Sailing on Saturday was Adam Websdell in his Laser who was only one race short of qualifying for the Laser Trophy.
Sunday sailing was less well attended this series but Mik Neville secured the noon GP 14 single handed trophy and the ever reliable Paul Powell taking the Main and Handicap trophy for the afternoon series
Don’t forget the first race on Sunday October 30th starts at 11.30
The Laser Team of the two Andy’s Evans and Allan sailed the GP team off the pond scoring six points between them.
The GP team consisting of Max Bradbury-Knight wit Michelle Tromans and Ralph Webb with Harry Bradbury-Knight just could not find the wind to maintain a consistent progress around the course. The GP team scored twelve.
Well done to Andy who we know is a very good sailor and also to Andy who is improving every week.
Mik and Kim Neville sneak the Saturday Summer series from Ray Drury. And it was not by their own hand. Whilst they were sunning themselves in Kenya, it was Pat and Mike Stout who in the last races of the series sailed really well and pipped Ray into second place thus depriving Ray of his normal top finishing place. I think some apologies and thanks in various quarters are required.
The Sunday GP 14 results were disappointing and there were no qualifiers this season. Laser Series racing was better attended but resulted in Paul Powell winning the Noon and Afternoon Main and Handicap Series. Ian Davies also qualified in 2nd place in the Afternoon Series.
The full results are available on line and I will print out a set for display in the club house.
With the Laser Open next weekend, it was clear the Laser fleet were determined to hone their racing skills with 8 boats on the water for the Late Summer Pursuit. Even though the sailing on the water was adjusted with the helms with a higher handicap being given a good start on the water, with light fickle winds, it was likely that the more experienced helms would be able to take advantage and so the results proved that was the case. Andy was closely beaten into 2nd place by his son James Allan who took the event overall. Paul Powell skimped into third place with relatively new sailor Andy Evans making a very creditable 4th Place. It was good to see newcommer Steve Perkins making waves on the water and scoring equal points with Elaine Bethell. Elaine was given the result over Steve by applying the countback rule used in tie situations.
Alice Webb made good progress round the course and took the Junior Laser Trophy.
Harry Bradbury-Knight sailed very well in his Topper but did have a mainsheet problem, resolved on the water.
With only 2 GP 14′s on the water, the turnout was disappointing. The results were curious in that Max Bradbury-Knight and Michelle Tromans easily won the 1st and last race against Debbie and Simon Parker. But in the 2nd race Debbie could not be caught. In fact she was catching up Max and aiming to lap him. These fickle Trimpley winds do strange things.
Well it all started when I decided to get a new mainsheet for the GP. It had been so windy this season and because it was a bit short, I lost the end of the old main sheet several times, when sitting at the back, hiking out.
The new main sheet was slightly thicker where the two thin lines are joined to the 9mm mainsheet rope. It was a bit stiff running through the block at the end of the boom. I shaped the joining bit with some pliers and rubbed some candle wax on it. Although still a little stiff passing through the block on the end of the boom, it made a big improvement and I fixed it onto the the boat, with slightly longer thin line tails that passed through the block on the end of the boom.
We had planned a cruise across to the Isle of Wight, from Lymington to Newtown River, a trip we have done twice before. Newtown Creek is about 3 miles east of Yarmouth and I know it quite well. Ralph and Max wanted to buddy up and we chose a weekend when a high spring tide would allow us to sail up the creek in Newtown River and land on soft grass. The day needed to be have sufficient wind to get there and back but not too strong as to cause difficulties in open waters.
The forecast was good, Force 2 from the SW. On the water, the wind was a little stronger, and we had a good easy planing run across to Newtown on a W – SW wind and got to the pub for lunch in plenty of time. All was well until Ralph asked if we could sail back via Yarmouth.
Well, a simple calculation of time and with the knowledge that we were sailing on a Spring tide, plus knowing it cuts up rough off Yarmouth when the ebb tide races over a bank against the wind too should have warned us not to go there, but I agreed we should go via Yarmouth.
But it did cut up rough and Amy and I capsized. We managed to right the boat. A yacht called Dreamer sailed in to give us shelter in his lee and we very nearly got going but capsized again.
Whilst in the water, I decided to pull the mainsheet in so it would not get wrapped around the tiller and we could get away quickly when upright. By this time we were floating past Fort Victoria, about 1 mile west of Yarmouth.
View The IOW Adventure in a larger map
We had a great deal of difficulty getting the boat upright. Eventually we got it up and it capsized again. By this time we were floating past Fort Albert about 2 miles West of Yarmouth. A nearby RIB took a rope around the forestay and started to pull us against the current to slow our speed of drift. That kept the mast down so when we tried to bring the boat upright, it would not come; it was like it was being held down by something. Amy said the anchor and spinnaker were all in the boat. By this time we were approaching Hurst Castle where the Solent narrows and the tidal current really picks up.
With boat on its side, I decided to drop the main and released all the control lines, but Amy could not keep the boat from turning turtle again. In the mean time Ralph and Max who stayed upright all the time, and who were sailing around had dropped their main and were standing by. We were both too worn out to reach the centreboard on the inverted hull and so Max jumped in as a fresh pair of hands.
We were now getting close to Hurst Castle and the shore. The RIB decided to pull us clear. This entailed me holding on to the rudder, Amy holding on to me and Max holding on to Amy whilst the baot was pulled through the water by the rib. Max tried to reach the centreboard but slipped back into the water.
I decided to ask if we could get into the the RIB and if they could tow us clear of Hurst castle and out of the tidal race into some shelter near Keyhaven, which is what happened. They could not make much headway against the tide and they were concerned about their own engine which was running rough.
And so the Yarmouth lifeboat was launched – the big Severn class vessel. They launched a small Y boat RIB and firstly they went to Ralph who had beached himself on the shingle bank off Keyhaven. We were then taken on board, Amy Max and myself where they took over and we were instructed to get inside the cabin where we were assessed. When the crew found we were all unhurt, coherent and not too cold they were OK with us, offered us water and made us a cup of coffee and KitKat bars.
Meanwhile the small Y boat RIB helped right the GP and the main dropped immediately as the halyard was already loose. They had a lot of trouble dropping the genoa and later said the halyard was tangled up with the anchor rope. They then ferried Max back to Ralph who sailed back to Lymington and my GP was towed to the mouth of Lymington River. They asked if we would be OK to sail back up Lymington River, they would take us in we wanted. But we were OK to sail back to lymington and this is what we did.
'This Way Up' is helped the right way up
At the slip at Lymington was the Coastguard who gave us a good telling off, mainly for Max jumping in to help which was a little unfair as there were a lot of other boats around and secondly to have been sailing off Yarmouth when we did which was a fair criticism. The lifeboat crew were very complementary about the boat and had no criticism about our set up for cruising.
I still could not undersatnd why the boat would not right itself and why it capsized so quickly when we did get it upright. It was when I was driving home that I realised the mainsheet would have been jammed in the block on the boom, looking normal but holding the main in, so when I tried to bring the boat upright I was pulling against a wind filled sail. When we did get it up, the jammed main blew the boat over again. This what tired us out.
Since getting back and rigging the boat the jamming mainsheet was replicated on dry land and after comparing with other sheets and blocks, and discussion with Norman, Andy and others, I have sent the mainsheet back to Speed Sails to be re-made with thinner splicing joint.
Mainsheet rigged as normal
Mainsheet jammed in pulley block
Being towed by the RIB upside down and on its side did not do the boat any good but apart from some bent forestay fittings, it appears to be all intact. The only thing missing was an old plastic bucket that I stored the anchor in. Fortunately I had tied the anchor in independently from the bucket. Amy’s dry bag had a very severe test, being towed underwater and it did let some water in but was mainly dry.
So lessons to be learnt.
I managed to track down the owner of the RIB and sent a message of thanks and a gift, like wise to the Yarmouth Lifeboat with a donation.
I should also like to thank Ralph and Max for standing by when we were in trouble. Although they were sailing “Shaken Knot Stirred”, I think they were more Shaken and Disturbed!

With Kim and Mik Neville in a good lead towards the end of the Ladies Plate Race, it looked like a bad start to the day for Michelle and William Whitehouse. Then Michelle managed to make use of the cruel and shifty winds at Trimpley and powered round the final mark ahead of Kim to take the Ladies Trophy.
After the excellent BBQ lunch, with thanks to Lisa, Angie, and Jane, the Commodore organised his Challenge for this year which was round all the buoys either to starboard or to port depending on which way he chose to send you. The race was a pursuit which made things interesting and so the starts were staggered which reduced the risk of boats meeting at the start line travelling in opposite directions! This time Elliot Tromans took the trophy beating all on the water in a GP 14 crewed again by Willliam Whitehouse. The senior trophy will be awarded to James Allan who came in 2nd in a Laser.
The next event on the water was a knockout paddling race in the Bugs, which entailed much splashing and cheating. Michelle Tromans took the line honours partially helped by the boat which came in 2nd, when James Allan tried to push Michelle’s boat out of the way but resulted in pushing his own boat off course. A classic example of Newtons Laws ( And he has just take A level Physics!)
And guess who won the collecting the balls game. Well it was Elliot Tromans helming a very over crowded Topper. I think there was Oliver, Livvy and Harry on board there too. Actually the real winners were Ray Drury, Clive and Angela Haycock, and Peter and Judy Moore who walked around the reservior and picked far more balls off the rocks than the boats collected. These had drifted onto the rocks in the brisk breeze whilst the sailors seemed to spend their time fighting and swimming!
And a good time time was had by all.
GP 14 Open here at Trimpley 5th June 2011
1st Race 11.00am A series of 3 races - 2 to qualify
Lunch and refreshments available
All welcome