National 12s @ Yeadon SC

Sun 5th October 2008
 
After Saturday’s rain and gales, the sun and light breezes were a welcome change for the helms and crews of the nineteen National 12s who gathered at Yeadon Tarn on Sunday to sail for the Tarn Trophy. With 15 different designs on the water spanning 40 years of development the outcome was by no means certain. 
 
With the wind from a north to north-easterly direction, the Race Officer was able to set a beat making full use of the restricted water and Race 1 got underway at the first attempt. The breeze favoured those on the starboard side of the course and it was from this group that the leaders emerged with John and Alison Cheetham in their Numinous design taking the gun. Howard Chadwick and Helen Nicholson in their 1966 vintage Starfish sailed exceptionally well to take second place in front of Bernard Clark and Ian Towers in their Final Chapter
 
Race 2 got underway almost immediately, and Philip and Helen David in their Baggy Trousers soon hit the front of the fleet, clearly in the sort of form that won them the trophy in 2007, pulling ahead of Team Cheetham for their first win of the day. Neil McInnes and Felix Morgan in another Baggy Trousers were close behind in 3rd with visitors Simon and Matt Hopkins from Up River SC in their Crusader getting to grips with the conditions to finish strongly in 4th place

After lunch, the wind freshened considerably for the start of the final race and, with boats crowding in at the pin-end, the inevitable happened and the David’s, comfortably lined up for the start, were forced to retire after being holed by an over-enthusiastic windward boat. Once the fleet had got itself sorted out it was the Hopkins who led for much of the way - with the two local helms John Cheetham and Howard Chadwick in hot pursuit.  It was only on the last lap as the breeze dropped that the Cheethams were able to ghost ahead of the Crusader and register another emphatic win to take the trophy.

At the prizegiving, Howard Chadwick was also awarded the Witchcraft Bailer Trophy for his overall win in the 2008 N12 Vintage Series.

Overall results

1^st John and Alison Cheetham, N3468 Numinousm, Yeadon SC

2^nd Howard Chadwick and Helen Nicholson, N2266 Starfish, Yeadon SC

3^rd Simon and Matt Hopkins, N3413 Crusader, Up River SC

4^th Philip and Helen David, N3217 Baggy Trousers, Yorkshire Ouse SC

1^st Vintage: Howard Chadwick and Helen Nicholson, N2266 Starfish

National 12’s enjoy close racing at Yeadon (Photo - Tim Hattersley)