Sail Chat 7th September-Enterprise & Comet Open
Four local boats and three visitors competed for the Enterprise Hampton Cup and the final of the Thames Valley River Series. At first the conditions were relatively benign for the first race down river with a south easterly blowing. This increased throughout the day, gradually veering more and more to the south and eventually to a south south westerly. Race Officer Nigel Cooper set a long course down river to a mark opposite the slip at Hurst Park and then a reach run up to a mark below Platts Ait.
This open was held jointly with the Hampton Comet Versa Fleet. The Race Officer set separate class starts and courses and their were no instances of the fleets having difficulties with each other.
The sailing off the club reach was good and, at times, with exciting reaches but the channel between Garricks Ait and the Middlesex bank was demanding as the increased breeze veered, backed and bounced off both banks. In the first race Ann Jackson and crew Alan Skeens flew away never to be caught after a strenuous race of an hour and a bit, followed by the pack, who exchanged places a number of times, apart from Ian and Jo Macgregor who stayed a steady second. There was one capsize during this race in the channel.
The second and third races were held back to back in the opposite direction with a dog leg off Bell Hill. In the second race, once again Ann and Alan showed their strong wind credentials and were easy winners. The third race in similar conditions was extremely gusty and blew Ian and Sarah over in the channel and Ian and Jo over in front of the club, the rest of the fleet were fortunate to survive capsize, gusts were recorded of over 20 mph.
We are grateful to the race team, timekeepers, caterers and barman for their efforts, helping to make for an energetic and enjoyable day. The results are 1st Ann Jackson/ Alan Skeens Burgfield E 23170, 2nd Ian/Jo Macgregor Lensbury E 23224, 3rd Chris Rowsell/ Alastair Stewart Lensbury E 23225, 4th Jane Chambers/Ellen Cooper Hampton E23162, 5th Ian Peerless/Susie Peerless/ Sarah Peacock Hampton E 22559, 6th Sarah Rolf/Sue Morley/ Paul Wennekes Hampton E 23160 and 7th Philip Chambers/ Sophie Penwarden Hampton E 23218.
The Hampton Enterprise Cup, The River Series Cup and the Ladies Cup was won by Ann and Alan. The River Series Silver
Cup was won by Ian and Jo.
Philip Chambers HSC Enterprise Fleet Rep.
The inaugural HSC Comet Versa Open took place in blustery conditions . The event was held at the same time as the Enterprise Open comprising 3 races for each class. Well-organised course setting & timing by the Duty Officer Nigel Cooper & his team ensured that the classes were kept well apart & results accurately recorded .
7 Comets competed , crewed by a great mix of young & old with ages ranging from 3 to 78 !
For the first race in the morning the wind was mainly south-easterly & the fleet was sent down river to the first mark beyond Garrick Temple where the wind became very fluky in strength & direction. The reach upriver towards Platts Ait also posed plenty of challenges with some strong gusts off the Middlesex shore. In a closely fought race the leading 3 boats frequently swapped places. James Warren in Petena IV crewed by 3 year old Elodie & Charlie led for much of the race but was overtaken on the last lap by Phil Dalby & Sammy in Cherry Pie & George & Chris Bell in Poppy.
A well-earned lunch was then provided by the excellent catering team helping to fortify competitors for the afternoon races.
The breeze had veered somewhat to the south / south-west by the early afternoon so the first mark for the second race was upriver . The race officer introduced 2 extra marks off Bell Hill to give a short beat. By this time gusts were becoming more frequent & stronger leading to a capsize by the class captain in Popeye & a couple of retirements, However the leading 3 boats from the first race mastered the conditions well. This time Cherry Pie established a good lead early on & was not to be caught. Petena was second & Poppy third. Special mention should be made of young Sasha who bravely crewed the sailing secretary in SwyNDon but unfortunately had to retire having missed a mark.
The third race was over the same course & by this time the fleet was reduced to 4 starters, 2 of the competitors having unfortunately suffered bangs on the head in the previous race. Prompt & expert treatment by the shore team ensured they were well-looked after & fully recovered.
James Warren & Phil Dalby showed their expertise sailing single-handed this time in challenging 20 knot gusts to bring Petena home first followed by Cherry Pie & Poppy.
The overall results with one discard were :
- Cherry Pie 226 - Phil Dalby / Sammy
- Petena IV 290- James Warren/Elodi / Charlie
- Poppy 355- George/Chris Bell
- Popeye 317- Tim Herbert-Smith
- Merlin 260- Peter Norrey
6= SwyNDon 306- David Gettings/Sasha
6= Indy 220- Angela Penwarden/Sophie
Glasses & medals were awarded at the prize giving after racing . A trophy has yet to be allocated but the Club will be providing one in due course .
Tim Herbert-Smith, HSC Comet Versa Class Captain
Last updated 5:44pm on 3 October 2025