The final round of the 2012 RS 100 Gul Grand Prix was hosted by Parkstone YC over the weekend of 15/16 September.
15 boats made it to the start line with a number of notable visitors topping up the local fleet. All 6 races were sailed in the superb setting of Poole Bay off Sandbanks and Bournemouth. Saturday presented cloudless sunny conditions and a movable F3. Local legend Neal Freeman won the first with other local talent Hywel Roberts 2nd and Huw Powell 3rd. The same faces cropped up at the front in Race 2 with Huw winning from Hywel with Neal in 3rd. Race 3 neatly opened up the event with Huw, Neal, Hywel and the equally over-enthusiastic David Smart all OCS. Only Neal went back, but not far enough. In the end Greg Booth sailed round the fleet to win from the ever-consistent Clive Eplett, and Mark Harrison.
Sunday dawned light but with confidence that the breeze would fill. The fleet was again sent out into Poole Bay to face a variable and bouncy F2-F4 breeze coming over the land. Huw won Race 4 from Hwyel and Phil Jackson. In the increasing breeze Mark Harrison found his form to win Race 5 from Huw with bigger-breeze-supremo Greg in 3rd. Going into the final beat of Race 6, the breeze flicked right leading to some nervous faces on the left; in the middle Huw hung on to win from Neal, with Hywel in 3rd.
Next for the 100s is the RS Inland Championships at Grafham on 6/7 October.
