Cox sails home to win Glenn Challenge Bowl

Sunday saw eight boats take to the water for combined races for the Richard Glenn Challenge Bowl and the first two races of the Frostbite Series at Welland Yacht Club.
Wind direction was blowing straight onto the clubhouse meaning a reaching start and that the race was to be sailed without a beat. With the first buoy being number one a clean start and placing was essential.
It was Mark Scourfield in the Solo and Keiron Powell in the full rig Laser who judged the start by placing themselves in mid river away from the bunch of boats to windward.
Scourfield had right of way at the mark allowing him to turn first, followed by Powell and Gerri van Haren in the Phantom.
Making the way to number three buoy, the fleet bunched and places changed regularly as the wind came and went but van Haren, Powell and Alan Cox managed to sail away and round in that order with Arden Follington in the Laser catching. Cox and Powell were engaged in their own battle which Powell won as Cox fell into a hole in the wind.
Three laps were shortened to two as the wind did not increase as hoped and it was van Haren who crossed the line first followed by Powell, Cox and Andy Prior and after handicaps it was Powell first, Cox second and Prior in third.
Race two started with additional boats joining meaning ten in total.
It was Alan Chapman in the Laser full rig that judged it well, starting near the clubhouse with clear wind away from the bunch of boats at the windward end of the line.
Van Haren managed to round in second, with Cox third and Tack and Slator in the Graduate and Helen Boyd in her Solo in pursuit.
Again the fickle wind meant places were changing on a regular basis testing the patience of crews as gains were lost and made.
It was van Haren who stretched out a substantial lead that was never threatened.
Battles took place in the chasing pack with Cox and Powell finding the wind when others didn’t, once again Powell had to do his penalty turns after a right of way incident which meant he dropped back. With Boyd, Tack and Slator and Nick Bonsor in the Solo staying in touch it would be close at the end on corrected time.
With 19 seconds covering the first five boats, Cox was first, four seconds ahead of van Haren, who was seven seconds ahead of third placed Helen Boyd with Tack and Slator in fourth.
The win gave Cox victory in the Challenge Bowl with three points, followed by Powell in second and van Haren third.
Anyone wanting to find out more about sailing should contact the club via email secretary@welland
yachtclub.co.uk.