Allen 29er GP2, Royal Lymington

29er skiffs on light wind start line

The 29er fleet arrived at the Royal Lymington Yacht Club with a forecast of breeze, building from fresh to frightening. Unfortunately, it did just that and by 10 a.m. it was clear that conditions would not allow racing for the day.

So, to avoid any conversations about homework, the 80 or so teenagers busied themselves around the New Forest, with some heading to nearby venues for some windsurfing/kitefoiling. One brave pair, Finn and Oscar, did decide to go for a training sail, and some spectacular video, taken by Noah, was soon up on the class’s social media. Apparently, the discussion about whether to hoist the kite was a short one! A number of the sailors new to the class spent the day benefiting from some great onshore coaching from two coaches, organised by the class to provide on and off-the-water support.

The sailors and supporters reconvened in the evening for a fascinating talk by Craig Mitchell chief umpire for Sail GP who explained the technology behind the Sail GP umpire decisions and the infamous 29er quiz night, a great evening was had by all, complete with much amusement at some of the parents in the ‘physical’ round and a guest appearance of the class ‘Boom of Doom’. 

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61st Endeavour Trophy – Overall

Endeavour Trophy Start Line

The 2022 Allen-sponsored Endeavour Trophy took place this weekend at Burnham-on-Crouch (7-9 October) and was one of the most interesting on record with the overall winners not being decided until the final race, writes Sue Pelling.

So close were the points going into the final race that it was difficult to predict the outcome. Even Morris and Fillmore (RS800), who amassed a score of 1,6,8,4,2,1 were surprised to hear the overall result, particularly as they scored their worst result of the regatta, an 11th in the final race of the event after an incident on the start line.

Having taken the overnight lead yesterday, Morris and Fillmore were unable to match the downwind speed of 2021 Endeavour champions Luke Patience, and Faye Chatterton in today’s first race and had to settle for second place. The tables turned in the second race of the day (race 6) however, and it was the overnight leaders – Morris and Fillmore – who read the tricky, shifty, south-easterly winds well, and made the best tactical decisions in the strong flowing Spring tide to take the top spot. This left the ever-threatening Patience and Chatterton in second, and second overall.

Commenting as they stepped ashore Morris (35) and Fillmore (35) were genuinely surprised to learn the news of their win: “A stunned Morris said: “It feels so surreal. Our last race was pretty terrible because we got stuck on the pin end and ended up 11th. We sailed in thinking we’d lost it, so it is a really pleasant surprise to find out we’ve won. It’s also good to get one over on the professional sailors who have had a few returning champions over the past few years. This is a good score for the amateurs!”

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