30 sailors chose to compete in the Tamesis firefly open rather than the London Marathon on 14th April. Visitors from all over the south joined the home boats. Two races were held in the morning around a figure of eight course. The wind shifted hugely throughout both races as the rain clouds passed and also from more localised effects such as the trees and houses.
In the first race Mark Tait and Sally Wakefield took and early lead but got on the wrong side of the last shift on the beat to let Nigel Wakefield and Emily Saunderson through to lead and win. Alex Davey and Jonquil Brookes sailed through into second. Tait/Wakefield held onto third from Rob and Georgina Cage by the smallest of margins.
Wakefield/Saunderson lead the second race comfortably but became becalmed for long enough for Davey/Brookes to take the lead and eventually win. Tait/Wakefield finishing third again.
Despite the light rain and heavy roast lunch, the competitors took to their boats for the third race. Event honours were still at stake with a “who beats who” between Davey/Brookes and Wakefield/Saunderson. These two boats had their only little match race using calmer areas of the river away from the racing line. After exchanging the lead of the match race a couple of times Wakefield/Saunderson managed to break free to take the Elizabeth Cup. Tait/Wakefield and Cage/Cage sailed away into a healthy lead, followed by Jamie McEwan and Georgie Sutcliffe. The Firefly class would like to convey their appreciation to Tamesis sailing club for hosting a fantastic event.
Overall Results:
1st Nigel Wakefield & Emily Saunderson, 3674 (Wessex Exiles) 1,2,3
2nd Alex Davey & Jonquil Brookes, 3690 (Royal Harwich YC) 2,1,4
3rd Mark Tait & Sally Wakefield, 498 (Burghfield SC) 3,3,1
4th Rob Cage & Georgina Cage, 18 (Bewl Valley SC) 4,7,2
5th Jamie McEwan & Georgie Sutcliffe, 3615 (Skirmish) 7,4,5
6th Chris Guy & Annie Goss, 626 (Spinnaker) 5,6,7