Copper Cup

Oostende, Belgium, May 20, 2024.

by Heman Vandormael

The Copper Snipe Cup, once a major event on the European Snipe calendar, was revived 3 years ago. This year it was a 3 day event held over the long Whitsun weekend. A small fleet of 10 boats turned up, to find the first day a bit of a challenge. The Belgian coast was saved from the savage rains that hit the east of the country, but still the weather was unseasonably cold for mid-May. On Saturday the race-management was sub-optimal, partly due to some technical hitches. We  spent a few hours to see the weather window pass to have a race. To give the organizers their due, they apologized and the sailors were compensated with a free barrel of beer.

On Sunday racing finally went ahead after a few hours postponement due to fog. Once that cleared, conditions to lay out a proper course were difficult for the committee: tide on a 90° angle to the wind, but they managed and 3 nice races were completed.

On the last day the racing started after a short postponement. It was worth the wait. The conditions were the best the North Sea has to offer: a big swell, made steeper by the wind opposite to the tide and a stable northerly between 10  and 15 knots. Racing was close and in the end there was only one point between Yannick Laumans & Isabelle Dompas and Thomas Van Heyland and Floriane Le Floch. We also welcomed Gabriele Petraityte from Lithuania who is studying in Antwerp and joins our fleet for some time to come.

Final results after 6 races (1 discard):

1. Yannick Laumans & Isabelle Dompas, 7
2. Thomas Van Hoeylandt & Floriane Le Bloch, 8
3. Herman Vandormael & Daan Vandormael, 13
4. Yannick Bongaerts & Frederico Sequeira, 20
5. Sarah de Canniere & Sonia Wyffels, 25

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