Nationals 2008 - Cancelled
It is with regret that this years nationals have had to be cancelled. They were due to be held at Rutland Sailing Club over the weekend of the 24th, 25th and 26th May. The AGM and meal will still be held as below.
| Day/Date | Programme |
|---|---|
| Saturday 24th | AGM 5-30pm followed by supper |
Nationals 2007 Report
Below are the results and report for the 2007 Nationals held at the Norfolk Broads Yacht Club over the weekend of 15th - 16th September.
Day 1 - 15th September
The weather report for day 1 wasn't looking too good, while it was meant to be sunny the wind was looking to be around 5mph. Luckily the weathermen were wrong again and it was nearer 10mph. The first race was delayed for about 10 minutes while the wind changed and settled from NE to SW.
From the beginning it became clear that to do well would be an achievement with the first start of 28 boats causing a general recall. The second start went well with Richard Whitefoot crewed by Ian Bray in Fire Opal leaping from the start line and making the first mark well ahead of the rest of the fleet. They held this position all of the way round to win the race but the rest of the fleet headed by Sally Dugdale and crewed by Chris Dugdale in Lavinia started to catch them up.
Race 2 started on the first attempt now with 29 boats in the fleet. The course had altered slightly due to another change in wind direction. Nearly all of the fleet ended up on the East shore at the same time leading to numerous calls of starboard and requests for water. On this occasion Sally Dugdale now crewed by Ian Tims made it to the first mark in the lead. This position was held all the way round with some exemplary spinnaker handling from Tims. During the race there was as bigger fight not to be last as there was to be first. This led to several close calls and the odd minor collision in the quest to gain places.
Race 3 started with the wind in the same direction as Race 1 and a good course set by race officer Robert Self. Unfortunately the wind decided to change to SW halfway through race. This meant marks that were once easy to reach became very challenging. Again the race was won by Sally Dugdale.
The AGM was held after racing where Donald Mcarthy a representative from our newest fleet at Lough Erne in Northern Ireland was present and told us a bit about their club and racing. The class meal followed the AGM.
Day 2 - 16th September
Things looked good from the outset of day 2 with clear skies and a freshening wind blowing straight down the broad from the south meaning a good long spinnaker leg.
By the start of Race 4 the gusts were over 25mph and due to the wind direction a down the broad start was used to enable a long first beat. Race 4 also saw the first Kinsman of the the championship K4. Their was a lot of close quarter sailing as the boats who started further down the line and still on starboard meet those from further up on port. Sally soon took control with her third crew of the weekend Richard Dugdale and led from the first mark and eventually won the race. There were a lot of position changes in both the top 5 and middle of the fleet.
Race 5 was again a down the broad start in stronger winds than race 4, several boats were over mainly due to being forced over by the one next door. The first beat started to spread the fleet out but the first mark allowed the middle of the fleet to all arrive there at the same time. Again Sally took control and led the fleet all the way round to claim her 4th win of the weekend. A special mention should be made for Chris Hanson crewed by John Cox who despite suffering substantial damage after a collision which included part of his cuddy being pushed in and a hole in the side finished second.
The weekends conditions in both changeability and wind range coupled with the level of competition led to a good weekends racing. The overall results are below.
Overall Results
| Position | Boat Name | Sail Number | Helm |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Lavinia | Y32 | S Dugdale |
| 2nd | Fire Opal | Y67 | R Whitefoot |
| 3rd | Out of the Blue | Y34 | S Cliffe |
| 4th | Brandy Bottle | Y91 | S Barker |
| 5th | Kookaburra | Y75 | R Claxton |
| 6th | Moonstone | Y133 | P Marriott |
| 7th | Aquarius | Y33 | P Betts |
| 8th | Blue Ripple | Y173 | J Buntin |
| 9th | Evolution | Y301 | C Hanson |
| 10th | Who's Bob | Y92 | G Wishart |
| 11th | Monthelie | Y16 | T Whittaker |
| 12th | Yggdrasil | Y87 | S Haines |
| 13th | Cornelian | Y102 | C Seward |
| 14th | Snow Goose | Y48 | T Brook |
| 15th | Nomad | Y153 | E Diffey |
| 16th | Sunbeam | Y100 | M Holmes |
| 17th | Revolution | Y300 | A Musgrave |
| 18th | Resurrection | Y30 | J Dugdale |
| 19th | Join Venture | Y144 | M Bishop |
| 20th | Folly Too | Y162 | G Whitefoot |
| 21st | Sceptre | Y164 | J White |
| 22nd | Jade | Y168 | L Clarke |
| 23rd | Kummon II | Y86 | G Orton |
| 24th | Fanatic | Y165 | K Rhead |
| 25th | Topaz | Y4 | G Ross |
| 26th | Merry Fiddler | Y140 | B Davis |
| 27th | Silhouette | Y127 | I Stewart |
| 28th | Naiad | Y31 | B Graveling |
| 29th | Freibauer | Y124 | R Hill |
| 30th | Bucassa | K4 | M Woodcock |