Sailing Today	©Warwick Baker
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The RS200 associations e-Newsletter - Issue 3
RS200 Breaking News... The Grand RS Ball 2007 is only days away! 36 entries for the Nationals already! Stokes Bay and Exe events coming up soon!
Welcome to this issue of RS200 Sailing Today, the e-newsletter produced by the RS Class Association where we bring you the latest news and help you get the most from your RS200. In this issue Diary date change! The 2007 Fat Face Circuit Grand RS Ball 2007 The Gul RS200 National Championships The RS200 Club Championships Are you a member? RS200 Youth Championships Where are they now? Chips Howarth RS200 toddler champion? Keep it in the Dark Thanks to Warwick Baker for the use of the photos from Shoreham - Check out more pictures taken by Warwick by clicking here.		©Warwick Baker
We plan to get the next issue of RS200 Sailing Today out to you before the Nationals. But, what would you like to see in it? We can only give you what YOU want if you tell us what that is! Email your ideas, pictures and stories to sallycampbell66@btinternet.com
Diary Date Change! The RS Irish Nationals have moved from the original published September date to October 12-14th still at the Royal Northern Ireland YC. More details can be found on the RS Association website.
The 2007 Fat Face Circuit After 3 very different events the RS200 Fat Face circuit is well and truly underway. We kicked off with the now traditional opening event at Bristol Corinthian, where the gusty conditions, rusty sailors and Somerset hospitality made it as much fun for the spectators as for the sailors. Roger Gilbert and Jane Willan set the scene for the year with their first win, keeping up the good work at Rutland, with 52 boats and hot sun making it feel more like August than April. The first ever RS200 event at Shoreham couldn’t have been more of a contrast – big winds, big seas and these fantastic photos from Warwick Baker! Roger and Jane proved their versatility, by pulling off their 3rd win from 3 events. In second place overall are Ian Pickard and Lucy Matthews (BCYC), followed by Andrew & Geraldine Peters (King & Queen YC). Leading the silver division are Gareth Robinson & Lena from Littleton, whilst Phil Waind & Charlotte from Wembley head up the bronze division. Top Club goes to Bristol Corinthian with Ian Pickard/Lucy Matthews, Nick Charles/Juliet Kingsnorth and Sarah Taylor/Lucy Matthews in the top 5 and Pete Vincent/Tess Nichols in the top 10. Here for the sailing or here for the beer? Whichever it is, Stokes Bay, on 9th and 10th June, has something to offer you. This ever-popular venue had a massive entry of 62 boats last year, it’s easy to get to, there’s camping right by the club and the legendary RS Ball takes place on the Saturday night. Get some sea practise before the Nationals! The Fat Face circuit event at Exe SC on 14th and 15th July already promises to be a winner, as all who went to the 2006 Nationals will surely testify – we welcome the return of master race officer, Phil Morrison and look forward to the down-to-earth friendliness of the club, one of those places where great parties creep up on you . . .		©Warwick Baker
Grand RS Ball 2007 Hurry, hurry! There are just a few tickets left for the Grand RS Ball 2007, which will be held at the beautiful new Submarine Museum building at Gosport. It's a really special place, on the waterfront overlooking the new Spinnaker Tower - have a look at www.rnsubmus.co.uk. It's on Saturday 9th June, from 19.30hrs. This is the Saturday of the RS200 Stokes Bay Fat Face Racing Circuit events, but all the other fleets will be there too of course. It's black tie so you get to dress up nice! Posh frocks ... Fat Face are sponsoring this party, providing the band and, I am sure, a few other goodies. This means we can keep the price nice and low, and the tickets are only £25/person which will include a 4-course meal and dancing 'til dawn (well, 1am). The Submarine Museum is within easy walking distance of all the Gosport accommodation. Tourist info is at 02392 522944, www.gosport.gov.uk/tourism-in-gosport If you would like to book a table, you need to get 10 mates together and send cheques for all on booking. Otherwise seating for dinner will be 'open'. To book your tickets, please send cheque for £25/person to the RS Association at East Hayes, Grove Road, Lymington, Hants, SO41 3RN. Tickets are now in short supply, so don't delay.		©Warwick Baker ©Warwick Baker
Oh we do like to sail beside the seaside ! The 2007 Gul RS200 National Championships 2007 Imagine a well-equipped sailing club, set in a picturesque traffic-free town, overlooking a long golden sandy beach, a small sheltered harbour opening out into a vast bay and you have Tenby Sailing Club. Add 200 sailors, beach games, bbq’s, bands and beer and you have the RS200 Nationals!
the clubhouse is the grey 3 storey building on the right, launching is from the harbour slipways or the main beach from where this picture was taken. Tenby Sailing Club has a proud history of running Championships, including in recent years, the Enterprises, Merlins and Fireflys. Charlotte England, RS Class Association Administrator and organiser of the Nationals says “The race team are very experienced and know what they need to do, running a championship is something they do every year. They have the advantage of great water – the bay is huge and accessed directly from the harbour”. Tenby itself is a charming old walled town with 3 of the best beaches in Pembrokeshire, perfect for a family holiday. The town will be closed to traffic during the Championship week, again perfect for families (and drunken sailors!), but for this reason make sure you get accommodation within walking distance, as once you’ve dropped your boat off you won’t be able to drive into town again until you pick it up. Tenby is a very popular tourist destination in August so do book your accommodation early, try Tourist Information, 01834 842404, tenby.tic@pembrokeshire.gov.uk or www.visitpembrokeshire.com  or Frank B Mason Letting Agents, 01834 842207, www.frankmason.co.uk Camping is available at Haven’s Kiln Park site 36 boats have already entered, so get your entry in quick and save £25 on the entry fee (before 23rd July).
The Gul RS200 Club Championships The Gul RS200 Club Championships is the culmination of RS200 club sailing across the country and is designed to encourage RS200/400 sailing at club level. Participating clubs enter their best performing 200/400 sailors to do battle at the Gul Club Championship final which will be held 15/16 September 2007 at Northampton SC. There will fantastic prizes up for grabs thanks to Gul and LDC, including free entry to the 2008 National Championships, free entry to 2008 Racing circuit events, a coaching day for the top club, free entry to a coaching day, plus an LDC equipment prize! To make it a true competition for club sailors the leading helms from the Nationals and UK Circuits are excluded from taking part. So far we have entries from Chew Valley, Wembley, Ripon, Beaver, Littleton and Burghfield. It’s not too late to enter your club simply contact Charlotte at the association office for full details and to register, then designate a series of 8 races as your RS Club Qualifiers, with a minimum of 4 to count. They don’t have to be extra races or special races, they can be part of your normal calendar.		©Warwick Baker
Are you a member? Have you joined the RS Class Association this year? As well as full membership we now offer a new £10 one-event membership for people who would like to attend one of the RS Class Association racing events. If you wish to enter another event you can pay another one-off fee or become full member, by paying the difference in fees. Anyone who owns or regularly sails an RS boat gains enormous benefit from the RS Association.		©Warwick Baker
Run by RS Sailors for RS Sailors RS Racing Circuits are the envy of the dinghy world, with great competition and a fantastic and friendly social life. Social scene - a great aspect of sailing an RS - highlights such as the RS Ball are not to be missed! Coaching events throughout the year, specific to each RS boat. Plus online coaching. Newsletters -E mail Bulletins/Chat Forum-Website - a huge amount of information on boat handling and tuning advice and to keep you entertained! Access to Members Section of Website, a great way to get to know your fellow members. Class Rules are the "fabric" of any one-design class. Without these the racing would not be fair, the Class would disintegrate and boat values would tumble. FREE For Sale Entry - Members can advertise their boat for FREE in the For Sale section. Insurance voucher reduces the cost of cover with Noble Marine Insurance. Discount to The Daily Sail website and Dinghy Sailing Magazine.
To take advantage of these benefits, please complete a membership form which can be found on the RS Association website; www.rs-association.com. Join quickly and you will receive the main newsletter due out next week, packed full of news and features, such as a full guide to Travemunde Woche, useful advice on sailing fitness, an insight into sail making, and of course lots of great pictures.
Youth Champs Are you lucky enough to be under 21? Or if not do you have a promising young sailor in your family or club? If so, now’s the time to start thinking about the Gul RS Youth Championships. It’s being held at Rutland on 29th and 30th Sept and is open to all sailors under 21. You don’t have to be a star to come, we welcome sailors of all levels, entering an event like this is one of the best ways to learn, and there will be plenty of top sailors on hand happy to give help with anything from rigging to racing rules. There is camping and cheap accommodation on site, and if 2006 is anything to go by the party will not be for the faint-hearted! Did you learn to sail in a borrowed boat? Please take a moment to think about whether you could now lend your boat to one of today’s young sailors and help them access the hobby that’s given you so much?		©Warwick Baker
Where are they now? Chips Howarth Chips won the first two RS200 National Championships in ’96 & ’97. The first Nationals in Paignton only had 22 boats racing but the Class was already pulling in ‘Stars’ with now 49er legend Stevie Morrison and Ben Rhodes finishing 2nd overall. Chips raced with Sarah Duggan in both Championships and went on to marry her in 2000, they now have a two year old daughter (Ella) and two month old son (Nat)… beware anyone sailing with their girlfriend/boyfriend!!! Opposite: Chips winning the 2007 Glyn Charles memorial race, holding his daughter Ella
Chips was working for Holt at the time and was regularly seen changing dodgy ratchet blocks at RS Circuit events and pioneered the ‘Holt Road show’ still evident at the Championships. Following the RS200, Chips went on to win the Laser 4000 & B14 Nationals & Euro Cups, as well as a few regattas in Ultra 30 and Melges 24, winning the Ultra Circuit with Lawrie Smith. Chips then embarked on an Olympic campaign in the 470 leading up to the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Although not successful (eventually finishing 4th in the Trials), it was a great experience that greatly lifted Chips’s sailing level. Following the Trials (and wedding), Chips made a career move to Selden so was now in the dinghy park fixing masts instead of pulleys. He then got back on the RS circuit in 2003 to win the RS800 Nationals at Hayling. Chips did defect to the dark side for while and raced a Musto Skiff at the time of the RS700 launch, this created great rivalry at Hayling as he regularly ‘cuffed’ the early RS700s, also going on to win the Musto Skiff inaugural European Championships on Garda. Despite a short and wet venture in the International 14 for a season (sneaking a 2nd at their Europeans), Chips seems to have settled on the Fireball as his class, teaming up with legend, Vyv Townsend, they have now won two World Championships and are still hoping to keep the weight off long enough to win a third. When asked of his RS memories…”in the early days it was quite pioneering, the race management, courses, boat lay outs etc.. were still evolving. But, I think the social side of the Circuit was always strong, I will never forget the last night party at the ’97 Championships in Looe to find the contents of Greg O’Brien’s cottage spread around the streets of Looe the following morning” “The Circuit raised the sailing and social game compared to the Enterprise, Larks etc… where we had all come from, but, maybe some of the fun has gone now they don’t have Championships together anymore. Some of the more innovative stuff like the ‘Tide Ride’ is great and gives some diversity to the circuit that is important” Chips made the next career move to Oceanair, and as their Sales Director, now regularly fixes blinds on power boats. Living in Emsworth, Chips claims to spend more time painting Wendy houses than sailing now.
RS200 toddler champion? OK, not quite yet, it’s my 3 year old, Abigail, who loves waving flags in the committee boat (for all those who were at the 400 Winters at BCYC I apologise for the random signals!), but really still prefers the beach, and along with Ellen, 2, is one of the reasons I’ve been off the circuit scene for the past few years. We’d like to find out about young 200 sailors around the country - How old are you? Where are you sailing? What do you like about the boat? email me your news and pictures and we’ll feature as many as we can in the next edition. sallycampbell66@btinternet.com
Keep it in the Dark Sail 4 Cancer are launching their latest initiative ‘Keep it in the Dark’ which will focus on one of the biggest cancer risks facing people today – skin cancer. An educational campaign themed “Keep it in the Dark” is set to inform people of the risks they are taking and how to protect themselves against this potential killer. With over 75,000 new cases diagnosed in the UK each year, skin cancer is 99% curable if caught early enough, however prevention is far preferable. Sail 4 Cancer is proud to have the support of Fat Face, Gill, Liz Earle, Neilson Active Holidays and Ullman Sails Eyewear who together have a whole range of kit which will help protect your skin from sun damage. Ranging from hats and UV protected clothing through to sun cream and sunglasses, all with a significant amount from each purchase benefiting Sail 4 Cancer and helping improve the quality of life for those living with cancer. Although the message is serious, the “Keep it in the Dark” campaign is seriously fun! Watch out this summer for some truly wicked garden moles spreading the word and a competition that could see you winning some great new kit . Sail 4 Cancer Chair of Trustees Graham Precey comments, “An understanding of skin cancer prevention is crucial, especially amongst sailors and other water sports enthusiasts. The support we have received from our sponsors has been wonderful and shows just how strongly they all feel about promoting awareness of this disease which is potentially fatal and yet so easily preventable.” “It is well documented that accumulative sun damage can result in the formations of skin cancer. As outdoor sporting enthusiasts, the sailing fraternity are constantly being subjected to the sun’s rays. A few simple precautions can minimise the risk… remember a suntan is not sexy, it often heralds the formation of thickened and wrinkly skin!” advises Denise Hancock, Macmillan Clinical Nurse Specialist Skin Cancer, Department of Dermatology Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust. To find out more on how to protect yourself from the sun and to get your hands on some great kit visit the new site www.keepitinthedark.com.
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