The traditional Rum & Mince Pie season curtain closing event of the 2023 Noble Marine Insurance Lightning 368 Travellers Trophy series took place at West Oxfordshire SC on Saturday, the 11th of November.
Yes, both a tot of Rum & a Mince Pie were appreciated on a cold but clear November day!
2023 National Champion, Simon Hopkins, had already wrapped up the Travellers series with his consistent performances and number of wins across the whole season, so the only trophy still up for grabs was in the Silver fleet and the Rum & Mince Pie Trophy itself.
After a 2 minute respectful silence was observed for Armistice Day, the fleet of 20 Lightning sailors were briefed about the day's racing, which turned out to be in light, fickle and eventually little or no wind by the end of the day
With three races were completed and with two wins it was Robbie Claridge who retained the Rum & Mince Pie Trophy that he won last year, followed by Penny Yarwood in 2nd, and local helm Caroline Hollier in 3rd.
Back in the Silver Fleet, 4 helms were in with a shout of seizing the Silver Travellers trophy. John Butler and Duncan Cheshire were within a point of each other going into the event, but it was Duncan who clinched the title on the day counting a 4th and a 7th, as opposed to John's 6th & 8th.
With a much higher participation of Lightning sailors at the season's open events, and the best attended National Championship in over 20 years, 2023 has proven to be an outstanding year for the Lightning 368 class.
The respectful way in which the older heritage boats haven't been outclassed by later revisions to the build & deck layouts in the Mk2 & Mk3 boats has ensured a healthy secondhand market for the older boats, some of which have been recently upgraded with all-carbon masts and booms, and are still capable of being sailed competitively in the right hands.
With a sensible price point for people to buy and then compete in older boats, the class looks forward to the continued influx of new sailors, resulting in renewed, healthy competition in 2024, when the Lightning 368 National Championship will again take place in mid-September at Chase SC.
Overall Results:
Pos Sail No Helm Club R1 R2 R3 Pts
1st 427 Robbie Claridge Royal Lymington YC 1 1 ‑2 2
2nd 425 Penny Yarwood Up River YC 2 3 ‑6 5
3rd 438 Caroline Hollier West Ox SC 3 2 ‑13 5
4th 428 Simon Hopkins Up River YC 5 ‑6 1 6
5th 447 John Claridge Royal Lymington YC 4 ‑7 5 9
6th 416 Duncan Cheshire Winsford Flash SC 7 5 (DNS) 12
7th 435 Ben Twist Broadstairs SC ‑13 4 9 13
8th 433 John Butler Notts County SC 6 8 (DNS) 14
9th 257 Clayton Parker Winsford Flash SC ‑15 12 3 15
10th 325 Paul Beven Up River YC ‑12 10 7 17
11th 407 Bryan Westley Chase SC ‑19 14 4 18
12th 430 Graham Lazell Up River YC 8 ‑17 10 18
13th 49 Mark Godden West Ox SC 9 9 (DNS) 18
14th 298 Georgie Parker Winsford Flash SC 10 ‑13 11 21
15th 337 Paul Taylor Paul Taylor 11 11 ‑14 22
16th 402 Stephen Hodgson Denholme SC ‑16 15 8 23
17th 441 Ian Ranson Bolton SC 14 ‑16 12 26
18th 321 Larraine Cotterall West Ox SC ‑20 18 15 33
19th 67 Marion Turberfield West Ox SC 17 ‑19 16 33
20th 95 Richard Stratton West Kirby SC 18 20 (DNS) 38
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