Strangford champions again

Strangford champions again

9 September 2015

ANY doubts about the future of sailing on Strangford Lough were firmly dispelled on Sunday as Killyleagh Yacht Club hosted the final leg of the Strangford Lough Youth series.

Light, shifting breezes and sunshine saw 42 young sailors compete for both personal glory and to help their respective club lift the highly-coveted Youth Series Shield.

Going into the last race in the Laser Radial class, Strangford Sailing Club’s Paul McMeekin was in pole position to win ahead of team mate William Findlay, but it was Findlay who triumphed on the day as a third place in the biggest fleet of the year, gave him enough points to snatch victory from the absent McMeekin who finished in second overall.

While KYC’s Angus Ferris claimed two bullets on the day, yet another member of the highly talented SSC McMeekin family, this time Tom, sneaked into third.

In a smaller Laser 4.7 class, the overall order was unchanged by the last day’s racing and it was a Strangford Lough Yacht Club one, two, three with Henry Greer first, Adam Fermor second and Emma McKnight in third.

The Youth Series this year has brought 33 young sailors to the water in the Topper class and 16 of these turned up on Sunday to compete for the top spot overall.

Going into the final race lying ahead of the rest, SSC’s Ben McMeekin did exactly what was needed to claim a well-deserved first overall, while SLYC hotshot Olivia Mooney cemented a decisive second overall with two wins on the day.

In a hard fought battle, Aimee Cushley from SLYC just ousted QYC’s Christopher Cannon to claim third place in this highly competitive fleet.

In the Topper 4.2 class, Eva Briggs from EDYC and SSC’s Colin Crichton were tied on points going into the final day, but with the prize firmly in sight, young Crichton secured two wins to become the overall victor with Briggs and second and another SSC sailor, Conor McVeigh, in third.

A Pico class that grew as the series progressed, saw host club Killyleagh Yacht Club make their mark, with sisters Isabella and Sara Kelly in first overall, ahead of team mates and brothers, Daire and Cormac Vint in second.  In third place overall were Jordan Conway and Aimee McVeigh from SSC who shone on Sunday with two convincing victories while KYC’s Estelle Coulter put in a commanding solo handed performance to finish second in her first event in the series. 

A much smaller turn-out in the RS Feva class saw SLYC in the top two spots with Catherine Pooler and Anna Wilson taking first ahead of Lucy Bell and Emma Greer in second.

Going into the final round the competition was tight for the highly coveted Youth Series Shield, with Strangford Sailing Club in the lead, just ahead of Strangford Lough Yacht Club.

Team motivation was high for SSC as they performed their own personal Hakka before racing commenced, and this, combined with a sterling effort by the young sailors of Strangford, meant that yet again, they claimed the club prize.  Team SLYC were second overall while KYC, after a slump in recent years, came through to claim third place. 

Many people are involved in this series, and the organisers would like to thank everyone involved for their hard work and dedication in encouraging, supporting and managing this highly successful event.

In particular the organisers would like to thank Kyle and Sharon Bolton of Ards Flooring who sponsored the overall series prizes this year. 

For those who are keen to keep sailing, Quoile Yacht Club will be hosting a Topper Traveller event on Sunday, October 4, while Killyleagh Yacht Club are launching a new event, the Die Hard Dinghies Series, with two races every Saturday in October. 

Overall results

Laser Radial: 1st William Findlay, SSC; 2nd Paul McMeekin, SSC; 3rd Tom McMeekin, SSC.

Laser 4.7: 1st Henry Greer, SLYC; 2nd Adam Fermor, SLYC; 3rd Emma McKnight, SLYC.

Topper: 1st Ben McMeekin, SSC; 2nd Olivia Mooney, SLYC; 3rd Aimee Cushley, SLYC.

Topper 4.2: 1st Colin Crichton, SSC; 2nd Eva Briggs, EDYC; 3rd Connor McVeigh, SSC.

Pico: 1st Isabella and Sara Kelly, KYC; 2nd Daire and Cormac Vint, KYC; 3rd Jordan Conway and Aimee McVeigh, SSC.

RS Feva: 1st Catherine Pooler and Anna Wilson, SLYC; 2nd Lucy Bell and Emma Greer, SLYC.