Bembridge Illusion Stratton Memorial Trophy 2023

 Another weekend of challenging racing for the Bembridge Illusion Class, this time for the magnificent Stratton Memorial Trophy.

The forecast of cold NE'erly F3-F5 breezes was pretty accurate, so it was certainly not for the faint hearted! Seventeen hardy Illusion sailors gathered in the Illusion Park over lunchtime on Saturday and eventually (too much nattering!) made it down to the start area close to the Houseboats for the first race of the day that started about 10 minutes later than scheduled, but at least the sun was shining!

Another excellent weekend of racing; indeed Oliver reckoned it was the best of the season. So after the six races and allowing for a discard, it was another husband & wife triumph for Mark and Jo. After being awarded average points for the last two races, Colin was third.

Next weekend, racing is for the Prince Philip Cup; the weekend after is the 2023 National Championships.

Overall Results:

Pos Helm Sail No R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Pts

1 Mark Downer 164 1 1 1 8 1 1 5

2 Jo Downer 166 5 2 2 1 2 2 9

3 Colin Simonds 138 4 5 3 2 4 4 17

4 David Peerless 140 2 4 8 10 3 3 20

5 Mike Toogood 142 3 3 9 4 D 5 24

6 Oliver Morgan 169 6 6 7 3 5 4 24

7 Caroline Simonds 67 7 R 4 5 4 7 27

8 Mike Issaias 152 8 10 5 7 6 11 36

9 Olly Laughton‑Scott 80 10 7 10 8 12 S 47

10 John Birchenough 37 13 13 12 12 7 7 51

11 Andy Christie 149 12 11 15 11 9 13 56

12 Guy Lawrence 86 9 9 6 S S S 66

13 Will Lowe 150 17 16 16 R 10 10 69

14 Owen Pay 105 S S S 9 8 12 71

15 James Row 22 16 13 14 15 13 S 71

16 Robin Ebsworth 12 11 8 11 S S S 72

17 Tim Lyle 163 S S S 15 11 8 76

18 Jonathan N‑L 158 S S S 14 D 6 83

19 Matt Solan 106 14 15 13 S S S 84

20 Sam Christie R 15 12 S S S S 90