Sunday 15th November- Autumn Series
A good turnout yesterday, a good breeze (8 knots and gusting up?) and more than a November Sunday’s fair share of sunshine. 13 starters for the first race, 12 for the second. I’m still out with injury (I’ve now got a whole new one!), so can’t tell you a lot about the races themselves. I have some views on the RO’ing and finishing, though. As I understand it (and I spent a fair while trying to fathom things) some were finished on the third lap, others on the fourth, some not at all and others by a roving safety boat which had been mysteriously commandeered by the RO. Usually it’s possible to piece things together. Not yesterday though. Despite getting to chat to all bar one of the starters in the first race it still wasn’t possible to work out the finishing order. So instead of having 6th to 9th places in the first race we’ve got 4 people counting redress of 7.5 points. I really couldn’t see a better solution. One thing was clear though – the first race was won by Tom T. Tom’s had three 2nd places and six 3rds from 39 starts since joining the club last January, but that was his first win and gets him promoted to the Gold Fleet for the Winter Series (Jan to Mar). Mike came in second, John third. Yiannis, Tom, Kev and Ben N were joint second in the Silver Fleet.. The second race was won by Mike from Tom T with Adrian in 3rd. Second in the Silver Fleet was Gareth (nice one!), posting a 5th, from Kev in third. Results attached. In the Gold Fleet Mike moves up into 2nd place behind Niall (‘Niall’, incidentally, is pronounced ‘Neil’ – dyslexic Dum and Mad, presumably..) It’s all go in the Silver Fleet with Tom T’s fine results pushing him up into 1st (7th overall), leaving Joe C in 2nd, while Yiannis jumps up into 3rd, ahead of a pack of chasing Silver Fleeters. And congratulations to the RS200s who had 7 boats out for the first race – that’s 1 more sailor than in the Lasers. I don’t think that’s happened in quite a while.
Results attached.

Sunday 20th September End of Summer Series
Summer Series There was a fairly low turnout for the final two races of the Summer Series. – Surprising, given the reasonable weather, but perhaps down to the forecast of only a few knots.
As it was I’m told there were a fair few knots for the first race, though by the time I arrived to watch the second the wind was down a fair bit and dropped further during the race. (With the usual irritating increase just after the end of the second race)
Paul won them both – and in doing so cemented his win of the Series. Tom T came second (and first silver fleeter) followed by Mark G.
The second race also went to Paul (looked fairly comfortable), with Kev in second (first Silver Fleeter) and Mark G 3rd again.
So a good, late, points haul for those that turned up and launched. Kev moves up from 11th to 9th, Mark G from 18th to 12th (almost cracking the Silver Fleet top 3) and Kate moves up from 15th to 14th. In fact everyone that rocked up yesterday moved up at least one place (apart from Paul who was already at the top..)
And that marks the end of another well contested series. Starters were up from an average of 12.5 per race in the 08 Summer Series to 15.5, and we had 63 participants. I think the number of participants may well be a record – it certainly is since I started messing around with the results a few years ago.
Anyway, final podium positions are as follows:
Gold Fleet 1st – Paul Beard 2nd – Mike Oddy 3rd – Steve Lindley
Silver Fleet 1st – Joe Cic 2nd – Kev Armstrong 3rd – Pete Broadwell
1st Lady – Kate Pinder
1st Master – Adrian Elwood
1st Yoof – Rob Loughnan
Well done all! – I’ll sort the mugs for the top 3 in each of the fleets in time for the Laying Up Supper (or possibly earlier..) And if you’re wondering why I don’t get mugs done for first Lady, Master and Youth; it’s not because I’m sexist or ageist – but there just aren’t enough qualifying participants in these categories – be great if there were. (Just to clarify; I’m not saying I’m not sexist or ageist, just that that’s not the point here…) ;o)
Results race & final positons

Laser Ladder September 09
The end of the Summer Series means it’s time for an updated Wembley Laser Ladder.
As ever, there are far too many movers and shakers to name them all, but Mike stays in pole position with Paul having closed the gap to one point. Dan ‘Hats G slides up to 3rd, Kev keeps the Silver fleet alive in the top 10 and Pete B’s the highest ‘new entry’ in 43rd place. 86 participants, an average of 13.9 starters per race over the last year and 16 different nationalities – with the Kiwis still the biggest non-English contingent.
And I’ve added columns for the number of race wins for each sailor and that score as a percentage of each sailor’s starts. Interestingly that suggests the following rankings: 59% - Steve J (I.e. won 59% of the races he started) 56% - Mike 54% - Paul 50% - Niall 48% - Ben E (who used a Radial rig for nearly half his races) 46% - Julian Statistically, these 6 are head and shoulders above everyone else and scooped almost three quarters of the wins over the last 12 months.
Laser ladder September

Wedneday 2nd September Final Race
Anyway, the last Wednesday night race of the year saw 18 Lasers on the startline. That would have been impressive a year ago, but was a little down on the average for the Series this year – a staggering 20.
The conditions weren’t great – blustery winds and smatterings of rain. Julian and Niall shot off the startline and sparred round the race course at the front of the fleet, leap-frogging each other when one got caught with weed on the foils.
In the end Julian took the bullet from Niall, with me in for a third.
Alex won the Silver Fleet race from Kev and Ben Nye.
And the Gold and Silver Fleet winners on the day were also the overall winners of the two fleets.
Final overall positions are:
Gold Fleet 1st – Julian Bradley 2nd – Ben Elvin 3rd – Dan Greenhow
Silver Fleet 1st – Alex Jacobs 2nd – Tom Woods 3rd – Mark Chapman
1st Lady – Jess Bertram
1st Master – Tom Woods
1stYouth – Rob Loughnan
Well done all – I’ll sort mugs for the podium placers in the two fleets. And I’ll knock out a Ladder when the Summer Series ends in a couple of weeks. What a series – certainly the most keenly contested since I’ve been at the Harp, and to have 58 participants and an average of 20 starters is something else. Now we’ve just got that 30 week wait till it starts again
Results !

Spring Series Final Placing Sunday 09
Amazingly 13 sailors rocked up for a Laser race on Sunday – despite next to no wind, and a truly ridiculous amount of weed, driftwood and other crap washed out into the Harp by Saturday’s deluge. (A boat’s still faster round the Harp than a land yacht, but the pendulum seems to be swinging..)
I was there, but not watching (or participating) so have little to say about the races themselves.
However Sunday marked the end of the Spring Series, so I guess I should witter on about that for a while.. Mike had the series wrapped up a couple of weeks ago now, while Paul’s first place in the final race was enough to lift him up from 13th place overall (previously counting DNCs) to 2nd. Dan G’s pair of seconds lifts him back into the top 3 (just).
Top 3 in the Silver Fleet remain as they were a week ago.
Final Standings:
Gold Fleet 1st – Mike Oddy
2nd – Paul Beard
3rd – Dan Greenhow
Silver Fleet 1st – Tom Tindall
2nd – Kev Armstrong
3rd – Mark Greenstreet
1st Youth – Rob Loughnan (in a miserable 18th place)
1st Lady – Kate Pinder
1st Master – Tony Wakeling
Well done all. I’ll get the mugs sorted for 1st – 3rd in both fleets soon.
Final results attached – all in all a good series, with a staggering 57 participants and an average of 15 starters per race..
I’ll get an up updated Ladder out in the next few days.

Laser Open Meeting 21st June 2009
This was generally a success, I think. There really wasn’t a lot of wind, but what there was strengthened through the morning, till we even had the odd spot of planing in the last race. Ben E opened strongly with a win in the first, challenged by Pete all the way. Race 2 saw Steve J and Ben slugging it out with Steve taking the bullet. Another bullet for Steve in race 3 from Richard Patrick gave him the Open title. Ben 2nd and Richard P 3rd (Richard won the GMSC Open we ‘raided’ a few weeks ago). That gives Steve his 3rd WSC Laser Open victory in the last 10 years or so. Richard Patrick has also won it 3 times while Julian and Martin Evans have each won it twice. Thanks to everyone who helped out. I thought John Gill (and tribe) did an excellent job as RO on a day that could embarrass the best of race officers. Napalm Tom and Napalm Yvonne made sure the BBQ went smoothly, and the Merlin fleet provided safety boat cover, bottled water distribution, registration, onion chopping, greeting at the gates and a bunch of other stuff. (We have to do the same for their Open later this year!) Jay got the BBQ stuff from Makro, Yiannis did the artwork for the poster and welcome pack, Little Rob bought the onions (!), Rob O’Neill delivered gas for the BBQ at the last minute and Brent put the flag poles and flags up and fixed the Open Trophy that I’d broken the day before! Thanks all – oh, and thanks to the 5 trolley dollies (Mark G’s and Donna’s kids) who did a great job and appeared to be having a whale of a time doing it! And we had 44 entrants – a fine performance. 38 WSC boats, 3 BTYC and 3 (travelling) visitors. Fantastic home turnout. Results attached.
results here

Winter Series Sunday 29th March 2009
Winter Series – end of Series Pretty good weather last Sunday, though a bit light on the wind front… And it was by far the best turn out of the year so far with 21 racing at some point in one race or another; 16 starters in the first, 19 in the second. I missed the action, but Liam – taking time out from the arduous life of a student – took the win in the first race, from Joe and Paul. – Paul won the second, from Tony and Liam. So.. the final standings are:
Gold Fleet 1st – Mike Oddy 2nd – Paul Beard 3rd – Tony Wakeling
Silver Fleet 1st – John Curran 2nd – Tom Tindall 3rd – Kev Armstrong
1st Lady & Youth – Sarah Brooks
1st Master – Tony
John’s promoted to the Gold Fleet for the Spring Series, which kicks off this Sunday – 22 races through to the end of June.
May 31st is the Sea Cadets Topper and Bosun Open, so they’ll be no series races that day – nor on 21st June which is, of course, our Open.
Results final placings

Autumn Series final Placings December 2008
Autumn Series 08 Attached are the final results for the Autumn Series that ended back on 28th December. 1st and 2nd overall were as they were a year ago; with Ben E taking top spot and Mike second. - Between the two of them they scooped 15 of the 22 first places available, with just a point separating them at the end. Third overall was new guy Dan with a couple of bullets.
Gold Fleet 1st - Ben Elvin 2nd - Mike Oddy 3rd - Adrian Elwood
Silver Fleet 1st - Dan Greenhow 2nd - John Curran 3rd - Kev Armstrong
1st Lady - Jackie Rhodes
1st Master - Adrian Elwood
1st Youth - Rob Loughnan
I'll get mugs done for the Gold and Silver podium finishers. Promoted to the Gold Fleet Dan Greenhow: two wins in his first Wembley series - not to mention a stack of 2nd places - means Dan goes straight up to the Gold Fleet at the first attempt. This, the man with the unfair advantage of being able to double his weight for windy days by putting a hat on.
Rob Loughnan: arguably a little overdue, Rob's first win back in Mid-November moves him up from the Silver Fleet. I suspect there'll be more wins in 2009 for little Rob. Or maybe teenage angst'll take hold and he'll be useless!
Tony Wakeling: a most welcome refugee from the RS200 fleet, Tony won the last race of the Series and I expect will win at least a few more this year - also up to the Gold Fleet at the first attempt. Oh, and Tony's just bought Graham Lund's boat (17 23 51) - the visiting boat that came second at the 08 WSC Open. Here's Tony's boat in action: http://www.glaziermarketing.co.uk/open/images/IMG_1982.jpg (and if you're looking to while away the rest of the afternoon, here's the link to all the 08 Open photos: http://www.glaziermarketing.co.uk/open/)
John C also won a race, and strictly speaking should be promoted to the Gold Fleet. However the win was a bit of an anomaly in my book - up against only two silver fleeters, and he only won 'cos someone else missed a mark out (though no-one's suggesting Kev didn't want to be promoted and did this on purpose! Apart from John... and me...). Unless anyone has any objections I'd like to leave John in the Silver Fleet for the time being, pending a more meaningful win.
Final positions after 22 races