Skandia Sail for Gold - Day 3 round up

Breezes batter Weymouth and Portland as only Sonars get afloat

The forecasters didn't get the third day of Skandia Sail for Gold wrong, as Weymouth was battered by unseasonably strong winds.

Sailors took on conditions that were definitely 'top end'. The average wind speed on the breakwater read 25 knots throughout the day, with gusts up to 29 knots. There was damage to boats, broken masts and capsizes across the Olympic classes field.

The SKUD and 2.4m didn't make it off the dock, but the Sonar got two races in.

The Skandia Team GBR Sonar trio of John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Steve Thomas extended their lead at the top of the Sonar fleet to four points, with two race wins keeping them ahead of the Dutch World champions Udo Hessels, Marcel Van Veen and Mischa Rossen.

Their success was not without some drama, though, as helmsman Robertson explained.

“Conditions today were pretty full on.  On the first run of last race we broke the whisker pole, so Steve was having to hold the jib out downwind and that was a bit of a mission! Steve was a legend today – well, he’s a legend all the time really, but even more so today!”

A 2, 5 for the French team of Bruno Jourdren, Eric Flageul and Nicolas Vimont Vicary moved them up one place into third.

With no day 3 racing for the 2.4mRs and SKUDs, reigning 2.4mR world champion Thierry Schmitter (NED) tops the leaderboard, with Damien Seguin (FRA) second but tied on 10 points with Schmitter. Schmitter’s countryman, Rademaker is third.

In the SKUDs, Beijing silver medallist helm Daniel Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch (AUS) lead by two points from Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell (GBR) with the other Australian pair of Jamie Dunross and Rachael Cox, with whom Fitzgibbon won Paralympic silverware three years ago, third.

To keep up to date with all the Paralympic classes action from Skandia Sail for Gold visit www.skandiasailforgoldregatta.co.uk
 
 

Article Author Karenza Morton 9/6/2011 07:54