Old and the new

National 12s at Henley and Earlswood

National 12s at Henley

Thirteen National 12s fought an excellent 3 race series on Sunday 26 September. In the first race Geoff Camm and Amelia Hall were early leaders. Half way round the first lap Dave and Jenny Wilkins took command and won by a good distance. John and Mandy Thornton worked their way through to finish 3rd.

Race 2 saw Camm and Hall on course side and having to return. They then picked up a fortuitous puff which propelled them into second place by the first mark behind Steve Gent and Viv Roberts. After a close tussle with initially John & Katy Meadowcroft and then the Thorntons they won the race.

Race 3 and it was winner take all for the Thorntons, Wilkins or Camm & Hall. The Meadowcrofts took a substantial lead only eroded close to the finish, with Camm & Hall getting past the Thorntons to secure their overall victory, with the Meadowcrofts sneaking the old boats prize.

Two of the first 5 boats were more than thirty years old, but.the river is always a great leveller however for 12 foot boats of all ages, and there was fantastic racing for all.

Overall Results

1 – N3488 – Two Fat Ladies – Geoff Camm & Amelia Hall, Shoreham SC, 3 pts
2 – N2812 – Eric – John & Katy Meadowcroft, Henley SC, 4 pts
3 – N3148 – Pillowtalk – John & Mandy Thornton, Henley SC, 5 pts
4 – N3481 – Cooked to Perfection – David & Jenny Wilkins, Spinnaker Club, 6 pts
5 – N2799 – Saranac – Steve Gent & Viv Roberts, Henley SC, 8 pt


Vintage National 12s at Earlswood

The day dawned overcast and windy, perhaps a little strong for these lovely old boats. However there was a good turnout, with some competitive racing. With the first race underway it was soon apparent that Brian Herring and Roz Stevenson in N1673 were going to have to look pretty sharpish with Paul Turner and Andrea Murphy in N2487. After some changes in the lead the 1st race was won by Paul Turner, with Brian Herring 2nd and our own Bob Lewis with Adrian Nudds crewing in 3rd.

Having now set the handicaps for the second race Jonathan Reubin in N443 had a ten minute start on Paul Turner. With the wind now dying, it gave Alan Mason in N1607 a chance, who managed with Brian Herring to catch up with Jonathan in the fourth lap, but it took Paul Turner another lap ending with Alan Mason 1st, Brian Herring 2nd and Paul Turner 3rd.

In the final race the handicaps were adjusted slightly. With the wind now steady, and the sun shining, Brian and Paul had a race on. Paul managed to breakaway from Brian, but with close quarter racing for the beginning of the race they never really caught the remainder of the fleet, giving yet another winner Brian Kitching ,2nd Bob Lewis, 3rd Jonathan Reubin.

Overall Results:

1st Paul Turner and Andrea Murphy N2487
2nd Bob Lewis and Adrian Nudds N2476
2nd Brian Herring and Roz Stevenson N1673
4th Brian Kitching and George Kitching
5th Jonanthan Reubin and Jack Hawkins N443
6th Alan Mason and Alex Bajjon N1607
7th Ken Goddard and Ann Britton