Sailing Today
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The RS800 associations e-Newsletter

July/August 2006 edition

RS800 Breaking News...

  • The RS Ball 2006 dates are now set!

  • The 2006 RS800 UK Gul National Championships is only 2 months away - get your entries in to receive a discount!!

  • Less than 1 month to Garda!

  • Next Fat Face event is Lymington Town on the 8th and 9th July!

Welcome
Welcome to the first addition of RS800 Sailing Today, the new planned regular e-newsletter from the RS association. We plan to bring you the latest news, views and technical articles and anything else that maybe of interest to the RS800 sailor!

To make this happen though we need your help with providing the material. So don't delay - Get writing and email me with your RS800 articles and don't forget those pictures!

In this issue we have:

GUL RS Racing Sprint Champs and RS Ball
RS800 National Championships update
Full report from Draycote
Rutland Water report
What happened at Stokes Bay
Yorkshire Dales
Paignton
RS800 Fat Face Circuit 2006
An article on General Sail care from Hyde Sails

 Its been a busy start to the season with 5 Fat Face circuit events already having taken place. The best turn out so far has been 40 at Stokes Bay.  Next stop is Lymington Town on the south coast in July.

Have a great Nationals at Weymouth and enjoy Garda!!

Enjoy the read!

Duncan Ellis
duncan.ellis@progressivetechnology.co.uk


   

For 2006 ....   A brand new event for the RS fleets!   And a date for the 2006 RS Ball for those of you worrying that you'd heard nothing to date.

Saturday November 4th - Rutland Sailing Club & Barnsdale Lodge Hotel

The Sprint Champs will be a series of short (15-20 minute) races in flights of 10 boats in separate fleets, with a complicated scoring system, finishing off with flight finals.   Something very different, excellent racing and spectating, and great prizes, courtesy of GUL.

The RS Racing  Ball will be held 3 miles from Rutland SC at the Barnsdale Lodge, a beautiful 18th century privately owned hotel.    There will be the normal revelry of band, disco, 4 course dinner, bar extension, and maybe even a few fireworks ...   Dress will be black tie.

The Sprint Champs will cost approximately £10/boat in advance, and will double for entries received after 14th October.   The RS Ball is £25 per person, tickets must be booked by 14th October via the RS Office at East Hayes, Grove Road, Lymington, SO41 3RN.  

There is lovely, plush accommodation at the Barnsdale Lodge from £40/person., and dormitories at Rutland SC from £12/person, and lots in between.  See the RS website under events for more details.  

Put it in your diary now!   And don't forget to book in ...

  
 

RS800 National Championships
The reduced entry fee deadline is fast approaching for the GUL RS 800 National Championships 2006.

With 6 solid days of racing scheduled at the Weymouth & Portland Sailing Academy plus a social calendar packed with activities this year’s event promises to be the best Nationals in the history of 800 racing! Here’s what we’ve got in store:

Date: 27 August – September 1st 2006

15 races – both inside the harbour and out

Daily prizes

Gold and Silver fleets

Daily informal seminars looking at everything from rig set-up to starting!

A buddy system – with an overall prize to the winning duo courtesy of West Country Boat Repairs.

Inclusive drinks vouchers and meal deals!

HUGE PRIZE GIVING BONANZA ON THE FINAL NIGHT!

The fee: A bargain at £165 per boat if you enter before June 30th – that’s £15 per person per day!

Student discount obviously applies: £155 per boat for you guys.

The late fee applies after June 30th. At £190 per boat it’s well worth getting your entries in early! For any enquiries, please contact the class association, all questions welcome!

Come along and join in the fun and be part of this huge event – all entries welcome!
 

 
 
Draycote Water SC - 11th/12th March

The first round of the RS 800 Fat Face circuit kicked off this weekend at Draycote Water Sailing Club. Twenty-Two boats braved the chilly forecast for a weekend of competitive racing in everything from 4 knots to 15 plus snow!Day One, Race One and it’s the lightest breeze the 800s have seen in a while. With the crews remembering how to trapeze in front of the shrouds, there were gains to be made early on. Top mark for the first time and Matt Gill/Jimbo Hughes rounded just ahead of Steve Irish and Martin Gotrel (Magic Marine). Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail4Cancer) rounded in 3rd. Sadly for Tim Collins and Simon Coleridge, their spectacular tangle which left them floundering on the spreader mark for quite some time was caught on camera by none other than Jane Olive who took up the coaching spot this weekend while poor Spod recovered from man flu!As the wind died there was lots of place changing further back in the fleet, but the top three showed speed and consistency; Irish and Gotrel (Magic Marine) taking the first bullet of the day, Gill and Hughes in second, Booth and Martin (Sail4Cancer) in third.

Thankfully the wind filled in a little for race two and the tactic at the start was to get onto Port as soon as possible! Local boys Irish and Gotrel (Magic Marine) lead from the word go, Paddy Gamble and Fiona Lockwood back on form sailed their way into second place and held their own to the finish line. Fleet newcomers Charlie Roome and Steve Hall posted their best result of the day with a third place, great work! Great also to see Rob Watson and Gimp back on the racecourse after a season’s break, a 4th place for them.

Last race of the day and this time left up the first beat paid off. Calling the shots right this time was Martin and Booth (Sail4Cancer) rounding the top mark just ahead of Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott, Irish and Gotrel (Magic Marine) hot on their heels. The puffs and shifts lead to lots of place changing but Martin and Booth held their nerve to the finish to take the bullet. Irish and Gotrel fought their way into second place forcing Deal and Marriott to settle for third.

After a much needed hot shower Steve Irish and Jane Olive treated the fleet to an excellent debrief of the days racing…. Just when we were all feeling so confident with our performance we realised where we were going so wrong! But a huge thanks to Jane and Steve who gave us all some excellent advice and some race winning tips – made so much clearer with the video camera! A few beers later and one or two kebabs it was off to bed – the lucky ones in the fleet had friends living nearby, or indeed booked a B&B – others opted for a night under canvas or even in the car… Snow greeted them in the morning!

Frozen boat covers, a biting wind and snow flurries made for the most inviting days sailing of the season so far…! Dry suits and steamers at the ready…. This was going to be cold!

Race four and the wind had piped up significantly from Saturday. The race officer made no mistake and got us all off without a hitch (except for one or two to the right!) By the top Mark Irish and Gotrel rounded in first, shaking off the icicles as they bore away! Deal and Marriott close behind with Gamble/Lockwood, Roz Allen & Neil Ashby and Peter Barton & Sally Wakefield in the chasing pack. Frozen kite sheets and halyards made frustrating work for the crews and before you knew it we were gybing onto port and laying the leeward gate. Ashby and Allen made the biggest gains in the fleet sailing into second place just behind the Magic Marine boys who secured their third victory of the event. Gamble and Lockwood sailed over the line in 3rd place with Martin and Booth in 4th after a spectacular recovery from a capsize.

Things were definitely getting colder… more snow flurries and ice coated trapeze strings – the race officer got us all off promptly again! Same story, Irish and Gotrel (Magic Marine) stomped all over the fleet to take the bullet while Ashby and Allen, still on spectacular form secured another second place close behind. Barton & Wakefield secured third place – an excellent recovery after a dodgy start whereby Pete fell out the boat with 30 seconds to go!

Last race of the day and only eleven boats left on the course! The snow and ice proved far too much for the sensible ones who left the final line up to battle it out for the podium positions! Barton and Wakefield lead the fleet round the first windward mark, but true to form (and with no Irish/Gotrel on the course!) Ashby and Allen secured the bullet! Gamble and Lockwood hung in there to take second with Barton and Wakefield in third.

And so the podium positions were filled. Third place after an excellent weekend of consistent results went to Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail4Cancer). Paddy Gamble and Fiona Lockwood sailed themselves into second on the final day while Steve Irish and Martin Gotrel (Magic Marine) proved victorious once again to claim top spot, the Winners of the Fat Face RS 800 Draycote open meeting.

Victory in the Silver fleet went to Charlie Roome and Steve Hall – an excellent circuit debut for them, while second place was awarded to Phillip Highfield and Tamsin Butcher who put in an excellent effort to take 10th place.

Thanks to everyone who took part and to Draycote Water Sailing Club for making a cold and miserable weekend into a thoroughly enjoyable and competitive one! Next circuit event is April 22/23rd at Rutland - spring will definitely be upon us so we hope to see you all there!

Sarah Marriott
RS800 1054

Overall Results

Sailed: 6  Discards: 1  Ratings: None

Pos Sail No Helm Crew Club R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Pts Notes
1 1058 Steve Irish Martin Gotrel Draycote Water SC 1 1 2 1 1 DNC 6  
2 1012 Paddy Gamble Fiona Lockwood Stokes Bay SC 13 2 5 3 4 2 16  
3 1089 Ian Martin Claire Booth Bough Beech SC 3 5 1 5 5 4 18  
4 1016 Peter Barton Sally Wakefield Royal Lymington 11 6 7 7 3 3 26  
5 1101 Neil Ashby   Whistable 10 12 DNF 2 2 1 27  
6 1010 Ollie Page Tom Odell Lancing 5 9 6 4 6 DNC 30  
7 1054 Sarah Marriott   FPSC 6 8 3 6 9 DNC 32  
8 1075 Matt Gill James Hughes Royal Corinthian 2 11 9 8 10 DNC 40  
9 964 Charlie Roome Steve Hall Draycote Water SC 7 3 4 18 11 DNC 43  
10 848 Phillip Highfield Tamsin Butcher Waveney & Oulton Broad 4 15 8 10 13 10 45  
11 1059 Ralph Singleton Sophie Singleton Chew Valley Lake SC DNF 7 14 12 8 6 47  
12 1076 Robert Watson James Holmes Royal Corinthian 15 4 DSQ 17 7 5 48  
13 808 Daniel Tregastes Polly Tregastes Restronguet SC 17 20 10 11 12 7 57  
14 991 Malcolm Streeter Miles Roebuck HISC 9 10 17 15 15 9 58  
15 836 Derek Buchanan Elaine Buchanan Oxford 16 17 12 9 14 8 59  
16 1047 Simon Grundy Guy Whitby HISC 8 14 13 14 16 11 60  
17 883 Kate Gillow Andy Griffiths Draycote Water SC 12 13 16 13 DNC DNC 77  
18 987 Tim Collins Simon Coleridge RORC 18 16 11 16 DNC DNC 84  
19 989 Ben Schooling Tim Hirst Datchet 14 DSQ 15 DNC DNC DNC 98  
20 815 Sam Ferens A Harvey   19 19 18 DNF DNC DNC 102  
21 909 Iain Christie Adam Smith Draycote Water SC 20 18 19 DNC DNC DNC 103  
22 1105 Jane Smethwick Nicholas Hand   21 DNC DNC DNC DNC DNC 113  
 
 
Rutland Water SC - 22nd/23rd April

The RS 800 fleet descended upon Rutland Water Sailing Club this weekend for round two of the Fat Face Race Circuit 2006. 25 boats braved the dire
forecast and much to everyone’s surprise a full series of six races got underway!

Race one, day one and it was straight into bow down mode for a patchy 5 knots of breeze. Fastest out of the blocks was Ollie Page and Tom Odell (Farècla) who sailed a brilliant first beat to round the top mark in first ahead of Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott, Spod & Jane Olive (Sola Harken) in third. By the bottom mark places were just the same, but the first to spot the increasing pressure on the left hand side was Spod and Jane Olive (Sola Harken) who hitched over in what proved to be a race-winning move! 2 further laps later and the Olives (Sola Harken) took the first bullet of the day. Things were tight in the chasing pack but Dom Johnson and Jenny Heeley played it cool down the last run to take 2nd, Page and Odell (Farècla) settling for third.

Race two and the tables were about to turn….The left looked good to begin with but those who made the early hitch to the right got to the top mark with style…. Rounding in first was Richard Keeton and Helen Rumbold closely followed by the students, Nathan Bachelor and James Clarke. A frustrated pack of seven others rounded just behind, all opting for the gybe-set back into the pressure. Second Beat and Bachelor and Clarke creamed into top spot and took up the reins at the front of the fleet. Not allowing the pressure to mount, a lap and a half later they crossed the line taking the second bullet of the day,
Keeton and Rumbold sailed brilliantly to take second with Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott in 3rd, Jo & Caroline Llewellyn 4th

Last race of the day and the breeze was beginning to freshen….Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail4Cancer) called the shots right up the first beat to round in with a healthy lead over the chasing pack. After a bit of a tacking dual, Deal & Marriott rounded in second, with Page/Odell (Farècla), Olive & Olive and Johnson/Heeley not far behind and not giving an inch. Three laps later Martin and Booth took the final bullet of the day, Deal and Marriott in second, Page and Odell (Farècla) in third.

Back to the shore and spring was definitely in the air… flip flops were out, patio doors open and everyone feeling a flush of colour in their cheeks (except for Julia Coatsworth with the factor 50 sun cream, her glow was due to beer rather than sun!). A great night filled with drinking games followed, and a special mention must go to fleet newcomer, Jamie Hilton, for his sailing orientated dance moves – classic!

Day two, race four and a dying breeze….. Not put off by the light stuff the entire fleet were keen at the start resulting in several teams being recalled! Johnson and Heeley picked their way through the shifts to round the top mark in first place. A huge pack followed behind and the key here was to take the puffs and sink down low! Coming out in pole position by the leeward mark was Deal & Marriott, Johnson & Heeley and Jamie Reed & Alistair Rose (Worldcom) just inches behind. Deal & Marriott consolidated their lead by the end of the race to take the first bullet of the day, Johnson and Heeley crossed in second,
Reed & Rose (Worldcom), third.

Race 5 and the breeze got lighter….. The committee still went for a start and by the top of the beat barely a zephyr was to be seen. After just one
lap and much to everyone’s relief the shorten course flag was raised and Johnson/Heeley crossed the line in first. Reid and Rose took second while Olive & Olive (Sola Harken) finished up third.

Race 6…. Just when we thought it was over… By now Rutland Water resembled nothing more than a mirror and the Rutland Bell pleasure cruiser seemed the only way back to the shore!But the wind gods finally arrived in the form of a huge cloud … and with it the best breeze of the weekend! Another quick course change and the fleet were off! Lot’s riding on a good result in this one, the pressure was on!Loving the stronger breeze Ben Schooling and Tim Hirst reached the top mark in first having taken an early hitch over to the right hand side. Martin & Booth, the Olives (Sola Harken) and Andy Jeffries & Ally Ody rounded high in the chasing pack and went for an immediate gybe set. Suddenly a big course was beginning to feel tiny as the teams yee-ha’d it down to the starboard layline in true twin-stringing style! By lap 3 the Olives had pulled out a healthy lead but couldn’t resist giving the others a chance but putting in a short capsize on the final beat! Not quite enough for Martin and Booth to take advantage of… Jane and Spod went onto win the race, Martin and Booth second and Jeffries and Ody in third.

The fleet burnt back to shore in the best breeze of the day for prize giving and the overall standings looked like this:1st place was tied on points, but it was Dom Johnson and Jenny Heeley who proved victorious on count back to take their first circuit win. Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott settled for second and Spod and Jane Olive (Sola Harken) rounded off the podium in 3rd place.

Thanks as always to Rutland Sailing Club who hosted another top event for the 800 fleet. The next circuit event is at Stokes Bay Sailing Club in two weeks time, a huge turn out is expected and the top notch social is guaranteed!

Sarah Marriott
RS 800 1054

 
Rank Fleet Sail No Helm Crew Club R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Nett
RS800 Fleet  -  Sailed: 6  Discards: 1
1 RS800 932 Dom Johnson Jenny Heeley Spinnaker 2 6 4 2 1 12 15
2 RS800 1054 Justin Deal Sarah Marriott Datchet 4 3 2 1 6 5 15
3 RS800 1083 Spod Olive Jane Olive Stokes Bay 1 13 7 9 3 1 21
4 RS800 874 Jamie Reid Alistair Rose Society 5 14 8 3 2 8 26
5 RS800 962 Nathan Batchelor James Clare Chew Valley 6 1 17 5 7 9 28
6 RS800 1089 Ian Martin Claire Booth Bough Beech 9 7 1 15 11 2 30
7 RS800 964 Charlie Roome Steve Hall Draycote 8 8 5 14 4 7 32
8 RS800 1114 Andy Jeffries Allyson Ody Eastbourne 10 10 6 4 12 3 33
9 RS800 1010 Ollie Page Tom Odell Lancing 3 17 3 11 19 11 45
10 RS800 1087 Mick Whitmore Sarah Smith Eastbourne 7 15 12 6 17 6 46
11 RS800 890 Richard Keeton Helen Rumbold Lymington 11 2 21 12 5 18 48
12 RS800 989 Ben Scholing Tim Hurst Datchet 12 12 11 10 15 4 49
13 RS800 883 Kate Gillow Andy Griffith Draycote 15 5 9 7 14 17 50
14 RS800 1074 Joe Llewellyn Caroline Llewellyn Royal Torbay 17 4 16 16 8 10 54
15 RS800 864 Adrian Coatsworth Julia Coatsworth Waldringfield 14 20 13 13 9 13 62
16 RS800 892 David Pike Nick Jenkins Eastbourne 16 9 10 22 18 15 68
17 RS800 991 Max Streeton Miles Roebuck Hayling Island 20 21 18 8 16 14 76
18 RS800 1050 Jamie Hilton Tom Street Datchet 19 19 15 18 13 16 81
19 RS800 931 Matt Sharman Jenny Brindle Delph 13 22 19 19 10 DNC 83
20 RS800 901 James Wilkes Edward Wilkes RSC 18 11 14 DNC DNC DNC 95
21 RS800 808 Daniel Tregaskes Polly Tregaskes Restronguet 21 23 20 17 21 DNC 102
22 RS800 908 Stuart Coles Claire Coles Emsworth Slipper 24 18 22 21 22 DNC 107
23 RS800 809 Bill Smith Mandy Hindle Lymington 22 24 23 20 20 DNC 109
24 RS800 1011 James Ross Heather Back Weston 23 16 25 DNC DNC DNC 116
25 RS800 1105 Jane Smithwick Nick Hand Wimbleball 25 25 24 DNC DNC DNC 126
 
Stokes Bay SC - 6th/7th May

Stokes Bay Sailing Club played host to round three of the RS 800 Fat Face Racing circuit this weekend. After two days of blistering sunshine and strong sea breezes the forty-strong fleet had to settle for just five knots and drizzling rain come Saturday morning!!

But spirits were far from dampened as the fleet took to the water and the race officer did a sterling job of bashing the races out……

Race One and judging by the 700s who went off before hand, hitting the shore looked like a safe bet. Not so good at the pin end though and spotting that was Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail4Cancer) who shot out the middle of the line with great pace and reached the top mark with plenty in hand. Ben Schooling and stand-in crew Paul Rigg pulled their kite up just metres behind, while Charlie Roome and Steve Hall skirted round in third spot.

End of lap three (we only ever do three laps don’t we!), Martin/Booth (Sail4Cancer) crossed the finish line and realised that there was still one lap to go! Cursing at their schoolboy error they headed back up the course. Final run and things were getting tight at the top! After a bit of a gybing dual between the top three places, Roome/Hall crossed the line in first place. Schooling & Rigg maintained a very well sailed second place while Martin & Booth (Sail4Cancer) had to settle for third place this time.

Race two, a fresher breeze, but still the rain came down! – Marginal twin stringing conditions in the puffs, the crews finally got let out of the play pen! Top mark and round in first was Stokes Bay locals Paddy Gamble and Fiona Lockwood. Chasing hard, Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott along with David and Fiona Sayce. Also well up there in the leading pack, Schooling and Rigg fresh from their second place and Highfield/Butcher. Hitting the shore and keeping out of the tide was the only way to go down the run.

The battle between the top markers continued for three laps but coming out top to take the bullet was Deal & Marriott. Sayce & Sayce cruised across the line to take second place while Gamble and Lockwood clinched third. A special mention must go to Spod and Jane Olive who's seaman-like behaviour was impeccable! After three attempts at rounding the penultimate leeward mark they gave approximately twenty boats room inside, as counted and verified at the video debrief!

Race three, dropping temperature, dropping wind speed and still the rain came down!Rob Watson and James Holmes won the start and raced off up the first beat
with some serious pace on the rest of the fleet. Gibbs and Johnson from Starcross Sailing club showed excellent speed, as did Coldridge and Collins from RORC. As the wind became lighter large rafts of frustrated sailors appeared at the leeward mark! The first involved the usual front runners, and coming out of that one nicely was fleet newcomer (as a helm anyway!) Jo Skinner who took advantage of the floundering fools and sailed into a comfortable second place!

As the bunch slowly filtered round (and Paddy did his turns!) the next raft was on it's way, only three times the size and made even more entertaining for the on looking race committee by a ‘turtled’ 800 drifting nicely into the middle of it all! Oh the fleet was on form today!

By the end of the Race, Watson/Holmes stormed away to take the most comfortable victory of the day. Skinner/Skinner sailed over the line in second place and Jo deserves huge congratulations for that result, the highest placed female helm in the history of 800 racing! Third place went to David and Fiona Sayce, 4th to Highfield and Butcher.

Back to shore, warm showers and a video debrief from our very own Spod Olive. Thanks to Roz Allen who did a fine job of filming the fleet at its best and in some instances, worst......

Ollie Page received the biggest applause of the night for a double-whammy – not only did his recently re-glued in main cleat pull out in race one (gel coat really isn’t strong enough!) but he also capsized right on cue for the camera. If only usual super-crew Tom was present to see this, but sadly he had some repairs of his own to take care of and missed the entire weekend…

While Stokes Bay's hospitality and Disco didn't go un-noticed, most of the fleet disappeared pretty early on in favour of a night in bed and not under canvas!

Day Two and the sun finally made an appearance, but the wind did not! A couple of zephyrs enticed everyone onto the water and while attempts to start the racing were made, it was back to the shore for an ice cream break and to re-apply the sun cream! The boredom of the postponement was lifted by some on the water entertainment in the form of single handed 800 sailing! Thanks to James Ross, Ian Martin and Justin Deal for that (700s for them next year!) Just as the 700s had rolled up their sails a sea breeze from the east filled in and it was business as usual!

Bang! Race four, 8 knots of breeze and blazing sunshine! After a general recall to calm the fleet down, Stokes Bay locals Spod and Jane Olive (Sola/Harken) made an early break by hitching to the right hand side along with Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail4Cancer)… Definitely the right call to make, Martin and Booth lead round the top mark, the Olives very close behind in second. The chasing pack consisted of Gamble/Lockwood, Sayce/Sayce, Deal/Marriott and Willows/Farnborough, all sailing hard and not giving an inch….. Determined to get all three races in the course was shortened after just two laps and gave Martin/Booth (Sail4Cancer) a very well deserved race win. Olive/Olive (Sola/Harken) crossed the line in second, Deal/Marriott 3rd.

Race 5 and the breeze began to build as did the keenness of the fleet! Two general recalls later (and the best of the breeze now gone!) the race finally got off, but leaving behind it many casualties of the dreaded black flag!

Twin stringing up the first beat and first to the windward mark was Neil Baker and Jimbo Hughes followed closely by Charlie Roome and Steve Hall. But Deal & Marriott’s Gybe-set at the top Mark that pulled them up into top spot which they maintained to the finish line and took the last bullet of the day. Baker& Hughes finished just behind in second while Watson/Holmes took 3rd.

No time for race 6 and so after yet another weekend of light wind action the results looked like this:

In first place overall, showing excellent consistency and taking their first event win was Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott. Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail4Cancer) leapt up the leader board on the final day with two great results and clinched second. Third place, went to David and Fiona Sayce from Hayling Island who sailed brilliantly in the light stuff.

The silver fleet was a closely fought battle with Simon Grundy and Tom Sherrington taking top spot; Richard Keeton and Helen Rumbold from Lymington took second.

A huge thank you to our race officer who succeeded in firing out five races in some of the most challenging conditions imaginable! A huge thanks also to Stokes Bay Sailing club for hosting another superb event, and to Fat Face for all their prizes. Round 4 of the RS 800 Fat Face Racing Circuit takes place in the Yorkshire Dale on the 3rd/4th June. See you all then!

Results

1 1054 G Deal Marriott Datchet Water 4 1 (6) 3 1 15 9
2 1089 G Martin Booth Bough Beech 3 (16) 9 1 5 34 18
3 985 G Sayce Sayce Hayling Island 10 2 3 5 (41) 61 20
4 1012 G Gamble Lochwood Stokes Bay 9 3 10 4 (41) 67 26
5 1076 G Watson Holmes Royal Lymington 11 (13) 1 13 3 41 28
6 964 G Roome Hall Draycote Water 1 12 11 (20) 4 48 28
7 921 G Gibbs Johnson Starcross 6 (9) 5 9 9 38 29
8 1075 G Baker Hughes Royal Corinthian (12) 6 12 11 2 43 31
9 989 G Schooling Rigg Datchet Water 2 5 18 8 (41) 74 33
10 1047 S Grundy Sherrington Hayling Island 8 7 13 (24) 6 58 34
11 962 G Batchelor Knight Chew Valley 5 (20) 7 10 14 56 36
12 890 S Keeton Rumbold Royal Lymington 7 8 (30) 7 16 68 38
13 1083 G Olive Olive Stokes Bay 16 14 8 2 (41) 81 40
14 848 G Highfield Butcher Waveney & Oulton 13 4 (15) 15 11 58 43
15 1114 G Jeffries Ody Eastbourne Sovereign 14 10 (26) 12 12 74 48
16 987 S Coleridge Collins RORC (31) 11 4 16 18 80 49
17 926 G Shires Shires Stokes Bay (41) 24 20 6 10 101 60
18 919 S Skinner Skinner Datchet Water (41) 25 2 17 20 105 64
19 955 G Smith Davison Stokes Bay 23 17 (41) 18 8 107 66
20 1110 G Clampett Clark Stokes Bay 15 19 (24) 23 17 98 74
21 892 S Pike Jerkins Eastbourne Sovereign 19 22 23 (30) 13 107 77
22 968 S Steed Procter Stokes Bay 22 (30) 14 25 21 112 82
23 882 G White Cruttenden Stokes Bay 21 23 19 19 (41) 123 82
24 991 S Streeton Roebuck Hayling Island (30) 29 16 22 22 119 89
25 1078 S Willows Farnborough Gurnard 27 21 (41) 41 7 137 96
26 824 S Barnicoat Barnicoat Restronguet 20 (33) 27 28 23 131 98
27 1087 G Whitmore Smith Eastbourne Sovereign 18 18 25 (41) 41 143 102
28 808 S Tregaskes Tregaskes Restronguet (33) 27 31 26 19 136 103
29 833 S Baker Evans Mounts Bay 29 (35) 32 21 24 141 106
30 836 S Buchanan Buchanan Oxford 32 28 (41) 32 15 148 107
31 972 S Simmonds Judd Hayling Island 25 15 (41) 27 41 149 108
32 1077 G Taylor Taylor Datchet Water 28 31 21 29 (41) 150 109
33 1011 G Ross Back Weston 17 26 29 (41) 41 154 113
34 1097 G Willis Moody Lymington Town 24 34 17 (41) 41 157 116
35 873 S Sickboy Broughton Weston 26 32 22 (41) 41 162 121
36 864 S Coatsworth Coatsworth Waldringfield (41) 41 41 14 41 178 137
37 1067 S Nieveen Fotherby Stokes Bay (41) 41 41 31 25 179 138
38 908 S Coles Johnston Emsworth Slipper (41) 36 28 41 41 187 146
39 1105 S Hand Hirons Wimbleball Lake (41) 37 41 41 41 201 160
40 1010 G Page Baldwin Lancing (41) 41 41 41 41 205 164

 

Yorkshire Dales SC - 3rd/4th June

The recently re-branded Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club on Grimwith Reservoir played host to the fourth round of the Fat Face RS800 circuit. It was an early start for some of the eleven boats who made the trip from as far as Lymington and Dalgety Bay to join the 4 local boats. A special mention must go to Bjoern & Moana Monico who had travelled from Germany to purchase a new Hobie FX but when it wasn’t ready they bought an 800 instead! Those who made the effort were blessed with champagne sailing conditions, F3-4, brilliant sunshine and some very close racing.

The race officer managed to squeeze a decent sized course in utilising the full extant of the reservoir and making pre-start manoeuvring between the line and shore pretty tricky. Race 1 and off the line it was Ian Martin/Claire Booth Sail4Cancer who got away best to lead round the windward mark with the chasing pack in close pursuit. Positions 2nd-6th changed frequently round the never-ending 5 laps with boats benefiting from the bands of wind filling down both sides of course. By the finish Martin/Booth had extended their lead to a comfortable victory with Nathan Bachelor/James Clark picking up 2nd, Spod and Jane Olive Sola/Harken 3rd and Ben Schooling/Tim Hirst 4th.

Race 2 and it was again Martin/Booth who took an early lead hooking up a nice band of breeze which carried them into the mark. Half way up the second beat in 3rd place Schooling/Hirst were forced to take an early bath after the rig gave way spectacularly at the lower spreaders – a disappointing end to the weekend for them. By the end of the 4 laps it was again Martin/Booth who took line honours with Adrian and Julia Coatsworth sailing a great race to finish 2nd and the Olives again in 3rd.

Race 3 and the breeze had built slightly to around 15kts and shifted to the left, which made a great spectacle (from the shore!) to watch the boats twin wiring round the narrow course. Another close battle ensued with Spod & Jane showing great boat speed round the drag race course to come out on top at the finish with Martin/Booth a close second and the Coatsworths sailing well to pick up 3rd.

Saturday evening saw the majority of the travelled fleet converge at the quaint village of Appletreewick to sample the cherry beer in the local pub before retiring to the field/campsite for a reasonably early night.

Sunday dawned overcast with a light breeze and occasional rain threatening to kill the wind completely. Racing was postponed for around an hour and by the start the breeze had filled in. The Olives took an early lead and pulled out a substantial gap until the wind switched off on the second beat and with the windward mark tucked close under the dam the rest of the fleet caught up. When the new breeze filled in from the left it was the Coatsworths who benefited first and managed to nip round the mark a sail off downwind into a convincing lead to take their first race win of the series. Ross McKerchar / Stu Gardiner from Dalgety Bay going great guns in the lighter breeze were next to pick up the shift and rounded just ahead of Spod to take 2nd with Spod having to settle for a frustrating 3rd, Martin/Booth 4th.

The breeze built and stabilised for race 2 and by the second beat it was marginal twin wiring conditions. The battle of the grey kites ensued with Martin/Booth, McKerchar/Gardiner and locals Mike Saul & Sophie Hartley all contesting the lead. By the third lap Martin/Booth had pulled out a narrow lead but McKerchar/Gardiner sailed a superb last run to take line honours by ducking low for the line. Saul/Hartley showed good pace to maintain their third from the chasing Olives.

The final race of the weekend saw the return of the sun to provide some near perfect sailing conditions. The Coatsworths rounded in 1st just ahead of locals Andrew Foulds & Oliver Dewhurst who sailed a great first beat. A tactical downwind leg followed which saw Spod round the gate narrowly ahead of Saul/Hartley and Mckerchar/Gardiner and these positions remained unchanged to the finish. Martin/Booth Sail4Cancer crossed in 4th but had already secured the event after the 5th race so congratulations to them for their first Fat Face RS800 circuit win. Spod and Jane Olive Sola/Harken were a point behind in 2nd. The third place position couldn’t have been closer between the Coatsworths and McKerchar/Gardiner, each having the same number of points, same 1sts,
2nds, 3rds, 5ths and 6ths, the deciding factor coming down to who won when they last met – McKerchar/Gardiner thus clinching it. In a testimony to just how close the racing was, 5th and 6th were also tied on points with Saul/Hartley just winning out over Batchelor/Clark.

A big thanks must go to Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club who put on a fantastic event with some very close racing that made the travelling well worth while. Thanks also must also go to Fat Face for providing the prizes.

Round 5 of the Fat Face circuit takes place a Paignton on the 17/18th June so I look forward (mast dependent) to seeing you all there!
 

 

Sailed:6, Discards:1, To count:5, Ratings:None, Entries:15
Rank Boat SailNo Helm Crew Club R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Total Nett
1 Sail 4 Cancer 1089 Ian Martin Clare Booth Bough Beech 1 1 2 (5) 2 4 15 10
2 Harken 1083 Spud Olive Jane Olive Stokes Bay 3 3 1 3 (4) 1 15 11
3   911 Ross McKerchar A Gardner Dalgety Bay (7) 5 6 2 1 3 24 17
4 Lewmar 864 Adrian Coatsworth Julia Coatsworth Waldringfield (6) 2 3 1 5 6 23 17
5 MSDS 1102 Mike Saul Sophie Hartley Yorkshire Dales 5 8 4 (12) 3 2 34 22
6   962 Nathan Batchelor James Clark Chew Valley 2 4 5 6 (8) 5 30 22
7   1045 Andrew Foulds Oliver Dewhurtst Yorkshire Dales 8 6 7 (11) 7 7 46 35
8 Even Fatter 1059 Jonathan Lister Simon Byrne Yorkshire Dales (10) 9 10 4 10 8 51 41
9 Face Fat 1048 Mike Mawson Nick Hancock Yorkshire Dales 9 7 (12) 7 9 9 53 41
10   809 Bill Smith Mandy Hindle Lymington (11) 11 8 8 6 10 54 43
11   1103 Stephen Brown Philip Barstow Ullswater 13 10 9 9 (14) 11 66 52
12   1042 Peter Craggs Phil Nelson York Railway (14) 13 11 10 13 12 73 59
13   1097 Bjoern Monico Moana Monico SVNU 12 (14) 13 14 11 13 77 63
14   1062 Philip Beck Dave Beck Hornsea (15) 12 14 13 12 14 80 65
15   989 Ben Schooling Tim Hurst Datchet 4 (16 DNF) 16 DNS 16 DNS 16 DNS 16 DNS 84 68

Paignton SC - 17th/18th June

A beautiful weekend’s sailing!

Paignton Sailing Club in the heart of the English Riviera hosted round 5 of the RS 800 Fat Face racing circuit 2006. 32 boats arrived on Saturday morning and while the bay was a flat calm, temperatures were soaring! With very little breeze predicted there was more chat and excitement about Paignton’s infamous water park (and the rubber rings and ‘slide of death!) than racing, but suddenly the beach master called for us to launch!

Race one, 5 to 7 knots of breeze; things weren’t looking so dire afterall!Quickest out of the blocks and spotting that right was the way to go up the beat, it was the familiar front-runners, Nathan Bachelor and James Clarke. A real battle was beginning to unfold in the chasing pack, Phil King & Tom Truman and Andy Cornah & Orwin Murray fighting for second spot. Bachelor & Clarke continued to pull away and after three laps took the first bullet of the day, an awesome result in such fluky conditions. Crossing the line second was Cornah & Murray, King & Truman in third.

Race Two and the tactics were clear…..Hitching onto port seemed to be the way to go and first to shoot out of the blocks were Rob Watson and James Holmes. Top mark and Justin Deal & Sarah Marriott round in second behind Watson & Holmes, David & Fiona Sayce were nipping at their heels in third. Fresh from a 2nd place in race one Cornah & Murray played the consistency card and rounded fourth. By the bottom mark Deal & Marriott sailed them selves into top spot and
maintained it to the finish to take first place. Watson & Holmes sailed across the line in second, Sayce & Sayce, third.

Race three and the crews gradually got a chance to stretch their legs….A fraction more breeze was beginning to fill in but the right hand side still seemed to be the way to go…. Top Mark and King & Truman rounded in top spot. Deal & Marriott snuck round in second while Ian Martin and Claire Booth (Sail 4 Cancer) lead the chasing pack in third. Nicely positioned to gybe off on the Run, Martin & Booth were the first to split to the left. Deal & Marriott followed suit fractionally later while King & Truman stuck to the right and fell into a patch of little breeze. By the leeward mark Martin & Booth (Sail 4 Cancer) rounded in first, Deal & Marriott second, Sayce & Sayce third. After some clever ‘sinking’ tactics from Justin on the penultimate down wind leg, Deal and Marriott stole the lead and maintained it to the finish to take the last gun of the day. Sayce & Sayce sailed brilliantly into second spot while Watson & Holmes kept the overnight points margin tight by securing third place.

Out of sailing mode and straight into shore-based activities…. Most of the fleet found themselves in the Spinning Wheel, one of Paignton’s finest watering holes, and cider was the drink of the evening! Fresh from a week in Minorca, Ben Schooling, Ian Martin, Justin Deal and Aaron Barden lead the way to the dance floor. Soon another 20 or so drunken sailors joined in the fun – and a special mention must go to James Ross and the spinning bar stool! Several drinks later and one or two messy kebabs, most of the fleet found their way back to a range of Faulty Towers-esc hotels by 2 am!

Day two, race four, sore heads and no breeze yet!With most of the fleet in hangover mode the half ten start proved a challenge in it self! Roger Gaiter, the race officer did a sterling job of getting the first race started- despite an initial general recall! After a frustrating first beat the racing couldn’t have been closer, the top ten all rounding within metres of each other, initiating the usual down wind tussle. Coming out trumps by the bottom of the course were Deal & Marriott rounding just ahead of the usual front runners; Watson & Holmes, Cornah & Murray and Peter Barton & Roz Allen (Henri Lloyd). A huge 30 degree wind shift caught a few people off guard on the final lap, but picking the shifts correctly was Deal & Marriott who crossed the finish line with a huge lead over the rest of the fleet. Watson & Holmes charged over the line in second while Cornah & Murray smacked another counter in with a third.

With the wind now coming from a more westerly direction the course was quickly re-laid and the start gun fired once again….Much more tacking than usual for a typical 800 beat – the shifts were coming through thick and fast. First to the top mark with a convincing lead was King & Truman. Jamie Reed & Alastair Rose proved that their right hand course was a safe choice by rounding in second. Hot on their heels Sayce & Sayce, Barton & Allen (Henri Lloyd) and Watson & Holmes. Lots of place changing down the run and by the finish King & Truman took the bullet, Reid & Rose second, Sayce & Sayce third.

Last race of the day and the breeze was beginning to pipe up!Simply loving the stronger breeze, Spod and Jane Olive (Sola/Harken) made some great calls on the first couple of laps to pull out a convincing lead on the rest of the fleet. Again King and Truman were flying round the course keeping the Olives on their toes at all times! And so the finishing order was set, 1st Olive & Olive, second King & Truman, third Barton & Allen (Henri Lloyd) after some good tactical choices down wind and fourth, Sayce & Sayce.

Back to shore and a group of very tired and hungry sailors hit the club house for prizes and drinks!

With just one point separating second and third spot, the results were tight at the top!Rob Watson and James Holmes took third place after a fabulous display of speed and consistency – their worst result being a sixth! Second place went to David and Fiona Sayce from Hayling Island, another consistent
performer! But in first place and with three race wins in their final points tally, were Justin Deal and Sarah Marriott.

The biggest cheer of the day went to Adrian Coatsworth and Julia Jenkins for their Silver fleet win. Second place (and competing in their second ever event!) went to Jamie Hilton and Tom Street from Datchet.

A huge thank you to our race officer, Roger Gaiter, for setting superb courses and making the long journey to Paignton extremely worthwhile. Despite the cosy boat parking situation, everyone had a brilliant weekend! A final thank you to our sponsors, Fat Face, who gave out their
much appreciated vouchers.

Next event is Lymington in 3 weeks time, look forward to seeing everyone there!

Sarah Marriott

Sailed:6  Discards:1  To count:5  Entries:32 
Rank Tally Fleet SailNo Helm Crew R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 Total Nett
1st  10  Gold  1054  Justin Deal  Sarah Marriott  3.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 5.0 (12.0) 23.0  11.0 
2nd  7  Gold  985  David Sayce  Fiona Sayce  5.0 3.0 2.0 (11.0) 3.0 4.0 28.0  17.0 
3rd  21  Gold  1076  Wally Watson  James Holmes  (6.0) 2.0 3.0 2.0 6.0 5.0 24.0  18.0 
4th  11  Gold  1016  Peter Barton  Roz Allen  4.0 (8.0) 8.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 32.0  24.0 
5th  19  Gold  881  Andy Cornah  Orwin Murray  2.0 4.0 7.0 3.0 9.0 (33.0 DNF) 58.0  25.0 
6th  4  Gold  962  Nathan Batchelor  James Clark  1.0 5.0 (11.0) 7.0 10.0 11.0 45.0  34.0 
7th  17  Gold  1083  Spod Olive  Jane Olive  7.0 6.0 13.0 8.0 (18.0) 1.0 53.0  35.0 
8th  16  Gold  961  Philip King  Tom Truman  (33.0 RAF) 10.0 6.0 17.0 1.0 2.0 69.0  36.0 
9th  8  Gold  1114  Andy Jeffries  Allyson Ody  11.0 (14.0) 9.0 6.0 12.0 6.0 58.0  44.0 
10th  18  Gold  874  Jamie Reid  Alistair Rose  12.0 13.0 (16.0) 4.0 2.0 14.0 61.0  45.0 
11th  12  Gold  1089  Ian Martin  Claire Booth  (14.0) 12.0 4.0 13.0 8.0 10.0 61.0  47.0 
12th  15  Gold  1011  James Ross  Heather Back  (17.0) 11.0 10.0 15.0 7.0 9.0 69.0  52.0 
13th  6  Silver  864  Adrian Coatsworth  Julia Coatsworth  (21.0) 17.0 5.0 21.0 13.0 8.0 85.0  64.0 
14th  31  Gold  989  Ben Schooling  Tim Hirst  8.0 16.0 18.0 18.0 (19.0) 7.0 86.0  67.0 
15th  13  Gold  1102  Aaron Barden  Emma Rawlinson  13.0 9.0 12.0 14.0 21.0 (33.0 BFD) 102.0  69.0 
16th  28  Silver  1050  Jamie Hilton  Tom Street  (33.0 DNF) 7.0 19.0 16.0 24.0 17.0 116.0  83.0 
17th  23  Silver  987  Simon Coleridge  Tim Collins  15.0 20.0 20.0 (24.0) 15.0 15.0 109.0  85.0 
18th  2  Silver  926  Alastair Shires  Penny Shires  18.0 25.0 (26.0) 22.0 11.0 13.0 115.0  89.0 
19th  32  Gold  1010  Ollie Page  Tom Odell  10.0 26.0 15.0 9.0 (33.0 DNF) DNC 126.0  93.0 
20th  27  Silver  850  Brett Ellway  Rory Paterson  20.0 (21.0) 21.0 20.0 16.0 16.0 114.0  93.0 
21st  24  Silver  991  Malcolm Streeton  Miles Roebucks  19.0 19.0 23.0 (26.0) 14.0 19.0 120.0  94.0 
22nd  22  Silver  914  Andy Bryson  Tom Foster  23.0 18.0 27.0 10.0 17.0 (33.0 BFD) 128.0  95.0 
23rd  3  Silver  809  Bill Smith  Mandy Hindle  16.0 24.0 (32.0) 19.0 20.0 21.0 132.0  100.0 
24th  29  Gold  921  Russell Gibbs  Nicki McKilroy  9.0 15.0 14.0 (DNC) DNC DNC 137.0  104.0 
25th  9  Silver  848  Phillip Highfield  Tamsin Butcher  28.0 23.0 24.0 12.0 23.0 (DNC) 143.0  110.0 
26th  5  Silver  824  Ryan Barnicoat  Wayne Barnicoat  24.0 28.0 22.0 23.0 22.0 (33.0 BFD) 152.0  119.0 
27th  14  Silver  1051  Alex Willard  Becca Willard  27.0 27.0 (29.0) 27.0 27.0 20.0 157.0  128.0 
28th  1  Silver  916  James Jaffa  Dave Roberts  22.0 29.0 28.0 (30.0) 28.0 22.0 159.0  129.0 
29th  30  Silver  1085  Neil Harris  Chris Tilbrook  26.0 22.0 17.0 (DNC) DNC DNC 164.0  131.0 
30th  26  Silver  1072  Jonathan McGuire  Lou-Lou McGuire  29.0 (31.0) 31.0 28.0 25.0 18.0 162.0  131.0 
31st  25  Silver  1043  Ian Collis Smith  Harry Burrows  30.0 30.0 25.0 25.0 26.0 (33.0 BFD) 169.0  136.0 
32nd  20  Silver  833  Pippa Baker  Mostyn Evans  25.0 32.0 30.0 29.0 29.0 (DNC) 178.0  145.0 

 
 
   
   
RS800 Fat Face Circuit 2006
Date Venue No of Entries Results  
11-12 March Draycote Water SC 22 1st Steve Irish/Martin Gotrel
2nd Paddy Gamble/Fiona Lockwood
3rd Ian Martin/Claire Booth		  
22-23 April Rutland SC 25 1st Dom Johnson/Jenny Heeley
2nd Justin Deal/Sarah Marriott
3rd Spod Olive/Jane Olive		  
6-7 May Stokes Bay SC 40 1st Justin Deal/Sarah Marriott
2nd Ian Martin/Claire Booth
3rd David Sayce/Fiona Sayce		  
3-4 June Yorkshire Dales SC 15 1st Ian Martin/Clare Booth
2nd Spud Olive/Jane Olive
3rd Ross McKerchar/A Gardner 		 
17-18 June Paignton SC 32 1st Justin Deal/Sarah Marriott
2nd David Sayce/Fiona Sayce
3rd Wally Watson/James Holmes		  
8-9 July Lymington Town SC      
19-20 August Plymouth      
23-24 September Queen Mary SC      
 

General Sail Care

Although this article is not specific to RS800 sailors you may find some points of interest.

With Thanks to Hyde Sails for allowing the RS Association to re use this article

During the Season

At the end of any sail, may it be a three week cruise or a round the cans race, you have to decide how to store your sails until the next time. We are lucky that modern materials are resistant to moisture and salt crystals, and they can be left on the boat for the duration of the season without incurring unnecessary wear and tear. But if you do have the opportunity to rinse them in this period you should always take it. Salt holds moisture into the cloth, and the crystals will chafe the fibres. Also, glued sails degrade quickly when left wet in the bottom of the boat.

Sails made from any cloth are best rolled, as this does less damage to the cloth finish than the creasing that is inevitably involved in folding or flaking sails. Roller furler systems have this advantage, although it does mean the sail is left to the battering of the elements while it is up there, particularly sunlight. That's the importance of the sunstrip. If you leave the sail on the furler make sure you ease the halyard tension, otherwise you can permanently stretch the sail. You should never leave a sail on the furler unless it has a sunstrip fitted, even for one night. If you take your sails off the spars, roll them if at all possible, and get bags big enough that they don't need any further folding. If they are stored down below, politely ask your crew and guests to avoid sitting or standing on them as much as possible!

The one sailcloth material that is badly affected by moisture is nylon; it loses strength and changes shape when wet. Because sails take longer to dry when salty, the best treatment for a nylon spinnaker is to take it home each time and rinse it on the drive or lawn. Alternatively, leaving the sail loose out of the bag in the forepeak is the next best thing. Don't hang sails in the rigging to dry them, unless it is completely calm - the flogging does more damage than leaving them wet! Incidentally, none of the materials like excessive heat, so avoid leaving them in a car in the middle of the summer.

At the end of the year

Although sails can mostly be left to their own devices during the summer season, it is well worth storing them properly for the winter lay-up, as even hard wearing modern materials will not take kindly to being left damp, salty, dirty and creased for six months. The main rules are to rinse and dry the sails, then leave them loosely rolled. Wash them if possible - some dirt, like rust, can be corrosive. Once clean store them somewhere dry, cool and out of the sun. Hyde Sails offer a winter valet service that will take these jobs off your hands. In addition they will check for routine maintenance, which is outlined in the following section, and do any necessary repairs.

Maintenance

At the end of any season's sailing you should have a good look at your sails to see if there are any areas that need work. And it's a good idea to do the same check before a period of extended cruising or race regatta, particularly if you will be some distance from the services of a sailmaker.

The luff, foot tapes and bolt ropes are a good place to start. Chafing is the biggest problem, particularly if it has worn right through the cloth to the rope. It can then catch in the groove as the sail is hoisted and tear badly. If you have slides, hanks or cars, have a good look at each of them to see if there is any cracking or signs of fatigue failure (discoloration or roughening of the surface).

The attachment of any hardware to the sail is a potential problem area, because of the fastening of soft sailcloth to harder metal and plastic. The headboard, batten pockets and battens, cunningham and outhaul rings are all worth careful inspection for chafe and broken stitching. In fact all the seams are worth scanning to see if they are showing signs of wear.
 

email:rs800@progressivetechnology.co.uk