Please select your home edition
Edition

Contender open meeting at Hythe and Saltwood Sailing Club

by Dan Hollands 17 Jun 2023 12:26 UTC 3-4 June 2023
Contender open meeting at Hythe and Saltwood SC © Lucy Samuel

Over the weekend of the weekend of the 3rd & 4th June 2023 thirteen Contender sailors arrived at Hythe and Saltwood Sailing Club to be greeted to 18-28 knot north-easterly breeze and bright blue skies.

There were plenty of trials and tribulations for this years open meeting. A fresh north-easterly breeze welcomed the sailors onto the water where much entertainment awaited. Before the first start Simon Mussel had some interesting gear failure where his entire rig ended up in the drink. After a short delay whilst the safety boats dragged Simon back ashore, the first start began.

The fleet split left and right up the beat and Ed Presley made it to the windward mark first with Stu Jones hot on his heels. An interesting reach followed the first beat as the wind increased to nearly 30knots and everyone flew round the course, Simon Dodds managed to pull his tiller extension off on the reach and retired from this race. In the end Ed Presley took the win followed by Stu Jones and Tim Hooten not far behind.

The following race Simon had made it back onto the water with the aid of Rodger White's spare forestay and sadly halfway through the first lap had to retire as his sail decided to pop out of the mast track; back to the beach he went. Martin Jones had a spectacular capsize offwind in this race and this seemed to be the beginning of the weekend's capsizing as people began to tire.

Race 3 Simon made it back onto the racecourse for the third time this day and clearly it had motivated him, Simon dominated this race in spectacular fashion and finished the race in 1st place and this was a sign of things to come.

At the end of day 1 the sailors retired to the club for beers and great food provided by "Loaf by the Sea".

The rest of the racing went off without too much of a hitch although several funny interesting things happened around the course. Tom Hooten had rudder issues (again...) in race 3 leading to a swim and retirement, two of the HSSC boats nearly had a wipe-out as Adrian Smith closed the door at the leeward mark and promptly capsized nearly taking out Dan Hollands in the process.

Rob Smith decided that in race 5 he would park his boat on the windward mark whilst waiting for the tide to take him past. Shortly after this a CRACK was heard across the racecourse followed by a splash as Rob capsized to windward and snapped his tiller extension before returning to the beach to retire for the day.

Race 6 began with a general recall and after a couple of delays the start began with a slightly diminished fleet, as with many of the previous races. Ed Presley, Stu Jones and Simon Mussel led the way round the course followed by Dan Hollands and Martin Jones who had fantastic close racing all round the course.

One went right and the other left and Dan Hollands came out on top and finished just ahead of Martin.

Many very tired Contender sailors made their way back to the beach after a fantastic weekend's racing.

Overall Results:

PosSail NoHelmR1R2R3R4R5R6Pts
1st2708Ed Presley122‑4218
2nd2706Stuart Jones21‑333312
3rd2420Simon Mussel(DNS)DNF111219
4th2446Dan Hollands545‑66424
5th2449Rob Smith4542(DNF)DNS29
6th2730Adrian Smith666‑97732
7th2714Martin Jones7(DNF)DNS74537
8th678Tim Hooten33(DNF)5DNFDNS39
9th2423Simon Dodds(DNF)7DNF85640
10th2710James Daniels88(DNF)108DNS48
11th666Bill Hooten(DNF)DNSDNSDNSDNSDNS70
11th696Tony Cook(DNS)DNSDNSDNSDNSDNS70
11th712Rodger White(DNS)DNSDNSDNSDNSDNS70

Related Articles

Kieler Woche Day 10
Seven nations celebrate victories at the finale On the final sailing day of Kieler Woche 2025, there were beaming faces all around the Olympic Centre in Schilksee. Eleven decisions were made on Sunday and alongside Germany, Denmark, France, GB, Malta, Sweden, & Hungary were able to celebrate victories. Posted on 29 Jun
SGS Gold at Kieler Woche goes to France and GB
The best German team, Theresa Löffler and Christopher Hoerr, finished fifth With a victory in the final medal race of the Kieler Woche, the British team of Martin Wrigley and Bettine Harris secured gold in the 470 class on Sunday (June 29). Posted on 29 Jun
Kieler Woche Day 9
Hosts without Sailing Grand Slam medals, but leading in five classes The final six medals in the mixed classes of the Olympic Sailing Grand Slam (SGS) at Kieler Woche will be awarded on Sunday (June 29) without any German contenders. Posted on 29 Jun
Kieler Woche Day 8
Mourniac & Retornaz take the lead in the Nacra 17 class A dream day ahead of the second weekend at the Kieler Woche regatta off Schilksee: Moderate to fresh westerly winds with strong gusts, alternating sun and clouds, provided ideal sailing conditions for all participants on Friday. Posted on 27 Jun
Poole Contender Open
Fine conditions for Travellers Trophy Round 4 The weekend of the 31st of May to the 1st of June saw the fourth round of the Contender travellers' trophy at Poole Yacht Club. With competitors making the trip from as far as Scotland, the last morning in May greeted them with glorious sunshine. Posted on 11 Jun
Yorkshire Dales Contender Open
Superb weather greeted the 17 helms over the weekend Superb weather greeted the seventeen Contenders attending the Open Meeting at Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club over the weekend of 10th & 11th May. The forecast for the two days was good with the promise of slightly more breeze on Sunday. Posted on 13 May
Contender Open at Mount's Bay
A 'take your pick' forecast for the sailors Despite a 'take your pick' forecast and a few unlucky regulars whose boats were still in delayed container from US Worlds, 12 Contender sailors were all smiles arriving at their 2026 Nationals venue - the stunning Mount's Bay SC, to join the Ospreys. Posted on 8 May
Oxford Contender Open
A weekend of thrills and challenges The Oxford Sailing Club played host to an exhilarating weekend of racing at the Oxford Contender Open, where sailors faced a mix of sunny skies and blustery winds ranging from 14 to 22 knots. Posted on 11 Apr
2025 Victorian Contender Championship overall
Bulka adds another regatta victory to his name Light weather continued to prevail, with glassy conditions greeting the sailors. Perhaps a few sore heads from the previous night's festivities—those who know, know. Posted on 23 Mar
2025 Victorian Contender Class Championship day 1
Exceptional talent converges... The picturesque waters and surroundings of McCrae, southeast of Melbourne, were the centerpiece for this year's Contender Class Victorian Championships. Posted on 22 Mar