2000 Class Association Latitude Series 2 at Thornton Steward Sailing Club
by Mike McEwing 18 Jun 12:21 UTC
15-16 June 2024
Nestled on the edge of the North Yorkshire Dales, 6 miles west of the A1(M) and Bedale, this modest reservoir played host to the 2nd event of the 2024 Latitude Series, sponsored by Lakes Mortgages. It was the first ever Open Event to be held at Thornton Steward and was only possible with the support of the RYA Northern Region in finding a Race Officer and the loan of equipment from Rutland SC.
Saturday dawned bright and still, we watched for the wind to fill in and for a few new faces to arrive - welcome to Graham and Joy King from Yorkshire Dales SC and teenagers Isobell and Olivia Arkle from Sunderland SC. Six boats launched after the superb club supplied lunches for 3 races. The light airs from the North West and West saw many changes in place throughout the races, with little distance between the competitors. The windward mark was positioned in a small bay where the wind direction and strength was anything but consistent, catching the visitors out. The local boat of Trevor Bradley and Merrin Froggett took the lead eventually in all 3 races, despite capsizing in one race at the leeward gate.
An enjoyable evening meal of pie followed by sponge, custard and local rhubarb, ably cooked by Kay and Merrin. As is usual with 2000 Class events, we held a debrief of the day where Trevor shared his local knowledge, including how best to approach the Windward Mark in a westerly wind.
On the Sunday morning, there was the opportunity to check newcomers boats to ensure that they were set-up to get optimum performance. Jib car positions, spinnaker pole outhaul, rig tension and mast rake were common adjustments. A much fresher breeze of saw much livelier conditions and setting an appropriate rig tension and mainsheet bridle height were key to good results. Trevor's debrief helped the visitors with Matt Hartley (Army Sailing Association) and Caitlyn Andrews (Halifax SC), taking the lead in all 3 races and not looking like being caught. The battle for 2nd, 3rd and 4th proved very competitive again with places changing on every lap. The laps were quick too, with 6 laps per race over a 30 minute duration and 1 lap recorded at 2:30!
The final results came to a tie for 1st, with the winner of the final race prevailing for Matt and Caitlyn, just in front of Trevor and Merrin. Then another tie for 3rd with Mike McEwing (RAFSA) and Alex Wilby (Rutland SC), thanks to a 2nd place, just pipping Alistair Rose (Killington SA) and Matt Jackson (Scaling Dam SC).
A big thank you to race officer Andy Young and to the TSSC volunteers for making this event a success and providing a very enjoyable weekend's racing.
Don't forget: Our sponsors, Lakes Mortgages, are offering competitors free brokerage on mortgages, re-mortgages and equity release - message the Class Association for details.
The Coaching event at Snettisham Beach SC 29-30 June - entry is on the Class Website.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | Club | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | 22676 | Matthew Hartley | Caitlan Andrews | ASA/Halifax SC | 2 | ‑4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| 2 | 22734 | Trevor Bradley | Merrin Froggett | Thornton Steward SC | 1 | 1 | 1 | ‑2 | 2 | 2 | 7 |
| 3 | 22619 | Mike McEwing | Alex Wilby | RAFSA/Rutland SC | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | (NSC) | 3 | 16 |
| 4 | 22694 | Alistair Rose | Matt Jackson | Killington SA/Scaling Dam SC | 3 | 3 | 3 | ‑4 | 3 | 4 | 16 |
| 5 | 2173 | Isobell Arkell | Olivia Arkle | Sunderland YC | ‑5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 25 |
| 6 | 22537 | Graham King | Joy King | Yorkshire Dales SC | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Rtd | DNC | 31 |