| Pleasant sunshine and a gentle breeze greeted the nineteen competitors
at the first UK International Snipe regatta of the season at Blue Circle
SC, sailed over the weekend of 13th and 14th May. With the wind generally blowing across the width of the lake, courses were short and tight and this was reflected in the results which produced six different winners out of the seven sailed. | |
| Race officer Derrick Crouch set 'P' shaped courses on Saturday, and in
the first race, Iain Marshall and Duncan Read just pipped early leaders
Brian Gregory and Matt Williams on the line. In the second race, Neil
and Jenny Martin christened their brand new Danish Persson with a win
ahead of Richard and Nicky Lambert. Sue Antonelli and David Cummings
were third. The third race was won by Alan Williams and Liz Crouch who
finally prevailed in a race-long tussle with Martin. Peter Wolstenholme,
borrowing a 25-year old boat and with Phil Marshall crewing, were third.
On Sunday, racing was postponed until the wind steadied, and in the fourth race, Martin this time prevailed over Williams and Crouch. Marshall and Read were third. Ricky Sadzik switched to a carbon fibre daggerboard, and his sixth place underlined steady improvement with the lighter foil. | |
| In the fifth race, John and Deborah Love nailed a huge shift on the left
side of the beat and won by a sizeable margin from a distant Wolstenholme
and Martin, who took third. Crouch switched to an Olympic 'triangle-
sausage' for the final two races, and this seemed to suit Richard and
Nicky Lambert whose instant tack at the penultimate leeward mark gained
them an advantage which they held to the gun. Mark Antonelli and Sonny
Sporne were second and Marshall posted another consistent third. The final race was won by Mark Antonelli who held off a strong challenge from Martin and Wolstenholme. A top 10 finish for the improving fleet captain Peter Wibroe was a fitting reward for masterminding such a memorable regatta. | |
Richard Lambert
| Position | Number | Helm/Crew | Club | Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3 | Race 4 | Race 5 | Race 6 | Race 7 | Points |
| 1st | 29676 | Neil Martin Jenny Martin |
Budworth SC | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 8.5 |
| 2nd | 29677 | Mark Antonelli Sunny Sporne |
Budworth SC | 3 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 13.75 |
| 3rd | 29501 | Iain Marshall Duncan Reed |
Maldon YC | 1 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 15.75 |
| 4th | 20558 | Peter Wolstenholme Phil Marshall |
BVSC | 8 | 4 | 3 | rtd | 2 | 4 | 3 | 16 |
| 5th | 23980 | Richard Lambert Nicky Lambert |
BCSC | 5 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 18.75 |
| 6th | 29164 | Alan Williams Liz Crouch |
Budworth SC | 4 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 21.75 |
| 7th | 28451 | Brian Gregory Matthew Williams |
BCSC | 2 | 7 | rtd | 9 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 28 |
| 8th | 27098 | John Love Deborah Love |
Budworth SC | 9 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 14 | 10 | 32.75 |
| 9th | 29408 | Alan Hoy Graham Hoy |
Maldon YC | 11 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 33 |
| 10th | 24152 | Ricky Sadzik Henryk Sadzik |
BCSC | 16 | 13 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 44 |
| 11th | 27106 | Sue Antonelli David Cummings |
Littleton SC | 6 | 3 | 5 | dnc | dnc | dnc | dnc | 54 |
| 12th | 27871 | Ian Varney Kyle Varney |
Maldon YC | 13 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 10 | rtd | 58 |
| 13th | 28276 | Peter Wibroe Andrew Wibroe |
BCSC | 15 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 60 |
| 14th | 15602 | Ian Knight Bridget Knight |
Maldon YC | 14 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 65 |
| 15th | 20557 | Matthew Silver Carl Silver |
BCSC | 10 | 12 | 10 | dnc | dnc | dnc | dnc | 72 |
| 16th | 27330 | Nick Lett Michael Lett |
BCSC | 12 | 10 | 11 | dnc | dnc | dnc | dnc | 73 |
| 17th | 26090 | John White Jerry Desmond |
BCSC | 17 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 75 |
| 18th | 20351 | Robin Desmond Ian Newman |
BSCS | dnc | dnc | dnc | 15 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 75 |
| 19th | 27330 | Dave Jones Mick Janman |
BCSC | dnc | dnc | dnc | 11 | 10 | dnc | dnc | 81 |