Allen 29er GP2, Royal Lymington

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’. 

Sunday dawned completely windless, but with the promise of a south/south easterly filling in, the fleet prepared to launch early to be ready for its arrival. It was great to see the class ‘Buddy system’ in action in the dinghy park as the fleet rigged, with sailors getting to know each other and the older sailors offering to share their experiences.

A slow drift out to the race area in the morning sunshine was followed by a bit more hanging around, and racing eventually got underway mid-morning. 

The favourite side of race 1 first beat was inshore, but it turned out not to be the favoured, with the eventual winners coming from the left-hand side of the course.

Reading the tricky conditions extremely well, the early leaders were new team, Josh and Ollie. Close on their heels were Jamie and Jamie and Ollie and Freddie. Meanwhile, with a 4^th and 8^th, Annabelle and Maddie were making a strong bid for the ladies title.

Race 3 saw the pin end pay. Charlie and Sam took an early lead and consolidated to win the race, with Rob and Ollie 2^nd and Fin and Zeb 3^rd. Race 4 and this time, the leaders came from the right, with James and Noah leading from the first mark.

Would there be time for a 5^th race before the 3:30 cut off?? If the race could be sailed, then a discard would kick in meaning any of 6 boats could win the regatta. There were (mostly) big grins as RO Roger went into sequence. That still didn’t stop the fleet from pushing the line and with the tide now ebbing, they were pretty much all over! Away on the second start, and the fleet head up the beat with a lot of mental arithmetic adding to the jobs on board. James and Noah, staked their claim, leading Charlie and Sam around the first mark, with Zeb and Finn in 3^rd, Rob and Ollie in 4th, Jamie and Jamie in 5^th. Rob and Ollie and Zeb and Finn picked up a wind line down the middle of the run and closed the gap to the leaders. By the leeward mark, it was neck and neck between the first 3 with James and Noah unlucky to have missed out on the extra puff, dropping to 4^th. Charlie and Sam capitalised on their position, taking the lead up the last beat. With Zeb and Finn and Rob and Ollie holding on to 2^nd and 3^rd respectively, Charlie and Sam had the maths they needed to win the regatta from James and Noah by just one point. Jamie and Jamie, with the lowest total score (before discard) in what was a very difficult regatta to be consistent, took third place.

Annabelle and Maddie sailed a brilliant series, to win the ladies’ prize and finish 7th overall, with Katy and Amelie in 10th and Ella and Fliss in 11^th. The Mixed prize was won by Hazel and Ben in 16^th with Allegra and Sam taking top Junior in 17^th.

A big thanks to the Royal Lymington and all the volunteers, and as ever, to Allen, our sponsors.

Report and photos: 29er class association