2016 Solo Northern Championships
Over the weekend of the 25/26th June Leigh & Lowton Sailing Club hosted the Solo Northern Championships which incorporated, using the Sunday results only, the Northern Travellers series.
Saturday was a glorious day with bright sunshine and a stiff westerly Force 5 breeze which allowed the race team to set a long beat and exciting downwind legs for the 25 entries.
Race 1 – After a general recall and a black flag start it was Steve Dennison (HLSC) who rounded the windward mark first to take the early lead after early contender Martin Honnor (Ogston SC) capsized at the top mark. Dennison was closely followed throughout the race by a tight group of four boats but held on to take the win from Adam Savage (Elton SC) in second, Mike Thomas (RYA) third and Ian Hopwood (Nantwich SC) fourth.
Race 2 – Another black flag start and a bit more wind for this one. Ian Hopwood revelled in the conditions and stormed off into a big lead which he held until to the finish. Behind him Dennison was hanging onto second place Savage third but a big gust on the reach across the lake saw Burwain SC teammates Innes Armstrong and Stephen Graham soak low on the reach to undertake Dennison and Savage to claim second and third place respectively leaving Dennison in fourth and Savage fifth.
Race 3 – Another convincing win for Hopwood in this one put him overnight leader. Dennison came home in second, Honnor third and Graham fourth.
Sunday dawned with similar conditions to Saturday and another three boats joined the fleet.
Race 4 – Another general recall, another black flag start. In a repeat of yesterdays first race Dennison took the lead and was never headed. There was a great battle between Hopwood, Armstrong and Honnor. Armstrong pulled through to take second from Hopwood in third and Honnor fourth.
Race 5 – This saw Savage take an early lead but he found himself in a flat spot on the course and roped in by the rest of the fleet and thus dropped back. This allowed Armstrong to take the lead and he then proceeded to do a ‘horizon’ job on the chasing pack to take a very comfortable win from Dennison in second, Honnor third and Hopwood fourth.
Race 6 – Hopwoods chances of winning the event were scuppered when he, and Graham, were deemed over the line on yet another black flag start. Honnor was first to the windward mark followed by Paul Heath (LLSC) and the son/father combo of Mike Thomas and Steve Thomas (Rudyard Lake SC) Honnor and Heath pulled away from the fleet no doubt helped by the Thomass concentrating on their own little battle. In the end the finishing order was as per the first mark rounding. Further down the fleet Armstrong kept Dennison behind him to take the Northern Traveller event on discard.
At the end of the day the winner of the Northern Championships was Dennison. The winner of the Northern Travellers event (using just Sundays results) was Armstrong.
Northern Championships
1) Steve Dennison Hollingworth Lake SC 10
2) Ian Hopwood Nantwich SC 13
3) Innes Armstrong Burwain SC 15
4) Martin Honnor Ogston SC 17
5) Stephen Graham Burwain SC 23
Northern Travellers Series
1) Innes Armstrong Burwain SC 3
2) Steve Dennison HLSC 3
3) Martin Honnor Ogston SC 4
4) Ian Hopwood Nantwich SC 7
5) Paul Heath Leigh & Lowton SC 8
