2018 Videlo Globe report by Roger Stollery

Frensham Pond SC Model Yacht Group ran another successful Footy Open Videlo Globe Trophy on Wednesday 11th April and attracted entries from three MYA districts. Despite the foggy conditions with a steady, but cold 8 mph wind, all the competitors enjoyed the day’s sailing with 18 races completed.

Footys are fun

Racing these little boats is always fun and the wind direction allowed the Race Officer, Roger Stollery to set an unusual course with the leeward mark in a narrowing space between two dinghy jetties, which just added to the fun. On the beat the jetty obstructions allowed port tack boats to hail the starboard boats to tack, adding another interest to the strategy at the start and beating back from the leeward mark. Being so close to the racing is a big advantage and caused Charles Smith to comment after the event “quite apart from the jetty work it was so nice to race on a course we could all see easily”.

The racing

As soon as racing started it was clear that the two Peters from Abington Park were going to dominate the event. Peter Jackson sailing his IBEX design won Races 1 and 3 with Peter Shepherd sailing his FAT BOY SLIM coming second and then going on to win Race 2 and another 10 races! The remaining races, except Race 9, which was won by Keith Parrott sailing an ICE, were won by Peter Jackson. Some of the finishes were very close indeed and in Race 16 it almost needed a photo finish between Keith and Peter Jackson; Keith took second place from Peter.

The boats

Footys are popular with model maker sailors, because there are a huge number of free plans on the Footy website including simple competitive chine boats made from balsa that are easy and quick to make. Peter Shepherd designed his own very beautiful little circular section FAT BOY SLIM and built it in balsa five years ago. Weighing less than a jar of marmalade at 410 grams, including 275g of ballast, its lightweight construction and bluff bow has helped to win many events including this one. It is interesting to note that the recent IOM European Champion KANTUN 2 also has this bluff bow feature at the waterline.

FAT BOY SLIM is narrow and fits in the Footy measuring box diagonally whereas the wider and more powerful axially measured boats are usually heavier because of their bigger hulls. The jury is still out on which type is best because both provide really good close racing.

The 2018 National championship

On Sunday September 16, Footys from all over the country will be gathering at Frensham Pond again for the Nationals. In order to encourage young people to race there will be a Junior Championship in the morning run in conjunction with the main event, with the results and trophies awarded at lunchtime. The under 18’s may then continue to sail in the main Championship, which is coming to Frensham Pond, because it is popular and one of the best places for racing these boats. Details can be found on the Footy website, www.sailfootyuk.com.

Top 6 Results:

1^stPeter Shepherd Hollowell SC FAT BOY SLIM 19

2^ndPeter Jackson Abington Park IBEX  26

3^rdKeith Parrott Frensham Pond ICE  41

4^thCharles Smith Frensham Pond ICE  56

5^thColin Robinson Cheddar Steam ICE  70

6^thJohn Haine Frensham Pond ICE  77