Wealden Sailability

BRAVO to the WS Trustees who decided that the weather forecast: “Wind gusts of 35 knots at 0800 and 14 knots at 1100” would be accurate. The result was the fastest race of the season with the first two boats completing 6 laps in less than 6 minutes per lap. The early wind was strong but it was the gusts that would be the main threats to dinghies on the water. Which meant that the ten intrepid sailors who came to race were slightly held up getting on the water but they eventually did after the Session and Safety Managers had asked John Masters to go out and sample the conditions around the proposed race course (B -C-D- K) and then gave the All Clear at 10.40. It was great to welcome Samuel Cargill Thompson and his mum Rachel to our throng. Sam is a youngster who was keen to get on the water, despite the blowy conditions, since the Tuesday session had been cancelled due to awful weather. Peter Moore crewed for Samuel in his WS Racing debut.

Below can be seen John’s “test sail” with the safety rib watching and a shot of an ugly gust racing across the surface of the lake. The recent heavy rains had resulted in the lake’s water level being the highest it had been since the new pontoon was installed in 2019 and it could not be used today. So getting everybody on and off the water took a little longer than usual and required careful management by the Pontoon Manager and volunteers ashore to keep everyone safe.

The fleet responded to a call at 1120 from the Race Hut to get ready and a group of helms could be seen positioning themselves to hit the start line (between the Race Hut and Buoy K) on starboard tack , at speed and just as the Start Gong sounded. (They must have been reading Bruce’s Starting Tips! Ed) The video of the Start starts a few seconds late and therefore we can have no record of which helm was first to the line 🙁 (The Racing Director – aka Chief Dogsbody – needs to grow some more arms so he can simultaneously “Start the race, give the All Clear AND make a video from before the start”! Ed)

Immediately behind the leaders was Kim Sparkes (303 Sail Blue #11) and Peter Wagner (Liberty Sail Blue #25) who were both watching and waiting to pounce if Martin or Derek made a mistake. After a slower start than in his recent races, Peter managed to overhaul Kim on the second lap and finished well ahead of her on the water after 5 laps. But after applying the PY handicap (1550 for Liberty vs 1630 for 303) Peter’s lead was just 15 seconds! (Living dangerously Peter! Ed). Imogen Fletcher (303 Sail Red #5), Steve Farmer (303 Sail Yellow #4) and Bob Fisher (303 Sail Ble #9) were close together as they approached the windward mark (Buoy B) but Steve and Bob were overtaken on lap 2 by our debutant Samuel Cargill Thompson (303 Sail Red #10) but Steve fought back on lap 3 to head Samuel on the water by 2 seconds a lap but after applying the PY handicap for the fact that Samuel was carrying additional (and substantial. Ed) weight in the form of his crew (1630 vs 1660), Samuel pipped Steve by 4 seconds a lap (Good to see that a decade of sailing is nearly worth something! Ed). Our recent arrival to the WS Racing community, Danny Wilson (Liberty Sail Yellow #22) had a difficult time getting to grips with his dinghy in the conditions and fought hard to recover from an horrendous 5 1/2 minute disdvantage to the first boat (Martin Norman) by the end of lap 1 to finish 8th. Overall a BRILLIANT day was had by all the racers. Here are a few photos of the runners and riders:

Result for Race 12 of Summer Series is:

1. Derek Preston – Liberty Sail White #24
2. Martin Norman – Liberty Sail White #23
3. Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail Blue #25
4. Kim Sparkes – 303 Sail Blue #11
5. Imogen Fletcher and her crew Helen Fairfax – 303 Sail Red #5
6. Samuel and his crew Peter Moore – 303 Sail Red #10
7. Steve Farmer – 303 Sail Yellow #4
8. Daniel Wilson – Liberty Sail Yellow #22
9. Bob Fisher – 303 Sail Blue #9
10. Tom Phillips – 303 Sail White #7 RTD
11. Ann Frewer – 2.3S Sail Orange/White #279 RTD

Many thanks to all the volunteers who crewed and helped ashore to enable the Race to take place and to everybody else associated with WS. It is sad to think that the season only has one more week to go before the winter break. (Agh! Ed)

Autumn is well advanced but today was a fabulous day for our race day. It started with hardly a ripple on the surface of the lake at 0830 and gradually built up to a steady 10 knots with erractic – in direction and strength – gusts up to 20 knots. The scene at 0930 from the Race Hut showed a perfect setting of the foreshore, the dinghies in all their colourful glory, the ruffled lake, the garland of trees on the north bank and sun on the North Downs.

After the normal preparations and the arrival of eleven eager WS Racers – some welcomed back after a few weeks absence and no doubt keen to improve their places in the Summer Series standings! The conditions were sunny but we soon had a lake full of dinghies battling with an increasingly strong and rather chilly wind. Big gusts could be seen from the Race Hut dashing down the lake from the West and all the helms and crews had to be fully on guard to spill the wind from their sails as they were smashed into by the elements. At least that meant the sailors were working hard and keeping warm. After a brief delay to ensure Mark Rainbow could get on the water before the 3 minute Gong was sounded, the race started as can be seen in this video. Look at how the fleet split with two boats going south on starboard tack and the rest of the fleet heading north on port tack before the northern leader, now on startboard tack, crossed just in front – forcing the port tack boats to go behind.

Due to the sustained wind speed this was the fastest race of the year so far and all the helms and crews were forced to sail very well. The slightest drop in concentration or mishandling of the sheets could result in missed opportunities to get past a competitor or losing a place to a boat behind. The wind favoured the four bigger Liberty class dinghies in the race but Kim Sparkes (Access 303 Red #5) bought her A Game today and after a very good start she sailed her smaller Access 303 brilliantly to keep in touch with Peter Wagner (Liberty Yellow #22) as he rounded the winward mark Buoy A first. Kelly Tripp (Access 303 Red #10) also sailed very well to get round Buoy A ahead of Mike Blatchford (Liberty Blue #25) with Imogen Fletcher (Access 303 Blue #11) rounding the Mark just a few metres behind Mike. All very close racing!

But on the downwind legs from A to C and C to D, Peter increased his lead and Mike made up ground and overhauled Kelly. Only Kim managed to keep in touch as they approached the leeward Mark, Buoy D. This close combat sailing continued throughout the next four laps but at the end of each lap the order was Kim, Peter, Mike. The second battle in the fleet was between Kelly, Imogen and Mark Rainbow (Access 303 White #7) and Daniel Wilson (Liberty White #23) who managed to sail past Imogen on the water before completing their third (and final) laps. But that was on the water – with the lower PY handicap the Liberty was pegged back and Imogen beat Daniel. But in these conditions all the helms had to sail well just to finish the race.

Here are some photos that show how hard the wind was blowing and how close the racing was… (Bravissimo tutti! Ed)

Result for Race 11 of Summer Series is:

1. Kim Sparkes – 303 Sail Red #5
2. Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail Yellow #22
3. Mike Blatchford – Liberty Sail Blue #25
4. Kelly Tripp and her crew James Thomas – 303 Sail Red #10
5. Mark Rainbow – 303 Sail White #7
6. Derek Preston – Liberty Sail White #24
7. Imogen Fletcher and her crew Helen Fairfax – 303 Sail Blue #11
8. Daniel Wilson – Liberty Sail White #23
9. Steve Farmer – 303 Sail Yellow #3
10. Tom Phillips – 303 Sail Blue #9
11. Ann Frewer – 2.3S Sail Orange/White #279 RTD

As always many thanks to the volunteer crews and helpers who enable the racing to take place alongside the other demands placed upon WS resources and those who keep the Tea/Coffee and cakes flowing.

It was a dreich day, as they say in the Highlands of Scotland, when the first flurry of volunteers arrived to get everything ready for the day. Mist covered the north Downs and mizzle threatened. The session manager made his decisions on how many of each class of dinghy should be rigged and launched and the volunteers set to work. Soon a smaller than usual number of dinghies were ready so the volunteers could catch their beath and have a cuppa and biscuit whilst listening to the safety and day’s briefing.

Despite this relatively unappealing view of the lake and nearly zero wind, 11 WS Racers arived around 1000 to 1030 at Chipstead for a day of fun and to consolidate their positions in the Summer Series in the race starting at 1100.

After three re-starts due to our wish to accomodate as many Racers as possible, the fleet eventually gathered in the middle of the lake ready to start. The start/finish line was between the Buoy K and an Outer Distance Marker. And this line also had to be crossed by the racers on every lap. The course was a beat/reach to the windward Mark, Buoy A, which was left to starboard and then two down wind legs. Firstly from A to C which was also left to starboard as the fleet gybed to start the next leg from C to D, the leeward mark.

The pukka 3 minute Gong sounded at 1108 and the fleet moved away serenely at 1111. (Auspicious for some. Ed). The video of the start (below this paragraph) shows three boats right on the northern end of the start line but nearly stationery – Kelly Tripp and James Thomas in 303 Red #5; Mark Rainbow in Liberty Yellow #22; and Kim Sparkes in 303 White #8. Then 25 metres back from the line were Imogen Fletcher and her crew Paul Chilvers in 303 Yellow #3 towards the north of the line and Peter Wagner in Liberty White #23 in the middle of the line together with Steve Farmer in 303 White #7. Then 50 metres from the southern end of the start line (and sailing away from the line) was Derek Preston in Liberty White #24, Chris Green and his crew Jof Buttery in 303 Yellow #4, Tom Phillips in 303 Red #10 and some distance further back at the south of the line, Danny Wilson in Liberty Blue 25.

The video goes on to show the various routes that the helms steered to get to the windward mark. Initially it appeared that Peter Wagner had stolen a march on the whole fleet but ….he turned his boat around and decided to restart the race (but by then he was in the midst of the fleet and trailing Derek). This manoeuvre left the way clear for Kelly, Mark and Kim to take the lead, sailing on starbord tack. Chris was independently sailing above the fleet on port tack and Derek (now he had decided to point in the right direction) seemed to be picking up good breeze on port tack just behind the leading trio. But then Mark noticed this nice breeze and tacked right in front of Derek with Peter Wagner trying to catch them both up on the same tack. Mark led the fleet across the lake, followed by Derek, Kim and Kelly. Derek decided to tack first and now on starboard forced Kim to sail around his stern whilst Mark tacked a few seconds later. Derek’s angle on what was now looking to be better wind helped him to take the lead from Mark and round Bouy A just ahead of Mark. (The video is too big to be uploaded to the website. If it can be reduced in size it will be posted. Ed)

The wind was blowing between 7 and 9 knots which was enough to keep everybody moving but, as always is the case at Chipstead, it blew from different directions and gusts appeared from even more unexpected directions. This made for some close racing with Mark nearly overhauling Derek immediately on the leg from Buoy A to C and was then snapping at Derek’s transom all the way from C to D. Kim and Peter were 50/100 metres behind at the start of that leg but had caught up significantly when one looks at the four of them starting the beat on their way up from D to A to complete the first lap. This close racing went on down through the fleet and that can be seen in the photos below.

Danny Wilson in his much larger Liberty managed to beat Ann Frewer in her 2.3 Red/White sailed #279 quite handsomely on the water but by just 10 seconds a lap after the handicapping was applied. But Danny was asked to sail 3 laps and would have done so if he had not been told by an unnamed competitor that the “race had finished”. Then he sailed back to the pontoon only to be told that he was still racing! (Some things folk will do to get an edge! But his total race time was calculated on his first 2 laps so he was not disdavataged. Ed). But it is by the slimest of margins that places are won or lost and Ann Frewer beat Imogen Fletcher by just 1.3 seconds over two laps!!

Our winner came in well ahead of his main challenger today and seemed to take every opportnity to explain how he achieved his success….even over a final cuppa and the vanquished had nodded off!

Result for Race 10 of Summer Series is:

1. Derek Preston – Liberty Sail White #24
2. Mark Rainbow – Liberty Sail Yellow #22
3. Kim Sparkes – 303 Sail White #8
4. Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail White #23
5. Kelly Tripp and her crew James Thomas – 303 Sail Red #5
6. Danny Wilson – Liberty Sail Blue #25
7. Ann Frewer – 2.3S Sail Red/White #279
8. Imogen Fletcher and her crew Paul Chilvers – 303 Sail Yellow #3
9. Chris Green and his crew Jof Buttery – 303 Sail Yellow #4
10. Steve Farmer – 303 Sail White #7
11. Tom Phillips – 303 Sail Red #10

Well done to all the racers and thanks to the volunteers who crewed and helped on the foreshore, the pontoons, the safety boats and in the galley. Until next week’s race – only 3 more to go before the Summer Series ends.

Another day made for Dinghy Racers – a stiff breeze from NNE under a rather dull day – welcomed the volunteers as they got everything ready for the day. The forecast expected the wind to fill in to 14 knots with 20 knot gusts and some sunshine to appear – “When?” was the question we asked at the volunteers’ briefing by Steve at 0945.

By 1030 there was a good sized fleet on the water sailing around enjoying the wind. (It is so much easier to do when you can point your dinghy in the direction needed just to maximise its speed, irrespective of having to get to a specified Mark – which of course is the main difference between leisure sailing and racing! Ed)

By 1100 there were a dozen Racers entered for the 5th Race of the Summer Series and the 3 minute gong sounded. The Start line had been set at a right angle to the windward mark – Buoy D – and was between the Race Hut and a Distance Marker Flag out in the lake. (The Start Line was from where the photo was taken at the Race Hut to the Flag which can be seen in the photo above beside 303 Sail Yellow #4. Ed) The video starts some 2 or 3 seconds after the Start Gong had sounded and as you can see the fleet could have been positioned better in the last 20 to 15 secs of the count down period. The aim is to make a final approach so you can cross the Start Line (at speed!! Ed) just as the Start Gong sounds. The video shows a sluggish getaway by the leaders of the fleet into the first phase of the Race and then they pick up the wind and gradually separate. Do look at the different routes helms took – some stayed in the middle of the lake and some came across closer to the shore. Which route do you think was the better? The video follows the fleet on the Beat up to and around the windward Mark and then on a broad Reach to Buoy C and after gybing around C on the Run to Buoy A. Mike Blatchford (Liberty Sail Blue #25) started where he finished the last Race – at the front of the fleet – but despite the significant lead he created during this early phase of the race there was competition for Mike’s lead from Kelly Tripp (303 Sail Blue #11) and Martin Norman (Liberty Sail White #24) and Peter Wagner (Liberty Sail Yellow #22) which developed in intensity throughout the race right until the final legs of the Race.

And here are some photos of individual racers and a few groups:

Result for Race 5 of Summer Series is:

1. Kelly Tripp and her crew Anne – 303 Sail Blue #11
2. Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail Yellow #22
3. Mike Blatchford – Liberty Sail Blue #25
4. Steve Farmer – 303 Sail Red #5
5. Martin Norman – Liberty Sail White #24
6. Imogen Fletcher and her crew Helen Fairfax – 303 Sail Blue #9
7. Bob Fisher – Liberty Sail White #23
8. Mark Cayzer and his crew Nigel Raynes – 303 Sail Red #10
9. Geoff Taylor – 303 Sail Yellow #3
10. Trevor Monk – 303 Sail White #7
11. Tom Phillips – 303 Sail Blue #2
12. Stephen Connell and his crew Alec Ross – 303 Sail Yellow #4 – Retired

Congratulations to all the Racers and many thanks to the volunteers who crewed for some helms and to Angela who helped me in the Race Hut to keep track of the dinghies’ places and times and to the volunteers who get ready all the kit that we need to have safe fun on the water and then pack it all away at the end of the day and those helping to water us in the galley!!