Emma Tavinor and Emma Young were black flagged but at least they got the showers first. In the last race Laura Barr and Charlie Barr showed us what they are really made of, coming 5th, their best race of the weekend. Tye Wichard and Ben Thame were 1st followed by Charlie Matthews and Chris Sycamore in 2nd and in 3rd place, Ollie Herve and Alex Warrington.
The first under 15 was won by Katie Barr and Ben Harden just beating William Kennedy and Aiofe Cahalane in the end, coming 8th overall.
William Mathews and Alex Wilshire came 7th; this is only their second year of sailing together so they have consistently improved. They were just one point behind Billie Quinlan and Nick Sutton in 6th position. Our youngest crew was Joe Barr; this is his first year in Cadets and with his helm, George Somers, showing him the ropes, they came a brilliant 19th with their best race being 15th which shows great potential. Joe Tavinor, youngest helm, came 20th, just beating his sister, Emma, by three points, I won’t say more! We were happy to welcome competition to the weekend’s sailing and our visitors Rebecca Longman, Alex Corby, Theo Bull and Chris Thame certainly gave us that, coming 4th and 17th over all.
It was a great weekend and certainly not a boring race to watch with the leaders changing all the time. In the end Tye Wichard and Ben Thame came 1st and won First Otter closely follow by Charlie Matthews and Chris Sycamore 2nd with joint points with Ollie Herve and Alex Warrington 3rd.