A beautiful sunny day at Abbey Meads was the scene for the 40th Mermaid Trophy celebration of Marblehead racing. The only thing missing was the forecast steady north-westerly breeze. Full of holes and variation from north to west, the unpredictable wind provided a real challenge for the 14 competitors.

Darin Ballington sailing his GRUNGE handled this brilliantly in the morning with an amazing scoreline of firsts, with Peter Stollery and his UPFRONT chasing.

After lunch the wind became stronger and more westerly and Peter copied Darin’s performance with 5 firsts and his overall consistency won the day and the beautiful Mermaid Trophy.

Other race winners included John Cleave, who like Peter was at the first Mermaid and Colin Walton, who was sailing his GRUNGE out of his skin to finish third and take the Vic Cooney Trophy, as the best veteran.

New radio racer, Phil Elford, who was sailing a Marblehead for the first time also won a race sailing Roger Stollery’s UP, which was quite a remarkable achievement in such company. He is a full-size sailor and thoroughly enjoyed the excitement of sailing 13 very competitive races.

Brief report by Race Officer Roger Stollery 2019-03-24

Results:

1^st        Peter Stollery Guildford UP 19

2^nd      Darin Ballington Manor Park GRUNGE 28

3^rd      Colin Walton Manor Park GRUNGE         47

4^th      Martin Crysell Guildford PRIME NUMBER 61

5^th      John Cleave Ryde GRUNGE   64

6^th      Phil Elford 3 Rivers UP  85

7^th      Roger Pearce Frensham Pond PRIME NUMBER  90

8^th      Rob Vice Guildford UPROAR  91

9^th      Les Thorn Hawley Lake PARADOX  93

10^th    Tim Townsend Medway RYC ROAR EDGE  95

11^th    Alan Viney Guildford PRIME NUMBER  100

12^th    David Coode Guildford PIRANHA  127

13^th    John Townsend Guildford ROK  130

14^th    Nick Royse Frensham Pond CRAZY TUBE FREE 135

See the Gallery for Photos of the Event

This was an absolutely fabulous day of sailing at Abbey Meads!

What made it a great day were the very strong winds and the sunshine, as well as Peter and the boys doubling the size of our fleet. Forecast was 24-43 mph and whilst it was not quite that strong, the black slamming gusts on the water were about 30 with an average of about 15 to 20 mph. It was strong enough for all the small rigs, C1, C2 and C3 to be used.

Nathan was sailing in a Marblehead club race for the first time, using the 1990s ROAR EDGE and when I put his boat in the water he was absolutely amazed and delighted by the speed that it planed away from the landing stage. Wow! Oliver also enjoyed the fast downwind runs with ZOOM, another ROAR EDGE.

The plan to do work on the south bank landing stage was abandoned because our attention was on getting the boats in the right rig. As Mark only had a tall rig, he was lent a C1 swing rig from ROAR EDGE, which needed a bit of re-rigging in order to fit it to his UPROAR. Also the initial rig choice was too big for some and needed a rig change. However this did not apply to John Townsend’s ROK and Alan Viney’s PRIME NUMBER and they stayed in C1 all day, which often gave them some hairy runs with rudders in the air, but towards the end gave them an advantage as the wind reduced in strength. It is interesting to note that Alan’s smallest rig is a standard C1 and he has managed to survive this event and other events with strong winds, so it reinforces the argument that Marbleheads are not that expensive, because you really don’t need all those other rigs, even if they are nice to have.

Eight races were sailed over a long beat and run course and enjoyed by all, particularly the fast planing runs and the windward speed when heavily pressed. It was incredibly gusty and the swirls of the wind hitting the water were unpredictable, but very good if you caught a gust just right.

Roger’s UP won Race 1 in C2, but then let Martin win the next 2 races also in C2 with his PRIME NUMBER. It was then Alan’s turn to win Races 4 and 5 and this might have been 4 in a row had he not let Martin win Race 6. The final race was a triumph for John Townsend who had been doing consistently well, but who was absolutely delighted to win a race in this company. Young Oliver sailed all the races and was occasionally helped by Peter when he got into difficulties. This applied to Roger when the C2 kicking strap broke and both the UPs then sailed in C3, just to gain the experience. We had not used these rigs since they were modified after the last really strong winds at the eastern district ranking event at Chelmsford in 2015, which is shown on one of the photos that you open with the ‘home’ page of the website.

It was very interesting to be able to compare the heavy weather performance of the best of 30 years ago with our curregns, which is something that is not usually possible, and to see the progress made.

Peter and I stayed on and sailed our UPs in C1 doing trials, just as we might have done with vane boats, comparing the performance and then re-trimming the weakest boat up to the level of the other one and then working on the other one etc. We both learned something that was very useful.

GMYC members should not forget that you too have to enter the MERMAID through the MYA website. It is the easiest way to keep the paperwork in order.

Roger Stollery

See Gallery for photos of the event.

Hot Racing at 3 Rivers!

Never has a winter Marblehead interclub event at the Bury Lake Rickmansworth been so hot, with bright sunshine all day and in the morning at least enough wind to give a beat and run course to make the racing hot too.

11 skippers from 3 different clubs enjoyed 8 races in the light and fluky, basically easterly wind conditions. There were 5 different winners and every Datchet team member won a race. Austin Guerrier sailing a QUARK won the first and it looked as if Phil Holliday sailing a GRUNGE was going to take the 2^nd, but was overtaken on the last run by Guildford’s Roger Stollery sailing his UP. He repeated this on the next 2 races, before Phil finally hit the front in Race 5.

After a very pleasant lunch in the sunshine, Roger won again, but in the following race it was John Shorrock sailing a QUARK with a new and very smart Graham Bantock fin who took line honours in Race 7.   By this time the wind had more or less died and veered to the south-east blowing from behind the competitors leaving the whole course in a total mirror condition. However this did not deter MYA Chairman Terry Rensch sailing Phil Holliday’s NIOUTRAM, from picking up all the right gusts, staying on the rhumb line and just pipping Roger to the finishing line in the final Race 8. After this race and with only half an hour to run before the deadline, all skippers agreed not to race again as the conditions were so poor.

All in all, despite the frustratingly light wind everyone enjoyed the day, the pleasant sunshine and the great company. At the prize giving Roger thanked the five-man 3 Rivers race team, Tom Rodger, John Rance, John Keyworth, Oliver Bangham and as always John Male scoring, for putting on another great GAMES event under very difficult circumstances.  

The next big Marblehead GAMES event is on 24th March, when Guildford Model Yacht Club will be running a special celebratory 40th MERMAID Trophy at Abbey Meads Lake, Chertsey. 

Go to Gallery for photos of the event

Results:

1st Roger Stollery Guildford UP 8

2nd Phil Holliday Datchet GRUNGE 13

3rd Austin Guerrier Datchet QUARK 18

4th John Shorrock Datchet QUARK 23

5th Martin Crysell Guildford PRIME NUMBER 25

6th Terry Rensch Datchet NIOUTRAM 27

7th John Male 3 Rivers STARKERS 37

8th Dick Grainge 3 Rivers STARKERS 37

9th Peter Popham 3 Rivers UPROAR 43

10th John Carter 3 Rivers STARKERS 44

11th Trevor Innes 3 Rivers STARKERS 58 

A good session at Abbey Meads today, with plenty of planing off wind despite the variable strength and direction of the wind. Today there were some really vicious black west south-west gusts in between rather variable wind speed and direction. The good thing was that we did not have to change the southern landing stage. Peter reset the buoys to give us a windward leeward course. The forecast was 20 to 40 mph and whilst we probably didn’t get that level of wind, it was still strong enough to get plenty of planing intermittently in the gusts on the offwind legs. I was using my new cutdown fin with the heavy lead on UP, rather than the light lead is used last week at the ranking even. It was not up to it and there was just too much wobble on many occasions of the wind for this to be an acceptable fin. This was very disappointing, however the  seaworthiness of the UP design in these demanding offwind conditions was tested and they handled really well even with the foredeck under. Initially we used C Rigs, but then used 2nd suit C2 rigs as these are so rarely used. Peter had altered the sail plan twice, but never had the chance to test either of the changes. He was pleased at last it could be tested and came out well.

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Fred’s Big Toephy Notice of Race

Guildford Model Yacht Clubextends a very warm welcome to you for the first 2019 Footy open event.

Come and enjoy racing your Footy at Abbey Meads Lake, Chertsey and help us to create some fun in a friendly, but competitive atmosphere.

The GMYC race team will be John Townsend and Peter Dunne. Racing will be conducted using RRS 2017-2020 modified by the 2017 MYA Standard Sailing Instructions. The current 2009 Footy Class Rules will apply. We would ask you to limit the size of your biggest rigs to comply with the ‘Experimental Footy rig Template‘. The relevant notices are as follows:

REGISTRATION and measurement check 08.40 to 09.30 hours.

BRIEFING– this will start at approximately 09.40 hours.

RACING TIMES – the first race will start soon after the briefing at approximately 10.00 hours – no race will start after 15.00 hours and any race in progress at 15.30 hours will be abandoned.

Freds Big Toephy

Please make sure that your correct sail numbers are clearly displayed on your mainsails: just the last two digits of your boat’s registration number or your personal number. When you bring your boat for registration, please make sure that it will fit in the ‘Footy measurement box’, as required by class rules.

As well as Fred’ Big Toephy and prizes for the winners and junior winners, there will be the first of the ‘novICE’ trophies for novice competitors that have not finished in the top 3 in the Footy open events in the last 2 years.

The entry fee is £5.00 to be paid on the day. Entries should preferably be on the online form, which links to this NoR before midnight on Thursday 31st January 2019.  Any queries should go to Roger Stollery preferably by phone on 01483 421 801 or e-mailed to stollery17@sky.com. The information required is your name, MYA number, club, sail number, emergency contact telephone number & radio frequencies if not 2.4ghz.Please pass this notice onto those you know who might like to participate. If you have no Footy, we have some that may be borrowed; please ring Roger ASAP to avoid disappointment.

Please be aware that if we need to sail in northerly/southerly winds from the west bankwe can at the moment no longer get our cars along this track and so it will be necessary to park off the road near the entrance to the track and walk your gear along.

ABBEY MEADS LAKE is easy to find, so long as you follow these instructions and not any others. Follow the local brown signs to THORPE PARK and go to the roundabout at their entrance. From here travel south on the A320 towards Chertsey and Abbey Meads Lakeis behind the hedge on your left. After a few hundred yards turn left off the road when you see a sign, RADIO SAILING, together with signs to the 3 Valleys Water’s Chertsey Treatment Works.If the gate is locked, unlock the black number padlock with 1617 and press the button at the bottom or ring the mobile number on the ‘GMYC welcome notice’ on the gate if you need assistance, but please be patient as Roger may be out on the water. Please replace the padlock as you found it.

We look forward to seeing you !

GMYC were racing on a Saturday for the first time and this was both strange and exciting. Strange because it seemed to come too close to the end of the week. 

Exciting because there were unknowns like the traffic before 9 o’clock, which thankfully was similar to normal Sunday’s traffic. Exciting because Peter Dunne had made a trolley for the dinghy and when I arrived trolley and boat were already in place on the south bank. Exciting because we had a ‘new’ gazebo to test in gusty top end of rig A or B winds, which was fine so long as it was tied down to the rails on my Focus! Exciting because of the windy forecast 12 to 30 mph in which we didn’t race last year. Exciting because Mark Mortimore had joined our small band of enthusiasts to sail his new UPROAR, SISTER SLEDGE.

This increased the entry to 6, which could have been 7, if Alan hadn’t been struggling with a cold. Peter was disappointed that his rudder servo failed, but stayed on to score the first few races. Mark was absolutely delighted by his new boat’s performance and won Race 3 and counted podium places except for the first and last race! 

On the basis of the forecast strong wind, Peter Stollery came down with his UPFRONT to test his B rig and was delighted that it handled OK after problems with a bigger main to jib proportion used previously. His winning of 3 of the first 4 races was very impressive against the other A rigged boats that were chasing him hard.

8 races were sailed before lunch, at which point Peter had to go home and Mark put his boat away, didn’t do any more racing and took down the scores for the next 3 races, which are now attached.

This was a handicap event and it was quite clear at the lake that Mark’s performance was way above his 25% handicap and so he was presented with the COBWEB trophy as the winner, which was confirmed by the attached results, which Alan has worked out.

Martin Crysell presenting Mark Mortimore with the 2019 Cobweb Trophy.