Durham University Sailing Fleeting Success Rates

The weekend of the 5^th and 6^th of November saw the return of the BUCS Fleet Racing Championships. Durham University Sailing Club (DUSC) were out to continue their successful run in the University Sailing Arena. University sailors from across the country swapped their team racing tactics for fleet racing and gathered at Draycote Water Sailing Club, for what was to be a great weekend for competition.  Durham had 13 members enter across the four different fleets.

Saturday presented the squad with a good breeze of 15 knots with gusts of up to 25; this made for some exciting racing. The team managed to get three windward/leeward races in and despite a couple of capsizes, the team won’t mention any names, DUSC found themselves in a very good position going into Sunday. Eddie Farrell and Ollie Gibson in their 29er (pictured above) stormed ahead of their competition, often finding themselves lapping the other fleets. By the end of the day, they found themselves sitting comfortably in first position. Some strong racing with a little help from their handicap meant that Angus Collingridge and Ted Peggie in their racing spec wayfarer were 3^rd overall. A strong performance from 5 laser sailors saw Durham claiming 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 7^th place at the end of day 1.

The Sunday commenced with the squad delayed as a result of thick fog. After a long 2 hours, DUSC were able to launch and get back to racing. As the first warning signal sounded, the heavens opened, and the sailors were subjected to monsoon-like conditions, making racing pretty tricky. The lighter winds meant that Eddie and Ollie struggled, but despite this, they still managed to claim top 3 finishes in both races. The light winds meant that Emily Turner and Annabel Turner in their RS-200 could claim back some places with a couple of very strong races. Olivia Bracey-Davis and Alex Paton put in a solid performance in a very competitive firefly fleet throughout the weekend. The laser fleet continued to excite as Durham’s 5 sailors jostled each other for top spot. The light winds aided Angus and Ted in their wayfarer, the vast amounts of sail area meant that they were able to put in another strong performance and make up time on their closest competitors. Due to the delay, the team were only able to get 2 races in on Sunday.

After a very strong and competitive two days of sailing, Durham came away with 3 medals (1 silver and 2 bronze) and also achieved 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 7^th positions in the laser fleet. Unfortunately, due to recent BUCS rule changes, the team just missed out on a gold medal in the combined men's team rankings, thus overall team rankings. Team Durham and DUSC are incredibly proud of their performances over the weekend. The teams' performances in this year’s (and last years) fleet racing championships, on top of great success in team racing and yachting throughout the last few years, means that Durham finds itself as one of the leading sailing clubs on the university circuit.

We would like to thank BUSA, Draycote Water Sailing Club and Warwick University Sailing Club for organising another fantastic BUCS fleet racing championships.