RS100 Fleet Report – Salcombe Gin RS Summer Regatta, Royal Torbay Yacht Club
The excitement was tangible. After months of incarceration, we were finally allowed out to play in Torbay, but could we remember what to do. After the obstacle course of getting your boat onto Torquay harbour quayside was cleared, Mostyn Evans started rigging his RS100 with his RS200 mainsail. The excitement was taking its toll.
Saturday was going to be a light wind day, with a force 2 North Easterly gently ruffling the giant cruise ships anchored in the bay. The fun started onshore with 120 boats from all the RS fleets battling to launch on the small slipway. We ventured out to the distant yellow course with the Vareos and RS600s.
After watching the Vareos start first, the 100s were starting with the 600s on a 2 lap windward leeward course, which meant trying not to start under a 600. A small port bias had the fleet aiming for the pin which was won by Netley’s Nigel Wakefield with the light wind supremo Ian Gregory of Frensham Pond close at hand. From this point on it was a one-horse race. Unfortunately for the rest of the fleet, Gregory had discovered even more light wind speed than before lockdown and rounded the windward mark in glorious isolation a good 100 metres in front of the chasing pack. For the rest it was a case of searching for the pressure and spotting the shifts, which were more plentiful than expected. The Chew Valley mob of David Smart and brothers Andy and Steve Jones were showing the strength in depth of the fast-growing Chew fleet with Frensham’s Clive Eplett showing that too many lockdown pies hadn’t slowed him down too much. Andy J led the pack to the mark with Smart close behind deciding to gybe set and bizarrely take a flyer out to the left down the run. At the leeward mark Andy J remained second (we couldn’t see Gregory by now), but Eplett had sneaked up behind to third with Steve J harrying them in fourth. The final beat saw Eplett finding his light wind mojo, getting past Andy J giving a Frensham 1 - 2 at the finish with Steve J finally nipping ahead of brother Andy for 3rd and 4th with Andrew Todd finding some great shifts up the second beat and pressure on the run to claim 5th from Smart.
The second start had a slight starboard bias and the right appeared to be the way to go up the beat for this one lap race. So, there was a fight for the committee boat end with a good start critical. Smart and Mark Harrison from Gurnard were in the box seat when the gun went and quickly turned right with Harrison finding the pressure to get ahead. Gregory was in hot pursuit, but it was Harrison who rounded first just ahead of Gregory with Smart 25 metres back. Harrison tried to hold off Gregory, but a poor gybe at the leeward mark let Gregory through for the win with Harrison second. Good beats from Matt Johnson (Weir wood) and Nigel Wakefield (Netley) had them in the chasing pack, but Smart held on for third ahead of the yellow kited Eplett with Andy J in 5th.
The third and final race of the day was another 2-lap affair with a starboard biased line. Smart won the committee boat end and set off in hot pursuit of Gregory by going right up the beat. There was a gaggle of boats behind with Johnson and Harrison featuring strongly. Gregory and Smart led round the windward mark having stretched out a good lead but at the bottom mark a poor drop by Gregory gave Smart a chance, which he failed to take by doing an even worse drop, much to the delight of Eplett who was closing in behind. The final beat saw Smart protect the right from the ever-growing presence of Eplett. However, Eplett had read the clouds and spotted a left-hand shift, getting close to taking the lead. Gregory held on and took his third bullet with Eplett second, followed by Smart, Harrison, Andy J and Johnson.
The overnight podium was a Frensham lightweight lockout of Gregory and Eplett with Smart in third.
Sunday dawned with a rainy force 5 gusting 7 from the East. While the heavyweights were keen(ish) to get out to challenge the conditions, the race committee sensibly decided that it would be too dangerous for the fleets and abandoned racing by 11:30, leaving the podium as it was.
Gregory yet again proved he is almost untouchable in light airs, taking home the Salcombe Gin top prize, with Eplett and Smart enjoying their runner up cut-glass trophies. Prizes also went to Steve Jones for the Rooster mid fleet fighter with Richard Styles of Wilsonian taking home the hard-won Rooster Endeavour trophy.
Thank you, Royal Torbay YC, for laying on a great event and thanks to Salcombe Gin and Rooster for their sponsorship. It was lovely to be able to get back to regatta sailing again after so long locked up at home.
David Smart
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
RS200 Fleet Report – Salcombe Gin RS Summer Regatta, Royal Torbay Yacht Club
The sun was shining and the wind was gently blowing – a stark contrast to what the fleet endured in 2019 when they last visited Torbay. It was great to catch up with everyone after so long apart and before long the stellar organisation of RTYC got the fleet out and onto the water.
Race 1 started, in true RS200 fashion, with a general recall. With crews crouched in the boat both upwind and downwind, the winners were those who found the pressure on the left and kept moving. Chris Webber & Nicola Large started off the event with an impressive win.
Race 2 was all about the fight for the pin end, with Morgan Peach & Amy Sparks winning the pin and holding an impressive lead throughout the race – unfortunately for them, they were one of three who were UFD, giving Tom & Jo Hewitson the win.
The third and final race of the day saw more battles for the pin and the fleet hitting the left hard in search for pressure. Arran Holman and Laerke Buhl-Hansen gave the fleet a lesson in downwind sailing, taking the win in the final race of the day to ultimately win the event.
Being the closest fleet to the shore and the first to finish meant a short sail back to the harbour, missing the carnage of the 100 other boats coming to shore and most importantly, allowing the fleet to be in the bar before many had even got off the water
Much of the fleet enjoyed the top class hospitality of the yacht club in the evening with dinner and drinks. The Cornish contingent decided to take it one step further, and in homage to the socials at the nationals in 2019 they were in Park Lane until the early hours of the morning.
Sunday greeted us to pouring rain and screaming halyards. The great race team at RTYC kept standing around in the rain to a minimum and called a meeting of class representatives to see what the sailors thought of the conditions. Victoria Upton sensibly represented the class (although many were itching to get out for a blast downwind). Ultimately, local knowledge paid off and with an increasing sea state and wind, couple with decreasing visibilty the race team reluctantly cancelled the racing but a few brave sailors donned their wetsuits and went out for a blast!
A brilliant weekend was had by all, the fleet thanks the club and sponsors and looks forward to returning to racing at the Rooster National Tour event at HISC in a few weeks time!
Claudia Wilson
Prize winners
1st – Arran Holman & Laerke Buhl-Hansen (Hollowell SC)
2nd – Chris Webber & Nicola Large (Pevensey Bay SC)
3rd – Andrew Kilburn & Claudia Wilson (Lymington Town SC / Rickmansworth SC)
4th – Tom Goodey & Richard Thomas (Broadstairs SC)
5th – Olly Turner & Sam Mottershead (Starcross YC)
Rooster mid fleet heroes David Jessop & Sophie Mear
Rooster Endeavour winners Oliver King and Zoe Nieveen
Claudia Wilson
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
Day 1
Race 1 started in a light and shifty on shore breeze and saw the fleet get way first time following the 200's who were on the same course area. First round the windward mark was Michael Sims and Mark Lunn who started at the favoured committee boat end of the line and had played the shifts on the right-hand side of the course. Michael Sims and Mark Lunn lead from start to finish although were chased closely by Jack Holden and Rob Hendersen finishing 2nd and Steve and Sarah Cockerill.
First rounding the windward mark in Race 2 was again Michael Sims and Mark Lunn, this time followed by Stuart and Sarah Robertson. On the 2nd lap Stuart and Sarah Robertson took the lead and maintained this to the finish, 2nd was Michael Sims and Mark Lunn followed by Steve and Sarah Cockerill.
First rounding the windward mark in Race 3, which turned out to be the final race of the weekend, was Howard Farbrother and Louise Hosten, who sailed the shifty conditions excellently on the left-hand side of the course. Boats on the right-hand side struggled following a 30-degree wind shift towards the top of the first beat, those suffering included race 1 and 2 winners who rounded mid-fleet. Howard Farbrother and Louise Hosten maintained their lead until the finish, followed by Steve and Sarah Cockerill in 2nd and Jack Holden and Rob Hendersen in 3rd.
Day 2
Competitors woke to wet and windy conditions on Sunday morning and a decision was made at 10am to cancel racing for the day. With no discard, the consistent team of Steve and Sarah Cockerill took overall victory, 2nd was Jack Holden and Rob Henderson followed by Michael Sims and Mark Lunn in 3rd. The Rooster mid fleet hero prize went to Kevin Podger and Heather Chipperfield and the Rooster endeavour prize to William and Thomas Ormerod.
Michael Sims
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
A small but enthusiastic group of RS500 sailors from all sides of the country from Yorkshire to the Isle of Wight congregated in Torquay as part of the Salcombe Gin RS Summer Regatta. With many of the fleet arriving on Friday for a practice sail there was there an opportunity for fleet newcomers to test their skills and speed before the main event - in what turned out to be the best conditions of the weekend.
The sailors enjoyed a fleet dinner at Royal Torbay Yacht Club on Friday evening and discussed not only this Nationals, but plans or the Worlds in Weymouth 2022.
Saturday was predicted to be light winds and limited sunshine, and so it proved, but despite the conditions the enthusiasm of the entire RS family just to get on the water and do some racing overcame any shortcomings in the weather. Three 2 lap races were held in a very patchy and shifty Easterly breeze, the races were all very tight with the conditions producing lots of position changes right up until the finish. Winners of race one James & Peter Curtis, struggled to break free of the pack in the remaining races as Tim & Heather Wilkins found their stride and showed their mastery of the conditions to win races 2 & 3. Mike Saul & Oliver Kent were near the front of every race but a 2,2,3 score line put them in 2nd overall just one point off the winners. Third place was taken by fleet newcomers Hugh & Luke Watson.
Sadly, the weather predictions for Sunday proved correct with strong winds and a large swell making it impossible for the committee to lay the three safe and fair courses required for such a big event. With racing cancelled Tim & Heather Wilkins become the 2021 RS500 National Champions – congratulations to them for a classy performance in very tricky conditions. Thanks to the Royal Torbay Yacht Club and all their volunteers for organising the event, Noble Marine for their Nationals sponsorship and Salcombe Gin for being the overall event sponsor.
Hugh Watson
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
19 RS700 entered the RS Summer Champs with the hope of a fresh breeze and beautiful sunshine. 17 started racing on day 1 when we got the beautiful sunshine but unfortunately not the wind.
The fleet started in what looked like a promising building breeze only for it to die to nothing on the left-hand side and stranding half the fleet that had not spotted the changing pressure. Those that did managed to waft their way over to the right-hand side and steadily drift around the windward mark. Rob led ahead of Pete Purkiss and James Clarke remained in that position to the bottom mark chased hard by Stephen Hermanson. The next lap saw Rob extend his lead, but Pete sailed into a hole and remained there for the rest if the race unable to get out of irons. That allowed Stephen to move into third, On the downwind leg the RS800 leaders caught up with the RS700 front runners at the bottom gate. Rob stayed ahead of the pack to take the win, but James was buried under 4 RS800s allowing Stephen to roll past for second. James finish 3rd just ahead of Matt Carter who had sailed down the run in clear air to nearly add to James’s misery.
Race two saw an increase in wind by a knot after a pause for an hour to reset the course. Rob led from the front again with Pete Purkiss in hot pursuit with Stephen and Matt in close contention. Rob stayed ahead on the run while Matt soaked his way ahead of Stephen and catching Pete to gybe inside on the gate. Upwind the lightweight sailors enjoyed sitting out on their racks, hair blowing in the apparent wind while Matt and other heavier sailors endured a period sat beneath the boom. By the last downwind leg Rob maintained the lead to finish 1st, Pete second and Matt wiggled past Stephen to finish 3rd with Andrew Wright having a great race in 5th.
The last race followed relatively quickly in not much wind. The boats that sniffed out the patches of wind came out in top again with Pte taking the left-hand flyer and finding a huge lift to come out in front finishing somewhere over the horizon. Stephen and Matt raced hard for 2nd and 3rd respectively and the pond sailors James and Rob coming in 4th and 5th.
All the heavy weights spelt well looking forward to stretching our legs on the next day that promised high winds while the lighter sailors prayed for really high winds. The prayers were answered and racing was abandoned on day 2 so we queued for our trailers and travelled home. Despite the lack of wind on day one and the rain and hurricane on day two the racing was fiercely competitive, the scenery fantastic and the company excellent as always. Thank you to the Royal Torbay Yacht Club for their organisation and volunteers.
Matt Carter
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s
With some last-minute cancellations just 4 Vareos travelled to Torquay to join RTYC VC Jim Short. Seeing the reducing numbers, Jim persuaded his son Jovian (an experienced Sailor in other classes including 29ers) to borrow another local boat to give us a fleet of 6.
The yellow course was set well out in the bay by race officer Bob Penfold and was shared with the 100s and 600s. After a short delay to allow for some of the fleet to get to the sailing area the Vareos were started first. Jovian got off to a good start followed by Richard Woods and Luke Fisher. With the wind not really filling in as expected the first beat was very long and after a gentle run down with the kites up the windward mark was moved down to shorten the beat (although for us pond sailors it still looked like a long way). In his first outing in the Vareo Jovian took an unlucky line downwind allowing Richard and Luke to get past. As the race progressed the 100s and 600s who started 6 minutes behind began to catch up giving us a larger fleet to contend with in the final run. Richard made the most of his new spinnaker (won at the Milton Keynes Inlands two weeks ago) to take the win from Luke then Jovian. At the back of the fleet Jim and Alan Basset were fighting for 5th and 6th as they did all afternoon.
Race 2 saw the winds get lighter if anything. Richard and Luke got well away from the rest and in what became a one lap race finished 1,2 again ahead of Paul North in third.
In what was to be our final race of the event Luke got a good start and led through the first lap playing cat and mouse with Richard. As they headed off to the right for lap 2 (again with a shortened beat), Paul close behind went left and found a little extra getting him to the windward mark well ahead. He held on to the lead while some close racing between Luke and Richard saw Luke hold on to his third second of the day by only a couple of boat lengths at the line.
With the second day’s racing cancelled, due to high wins and seas, this became the final result. Richard took first, followed by Luke then Paul. Alan Bassett was awarded the Rooster Endeavour prize.
It’s the Nationals next at Itchenor in 4 weeks’ time.
Paul North
White Course 1 – RS 200s & RS 400s