Wealden Sailability

Today was the day chosen for the inaugral WS Racers vs WOW Regatta at Chipstead. Recently we have had some good sailing days where wind and sun arrived in sufficient quantities to make us all think “It is great to be alive and sailing!!” But today was wet and overcast. The boats were launched and rigged between 0800 and 0930 in the rain. It stopped raining whilst the volunteers had a coffee and their daily Briefing and the Racers arrived from 1000 onwards. The Race Briefing was at 1015 and the entrants started getting out on the water soon afterwards. There was just sufficient wind to produce some ruffles on the surface of the lake and allow the dinghies to move about.

Paul Cove, who had agreed to stand in for Bruce Hebbert as Race Officer at the last moment, called the Racers to order at 1055 and he sounded the 3 minute Gong at 1100 with the WOW fleet starting at 1103 and the WS fleet starting at 1106. The wind was just sufficient to enable the WOW fleet to be rounding the first Mark (A) before the WS fleet started – or could have started if there had been any wind. But that took some time to happen and the rain which had been a steady drizzle since 1045 then decided to pour down on everybody. This further flattened the wind but gradually both fleets managed to make some progress. Not a lot, but some.

Initially there had been some discussion in the Race Hut as to running a second race but – as the time ticked by – it became obvious that we would be fortunate to complete a single race. And that was how the end-of-season Regatta ended.

Once all the entrants were off the water and in the clubhouse and guests from the Sevenoaks Lions and other supporters had arrived, Paul Chivers, the WS Trustee responsible for Racing, called the room to order so that the End-of-Season 2022 Awards Ceremony for WS Racers could start…..as can be seen below.

Paul Cove (Race Officer for the Regatta) gave the Results of the Regatta in reverse order and it soon became clear that the wining Team would be WOW who had finishers in 1st, 2nd and 4th places versus WS finishers in 3rd, 7th and 9th places.

The Race Result was:

1st Jane Marshall – WOW; 2nd Polly Colesmith – WOW; 3rd Mark Cayzer and his crew – WS; 4th “Joan” Taylor Inge WOW; 5th Kay Mathieson – WOW; 6th Meg Warren – WOW; 7th Kim Sparkes – WS; 8th Maggie Bolton – WOW; 9th Peter Wagner – WS; 10th Mark Rainbow – WS.

Paul Chilvers presented a Certificate and a Winner’s trophy to “Joan” Taylor Inge as the Skipper of the Winning Team and Paul presented a bottle of wine to Jane Marshall who had come 1st overall in her Topper.

David Mckee (Chair of WS Trustees) presented Cups and Certificates covering the season’s sailing as follows:

• Brian McCormick Cup – Best Liberty Sailor – Derek Preston
• Bob Marsh Cup – Best 2.3 Sailor – Ann Frewer – who was not able to be present
• Access 303 Single-handed – Best sailor – Steve Farmer
• Access 303 Double-handed – Best sailor – Imogen Fletcher

Alan Walter (Chair of Sevenoaks Lions Welfare Committee) was then invited to say a few words about the Lions organisation and how the local chapter had “found” Wealden Sailabaility. Alan then presented two Cups which the Lions had themselves donated:

• Most improved client sailor – Mark Cayzer
• Most improved volunteer sailor – Steve Trudge

Derek Preston, Steve Farmer, Imogen Fletcher and Steve Trudge all gave heartfelt testimonials about how much WS meant to them and thanked everybody.

Paul Chilvers congratulated all the winners and thanked the WS and Lions Chairs before closing the ceremony.

It was a dismal, windless and rainy start to the day at Chipstead Lake when volunteers arrived at 8.30 to get the fleet ready but after an early cuppa we were able to get the work done and had a briefing by 10am. Some sailors were already at the club by 10am and literally as they arrived the sun appeared and a ruffle of wind swept across the lake.

Weather conditions developed as forecast and with sunshine and a pleasant 9 knot wind from the West. Everyone who wanted to race was on the water by 10.40 and the one-lap Practice Race started with the 3 minute gong at 10.55. This warmed everyone up and the first one-lap Challenge Race started at 11.15. Here is a video of the Start on Race 1. What a lovely sight! Ed…

Having watched that, it is no surprise that Derek Preston (Liberty #23 White) was the winner having negotiated Marks A, C and D before beating back up to cross the Finish Line. Peter Wagner (Liberty #25 Blue) was second and Kelly Trip and her crew James Thomas (303D #11 Blue) was third and Imogen Fletcher and her crew Viv (303D #10 Red) was fourth. Martin Norman (Liberty #22 Yellow) was fifth followed by the two 303 single-handed entreis – Steve Farmer and Bob Fisher.

After a brief period to regroup, the fleet was put under starter’s orders at 11.30 and here is a video of the Start of Race 2. This was a two-lap race. What another lovely sight! Ed

On this occasion, Peter Wagner created a small lead at the start of lap 1 but was strongly challenged by Derek Preston who was leading at the windward Mark A on the second lap. But Peter fought back and managed to get his bow in front as the two boats rounded Mark C before the downward leg to Mark D. Peter and Derek were transom to bow for the whole leg but Peter managed to stay ahead and round the leeward Mark D in first place with 100 metres to beat up to the finish line. Which he accomplished. Well done. Honours shared! Ed

The full results are shown on the website. Many thanks to all the volunteers for assisting in lots of way to enable the races to go ahead.

With the season ending on Thursday 28th October, the Trustees arranged an event on Tuesday 2nd November to thank the Volunteers for their contribution to the 2021 season and to present the WS Racing Awards.

Peter Ashwell said that 2021 had been a very successful season for WS Racing despite the continuing restrictions on mixing in April and May caused by the Covid pandemic. There had been one Thursday in June with such bad weather that racing had to be cancelled and another Thursday in September when the strength of wind gusts caused a race to be abandoned soon after it had started. Peter reported that the racing had been very close in both series and the podium places for the summer series were only decided in the final race of the series and even then the racers in 2nd and 3rd place had equal points and a countback of how many First place finishes each had obtained, had to be used to separate them. Peter thanked all the volunteers who had participated as crews and thus enabled the racing to take place.

Peter announced the following statistics for each race series:

Spring Series (from May to July)

12 Races scheduled less Race #6 Abandoned = 11 Races completed

15 participants made 83 entries and there were 9 Qualifiers (= min. 5 races)

Summer Series (from August to October)

13 Races scheduled less Race #9 Cancelled = 12 Races completed

22 participants made 125 entries and there were 15 Qualifiers (= min. 5 races)

Then Peter announced the results and Eileen McCormick presented each successful sailor with their Certificate or Trophy as can be seen in the gallery below…

Spring Series Result

Podium

1^st Kim Sparkes           6 points from best 5 finishing places

2^nd Peter Wagner       9

3^rd Martin Norman     10

Qualifiers                        Points from best 5 finishing places   

Imogen Fletcher                18

Ann Frewer                        18

Derek Preston                    18

Steve Farmer                      22

Mark Cayzer                       25

Tom Phillips                        33

Summer Series Results

Podium (Best 5 finishing places)

1^st Derek Preston 7 points from best 5 finishing places

2^nd Kim Sparkes   8 points (Placings: 1,1,1,2,3)

3^rd Peter Wagner 8 points (Placings: 1,1,2,2,2)

Qualifiers                          Points      

Kelly Tripp                          11

Martin Norman                 14

Mike Blatchford                 16

Steve Farmer                      26

Bob Fisher                          27

Imogen Fletcher                30

Danny Wilson                    32

Geoff Taylor                       34

Ann Frewer                        35

Mark Cayzer                      40

Tom Phillips                        44

Trevor Monk                      46

Total season awards

Peter Hazlewood Trophy – Best Sailor (from 12 races over both series)

• Kim Sparkes

Brian McCormick Trophy – Best double-handed Sailor

• Kelly Tripp

Bob Marsh Trophy – The epitome of Wealden Sailability’s values

In announcing this award, David Mckee said that Bob Fisher has for many years demonstrated the personal values which the founders had and the trustees still have in mind for Wealden Sailability’s activities and community. Despite his own health challenges last and this year, Bob has continued to get to the WS sessions and sail again competitively, to encourage and engage with the other Racers and make them and volunteers laugh and to support Steve Farmer’s enjoyment of sailing by giving him a lift to/from Chipstead.

Below is photo of Bob Fisher receiving the Bob Marsh Trophy and Certificate from Bruce Hebbert at The Bo Peep pub on 18 November 2021. Bob said that he was touched by the award and David’s words and it was especially meaningful since he had held Bob Marsh in high esteem himself.

Congratulations to all WS Racers who participated during the season and we wish you a very safe and comfortable winter and look forward to seeing you all again back on the water in April 2022 and many thanks to MIke Mackenzie and his team for a very tasty lunch and to David Barker for taking the photos.

At 0830 there was hardly sufficient wind to disturb the surface of the lake. And the previous evening the forecast for 1100 was 14 knots and gusts to 30 knots which was why the Trustees withheld a decision on whether to sail until the morning. They said YES and the final race of the 2021 season would start at 1100! So a dozen or so racers and their supporters assembled from 1000 onwards to compete on the water and chat around the clubhouse.

The fleet were assembled on the Start Line and milled about for a few minutes waiting for the Race Hut to sound the 3 minute gong which happened a few moments after the last competitor left the pontoon. From a few gusts of 20 knots 5 minutes before the race (Which caused a few helms to spill the wind very rapidly and thus avoid shipping a few unwelcome litres of lake water. But some did not! Ed) you will see in the video of the Start below that the fleet had to work quite hard to get going on the breeze immediately available when the gong sounded. Two helms sailed dangerously close to the Start line and risked being over it…but they were clear when the Start gong sounded and they led the fleet out on a port tack in the leg towards the first mark (Buoy A).

Do look at the tighter angle on the wind that Kelly Tripp (303 Blue #11) managed to sail against that achieved by Martin Norman (Liberty White #23). This set Kelly up very nicely to round the first mark (Bouy A) with a healthy lead over the fleet. Kim Sparkes (303 White #8) chose to extricate herself from the bunch of boats following Kelly and Martin by tacking away on starboard and then returning to port tack when she had clear air. Then she sailed above the mark and was able to sail into the mark on starboard tack which gave her right of way over the boats approachng Buoy A on port tack! And well done to Peter Wagner (Liberty Blue #25) who also came into the mark on starboard tack in front of KIm. (It makes life so much easier! Ed). Do try to find yourself and see whether you might have chosen a different route.

Somehow Steve Farmer (303 Blue #2) managed to squeeze (No touching eh Steve! Ed) his boat between Peter Wagner and KIm Sparkes and she was followed round the mark by Derek Preston (Liberty White #24) and Martin NOrman on his outside. Then Ann Frewer (303 Red #5) came in on starboard tack also but decided to give Derek and Martin a wide berth! She was followed by Imogen Fletcher (303 Red #10).

Peter Wagner managed to keep his second place, chasing Kelly who was stretching her lead on the run from Bouy A to C, and Peter was closely followed by Steve, Kim, Derek and Martin. Kelly had a commanding lead as she rounded Bouy C and started the longer run downwind to Mark D.

Result for Race 13 of Summer Series is:

1. Kim Sparkes – 303 Sail White #8
2. Derek Preston – Liberty Sail White #24
3. Kelly Tripp and her crew James Thomas – 303 Sail Blue #11
4. Martin Norman – Liberty Sail White #23
5. Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail Blue #25
6. Steve Farmer – 303 Sail Blue #2
7. Imogen Fletcher and her crew Maggie – 303 Sail Red #10
8. Tom Phillips – 303 Sail Yellow #4
9. Ann Frewer and her crew Meg Warren – 303 Red #5 RTD

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.