Ollie Berryman wins HRSC regatta in style!
The 4th of July was forecast to be windy and all the sailors who gathered at the club on Sunday morning were not disappointed, with trees above Helford bending in the southwesterly force 4 winds. 20 RS Fevas coming from clubs all over Cornwall to attend the RYA Onboard Feva event supplemented the regular Helford PY dinghy fleet. The club car park was turned into a temporary dinghy park for all the visiting boats. It was quite a sight to see more than 30 boats trying to launch off the Club beach, made smaller by the high tide.
John Jane, Sarah Mason and Jane Benney manned the committee boat and set the windward/leeward courses, with the leeward mark off Toll.
The first PY start was a little chaotic with so many Fevas in the starting area but Ollie Berryman sailing a 5.7 laser got a good start arriving at the windward mark first. In the testing conditions the smaller rigged boats were able to hold their own and Ollie led the fleet for much of the race and gained a very creditable win. The second race was sailed in slightly less wind and the fully rigged boats were able to perform well.
The wind was back to full strength for the third race after lunch, gusting force 6. Garth Weaver in his National 12 and crewed by his young daughter Lauren had a spectacular start arriving at the windward mark more than a minute ahead of the fleet. He sailed an excellent race and would have won the race but for a rudder failure near the finish. In the strong winds, the smaller rigged boats were again able to out-perform the full rigged boats. Beccy Kestin finished first in this race in a 4.7 Laser, but with Ollie Berryman finishing third, his consistent good results throughout the day meant he was the overall winner.
Final results were:
- 1st Ollie Berryman
- 2nd Adam Mason
- 3rd Beccy Kestin
The Feva event, involved 38 young sailors aged between 9 and 16 and, like the main regatta, consisted of two races in the morning and one in the afternoon, with the best two results to count. Throughout the day the sailors showed great commitment and effort in coping with the elements, despite many capsizes, but enjoyed some exhilarating fast sailing.
The Fevas came from Penzance Sailing Club, St Mawes Sailing Club, Stithians WAVES Club, Roseland Paddle & Sail, Fowey Gallants Sailing Club, Camel Estuary Youth Sailing, Helford River Sailing Club and Helford River Children’s Sailing Trust.
Sailing the three races in a day wasn’t enough for youngsters from St Mawes Sailing Club. They were so keen that on Saturday they sailed over from St Mawes with their parents and support boats, camped overnight and sailed home after the prizegiving.
Final results were:
- 1st Nat Warren and Christian Vroom – Roseland Paddle & Sail
- 2nd Alex Cox and Ollie Bampton – Camel Estuary Youth Sailing Club
- 3rd Flora Robson and Josh Croft – St Mawes SC