Seldén Sailjuice Winter Series - Rockstars rev up for Rutland

 

There's a stellar line-up for this weekend's Tiger Trophy at Rutland Water Sailing Club. Predicting a winner would be a fool's game...

The John Merricks Tiger Trophy at Rutland Water is looking set to be the most competitive yet in this season's Seldén Sailjuice Winter Series. After a break from recent events, Tom Gillard and Rachael Gray are back in their Merlin Rocket. But will they manage to dominate at Rutland as they have done at the first three events of the season?

Looking at the line-up gathering for this weekend's competition, they will have to be at the top of their game to win a fourth event.

Gillard and Gray will have to keep their rival Merlin competitors at bay, not least Castle Cove's Tom Ballantine crewed by Olympic kitefoil and 49erFX campaigner Maddy Anderson.

Elsewhere in the fleet there's Megan Pascoe in the 2.4mR singlehanded keelboat. A former World and European Champion in the class, she could do well if the wind is on the lighter side. On the long-range forecast the breeze was looking around 8 to 15 knots which might be a bit on the high side for Pascoe.

Meanwhile Selden's own Andy Tarboton, reigning Musto Skiff World Champion, takes the helm of an International 14 with Tristan Tomlinson pulling the strings at the front. The battle for fastest boat on the water could come down to Alex Adams in a foiling International Moth against Simon Hiscocks, the double Olympic medallist who's racing a foiling Switch this weekend.

And so it goes on. There are already 43 different classes entered, representing almost every aspect of dinghy sailing in the UK's hugely diverse small-boat universe.

Olympic silver medallist David Wilkins takes his usual role of principal race officer and heads up a team of keen and expert volunteers. The forecast is good and everything is lining up for a great weekend of racing across Saturday and Sunday.

The Saturday evening Dinner is informal this year and the meal is £16.00 for two courses and will start soon after the Six Nations Rugby match finishes on the big screen.