North East & Yorkshire Youth Travellers Round 2 at Kielder Water Sailing Club
by Richard Purdy 7 May 2021 08:04 UTC
1 May 2021
Tricky conditions for the KWSC Youth Travellers Meeting © Richard Purdy
On Saturday 1st May, Kielder Water Sailing Club welcomed 10 competitors for the second event of the North East & Yorkshire Youth Traveller Series.
The day dawned bright and sunny with a little early morning frost, but unfortunately with little to no wind. As a result, the Race officer, Richard Purdy, was forced to postpone the start of race one. Whilst all waited patiently for the wind to fill and settle, the sailors ashore were able to spend some time learning 29er sailing tips thanks to Abi & Pete Cowley who gave a talk about their sailing experience. This was a great opportunity for all to learn and for some of the younger sailors to have a go at trapezing and launching the asymmetric spinnaker.
At around 11.30am some breeze began to fill and the competitors were able to launch. The race was started but the wind died, filled and shifted constantly. It was clear from the start that the more experienced sailors and faster boats were able to pick their way through the shifts and take control of the race. This was to be the order of the day, with Abi & Pete Cowley (29er) eventually leading from Alex Horsman (Byte CII) followed by Liam Boyce (Laser 4.7). Tightly bunched behind these were the RS Tera's of the Whitehead brothers who were having some close racing against Izzy Fisher-Stout sailing her Topper. Once handicaps had been worked out it was Alex Horsman who took the first win, followed by Thomas Whitehead in 2nd and Daniel Whitehead in 3rd.
After lunch the wind had begun to fill but remained light and shifty; following a brief postponement race 2 began, with a similar pecking order, the 29er leading the way around the course with some close racing behind. On handicap it was Alex Horsman (Byte CII) again who took the win followed by Thomas Whitehead (2nd) & Liam Boyce (3rd). As the weather seemed to improve, the RO got race 3 off to a quick start, straight after the last boat had finished race 2 and the conditions seemed more favourable at the start. Unfortunately, the wind was to die off again, making it a longer race for those further down the pack.
As a result of postponements earlier in the day, it was only possible to complete three races. However, all competitors enjoyed a mix of sun, rain and hail along with some challenging wind conditions from most directions.
With a consistent set of results, Alex Horsman took the event win in his Byte CII, followed by Thomas Whitehead in 2nd and Liam Boyce in 3rd. A special endeavour award was given to Isobel Arkle from Sunderland YC who was competing in her first ever open event. Well done to all!
This is a friendly series that has been running for over 35 years, visiting 12 venues across the region. It was a pleasure to host at Kielder Water SC and we look forward to their return next year. Thanks must go to all the competitors and parents for making the long trip north to Kielder. In addition, thanks to the RYA regional volunteer team for providing series trophies, and to Lulham-Robinson Sailing for their sponsorship and prizes that were donated for the event. For more information about the series visit: www.yhysa.org
The next event is at West Riding Sailing Club on 15th May
Overall Results:
1st Alex Horsman, Byte CII (Ripon SC)
2nd Thomas Whitehead, RS Tera (Filey SC)
3rd Liam Boyce, Laser 4.7 (Filey SC)
4th Abi & Pete Cowley, 29er (Kielder Water SC)
5th & 1st Regatta Division Daniel Whitehead, RS Tera (Filey SC)
2nd Regatta Division. Molly Wilson, RS Tera (Filey SC)
3rd Regatta Division. Oscar Jarvis, Optimist (Kielder Water SC)
1st Youth - Alex Horsman
1st Junior - Thomas Whitehead
Endeavour Award: Isobel Arkle, Topper (Sunderland YC)