Sunday 28th September 2014

"Sunday 28th September 2014"

 This was fun . Nothing to do with Sunday but more exciting . I managed to fix my rudder but I think it will go again so I need to look for a new one . It was very light winds today but just enough to get round the course . But where had all the boats gone ? After the very big turnout last week for Bart's Bash we were down to single figures again . Only two  GP's sailed the first race and then only us for race 2 and 3 .

It was lovely day though and a very pleasant sail . I was sailing with Jo-Anna and we chatted about the club and the poor turn out of boat's . There was enough wind to race so that wasn't the problem . Maybe the format needs a shakeup ? Plenty of boats turned up last week and you even had to donate to enter ! Wednesday sailing is always popular and the training is proving a big hit so things still look good for the future .

Sunday 21st September 2014

'Sunday 21st September 2014'

This Sunday was 'Bart's Bash ' . It was a worldwide  record attempt at the total number of boats sailed in a race to raise money for charity on behalf of Andrew' Bart' Simpson who drowned  whilst sailing an America's Cup boat . 32 boats took to  Hollingworth Lake (18,000 participants world wide ) for a mass start , each making a donation to the charity . The afternoon continued with normal club racing .We had a minor mishap with the tiller .

It had been repaired before a number of years ago and must have been going for a while . Luckily we were still near shore and it was light winds  . It could have been a problem in a strong breeze . We managed to borrow a replacement for the rest of the day so still had a good day's sailing in pleasant conditions . I now have it at home and I am attempting a repair , another member is bringing up a spare one on Sunday and I have also been looking on E bay . A new replacement would cost in the region of £350.00 !
         

Wednesday 27th August 2014

"Wednesday 27th August 2014"

     I have not sailed for a couple of weeks due to Officer Of The Day (OOD) duty and a weekend in the Lake-District . This Wednesday night sail (the penultimate) did not disappoint. It was a mass start due to fading light which meant a crowded line and plenty of port and starboard on the first beat . We battled round in windy conditions without incident , but I must mention the harbour at H.L.S.C.

  As you can see it's narrow and a bit tricky to exit and enter even  in good conditions. Now when a strong wind is blowing straight into the harbour it is a spectator sport to rival any extreme sport . A small group of spectators gather on the harbour wall to offer advice and support as the sailors gallantly try to save their precious boats from damage against the concrete walls . It is such a spectacle it can be heard being discussed weeks later .Entering the harbour can be just as tricky with sailors leaping from their boats into deep water to avoid a collision . All part of the fun!

But I yearn for a civilized jetty ! 

Wednesday 13th August 2014

"Wednesday 13th August 2014"

 This was our best race of the season so far . When I started sailing it was normal to get 20 plus boats of the same fleet starting a race.

 This doesn't happen anymore at club level  with 3 to 4 being the norm . Anyway don't worry because all you need is one boat of similar ability to you and its game on . Racing sailing dinghy's is a very exciting sport and you don't have to be at the front to enjoy the thrill . Keeping a boat of similar ability behind you is hard work and needs concentration and a bit of luck  from both  helm and crew . Mistakes are costly and the tension grows as the race progresses . The last leg is a nervous time as the race can easily be lost at this stage but it's a great feeling if you can cross the line in front . Make sure you celebrate and enjoy the feeling  as you can bet that  next time it will be you doing the chasing .! The previous weeks practicing the spinnaker paid off as this is a sail that can lose you a race if you are not careful . 

Going well 

Not so well .

Wednesday 6th August & Sunday 10th August 2014

"Wednesday 6th August  & Sunday 10th August 2014"

       I have some great results to report , a 2nd on Wednesday and 2 x 1st's on Sunday . The golden rule's of  "you have to turn up" and "get the course right " paid off . I sailed with Nicola on Wednesday and we had an eventful evening . Late for the start and then the spinnaker going under the boat twice ! With the wind direction there was a dead run the whole length of the lake  meaning we had to gybe three times . This was ok but taking the spinnaker down with it billowing out in front  resulted in the sheets going under the boat. We sorted it out both times with Nicola having to go to the bow and pass the sheet round the fore-stay . It lost us ground on the 3rd placed boat and it was a 3rd until John got the course wrong and we stole 2nd place .    

    On Sunday the word on everybody's lips was  Hurricane Bertha . It was all over the news and was due to effect the North West on Sunday. The result of this and the heavy rain resulted in the worst Sunday turn out at HLSC I have ever seen . It was deserted . The wind wasn't too strong but it appeared to be increasing and only two boats went out for the first race . We didn't go out but the drop in the wind and change of direction  tempted us out in the 2nd race . Now there was 3 but only us in the GP14 . The wind started to increase towards the end but we went out for the 3rd race . This race luckily was nearly over when the predicted strong winds arrived and we just got ashore in time . We did have a great sail and we both were pleased we went out.

 This was in the news the following day !! 11th August

The Exe Sails GP14 2014 World Championship are taking place at East Down Yacht Club this week. The event sees one of the biggest fleets of single class twin crew dinghies assemble in Northern Ireland.
Competitors were on their way back to shore when the incident happened.
A spokesperson for the event said the first race had been due to take place at 11.55am this morning, but it had been cancelled due to bad weather.
Following the rescue, organisers said boats had begun to head ashore when a "strong squall of 31 knots" passed over the race area.
"The effect of this was that some of the GP14 boats capsized - this is not an unusual situation and crews are trained on how to 'right' their boast, " a statement said.
"Unfortunately a further squall registering 37 knots followed the first, capsizing a further number of the fleet."
The Coastguard today said: "Belfast Coastguard was first contacted just before 2pm reporting that some of the boats had capsized, while others were struggling to cope in the strong winds and squally showers."
Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt praised the efforts of the emergency services.
"It was people of all ages, and some very high winds presented themselves. A lot of the boats were ditched into the water," he said.
"It's very cold out there, all credit to the emergency services.
"Some people have minor injuries. some have some signs of hypothermia - but the situation, thank God, appears to be under control."
One of the competitors, Tom Daniel, 20, from Halifax in Yorkshire, said his boat overturned twice.
"A massive squall came through, a lot of boats went over. We got very wet, a few got various knocks and bumps going over but nothing serious," he said.
"A bit further along the line a lot of people went in because a massive squall came in and we ended up back in.
"We thought somebody was seriously hurt. We thought there was more damage than there was because a few people did look like they were struggling but it is part of the sport and this would not normally attract too much attention but people from the shore saw that there was damage and it has been blown out of proportion."
Mr Daniel said the wind was not extreme.

"The guys coped with it very well but some people did struggle a bit," he said.

  It made Sky news and Yahoo !!

Part of the fun !!

Wednesday 30th July 2014 & Sunday 3rd August 2014

"Wednesday 30th July 2014 & Sunday 3rd August 2014 "

I am going to forget Wednesday , it was a disaster . It started off breezy but the wind soon dropped . I can't put my finger on it but we seemed to be going backwards . Maybe I had too much rig tension ? Who knows?

 Anyway Sunday was a cracker . The first windy day in ages and a reminder that sailing is excellent exercise as well as a competitive day out   . We sailed 3 races and I was totally shattered (in a good way)  at the end . We had some good battles with Graham but  he always got the better us . Our best chance to beat him was the first race . He rounded the last mark in-front and we tacked off immediately . When we crossed again we had gained significantly and seemed to be going faster . However a Merlin Rocket caught us on Starboard , we didn't see it till late and completely messed up the tack losing any advantage we had and ended up sailing  for the wrong end of the line . In the other two races we swapped positions during the race but Graham always came out on top . Grrrrr. Plenty of gybes and plenty of spinnaker practice !!

Sunday 27th July 2014

"Sunday 27th July 2014"

I have been away for a few weeks and the winds have been like this picture , but today we had some breeze . I didn't have a crew for the first race but John an old sea dog had capsized in the first race and was press- ganged into crewing for me . Together we engineered the perfect start ! Starting is difficult and extremely important , it is very rare you get a perfect line and as a rule one end is favorable. This means a lot of competition for one spot . A beginner should just try to be on time on Starboard (fairly easy ) be moving when the gun goes (reasonably easy) and have clear wind (not too easy ) . Forget getting the best position for now , you won't get it ,and will end up head to wind, missing the mark or even worse ramming the committee boat . Anyway after trying out both ends of the line we plumped for the outer buoy . 30 seconds to go the other boats were going for the committee boat end . We started on Port (risky) at the opposite end and managed to cross in front of the fast approaching Starboard boats putting us in the lead . We rounded the first mark in 2nd place but slipped back as the race progressed . Nevertheless are start proved a talking point and we had a great sail in breezy conditions .