BIFFA 2000 results page

Light but cool southerly breezes caressed the surface of Draycote Water Reservoir; providing tactical racing conditions for the 18 participants in the y2k Flying Fifteen Open Meeting. It was Nick and Janet Jerwood from Chew Valley that stamped their authority on this event taking 'Cloud Nine' to a convincing victory in 3 of the 4 races. Last year's winners, Bret and Ben Dingwall from Aldenham in Miffisofiliae took advantage of the general recall and stayed ahead of the Jerwoods in a stiffening breeze in the second race. They came second in the last two races making them second overall. Alan Bax and Scott John from Northampton took third place in Scratch and Sniff but Dave Lucas and Steve Carson in 3679 from Grafham were a close fourth, with Roger and Claire Wood not far behind, in Hakuna Matata from Notts. County. The middle order was fairly close fought with many changes of position. Simon Patterson and Simon Thompson in their brand new boat showed great promise as the lead Draycote boat. Among the older boats, it was Graham Lamond and Scott Train from Bala who showed that Chris Avery's old boat was still ' The Business' and took the 'Ffalcon Trophy' for boats under 3000.

Pos.	Sail No.	Helm	Crew	Club	1	2	3	4	Total
1	3614	Nick Jerwood	Janet Jerwood	Chew Valley	1	2	1	1	3
2	3603	Brett Dingwall	Ben Dingwall	Aldenham	4	1	2	2	5
3	3611	Alan Bax	Scott John	Northampton	2	5	5	3	10
4	3679	Dave Lucas	Steve Carson	Grafham Water	3	3	6	5	11
5	3539	Roger Wood	Claire Wood	Notts Co.	6	4	4	4	12
6	3643	Michael Hicks	Patrick Hicks	Oxford & Cambs	5	8	3	10	16
7	3557	Neil Platt	Carl Jeffs	Bolton & W. K.	DNS	6	8	6	20
8	3693	Simon Patterson	Simon Thompson	Draycote	7	7	9	7	21
9	3324	Harry Sayers	Geoff Huett	Draycote	11	11	7	8	26
10	2744	Graham Lamond	Scott Train	Bala	8	10	14	11	29
11	2932	David Ramsden	Keith Snow	Draycote	10	12	10	13	32
12	3142	John Gotrel	Fay Handley	Draycote	14	9	11	DNS	34
13	3441	Mike Davy	Jeremy Davy	Draycote	15	13	12	9	34
14	3358	Robin Rhodes	Brian Glover	Draycote	9	16	15	14	38
15	3642	Richard Hope	Andy	Draycote	DNS	15	13	12	40
16	2213	Roger Finch	J. Reid	Middle Nene	13	14	16	15	42
17	2880	Malcolm Chambers	Jennie Banks	Draycote	12	DNS	DSQ	16	47
18	2845	Maurice Riches	Terry Hand	Draycote	16	17	17	17	50

Southern Championships - Royal Torbay Yacht Club

Rutland

Dovestone Classic

Pos	Boat Name	Sail No	Helm	Crew	Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	Pts
1	Coffer Boffom	2213	Roger Finch	Jim Reid	Middle Nene	2	(5)	1	2	5
2	Spring Sonata	2620	David Naylor	Norman Christie	Dovestone SC / Leigh & Lowton	4	1	2	(6)	7
3	Fighting Fit	2520	Nick Heath	Ted Legg	Grafham Water	1	7	(8)	1	9
4	Fflisk	2645	Mike Jones	Simon Thomas	Cardiff Bay YC	(3)	3	3	3	9
5	Flame	759	Peter Hogg	Alan Hogg	Dovestone SC	6	4	4	(RTD)	14
6	Wind Cheetah	3031	Rob Sheridan	Andrew Murphy	Broxbourne SC	5	2	(12)	10	17
7	Fettercairn	617	Graham Lamond	Scott Train	Bala SC	8	(9)	7	5	20
8	Windy	1872	Les Mayrick	Anne Webb	Dovestone SC	(10)	6	6	9	21
9	Ffetish	2515	Jeremy Arnold	Mike Pearce	Ogston	9	8	5	(12)	22
10		1820	Rod Rowlands	John Clarke	Dovestone SC	(RTD)	10	9	4	23
11	Tescalamou	2641	Mick Hampson	Teresa Hampson	Dovestone SC	7	11	(13)	8	26
12	Ffoenix of Ogston	1117	John Orchard	Dennis Nissen	Ogston	11	(13)	10	7	28
13	Judy	2331	Brain Foster	George Jones	Dovestone SC	(12)	12	11	11	34
14	Mary Dull	2433	James Cowell	Ralph Holmes	Sunderland	13	(RTD)	14	13	40

Inland Championships - Chew Valley Lake

40 Flying Fifteens competed for the inland championship hosted at Chew Valley Lake sailing club on May 20^th - 21^st. The event's main sponsors were Hayes Parsons Marine Ltd., Burges Salmon and KPMG.

The Saturday racing took place in a southerly force 2-3 with a long beat from end to end of the lake.

In the first race, Nick and Janet Jerwood led at the windward mark and were pursued by Mike Hart and Chris Gowers. These boats maintained their positions to the finish followed by Charles and David Apthorp.

The second race saw Mike Hart and Chris Gowers lead from start to finish, with Dave Lucas and Stephen Carson second. The positions from 3^rd to 9^th were closely fought throughout the race. Steve Goacher and Phil Evans came through to finish 3^rd.

The Sunday morning brought winds from the west, which were variable in speed direction.

Roger and Claire Wood successfully negotiated the shifts to gain a clear margin at the first windward mark of the race three, Hart and Gowers followed and again the top 10 positions changed frequently. The Apthorps broke clear of the pack to take 3^rd position.

The wind picked up for the final race and Steve Goacher and Phil Evans took the lead, only to round the leeward mark the wrong way and then discovered they had been black flagged! Ralph Singleton and Ian Cadwallader in a borrowed boat fought hard and sailed well to take 1^st place; Hart and Gowers were second, Alan Bax and Paul Busby 3^rd.

Pete McLaren, the race officer and his team successfully managed the 4 races and 3 different course configurations to provide excellent and challenging racing throughout the fleet.

Pos	Sail No	Helm	Crew	Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	Pts
1	3648	Mike Hart	Chris Gowers	Port Dinorwic SC	(2)	1	2	2	5
2	3591	Charles Apthorp	David Apthorp	HISC/Royal Thames SC	3	(5)	3	4	10
3	3614	Nick Jerwood	Janet Jerwood	CVLSC	1	6	4	(41)	11
4	3679	Dave Lucas	Stephen Carson	Grafham Water SC	6	2	5	(7)	13
5	3420	Ralph Singleton	Ian Cadwallader	CVLSC	5	8	(17)	1	14
6	3611	Alan Bax	Paul Busby	Northampton SC	4	(7)	7	3	14
7	2621	Steve Goacher	Phil Evans	Royal Windermere YC	7	3	6	(41)	16
8	3603	Brett Dingwall	Ben Dingwall	Aldenham SC	9	4	(15)	9	22
9	3539	Roger Wood	Claire Wood	Notts County SC	(22)	11	1	9	28
10	3641	Andrew Dunning	David Lawson	Bassenthwaite SC	(16)	9	11	8	28
11	3615	Roger Palmer	Barbara Palmer	Hayling Island SC	(12)	12	8	10	30
12	3557	Neil Platt	Richard Craig	Bolton SC	13	13	(19)	6	32
13	3628	Dave McKee	Ian Preston	Dovestone SC	8	10	16	(41)	34
14	3639	Mike Lyddon	Richard Morris	Bala SC	14	(23)	10	12	36
15	3638	Howard Green	Jonathan Bullen	Leigh & Lowton SC	10	14	(18)	14	38
16	3653	Robert Hogben	Chris James	Bewl Valley SC	20	16	(34)	11	47
17	3625	Stuart Godwin	John Bovis	Hayling Island SC	11	15	(26)	22	48
18	3645	Colin Nutt	Chris Hough	Bewl Valley SC	18	18	12	(41)	48
19	3689	Neville Herbert	Tim Hammick	Hayling Island SC	19	(27)	27	5	51
20	3623	David Baker	Mike Abrahams	CVLSC	(26)	25	13	18	56
21	3675	Adrian Tattersall	Tim Smart	Bala SC	17	24	(25)	17	58
22	3190	Doug Pattison	Gail Pattison	CVLSC	(27)	26	20	13	59
23	3693	Simon Patterson	Simon Thompson	Draycote Water SC	(23)	22	21	19	62
24	3583	Simon Dangerfield	Alan Rorke	CVLSC	21	(28)	28	15	64
25	2932	David Ramsden	Keith Snow	Draycote Water SC	(25)	20	23	23	66
26	3296	Roger Sherwood	Adrian Simpson	Hayling Island SC	24	17	(31)	26	67
27	3333	Tim Johnson	Joanne Light	CVLSC	(41)	19	9	41	69
28	3563	Peter Henny	Andrew Harris	CVLSC	15	21	33	(41)	69
29	2562	George Rock-Evans	Martin Rock-Evans	South Cerney SC	(33)	31	14	29	74
30	2744	Graham Lamond	Tim Rush	Bala SC	30	(34)	22	27	79
31	3289	Frank Scoulding	Jacqueline Fromentine	CVLSC	29	30	(34)	31	83
32	3564	David Leverton	Diane Leverton	CVLSC	28	(41)	36	20	84
33	3516	Jamie Jameson	Carol Jameson	Hayling Island SC	31	(33)	29	24	84
34	3407	Keith Harris	Jeremy Fisher	CVLSC	(41)	29	30	28	87
35	3279	John Washington	Anita Morris	Rutland SC	(41)	32	35	21	88
36	3546	George Edwards	Ann Edwards	CVLSC	32	(35)	32	30	94
37	2931	Richard Taylor	Rosie Wiltshire	South Cerney SC	34	36	(38)	32	102
38	3549	Graham Peters	Alan Ward	Grafham Water SC	(41)	41	37	25	103
39	3522	John Kelly	Keith Fisher	CVLSC	35	37	39	(41)	111
40	3378	John Eaton	Margaret Eaton	Bala SC	(41)	38	41	41	120

Derwent Reservoir

Wind,wind, and more wind was the order of the day for this years Flying Fifteen open at Derwent Reservoir Sailing Club. sailing on Saturday was fast and furious with some of the gusts reaching 40 knots. Race one was won by Derwent sailor John Hardisty ff3636, when race leader Terry Crumpton 3602 decided to do some on deck dancing in attempt to untangle his spinnaker, and promptly slid into the water. With the breeze building for the second race, there was a lot of place changing in the 40 degree shifts. Local sailor Tony Lee showed good bursts of speed in his new boat, as did Draycote sailor Dave Ramsden. Terry Crumpton relished in the conditions to score a convincing win.

Sunday mornings conditions were very much the same as the previous day, Terry Crumpton took an early lead, only to snap his spinny pole on the first gybe mark and then broach. Dave Ramsden from took advantage and lead to the gun.

Race four saw Crumpton lead from start to finish, with Dave Douglass from Derwent just piping Dave Ramsden for second

1	3602	T. Crumpton	D.R.S.C.	4
2	2932	D. Ramsden	Draycote Water	7
3	3636	J. Hardisty	D.R.S.C.	11
4	3590	D. Douglass	D.R.S.C.	11
5	3232	S. Robinson	D.R.S.C.	12

Bell's Whiskey Scottish Championship - Loch Earn Sailing Club

While England basked in heat wave conditions those that ventured north of the border were greeted with idyllic conditions in this most picturesque of venues. As per usual the hospitality from the Scots was first class and with the help of the sponsor's samples the Saturday night "Haggis and Neaps" party was a roaring success!

Thirty boats enjoyed a classic Loch Earn game of snakes and ladders for the first race which saw club commodore Bobby Salmond enjoy a huge lead but alas he landed on a snake and fell back into the pack, Ian Laidlaw and Steve Goacher both had goes at leading but it was Scott Beattie from nowhere who threw the "double six" at the right time and took line honours, second was Ian Laidlaw and third Bobby Salmond. By race two the wind had settled in the west and was thankfully blowing straight down the loch. Steve Goacher and Phil Evans, the reigning world champions showed their true colours and posted a comfortable victory from Ian Cleaver and Scott Beattie.

For race three on Sunday morning the wind had swung back to the east and thoughts of another game involving dice were on the minds of some competitors. However, the wind remained relatively stable and those making good clean starts and first beats were rewarded with a fine result. Again it was Steve Goacher who took the gun this time followed by David Douglass and the consistent Ian Cleaver. Going into the final race, the millennium Scottish championships was just about sewn up by Steve Goacher with only Scott Beattie able to challenge if Steve slipped up big time. There were however six boats contesting the runners-up spot so the scene was set for a good finale. In conditions that were similar to race three, Steve Goacher once again romped home to be followed this time by Tony Lee in his brand new boat and Ian Laidlaw. Ian Cleaver finished fourth which was enough to secure the runners-up spot. The classics where won by John Broome sailing 2893 who scored three firsts and a third.

1	3621	Steve Goacher	Phil Evans	Royal Windermere Y C	(8)	0	0	0	0
2	3635	Ian Cleaver	Greg Wells	Loch Earn SC	(15)	3	5.7	8	16.7
3	3673	Scott Beattie	John Somerville	Bassenthwaite SC	0	5.7	(31)	14	19.7
4	3606	Ian Laidlaw	Diane Shirrat	Loch Earn SC	3	17	(31)	5.7	25.7
5	3590	David Douglass	Andrew Weatherspoon	Derwent Reservoir SC	(18)	8	3	16	27
6	3695	Tony Lee	Gerry Dawson	Derwent Reservoir SC	(31)	10	16	3	29
7	3608	Brian McKee	Ian Smith	Strangford Lough YC	11.7	(16)	8	13	32.7
8	3451	Ian Cameron	Andrew Forgie	Loch Earn SC	16	(25)	11.7	10	37.7
9	3636	John Hardisty		Derwent Reservoir SC	13	15	13	11.7	37.7
10	3587	R Donaldson		Derwent Reservoir SC	10	11.7	17	17	38.7
11	3576	Bobby Salmond		Loch Earn SC	5.7	14	31	24	43.7
12	3639	Mike Lyddon		Bala SC	22	13	10	31	45
13	3668	Tom Wright		Loch Lomond	25	21	14	15	50
14	3646	Hugh Simpson		Loch Earn SC	24	19	15	20	54
15	3213	Trevor Cragg		Loch Ard	14	27	20	22	56
16	3237	Simon Thomson		Royal Gourock	19	22	24	18	59
17	3690	T Kirchin		Loch Earn	31	20	21	19	60
18	3666	J Jerrard		Loch Earn	26	18	18	25	61
19	3266	Trevor Cooper		Loch Lomond	17	23	25	23	63
20	3414	Dan Elliot		Derwent Reservoir	21	24	22	21	64
21	2893	John Broome			20	26	19	28	65
22	2332	John McCrohan			23	29	23	27	73
23	3000	John McBoyle			27	31	27	26	80
24	2617	J McLellan			28	28	26	29	82
25	2557	Sandy Howitt			29	30	28	31	87

Aldeburgh Yacht Club

Glorious sunshine and steady SSE winds provided a perfect setting for the 21 Flying Fifteens racing for the Ratcliff Trophy and the Mawson Classic Trophy at Aldeburgh on 17 – 18 June. With 10 visiting boats from Broxbourne, Grafham, Lowestoft, Draycote, Middle Nene and Ogston joining 11 entries from the home fleet there was some very close and competitive racing throughout the four race series. The force 3 – 4 wind on Saturday provided planing possibilities and Nick Heath from Grafham, with successful Aldeburgh sailor Simon Fulford as crew, went into the lead on the first leg of the first race in his new Dingwall boat (3691) and managed to stay in front despite unrelenting pressure from Ben Nicholls throughout the race. Behind them, the racing was very close with James Flower from Lowestoft finishing third then Paul Botterill (AYC), Justin Waples (GWSC) and Jock Mawson finshing in 4^th 5^th and 6^th within 3 seconds of each other.

In the classic/silver fleet (for numbers up to 3200), Julian Roney (AYC) was first home with Richard Burton (Draycote Water SC) and Roger Finch (Middle Nene SC) finishing within 6 seconds of each other for 2^nd and 3^rd.

Sunday, the wind had eased to force 2 and the first race saw Ben Nicholls finish 1^st with Nick Heath 2^nd followed by Justin Waples, Geoff Walker (AYC) and Jock Mawson in 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th again all within a few seconds of each other. With everything in both the main and classic/silver fleet depending upon the last race, Nick Heath was able to secure the Ratcliff Trophy with another victory and Julian Roney the Mawson Classic by finishing 5^th overall.

Final Results:
Ratcliff Trophy
Nick Heath 3691 (GWSC)
Ben Nicholls 3417 (AYC)
James Flower 3466 (RNSYC)

Mawson Classic
Julian Roney 3160 (AYC)
Richard Burton 2572 (Draycote Water SC)
Roger Finch (Middle Nene SC)

Northern Championship - Loch Lomond Sailing Club

World Champion Steve Goacher and crew Phil Evans left the fleet in their wake to win the Flying Fifteen Northern Championship at Loch Lomond Sailing Club. The Royal Windermere Yacht Club pair won three out of the five races to eventually finish eleven points clear of their closest competitors in the 37 boat fleet. But, with top class competition travelling from as far afield as Southern Ireland, Wales and Southern England for the event, Goacher and Evans had to perform at their best to take the title.

The first of three races on the Saturday, all sailed on a pennant course, got under way in cloudy conditions and a brisk force three to four.
Goacher and Evans got away well and were among the first five boats until the windward mark when they sneaked into the lead, closely followed by Howard Green and Jonathan Bullen of Leigh and Lowton Sailing Club and John Lavery and Gerry Donleavy of National Yacht Club in Ireland. Keeping their air clear, Goacher and Evans pulled away from the chasing boats, leaving Green and Bullen, and Lavery and Donleavy, to fight it out for second place. At the gybe mark the Irish pair got on the inside of Green and Bullen to move into second, which they held to the finish.
The sun broke through the clouds in time for race two, bathing the race area and Scotland's most southerly Munro, Ben Lomond, in brilliant sunshine. The fleet got a clean start with one or two exceptions, the most notable of these being Goacher and Evans, who were over the line and had to head back to re-start. Brian McKee and Ian Smyth from Strangford Lough Sailing Club in Northern Ireland got their start just right, however, and, by keeping left up the first beat and playing the shifts, established a good lead by the time they had rounded the windward mark. They were followed by Andrew Dunning and David Lawson from Bassenthwaite Sailing Club and Mike Lyddon and Paul Jenkins from Bala Sailing Club.
Further down the fleet, Goacher and Evans had gone from a position in the mid thirties to an impressive eighth by the windward mark thanks to catching a good shift. They weren't finished there and proceeded to pick off boats one by one to lie fifth by the time they came through the gate for the first time. Another round saw them pull up to fourth and by the time they got on to the final run they were in third place, just behind Dunning and Lawson. With wind filling in from behind, it looked as if McKee and Smyth's lead was going to evaporate. However, the Irish pair hung on to claim their first win of the championship. Dunning and Lawson also held their position to take second from Goacher and Evans.

In race three the wind dropped to a fluky force two to three. However, this had little effect on Goacher and Evans who made an excellent start and played the shifts to perfection to open up a good lead. By the time they passed through the gate for the first time they had extended their lead over John Hardisty and Roger Errington of Derwent Reservoir Sailing Club and Neil Platt and Jamie Marston of Bolton and West Kirby Sailing Clubs. Everything was going to plan until the third and final run when the wind dropped away, bunching the boats up. What wind there was then swung to give the boats which had gone left on the run a nice reach to the bottom mark, overtaking those which had gone right. Goacher led round the bottom mark but won by just half a boat length from Hardisty and Errington who had found more wind by taking a different route up the last beat. Third place went to Chris Ducker and Richard Rigg from Royal Windermere Yacht Club. Spare a thought for Neil Platt and Jamie Marston from Bolton and West Kirby Sailing Club who dropped from third on the second round to 28th after being caught on the wrong side of the run.

Day two dawned with bright clear sunshine, no wind and plenty of midges, which kept the sailors moving in the boat park if nowhere else! However, by 11.30am a gentle force two breeze had filled in and race four got under way with a traditional Olympic style course.

McKee and Smyth sailed the first beat better than anyone else, benefiting from choosing the left-hand approach to the mark where the breeze was slightly stronger. Sailing in clear air they extended their lead over the remaining three rounds to win convincingly from Dunning and Lawson, who took second place after a close battle with Green and Bullen. Goacher and Evans were well back in fifth, having been unable to make any impression on the leaders after going too far right on the first beat.

Race five and Hardisty and Errington had an excellent first beat to lead Loch Earn Sailing Club's lain Cleaver and Scott Graham by five boat lengths at the windward mark. Goacher and Evans made another disappointing start to round the windward mark in eighth or ninth. However, at the wing mark, instead of gybing and following the other boats, they went right and gybed late, which brought them into the bottom mark in second place. On the last beat they sailed superbly to get past Hardisty and Errington to go on and take first place and the Championship. While Hardisty and Errington were second over the line their result was to vanish in the form of an OCS. Second then went to Platt and Marston, and third to Lavery and Donleavy.

Dunning and Lawson took second place overall - an impressive result if you consider that their first race ended with an OCS. Third place went to the Irish pair of McKee and Smyth.

Delighted with his win, Steve Goacher said: "It's been a great weekend for us. I was particularly pleased with the last race when we got the first after being so far back and also the second race yesterday when we pulled back to third after being over the line at the start."

While the top prizes went to sailors outwith Scotland, the Classic fleet was won by Loch Lomond Sailing Club's Fergus Duncanson and David Brimelow. The only entrant for the Silver fleet was D. Dando and P. Metcalfe from Tees and Hartlepool Sailing Club.

With fine weather, slick race management and a "beautiful place in which to sail", according to many of the competitors, the 2000 Northerns were undoubtedly a huge success.

Pos	Boat	Helm	Crew	Club
1	3621	Steve Goacher	Phil Evans	Royal Windermere
2	3641	Andrew Dunning	David Lawson	Bassenthwaite
3	3608	Brian McKee	Ian Smyth	Strangford Lough
4	3664	John Lavery	Gerry Donleavy	National Y.C.
5	3557	Neil Platt	Jamie Marston	Bolton & W. Kirby
6	3703	Chris Ducker	Richard Rigg	Royal Windermere
7	3638	Howard Green	Jonathan Bullen	Leigh & Lowton
8	3635	Iain Cleaver	Scott Graham	Loch Earn
9	3675	Adrian Tattersall	Tim Smart	Bala
10	3645	Colin Nutt	Chris Hough	Bewl Valley
11	3655	Will Gardner	Sam Parker	Notts. County
12	3639	Mike Lyddon	Paul Jenkins	Bala
13	3590	David Douglass	Andrew Weatherspoon	Derwent Reservoir
14	3653	Robert Hogben	Glyn Morgan	Bewl Valley
15	3215	Paul Brown	Glen Carrick	Notts. County
16	3636	John Hardisty	Roger Errington	Derwent Reservoir
17	3695	Tony Lee	Gerry Dawson	Derwent Reservoir
18	3587	Ron Donaldson	Chris Record	Derwent Reservoir
19	3666	James Gerard	Dan Burbridge	Loch Earn
20	3293	Ian Preston	Andrea Preston	Bassenthwaite
21	3624	Terry Tinn	Hugh Stannistreet	Royal Windermere
22	3606	Iain Laidlaw	Diane Sheret	Loch Earn
23	3237	Simon Thomson	Kevin Marshall	Royal Gourock
24	3690	Terry Kirchin	David Kirchin	Loch Earn
25	3232	Simon Robinson	Robin Jefferson	Derwent Reservoir
26	3270	Iain McVoy	Peter Edmonds	Loch Lomond
27	3668	Tom Wright	Stuart Low	Loch Lomond
28	3414	Dan Elliott	Alec Sanderson	Derwent Reservoir
29	3378	John Eaton	Margaret Eaton	Bala
30	3213	Trevor Cragg	Ray Carr	Loch Ard
31	3266	Trevor Cooper	Steve Lee	Loch Lomond
32	3451	Ian Cameron	Jim Beattie	Loch Earn
33	2792	Fergus Duncanson	David Brimelow	Loch Lomond
34	2741	D. Dando	P Metcalfe	Tees & Hartlepool
35	3484	Ray Coates	Ray Walker	Tees & Hartlepool
36	2668	Malcolm Bennett	Susan Bennett	Loch Lomond
37	1333	Peter Clark	Jonathan Kew	Humber Yawl

Silver fleet: D. Dando / P. Metcalfe
Classic fleet: Fergus Duncanson / David Brimelow

Draycote Classic

Rupert Mander, guest race officer, shaded his eyes and peered over the glasslike surface of Draycote Water, anxiously searching for some indication of wind, consistent enough to set a course. At last his patience was rewarded as 23 boats crossed the start line. The newly qualifying Silver fleet boats 3083 (Brian Glover and Bill Bennett), 3142 (Brian Tavender and Amos Bennett) and 3179 (Jeff Wilkins and Angie Nichols) showed the rest of the fleet the way home in very fickle conditions. The second race on Saturday saw a complete change with the second oldest boat on the pond leading the way. 617 Fettercairn did of course have the advantage of earlier experience. Graham Lamond and Scott Train from Bala took the old boat prize at Draycote's open in April in 2744 The Business. It clearly pays to practice. Brian Tavender brought Fly Catcher in 2^nd and John Hanson and John Fisher came third in 3026 Raffles II, Ron and Beth Hanson's old boat, a welcome return to Draycote. On Saturday evening we were pleased to welcome Chris Hough, President of the British Isles Flying Fifteen Association. Chris chaired the first meeting of the association's classic subcommittee. Dave Ramsden, Geoff Town and David Stuart have agreed to serve on the subcommittee. Most of the fleet then dined in the newly decorated club house. Mick and Debbie did us proud with an excellent roast pork dinner. The following day saw even less wind with the fleet drifting waiting for any development in the weather pattern. When it came it came with a vengeance. A hastily organised down wind start took advantage of the winds accompanying a very heavy rain storm. The squalls were impressive and the sight of the fleet floating on a sheet of bouncing raindrops was weird. But the winds went almost as quickly as they had come leaving Raffles II to emerge as the leader with Instant Rinse (3083) second and David and Carole Duke came in 3rd in 2646, Hair Restorrar from Grafham.

1	3083	Brian Glover	Bill Bennett	Draycote Water	3 pts
2	3026	John Hanson	John Fisher		4 pts
3	3142	Brian Tavender	Amos Bennett	Draycote Water	4 pts
4	617	Graham Lamond	Scott Train	Bala	6 pts
5	2646	David Duke	Carole Duke	Grafham Water	7 pts
6	3179	Jeff Wilkins	Angie Nichols	Draycote Water	9 pts

Royal Motor Yacht Club

Once again for a Classic Regatta classical conditions prevailed in Poole when the Royal Motor Yacht Club hosted this event for the second year in succession.

In hot sunshine and a brisk south easterly wind, 23 boats raced from the club's starting line with the course set in the harbour, as too large a sea was running in the bay. With a strong flood tide to contend with those competitors who used it to their advantage, and avoided it when possible on the returning beat back up the harbour, made good gains. After a sunbathe on the club's terrace for lunch, the afternoon's race found some competitors concentration slipping! By this time however, it was quite clear that David Ramsden and Keith Snow in 2932 "Copy Cat" was the boat to beat, with 2 firsts, although Paul Litton and Nick Cornish in 2936 "Sidewinder", with 2 seconds, made sure that any slip up by "Copy Cat" would be punished.

On Sunday the format changed, with Race Officer Bryan Drake setting a Committee boat start in the upper reaches of the harbour. An excellent course giving a beat to the first mark, followed by a tour of Poole Harbour and ending up with a final beat to the finish, kept everybody on their mettle. At the half way stage, local boat 2921 "Thriller" (Nigel Yeoman and Geoff Wilkins) led, but on the long spinnaker run up the harbour, Andy and Carol Maskell in 2313 "Effervescence" pulled through and went on to record a win, shattering "Copy Cat's" invincibility!

For the final race a triangular course was set and "Copy Cat" re-established herself by winning in style from David and Carol Duke in 2646 "Hair Restorrar".

With generous sponsorship from Drake's Shopfitting and Hampshire Brewery, and excellent organisation both afloat and ashore, this was a weekend that had it all, and the Royal Motor Yacht Club's organisation can take a bow for an event well put together.

1	2932	Copy Cat	David Ramsden	Keith Snow	Draycote Water SC
2	2936	Sidewinder	Paul Litton	Nick Comish	RMYC
3	2921	Thriller	Nigel Yeoman	Geoff Wilkins	RMYC

1	2313	Effervescense	Andy Maskell	Carol Maskell	Lymington Town
2	2520	Fighting Fit	Nick Heath	Ted Legg	Grafham Water
3	2646	Hair Restorrar	David Duke	Carole Duke	Grafham Water

National Championship - Strangford Lough

Nick and Janet Jerwood emerged as popular winners of the year 2000 Flying Fifteen Championship of the British Isles hosted at Strangford Lough between 13 and 18 August. They had been second in 1999 when a last race win just escaped them. In a series of nine completed races they held their nerve in the final testing beat to get home in third place behind race winners Brett and Ben Dingwall and thus pip Graham Vials and Andy Weatherspoon to the title. 46 boats contested the British Gold and Silver Fleet titles. The fleet was drawn from clubs throughout the British Isles with inevitably a strong Irish contingent including John Lavery a past Fireball World Champion, sailing here with Gerry Donleavy. The furthest travelled competitor came from Perth, Australia and sailing one of the earlier Four Winds Ron Packer and crew, Peter Mudford took a place in the early teens.

Some 15 boats sailing closer to the club base competed in the Classic fleet, the first time this fleet has enjoyed separate racing. The Classics completed a full series and in another tight finish David Stuart sailing with his son, James, took the title.

The regatta was sailed in conditions of wind and tide that ensured that no race ever became a procession and that no race leader could ever easily relax. Whilst this type of sailing is not always to everyone's taste the regatta race team set excellent courses that were reset during the races to ensure that the basic course framework remained. The shifts caused by rain clouds interacting with the thermals were not for the faint hearted and the tactical dilemma was whether the tide or the wind would dominate. Patience was the key virtue but, as ever, good boat speed to get out of trouble played a key part. Only on one day was a race postponed to another day and this when a thunderstorm arrived to soak the waiting competitors and send the wind around the compass before the lightning arrived. Discretion was seen to be the better part of valour.

Race one set the tone for the British Isles championship, after a general recall the fleet got away with a black flag start that saw one boat disqualified (the fleet soon learnt to behave when faced with a black flag). A tight race saw the Jerwoods home in first place followed by Brett and Ben Dingwall and defending champion, Alan Bax, crewed this time round by Paul Busby. Just a couple of places further down the fleet was 470 helmsman Graham Vials, who was to string together a series in which he was never out of the top six in a race but lacked the race win needed to win the regatta.

The nine race series was originally scheduled for ten races in a new departure for the class and the need for consistency was very much a feature of the racing despite the availability of two discards. The format worked well and kept the races to a maximum of three laps. Race winners included all the top six overall with the exception of Graham Vials. Alan Bax took the second race to be one of several leaders during the series, going into the last race any one of four teams could still take the overall prize. For Steve Goacher the last race must have been particularly frustrating, there was a delay in the start and at various moments in the race Steve the overnight leader looked to have the championship in the bag but a fourteenth place after a testing run meant the second championship win must wait for another year. Mike Hart was another former champion who with two race wins saw the possibility of a second championship win but needing to win the last race he came home in eighth place to finish fourth overall.

Dave Lucas took race three and in his Dingwall boat put together a consistent series but a few races outside the top ten meant a fifth place overall. Another team to win two races were Brett and Ben Dingwall who took the last race by two feet from Nick Heath. Defending champion Alan Bax came home in seventh place overall and he was followed by Charles Apthorp, champion on the class' last visit to Strangford, who took a few races to find the speed needed to get consistent results.

Pos.	Boat	Helm	Crew	Club	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Points
1	GBR 3614	Nick Jerwood	Janet Jerwood	Chew Valley Lake	1	5	4	(9)	1	5	3	(12)	3	39.4
2	GBR 3705	Graham Vials	Andy Weatherspoon	Derwent Res.	5	2	2	4	(6)	2	4	(DNF)	4	42
3	GBR 3621	Steve Goacher	Phil Evans	Royal Windermere	4	3	7	2	2	(16)	6	1	(14)	44.4
4	GBR 3648	Mike Hart	Chris Gowers	Port Dinorwic	7	(11)	6	1	(8)	3	1	4	8	52.4
5	GBR 3679	Dave Lucas	Stephen Carson	Grafham Water	12	14	1	8	4	4	(24)	3	(22)	73.7
6	GBR 3603	Brett Dingwall	Ben Dingwall	Aldenham	2	20	(30)	11	11	1	(23)	9	1	78
7	GBR 3611	Alan Bax	Paul Busby	Northampton	3	1	12	12	10	(18)	5	8	(DSQ)	81.7
8	GBR 3591	Charles Apthorp	Jonathon Clark	Hayling Island	9	10	(29)	6	3	6	9	(16)	6	87.1
9	GBR 3675	Adrian Tattersall	Tim Smart	Bala	(DSQ)	4	3	7	21	19	2	(34)	12	99.7
10	GBR 3557	Neil Platt	Dave Potter	Bolton/West Kirby	(RET)	(26)	8	14	7	11	8	11	5	105
11	IRL 3688	Justin Burke	Alan Green	National Yacht Club	16	(21)	(22)	3	5	8	7	20	19	115.7
12	GBR 3634	David Nicholls	Peter Wareham	Hayling Island	15	6	15	(37)	12	22	15	13	(26)	120.7
13	GBR 3628	David McKee	Sally McKee	Dovestone	8	18	13	18	9	10	(21)	(19)	8	126
14	GBR 3703	Chris Ducker	Richard Rigg	Royal Windermere	11	7	10	22	23	23	(28)	5	(24)	142
15	AUS 3619 * (GBR 3271)	Ron Packer	Peter Mudford	Royal Freshwater Bay	6	16	(34)	26	17	(??)	17	10	9	142.7
16	IRL 3431	Jim Rodgers	Shane McCarthy	Portaferry	OCS	8	3	17	16	(30)	19	(24)	17	142.7
17	GBR 3645	Colin Nutt	Chris Hough	Bewl Valley	19	(23)	16	15	14	12	20	(30)	10	148
18	GBR 3692	Nick Heath	Graham Wadley	Grafham Water	13	22	(36)	13	28	(29)	14	22	2	151
19	IRL 3708	John Lavery	Gerry Donleavy	National Yacht Club	14	24	(33)	20	18	7	15	13	(DNS)	152
20	GBR 3689	Neville Herbert	Tim Hammick	Hayling Island	(32)	12	17	28	19	17	(31)	2	33	163
21	GBR 3638	Howard Green	Jonathan Bullen	Leigh & Lowton	20	13	(27)	10	24	24	(OCS)	17	15	165
22	IRL 3608	Brian McKee	Ian Smyth	Strangford Lough	10	17	28	(30)	(RET)	9	18	29	14	167
23	IRL 3363	Bryan Willis	John McPeake	Cushendall	13	9	20	16	(31)	26	(42)	13	31	169
24	GBR 3695	Tony Lee	Roger Errington	Derwent Reservoir	17	23	19	(36)	22	20	(25)	7	22	172
25	GBR 3698	James Flower	Steve Tyrell	Royal Norfolk & Suffolk	22	(41)	21	35	13	(DNS)	10	6	29	177.7
26	GBR 3639	Mike Lyddon	Richard Morris	Bala	(28)	(29)	24	5	15	27	26	26	16	180
27	IRL 3682	Donal Harding	Gary Curran	Waterford Harbour	(31)	32	26	21	20	13	11	21	(35)	185
28	GBR 3699	Simon Kneller	Jim Coates	Grafham Water	23	(30)	14	(27)	25	21	13	27	20	185
29	IRL 3694	Oliver Curran	Marcus Crichton	Strangford	21	28	18	24	27	(29)	(OCS)	14	23	197
30	GBR 3026	John Hanson	John Fisher	RORC	33	(38)	23	32	26	15	(37)	23	18	212
31	IRL 3393	Andrew McCleery	Colin Dougan	Kinsale	24	(39)	9	25	33	(37)	29	31	25	218
32	IRL 3274	Malcolm Creighton	Gerry Reilly	Strangford Lough	(34)	(37)	11	34	29	32	22	25	32	227
33	IRL 3430	Roger Chamberlain	Alex Portig	Strangford Lough	(37)	31	(37)	23	30	25	36	33	11	231
34	IRL 3394	Darren Martin	Stephen Martin	Strangford Lough	23	27	32	31	(RET)	33	32	28	(38)	248
35	IRL 3556	Nick Robinson	Mark Robinson	National Yacht Club	29	33	(45)	33	36	(39)	12	35	30	250
36	IRL 3457	Brian Bailie	Brian Fitzmaurice	Portaferry	(39)	(36)	31	29	35	31	27	32	28	255
37	GBR 2948	Phil Owen	Peter McKenna	Queen Mary	27	19	(38)	(38)	32	34	34	37	34	259
38	GBR 3451	Ian Cameron	Garry Coupland	Loch Earn	26	34	25	(45)	39	36	30	40	(42)	271
39	GBR 3516	Jamie Jameson	Carol Jameson	Hayling Island	36	35	35	(42)	34	35	33	(41)	39	289
40	IRL 3249	Andrew Martin	Claire McGimpsey	Strangford Lough	30	42	40	19	38	38	(OCS)	(DNF)	41	290
41	IRL 3199	Robert Darnley	Marcus Browell	Strangford Lough	40	15	(44)	41	40	41	38	38	(44)	295
42	IRL 3349	Andrew Killops	Colin Martin	Kircubbin	35	40	41	43	(OCS)	(45)	43	39	27	310
43	IRL 3200	Roger Pannell	Simon Murray	Strangford Lough	42	(45)	39	39	37	(44)	35	36	40	310
44	IRL 2895	Seamus Byers	Peter Quail	Portaferry	38	(DNS)	42	(46)	42	43	41	42	37	327
45	IRL 3122	Peter Lawson	Andrew Browne	Portaferry	(43)	(44)	43	40	41	40	39	43	43	331
46	IRL 3196	Diarmuid O'Connor	Fergal O'Connor	National Yacht Club	41	43	(46)	(44)	43	42	40	44	36	331

*Ron Packer and Peter Mudford were sailing GBR 3271 under their own number AUS 3619.

Dimple Trophy	First Lady	Janet Jerwood	Chew Valley
Island Sailing Club Trophy	First crew with aggregate age over 80	Steve Goacher / Phil Evans	Royal Windermere
Kempner Cup	First crew with aggregate age over 100	Nick Heath / Graham Wadley	Grafham Water
Owners Cup	First Boat over seven years old	Ron Packer / Peter Mudford	Royal Freshwater Bay

Boat	Helm /Crew	Hull	Sails	Mast	Rudder	Crew Weight	Spinnaker
3614	N. / J. Jerwood	Ovington	Pinnell & Bax	Epsilon (Proctor)	Winder	25 St / 159 Kg	Chute
3705	G. Vials / A. Weatherspoon	Ovington	Pinnell & Bax	M2 (Superspar)	?	24 St / 153 Kg	Chute
3621	S. Goacher / P. Evans	Ovington	Goacher	Epsilon	Winder	27 St / 172 Kg	Bags
3648	M. Hart / C. Gowers	Ovington	Goacher	Epsilon	Winder	27 St / 172 Kg	Bags
3679	D. Lucas / S Carson	Dingwall	Pinnell & Bax	Epsilon	Dingwall	29 St/ 185 Kg	Bags
3603	B. Dingwall / B. Dingwall	Dingwall	Pinnell & Bax	M2	Dingwall	22 St/ 140 Kg	Bags
3611	A. Bax / P. Busby	Ovington	Pinnell & Bax	Epsilon	Winder	25 St / 159 Kg	Chute
3591	C. Apthorp / J.Clark	Dingwall	Goacher	Epsilon	Winder	27 St/ 172 Kg	Bags
3675	A. Tattersall / T. Smart	Ovington	Goacher	Epsilon	Winder	27 St/ 172 Kg	Bags
3557	N. Platt /D. Potter	Ovington	Speed	Epsilon	Winder	27 St/ 172 kg	Chute

Bala Sailing Club

The Flying Fifteens returned to Bala SC for their open meeting on 2/3 September. The conditions were similar to those of last year with light and variable winds. The result of the event was also a repeat of the previous event with world champion Steve Goacher (FF 3621) winning the event with local Bala sailor Adrian Tattersall (FF 3675) in second place.

The challenge of the weekend was to find the pockets of stronger breeze on the lake and Steve Goacher proved that he continues to have the sense for it as he recorded four straights firsts. The second place slot was keenly contested during the races but somehow Adrian Tattersall managed to find increased wind pressure just at the right time to record four second places in all the races sailed.

An excellent performance was put in by Graham Lamond in FF2744 to achieve a third place overall and take the classic trophy.

1	3621	S Goacher	RWYC
2	3675	A Tattersall	BSC
3	2744	G Lamond	BSC
4	3638	H Green	L&LSC

Bulwark Trophy - Hayling Island

Alan Bax and John Mildred were convincing winners of the Bulwark Trophy for Flying Fifteens winning all four of the races to take the event in style. On Saturday Race Officer, Peter Glasby called the 24 strong fleet out for the first race in sailed in light airs in Hayling Bay.in very light overcast conditions.

After a short delay a gentle south-easterly air allowed a start to be made, however a 30 degree right shift half way up the beat caused large place changes and seriously affected the hopes of those who had gone inshore.
First to the weather mark was Saffina, Roger and Barbara Palmer with Alan Bax close astern.
The wind shift caused the first reach to be a run and in gybing to clear his wind, Alan Bax took the lead at the gybe mark.
The inside gybe had worked well for Gill Browning/ Tim Hancock who rounded 2nd with Greg Wells/ Adrian Simpson in 3rd. Fourth place Saffina made a comeback on this very tight spinnaker reach and regained their second place. Meanwhile Charles and David Apthorp downed their spinnaker and sailed through to gain third place at the first leeward mark. After 2 more rounds this was the order at the finish.

In race 2 Bax/ Mildred took the leadfrom the start followed by Geoff Bayliss/Sue Bannister, with 3603 Brett and Ben Dingwall, winners last year, close astern. In the end 3679 David Lucas/Steve Carson from Grafham water overtook Geoff Bayliss who narrowly held off the Dingwalls for third place. Overnight saw Alan Bax with a good points lead over Saffina Roger and Barbara Palmer

Sunday dawned with thick fog and and very limited visbility. After a sensible delay the fleet sailed into Hayling Bay for racing in what became a wonderful clear sunny day, with the sound of foghorns further out to sea.
At the start of Race 3 the wind headed on starboard tack and most pin end starters including Alan Bax took the shift and headed out to sea. Those that persevered and stayed inshore to avoid the tidal current lost out. Alan Bax was a clear leader and was followed home by the Dingwalls with Tim Randall/Tim Hammick in third place. Gill Browning/Tim Hancock were a consistent fourth.

Although the overall result was not in doubt, Alan Bax/John Mildred stayed out to contest the final race. Second place overall was in reach of at least five crews.
After a general recall Bax / Mildred stayed to the left and rounded the weather mark a few yards ahead of Roger and Barbara Palmer. The event winners then pulled steadily away to a comfortable win to complete as master class in Flying Fifteen light airs sailing.
For the other placings the battle was on with five crews in with a chance of securing second place overall. On the run Gill Browning/Tim Hancock pulled up to second only to lose the place in a tacking battle on the last beat to the finish. This resulted in second place in the race and overall to Roger/Barbara Palmer, with Gill's result giving her fourth overall. In another tacking duel, Dave Lucas/Steve Carson held off the challenge of Brett Dingwall for fourth place.

Following racing all were invited to a well earned and delicious tea of home-made sandwiches cakes and scones before putting covers on and driving away into the setting sun. Classic winner was 2162, Mike Pearce/ Jeremy Arnold from Ogston.S. C.

Place	Boat	Helm	Crew	Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	3611	Alan Bax	John Mildred	HISC/Northampton S C	1	1	1	1	3
2	3615	Roger Palmer	Barbara Palmer	HISC	2	7	6	2	10
3	3603	Brett Dingwall	Ben Dingwall	Aldenham	7	4	2	5	11
4	3536	Gill Browning	Tim Hancock	HISC	5	9	4	3	12
5	3679	Dave Lucas	Steve Carson	Grafham Water S C	11	2	7	4	13
6	3689	Tim Randall	Tim Hammick	HISC	4	25	3	12	19
7	3591	Charles Apthorp	David Apthorp	HISC	3	25	10	6	19
8	3634	David Nicholls	Peter Wareham	HISC	8	6	5	24	19
9	3296	Greg Wells	Adrian Simpson	HISC	6	25	8	8	22
10	3660	Geoff Bayliss	Sue Bannister	HISC	12	3	13	10	25
11	3706	Tom Leonard	Michael Abrahams	HISC	16	10	11	7	28
12	3630	Mark Wood	Ian Gorringe	HISC	13	5	21	11	29
13	3625	John Bovis	Stuart Godwin	HISC	10	8	12	14	30
14	3497	Stephen Tew	Dan Johnson	RYA	14	13	9	9	31
15	3595	Tim Polglase	Grayson Eacott	HISC	9	12	14	17	35
16	3699	Simon Kneller	Jim Coates	Grafham Water	25	11	15	19	45
17	3653	Robert Hogben		Bewl Valley	14	17	20	15	46
18	3210	Mike Dawe	Martin Whitaker	HISC	21	15	17	16	48
19	3498	Gerry Sheard	Howard Shawyer	Datchet Water	20	25	16	13	49
20	3627	Richard Ledger	Brian Thake	Grafham Water	15	19	18	20	52
21	3672	Chris Gordon	June Gordon	HISC	19	14	22	21	54
22	3549	Graham Peters	Alan Ward	Grafham Water	18	18	19	18	54
23	3502	James Weatherstone	Hilary Weatherstone	HISC	22	16	24	25	62
24	2162	Jeremy Arnold	Mike Pearce	Ogston	23	20	23	22	65

Dovestone Sailing Club

Competitors from Rutland Water and Notts County joined the home fleet at Dovestone on the 9^th/10^th September to take part in the Open meeting, which forms part of the Traveller Series. The weather was fine and the winds light and shifty for most of the weekend.

The McKee’s started well in the first race on Saturday and pulled away from the fleet to finish with a commanding lead. Will Gardner and Sam Parker arrived at the windward mark first in the second race, and lead for a lap before the McKee’s overtook them in the shifts and went on to win. Rod Rowlands and George Jones from Dovestone, who read the wind well as they approached the finish, then squeezed Gardner into third place.

At the Saturday evening’s barbecue, the ‘singing chefs’ provided the entertainment, accompanied by Ian Tessier on the guitar and assisted by many of the club members.

Sunday’s wind looked promising but flat patches near the clubhouse caused some frustration within the fleet. Gardner closed in on the McKee’s and, as the winds eased after lunch, it looked as though he would win the last race. Leading from the start, Gardner picked his way round the reservoir until, in the last few tacks, the McKee’s managed to leapfrog past. McKee’s won; Gardner was second and Rowlands, third.

Place	Boat	Helm	Crew	Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	Points
1	3628	David McKee	Sally McKee	Dovestone SC	1	1	1	(1)	3
2	3655	Will Gardner	Sam Parker	Notts County	2	(3)	2	2	6
3	3437	Rod Rowlands	George Jones	Dovestone SC	3	2	3	(3)	8
4	3439	Graham Winterbottom	Barbara Miles	Dovestone SC	(7)	4	4	6	14
5	3215	Paul Brown	Cliff Booth	Notts County	4	5	5	(5)	14
6	3429	John Washington	Anita Morris	Rutland	8	(8)	6	4	18
7	3380	Ian Dyson	Anne Webb	Dovestone SC	6	6	(8)	7	19
8	3229	Les Mayrick	Terry Renner	Dovestone SC	5	(9)	7	8	20
9	3222	John Clarke	Jim Carrigan	Dovestone SC	9	7	9	(10)	25
10	2331	Brain Foster	Mark Neal	Dovestone SC	10	10	(11)	9	29

Kielder Water

The forecast was for no petrol and winds of 18 - 20 knots. In the end we had less wind but petrol was not too big a problem. The event was part of the Club Open Meeting and we had visitors in the various classes from as far afield as Plymouth and Manchester.

Sadly there were only 2 visiting Fifteens and only 3 of the home boats were able to make it. However we had some close racing. On the Saturday the winds were light, force 1 - 2, and both races were won by Simon Robinson from Derwent in 3232, with Giles Passmore from Kielder in 797 second and Graham Donkin from Ullswater in 3300 third, and Bill Graham and Martin Downey following close behind.

Sunday morning dawned clear but with lighter winds which died away to zero during the first race, and then went through 360 degrees before picking up again. Graham Donkin won this race with Simon Robinson second. For the two afternoon races the wind picked up to force 3 - 4. Simon Robinson won the fourth race with Graham Donkin second. Simon declined the last race which Giles won followed by Graham Donkin, Bill Graham and Martin Downey.

Credit due to Elizabeth Donkin and Jo Downey, 11 and 13 years respectively, who were crewing for their fathers in what were at times difficult conditions.

1	Simon Robinson	3232	Derwent RSC
2	Giles Passmore	797	Kielder Water SC
3	Graham Donkin	3300	Ullswater SC
4	Bill Graham	2869	Kielder Water SC
5	Martin Downey	2648	Kielder Water SC

Notts. County Sailing Club

We were promised wet & windy for the weekend of 30^th September and 1 ^st October. The wet never came and the wind took its time, finally arriving after lunch on Sunday. Race officer, Stuart Pool and his assistant Alan Stevenson were seen doing a wind dance on the committee boat before getting the fleet of twenty Flying Fifteens away for the Saturday race. The very light and very very variable winds gave most of us a hard time. But somehow the same people seem to drift to the front every time. Is it luck or something else I am short of ?

We could have given the prizes on Saturday evening since the finishing order for 1^st to 4^th place was identical to the final order after four races. Wind or no wind quality counts. 1^st Classic boat was Scott Train & Graham Lamond in 2744 who took 6^th place ahead of lots of shiny and even smooth new boats.

Ten visiting boats from seven different clubs came from far & wide. County Durham, Lancashire, Dyfed, Hertfordshire, Suffolk. Nowhere was too far to travel for Pauline's famous food and Notts. County's hospitality.

Seven Classic boats, including the 38 year old Fflare FF598, joined the fleet and proved that even in a fresh wind a "Good Old Un" can give us all a race. FF 2526, the fastest of these counted three single figure results to take both classic prizes.

Sunday morning didn't so much dawn as appear out of the mist just in time for the first race to start in gentle conditions. This pleased many of the home competitors who would not wake up until the afternoon. Dave & Sally McKee won for the second time, closely followed again by Alan Bax and Andy Farmer. After lunch a proper breeze came in so that local sailors Pete Walters & John Allen could show what we are capable of. They led from start to finish followed by the McKees while Bax took 3^rd place.

The fourth and final race was again sailed in a good wind and this time won by Brett & Ben Dingwall from Aldenham, giving them 3^rd overall. Alan Bax of Northampton and Andy Farmer from Notts. County came in 3^rd giving 2^nd overall. But the stars of the weekend where Dave & Sally McKee from Dovestone who could discard a 2^nd leaving three wins to take the trophy home to Lancashire.

Youngest & by far the lightest crew prize went to Theo Newham who was last seen eating his trophy.

1	3628	Dave McKee	Sally McKee	Dovestone
2	3611	Alan Bax	Andrew Farmer	Northampton and NCSC
3	3603	Brett Dingwall	Ben Dingwall	Aldenham SC
4	3622	Paul Ogden	Jane Ogden	NCSC
5	3685	Pete Walters	John Allen	NCSC
6	3655	Will Gardner	Sam Parker	NCSC

Both Classic Prizes, the NCSC version of boats older than 3051 and the BIFFA version of under 2701, were won by P & D Kitchen in 2526 a lovely old Wyche & Coppock from Tees & Hartlepool. She came 9^th overall beating all the classics, silver and some of the gold fleet. Harmonie was clearly happy to be back in Notts. were she was built twenty-one years ago. Second Classic was Scott Train from Aldeburgh & Graham Lamond from Bala sailing 2744.

Cotswold Classic

The weekend of the 14th 15^th October was a major milestone for the flying fifteen fleet at South Cerney Sailing Club because it was the date on which the Club held its first Open Meeting for boats from the Classic and Silver fleets.

By mid-day on Saturday at the race briefing there were ten crews signed on, with four visitors from Derbyshire and South Wales, including the beautiful 50 year old FF55 lovingly restored by Jeremy and Katherine Soulsby, joining the regular Club sailors. Race Officer Stephen Penfold and his team set good courses and got the fleet away first time for the two races sailed back-to-back in the light variable breeze.

Race 1 was led off the start by Dave and Jackie Nichols (SCSC) for most of the first lap until George and Martin Rock-Evans (SCSC) and Jeremy Arnold and Mike Pearce (Ogston SC) slipped through and started pulling away. The rest of the fleet had a very close race with places changing often in the shifting wind patterns and it was only at the finishing line that third, forth and fifth places were decided as Colin and Gill Grant (SCSC) slipped through from fifth to third, benefiting from the close attention Richard Taylor and Rosie Wiltshire (SCSC) were paying to Mike Jones and Simon Thomas (Cardiff Bay SC) as they attempted to cover them to the line.

Race 2 was very competitive for the first lap with the Ogston crew just showing in front. But local knowledge (not to mention skill!) gave George and Martin Rock-Evans the opportunity to use the windshifts to pull away as the race went on. Behind them the places kept changing through out the fleet as the close racing produced many individual battles. At the finish the Cardiff crew had got the better of the Ogston crew to finish second and third, followed by two South Cerney boats, and Dave Proctor and Tom Williams (Llangorse SC).

On Sunday morning the crews turned up at the Club bright and early, anticipating that the close racing would continue for the three races that were planned. Race Officer Paul Kimmens and his team were fully prepared and ready to set challenging courses but the wind had deserted them. A half-hour postponement was signalled and the boats were launched in the expectation that the wind would soon fill in. Unfortunately it was not to be, and finally after 3 hours he had to accept the situation and abandon racing for the day.

As we said farewell to our visitors we were very heartened by their expressions of support and appreciation for the friendly and effective organisation we had provided and that, despite the disappointment of Sunday, they all committed to return next season to complete the “unfinished business”. We look forward to building on this first step to making the “Cotswold Classic” one of the premier events in the calendar for classic flying fifteens.

1	2562	George Rock-Evans	Martin Rock-Evans	South Cerney SC
2	2162	Jeremy Arnold	Mike Pearce	Ogston SC
3	2645	Mike Jones	Simon Thomas	Cardiff Bay SC
4	2931	Richard Taylor	Rosaleen Wiltshire	SCSC
5	2260	Colin Grant	Gill Grant	SCSC
6	2867	Dave Nichols	Jackie Nichols	SCSC
7	2745	David Proctor	Tom Williams	Llangorse SC
8	55	Jeremy Soulsby	Katherine Soulsby	Llangorse SC
9	2263	Derek Harrison	Bob Penfold	SCSC
10	2591	Denis Cox	John Trueman	SCSC

Fifteens in Belgium

Some of you will know Charles Birtles and Veronique Hachez who are enthusiastic owners of the sole Flying Fifteen in Belgium. Charles is the editor of Yachting Sud, the leading sailing publication in Belgium, and is also the President of SNEH a club on a large lake on the French border similar to Rutland. Charles & Veronique were visitors to the Bewl Valley Open in March and also competed at Dinard in the Europa Cup. They are enthusiastically promoting the class within Belgium and indeed Charles writes regularly and passionately about the class in Yachting Sud. As President of SNEH he decided to invite Fifteens as an invitation class to the annual Micr'Eau at the end of October.

The Micr'Eau, an event for Micro Cuppers and cruisers, is now in its 22^nd year and is also the final event of the series for Micro Cuppers, attracting competitors from as far as Poland. The class is clearly very active in Europe and some 45 entered this event alongside a variety of other classes, including Beneteau First 18s and 21s.

Tony & Brenda Lee persuaded us to join them in the journey south to Belgium to support Charles in his campaign to establish the class. Unfortunately no other Fifteens made the trip either from the U.K or from France.

Having left flood afflicted Kent way before dawn on Saturday we had an easy drive down to the edge of the Ardennes some 150 miles from Calais. Easy that is apart from the fog, which gradually thickened as we drove south east. Tony & Brenda had arrived the day before and with their help we rigged the boat in record time for the anticipated start at 1pm only to find a postponement for lack of wind and visibility. Eventually the fog cleared and some 60 boats, a record for this event, drifted to the start line at 3pm. The two British boats were at either end of the line for an Olympic course and took different routes to the first mark. I hesitate to use the word windward, as every boat seemed to be on a different point of sail as well as on a different tack in the sunny but light and variable conditions. We had a good lead over both Tony & Charles although Tony to leeward of us found a stream of wind and caught up with us near the final windward mark. We were both in the first ten until that mark when we lost out to a French boat that was racing under different rules of the road!! My linguistic skills were not up to the task of persuading him that a windward boat on port had to give way and as we bore away to avoid the inevitable collision Tony edged past us at the mark and in the freshening breeze he kept his lead until the end. Although we finished in the top fifteen, unfortunately on Handicap we were both in the thirties, needing a stronger wind to beat off the Micro Cuppers.

A long day that started at 3.30 that morning ended with a lively evening in the clubhouse with an excellent meal and plenty of local brew. Sunday dawned foggy although this time there was a reasonable wind, which kept hopes alive that the fog would clear in time to race. However at 3pm the event was abandoned, for the first time in its twenty two year history, probably just as well given the amount of local 9% beer that had been consumed whilst waiting! The prizegiving went ahead as planned with Belgian chocolates and beer for all competitors. Tony & Brenda became the first winners of the Fifteen class in what we hope will become a regular feature in our racing calendar.

Our hopes of a final sail and perhaps an unofficial race between the three Fifteens were foiled by the decreasing visibility and we had to be content with a five minute sail back to the slipway from the pontoons. We packed the boats in fast gathering gloom before repairing to a local restaurant for an outstanding gourmet meal in celebration of the annual mushroom harvest!!

There was a lot of local interest in the Fifteens and we hope that with some support from the U.K Charles will be successful in building up the Belgian fleet. As in France there is a demand in Belgium for Classic/Silver boats so if anyone is considering selling a boat for up to £1000 please let Tony Lee know.

Although the lack of sailing was obviously a great disappointment we had a most enjoyable weekend with good hospitality and some excellent food. The four of us are already planning a repeat trip in 2001 and we hope that more of you will join us.

The 2000 Flying Fifteen Results Archive

DATCHET WATER S.C.

Bewl Valley

Draycote Water