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TridentUK RS400 Northern Tour at Tynemouth Sailing Club

by Neil Schofield 19 Jun 2023 23:25 NZST 17-18 June 2023
RS400 open meeting at Tynemouth © Francesco Ferretti

Thirteen boats had entered this years Tynemouth RS400 Open sailed over the 17th and 18th June: four visitors and eight local boats. Conditions looked light but the sun was shining and we were joined by a pod of dolphins swimming through the fleet on at least one occasion.

The first race was in 5/7 knots from the SE, with a strong tide running to the south the key was to get left of the start to maximise the tidal effect, although Carl Whitehead & Carol Milner had a brilliant first beat rounding the windward mark in third having gone hard right up the beat.

Ollie Groves & Esther Parkhurst were leading the fleet round followed closely by Phil Murray & Neil Schofield, with a tight battle in the midfleet going on with Andy & Alex Brown pushing ahead of the pack to sit in third which is how the results stayed after two laps.

Race 2 was more of the same but with a fading breeze on the last lap all was to play for, with Groves & Parkhurst sneaking the win from Murray/Schofield then a gap behind as the wind veered and died making the run to the finish line very difficult against the tide. Brown & Brown took third again.

With little sign of more breeze our PRO Howard Stevenson sent the fleet back ashore to enjoy a few beers and a chilli from the club.

Sunday brought four races, this time in the South Bay.

Race 3 started in a fickle 5 knot breeze. The fleet was tightly compact over the first two legs until Jacob Ainsworth & Kayleigh Roberts emerged ahead on the second lap which they took to the finish. They were followed by the pack lead by Murray & Schofield and Alex Oyston & Catherine Hide sailing well downwind for third.

The wind started to build and race 4 was started in 8 knots. The tide was less apparent than day 1 but the previous order was resorted. Groves & Parkhurst led from lap two to the finish, Murray & Schofield close behind in second with Brown & Brown coming in third.

Race 5 brought a steady and strengthening breeze and some hiking was had. The wind was up to 11 knots for races 5 and 6 making the sailors work hard upwind but they were not rewarded with any downwind planing. Groves & Parkhurst stole a march on field and led from mark 1 to the finish. Mark Powell & Elspeth Keating showed strong improvement over the weekend to take second place in the race with Brown & Brown in third.

Race 6 was similar to race 5: hard upwind racing with small gaps coming from speed rather than tide or shifts. Groves & Parkhurst not having it all their own way with Murray & Schofield leading for 1.5 laps, but succumbed to the pressure of Groves & Parkhurst who slipped by at the top mark.

Brown & Brown and Powell & Keating had a close race for third decided on the final leg with team Brown & Brown coming out on top.

As this was the Northern Tour, sponsored by Trident UK, there were vouchers won by:
£20 Alex Oyston
£15 Phil Murray
£10 Richard Fahey

A great weekend's racing with a full series of six races completed. Congratulations to Ollie & Esther who sailed great all weekend and came first overall.

Overall Results:

PosSail NoHelmCrewClubR1R2R3R4R5R6Pts
11362Ollie GrovesEsther ParkhurstBeaver SC11‑61115
21398Philip MurrayNeil SchofieldTynemouth SC2222‑4210
31032Andrew BrownAlex SutcliffeTynemouth SC33‑433315
41410Jacob AinsworthKayleigh RobertsTynemouth SC5414‑6519
51370Mark PowellElspeth KeatingHelensborough SC‑65552421
61414Alex OystonCatherine HideTynemouth SC463‑85725
71427Carl WhiteheadCarol MilnerFiley SC7787‑9837
81513Neil ParkhurstIan ParkhurstBeaver SC88(RET)97638
91437Justin SmithSarah BatchelorTynemouth SC(DNS)DNS768944
101003Phil CowansLynne MurrayTynemouth SC12(DNF)1010101052
11519Sam HeaneyAndrew NelTynemouth SC11(DNF)91111DNS56
121207Rob HolmesJohn PitkethleyTynemouth SC9(DNF)DNFDNSDNSDNS65
13810Richard FaheyJonny HollidayTynemouth SC10(DNF)DNCDNCDNCDNC66

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