Results / Gul RS300 National Championships WPSA - 19/08/2002

Gul RS National Championships 2002 � Day 5 RS300 Following yesterdays mission, the final chapter concluded with bright sunshine and a building sea breeze, boding well for the three scheduled races. Race 8 once again saw Steve Cockerill lead the fleet around the course, closely followed by Phil Davies and Ian Baillie, whose positions swapped frequently before Ian managed to squirt ahead. Steve Bolland continued his run of good form to sweep home in fourth place, just ahead of Will Gulliver, and brother Nick. Matt Sargent saw his previous good work come to grief as he finished a disappointing 7th, leading to an increase in tension for the fight for second place. Race 9 started in the same conditions, with the light westerly winds still causing troubles for the heavier helms. Phil Davies caused some relief for the fleet by threatening an early upset after taking the lead, only to see Steve Cockerill once more adopt his customary position at the head, and Ian Baillie sail past him on the beat, after following one of the small wind shifts. Steve Cook caused concern for all the leaders after getting a great start, and rapidly making ground up the first beat, only to see his hopes of glory dashed, despite holding off a late challenge by Steve Bolland, who claimed fifth. This proved to be one of the closest races of the event, with all 15 boats finishing within minutes, and places being swapped regularly. The final race of the National Championships saw the fleet sprint off of the line, only to see that the leaders had jumped the gun, and were over. Will Gulliver, and Steve Cockerill both threaded their ways back through the fleet to recross, only to see the flag stay up, causing concern throughout the fleet. Phil Davies took advantage of the confusion to open a lead up, being closely chased by Matt Sargent, Steve Cook, and Jamie Mawson. As the fleet wended their way around the course, Steve Cockerill mounted a valiant charge to keep his unbeaten record, managing to fight his way up to second place by the end, although being unable to catch Phil. Will Gulliver charged through to take fifth place from the chasing Jamie Mawson, and Ian Baillie. Steve Cockerill had proved to be a worthy National Champion once again, although the rapidly growing RS300 fleet had been able to cause one or two scares, and all commented on the continued excellence of the racing.