Welland Yacht Club Club Information

Flag Officers Cup

Perfect weather greeted the fleet for the first race with strong sunshine and a brisk breeze.

In these conditions, Hastings (Solo) and Andy and Charlotte Prior (National 12) were able to pull away from the fleet and establish an early lead.

The two were largely unchallenged, but Prior was unable to pull out enough of a lead to beat Hastings' lower handicap.

Robin Wilson (Europe) and Neal Tack (Solo) also ran well, picking up third and fourth.

The wind peaked during the second race, and the strong gusts made for tricky sailing.

It was Hastings and Prior again who gained an early lead, chased by Wilson and Tack.

Hastings maintained the lead until the finish line, but Andy and Charlotte Prior were beaten to second by Wilson's lower handicap.

Tack sailed well to take fourth, while a costly capsize left Chris Prior (Laser) only able to finish fifth.

At the start of the final race, Hastings needed a top three finish to take the cup, while Wilson and the Prior family fought it out for second place.

In shifting conditions, all competitors sailed a close race right to the end.

Hastings again pulled out a good lead, but this time Chris Prior was able to stay afloat long enough to make the most of his faster boat.

Chris eventually made it past Hastings, but was unable to pull out enough of a gap, and so had to be content with second.

This was only by a mere 14 seconds ahead of Wilson in third, himself only 13 seconds ahead of the Priors in fourth.

With those results, Hastings claimed a comprehensive victory, with Wilson taking second place overall, and Andy and Charlotte Prior in third.

Tulip Trophy

11 boats took to the water for Welland Yacht Club's annual Tulip Regatta, on a day that saw bright sunshine but changeable wind conditions. Andy and Charlotte Prior (National 12) claimed the trophy with three wins, followed by Robin Wilson (Europe) with two seconds and a third, and Chris Prior (Laser) with one second and two thirds.

The day began with strong wind, and proved a difficult sail in places. The Priors were able to capitalise on a good start and pull out a lead they never lost, while Richard Thacker (Wayfarer), R Wilson and C Prior pulled away from the fleet and fought it out for second place. Prior was eventually able to make the best of his faster boat and pull clear of the other two, but was unable to gain enough ground to beat Wilson on handicap.

The Priors both got a good start to the second race, and pulled out a good lead in changing conditions. While C Prior briefly looked to challenge A Prior for the lead, A Prior was better able to handle the wind shifts and took the line by some distance. C Prior did pull out enough ground to take second place, with R Wilson coming in third, despite some strong performances by Neil Tack and Thacker.

The third race began chaotically and suffered from an almost total lack of wind. A Prior was able to get an early lead to achieve a clean sweep, while R Wilson's better handling of the conditions saw him beat C Prior by 5 seconds, taking second in the race and overall, leaving Prior in third.

In the rest of the fleet, Emma Flowers (Laser) was unlucky not to gain a higher placing after two excellent starts, and Michael Neveson and Ed Halliday (Lasers) put in some impressive performances. The teams of Adam Wilson and Nicky Wilson, and Martin and Victoria Cook again proved that the battle of the Graduates will be one to watch this season and Thacker was a threat in conditions that haven't previously suited his boat.
Another close-fought event for WYC, in a season where big improvements are being made across the board.