RACING RULES EXPLAINER - EPISODE 3: Downwind Tips

Hollingworth Lake Sailing Club Championship October 2020

On Sunday (4 October), in a strong easterly breeze, sailors competed for the club championship. This was run over three races with all results to count, so consistent results were important. In the first race, it was 13-year-old Hector Droungas who took the win in a Topper, with Martin Brennan (Solo) runner-up, followed within seconds by Jacob Din (also aged 13) in a Laser, Jasper Bramwell (aged 12) in a Topper and senior Nick Hornsby in a Solo. So close racing showed the main contenders. In the second race, the two young Topper sailors had to take a penalty at the start for a rule break. This left the path clear for the senior sailors to get ahead. The strong breeze now had some occasional flat spots. Nick Hornsby and Les Bithell with Emma Turner (Merlin Rocket) were able to take advantage and establish a clear lead which they held to the finish. Meanwhile, Hector Droungas rounded a mark and was caught by a stronger gust and capsized, resulting in him retiring from the race. The final race was sailed in more moderate conditions and the young sailors in Toppers benefitted. This time Hector Droungas made no mistake and took the win from Jasper Bramwell with Tom Daniel, in a Laser, third place ahead of Andy Carter and Martin Brennan in Solos. The consequences of counting all three race results gave overall victory to Jasper Bramwell, with his excellent results, ahead of Martin Brennan and Nick Hornsby in their Solos, as prizewinners. Having to count his second race result left the twice race winner Hector Droungas in fifth place overall. Special mention also goes to young Orla Turner for her first outing as crew in a Mirror with David Hughes, awarded Silver Fleet prize. Away from the lake, Daisy Fisher (aged 15) was competing in a junior Topper Championship at Draycote, in the Midlands, where, in a fleet of 75 boats, she finished third overall and was the leading female sailor.

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Solo Open at Royal Harwich Yacht Club

Finally, the Solos organised a "distanced gathering" at Royal Harwich together with the Laser fleet. Anyone leaving their bed on Saturday morning through the bleak grey morning rain to make the journey to come racing must have questioned their sanity! Some thought better of it and took the option of a duvet day, but after this damp start it only got better. Race officer Dr Chris Brown was promptly afloat with his race team with two other Laser fleets to start before the Solos. The sequence was shortened to 3 minutes to minimise any waiting around. The blossoming local Laser fleet had a limited 45 entrants with the Solos limited to 15 after the Laser were fully subscribed after 24 hours. With a gentle spitting of rain at the start the first of four planned races started with a windward-leeward course to get everyone going and allowing the threat of planned swinging wind to settle. At the start it was Vince Horey from King George that was chomping at the bit - so keen to get away on what was a competitive start that an individual recall was displayed and Vince returned. Up the beat it was shifting regularly keeping everyone alert and a high level of concentration was required to pick up the shifts with wet tell tails! Most people continued on starboard initially inshore against the flood before tacking to cross the tide to the windward pillar buoy on the Pin Mill shore. The top mark rounding was closely fought but Tom Gillard from Sheffield Viking rounded first closely followed by Mark Maskell from Blackwater Sailing Club. At this point the race track was getting congested with the Solo's already catching the Lasers and it was key to try and maintain clear air on the run. Lap 2 again was tight, and the Lasers were helpful in identifying a few shifts. At the finish Gillard maintained his lead over Maskell and Chris Mayhew from RHYC completed the podium. The wind had dropped slightly to 6-7 knots and this caused the OOD to opt for a very swift single lap windward leeward course. The start was going to be even more important, and again the line up was tight. The left seemed the best option, but you needed to be careful not to get trapped and go too far. It was all close, but Derek Mayhew from RHYC showed some great upwind speed and picked through to look to round the first mark first, only to get overlapped with some Lasers and not be able to make a rounding! Tom Gillard was there to pounce and not make that mistake- rounding first. Gillard was pursued closely by Maskell then Chris Mayhew on the run. On the run Gillard went right keeping up tide with Maskell and Mayhew more central, only to have to go left for clear air around the Lasers which looked good until the end when Gillard came in to round the bottom mark and take the bullet from a closely fought second for Maskell and Mayhew third. The wind had recovered for race 3 and was back up to 10 knots for the two lap triangle course. Gillard started at speed and was out of the blocks fast. It was all tight up the beat and anyone in the fleet could have rounded first, but it was Gillard tailed by Peter Kyne from Brightlingsea and Horey with Maskell still in with a chance. On the reach the bunch remained tight, but Gillard began to pull away, as the Lasers were staying ahead for longer this race. The places remained close and at the final short beat to the finish the bunch finished remarkably close with Kyne holding on for 2nd and Horey gaining a 3rd. With the Open won Gillard was defending the record. Everyone needed to wait for a few minutes for a postponement to allow for some commercial shipping to pass by as the wind picked up a little. The final race was going to be held over two laps of a trapezoid course where the tide was just beginning to ebb. The beat this time had some significant shifts from halfway up the beat and being the right side of all of them was more than a challenge! The fleet was close, but Gillard had not eased up and was leading around again. The closer reach to the first downwind mark led to boats being able to get onto the plane and some nice conditions to finish the event. Gillard maintained his 100% record with the bullet and Maskell claimed another consistent second followed by the improving Kyne. At the end it remained close with only a few points separating second to fifth. It was great to see a number of Solos in what has been a very challenging year, and thanks go to Royal Harwich Yacht Club for putting on the event and enabling the Solos to get together again in what has been a very quiet year for the Solos and the End of Seasons is only a month away! Overall Results: Pos Sail No Helm Club R1 R2 R3 R4 Pts 1st 5675 Tom Gillard RHYC ‑1 1 1 1 3 2nd 5779 Mark Maskell Blackwater Sailing Club 2 2 ‑4 2 6 3rd 5717 Peter Kyne Brightlingsea SC 4 ‑6 2 3 9 4th 4921 Chris Mayhew RHYC 3 3 ‑6 5 11 5th 5850 Vince Horey King George Sailing Club ‑6 4 3 4 11 6th 5137 Derek Mayhew RHYC 5 5 ‑9 8 18 7th 5796 Andy Bines Brightlingsea SC ‑8 8 5 7 20 8th 5819 Phil Sturmer Royal Burnham Yacht Club 7 ‑10 7 6 20 9th 5904 Patrick Overs Paxton Lakes Sailing Club 9 7 ‑10 10 26 10th 5745 Robin Page Brightlingsea SC ‑11 9 8 11 28 11th 5888 Geoff Gritton Brightlingsea SC 10 ‑11 11 9 30 12th 5829 Simon Davis Upper Thames Sailing Club (DNC) DNC DNC DNC 39

Sailing Stunning English River (Dart)

Bridlington’s long history of sailboat racing with Royal Yorkshire Yacht Club

The coastal town is home to the Royal Yorkshire Yacht Club, several members of whom are pictured here preparing catamarans before heading out onto the North Sea. Though Bridlington is now the club’s home, it was originally based in both Hull and Whitby, established in 1847 by Hull businessman and ship owners. The club sets out on its website how that has changed over time. “By the turn of the century there was increasing traffic on the Humber and in the Hull Docks making the area less suitable for pleasure yachting. “Consequently the club decided to move its activities to Bridlington, where it occupied various premises until in 1939 the present clubhouse, previously the Ozone Hotel, was acquired and adapted to provide facilities for members and visiting yacht crews, to whom a special welcome has always been extended.” The club has held regattas since its founding, though had to cancel a number of times due to the First and Second World Wars and the Crimean War. The Duke of Edinburgh remains its patron, last paying a visit during its 150th anniversary year in 1997.

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All aboard for Onboard as Solihull club welcomes landmark study

OLTON Mere Sailing Club in Solihull has welcomed a landmark study by the Institute of Education at University College London (UCL), which highlights the positive impact of the sport on the lives of young people who get on the water through the grassroots RYA OnBoard programme. Run by the Royal Yachting Association, OnBoard introduces sailing and windsurfing to young people aged eight to 18 by connecting schools and youth groups with RYA clubs and training. These then offer low cost sessions promoting equal access to the sport for youngsters from all social and economic backgrounds and encouraging character development. The UCL report shows how OnBoard contributes to the development of life skills such as creativity, teamwork, determination, communication, independence and confidence. It also identifies how sailing and windsurfing correlate with benefits from physical activity generally and how RYA OnBoard plays an important role in tackling social injustice, boosting self-confidence and opening up further opportunities. Olton Mere SC chief instructor Andrew Yates said: “At Olton Mere we find that sailing is a new experience for most and confidence is gained in a very short time. “As experience is gained, confidence increases and this helps develop wellbeing and team work. Most importantly it is a fun activity in the fresh air and good exercise.” The club has Saturday afternoon social sailing supported by instructors and on Sunday mornings, structured coaching followed by racing. Other venues offering RYA OnBoard in the region include Bartley Sailing Club, Midland Sailing Club, GT Adventure and Sutton Sailing Club. Olton Mere Sailing Club is located just off the Warwick Road. Visit https://www.oltonmere.co.uk/ The full RYA OnBoard impact report can be read here: https://bit.ly/2EDeSCK

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Friends planning breast cancer charity regatta at Port Hamble

A COUPLE of friends from Hampshire are planning a regatta to raise money for a charity close to their hearts. Tanya and Liane met a couple of years ago, whilst working on the South Coast sailing yachts. Liane was amazed to hear that Tanya was fighting breast cancer, but little did she know that she would soon be fighting the very same disease. Their friendship has grown as they have gone through treatment and the friends now plan to put on a regatta to raise money for the charity, Breast Cancer Now. Liane Williams said: “Once I finished my treatment for breast cancer I started to think how we could give something back. “We were just having coffee, and I said why don’t we try and organise a Regatta. “It’s the sort of thing we do for large corporate companies but we decided to develop it and see how we could make it about charity and breast cancer.” Both ladies found that throughout their time dealing with breast cancer, the sea helped them to keep their sanity, when physically and mentally they were ‘close to despair’. They have now started putting the event, the “Sail the Sea” Sailing Challenge, out on social media and say they have received a very positive response. The event will be made up of a series of short races and will cost £295 per head to enter. It is due to take place from Port Hamble on May 8, 2021. Liane added: “We don’t want it to be too serious as t’s for everybody and it will be lots of fun. No sailing experience necessary. “We want to turn the marina pink and hope everybody will come along.” The charity, Breast Cancer Now are providing t-shirts and promotional materials for the event with the ladies just wanting to raise as much money as possible. “With us both living on the south coast, being out at sea really helped us. “We also want to do it to encourage anyone going through breast cancer and want it to be a positive story about how you can get over this.”