ITCA Midlands Topper Travellers Series - Rounds 2 & 3

Oscar Rowe wins at Hollowell and South Staffordshire © Claire Turner

You'd think that the aftermath of recent Storms Babette and Ciaran would create some strong winds for the most recent of the Midlands ITCA Travellers, and that's what most of us thought going into around 2 and 3 of the Midlands Topper Travellers Series.

However, light winds greeted us on arrival at Hollowell Sailing Club on 21st October (despite the forecast). However, this didn't deter our sailors, with visitors Oscar Rowe and Jacob Blakeway generating some competitive sailing against home sailors Alex Stainton and Will Clarke.

Will took the initial lead in the first race, and looked like he would hold this position. However, going too far over towards the bank meant he lost both wind and position to end up sixth, with Oscar Rowe pushing through to take his first Traveller race win. Alex and Jake followed in second and third.

With a steadily building wind, the second race saw the three leaders fight it out with Oscar taking his second win, followed by Jake and Alex. Following the lunch-break, Will came back into contention, following Alex and Oscar, with Jake 4th.

The final race saw a change of course, and Jake Blakeway was hot off the line, gaining a strong lead of almost a full leg, a position he held for the whole race, and like Oscar in the morning session went on to secure his first Traveller win, followed by Oscar and Alex.

At the end of the day, just two points separated the top three positions with Oscar Rowe making the most of his race wins to secure his first event win too. Jake and Alex were tied on points, with each having a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place, so the outcome was based on the position in the last race, giving second place to Jake Blakeway, who took the series lead, and Alex Stainton in 3rd place.

Hari Clark led the 4.2 fleet all day, with a fifth and two seventh places overall, and maintained his lead in the 4.2 fleet. The Endeavour award was presented to Jacob Blakeman, who was attending his second ever Traveller and completed all races, and Values Awards were presented to Oliver Baron and Alex Mulhall.

Hollowell Round 2 Results:

With there being just 2 points between the top three, the next Traveller at South Staffordshire SC on 4th November was expected to be interesting, as strong winds were expected, although due to drop eventually, and rain being a permanent feature.

Between launching and starting, the Dad's emergency maintenance team were called upon to fix a broken ratchet block and a missing clew strap, and all was well by the starting horn.

Will Clarke and Jacob Blakeway played cat and mouse with each other throughout the first race, with each of them taking turns in the lead. Ultimately it was Will who took the win, with Laurie Lamb following Jake in third.

The wind and rain both built in the second race, where competitors were again led by a lead boat. Jacob Blakeway relished the windy challenge, and took a strong lead over Laurie Lamb, followed by Oscar Rowe. It was only once the boats were off the water at lunchtime that it became known that all boats except one had taken one mark rounding incorrectly, consequently giving Will Clarke a second win, with everyone else dropping one place.

In the 4.2 fleets, another competition was emerging, with Hari Clark and Oliver Baron each taking a sixth and seventh place overall at the lunch-break.

The rain continued, but the wind dropped to almost nothing in the afternoon, which changed the dynamic again. Jake struggled in the lighter winds, which gave Oscar Rowe a chance to take the lead, followed by James Burton and Alex Stainton. The results between these two were reversed for the last race. Meanwhile, in the 4.2 fleet, the changing conditions favoured Hari Clark, who led the 4.2 fleet home, followed by Oliver Baron.

All in all, it was definitely a day of two halves, but ultimately Oscar Rowe took a second event win, and the series lead, with Jacob Blakeway second and Alex Stainton third. The Endeavour Award was presented to Obehi Atalor, and Values Awards presented to the only female competitors in the event, Hannah Swindon and Audrey Yang, both of whom kept going despite the cold and rain.

We would like to extend our thanks to host clubs, Hollowell Sailing Club and South Staffs Sailing Club for providing great racing and hospitality.

Three races into the series, we've had three separate leaders, and just four points separating the top three positions (Oscar Rowe (1st), Jacob Blakeway (2nd) and James Burton (3rd). The next event at Notts County on 2nd December is likely to be an interesting event.

South Staffs Round 3 Results: