Results / Fat Face Racing Circuit Chew Valley SC - 11/03/2006
RS700 Fat Face Circuit Event 1
Chew Valley Lake Sailing Club �11th & 12th March 2006
Relatively mild and sunny weather greeted the excellent turnout of 25
sailors who had travelled from across the country for the first RS700 Fat
Face event of the season at Chew valley Lake sailing club over the
weekend of the 11th and 12th of March.
Race 1 started in a shifty five know breeze. On a busy start line it was
the group who started at the port end of the line in clear air who soon
moved into the lead. Nigel Walbank from Lymington established an early
lead with a pursuing group including Andy Holland (Kings Lynn Audi),
Steve Marshall and Matt Humphreys (Harken) challenging hard. By the last
lap the chasing group had caught up and 3 boats came into the leeward
abreast. Walbank and Humphreys went right but it was Andy Holland who
went left, found breeze and blasted through the line to take a maiden
victory on the circuit.
Race two started in similar conditions with a very even start line. Andy
Holland continued his excellent light wind form by leading at the first
mark only to immediately sail into a hole. Ian Nolan went right and
found the best breeze to take the lead half way down the run only for
Holland and Humphries to catch up so the boats arrived in a bunch at the
leeward mark. Places continued to change throughout the race in the
patchy conditions but it was Humphreys who took the win from local sailor
Tim Johnson with Nolan coming in 3rd.
With the wind varying from nothing to not a lot the PRO took the sensible
decision to send the fleet home. This left the winners of the overnight
leader prizes as Matt Humphries in Gold fleet and Ian Nolan in the Silver.
Sunday dawned with snow settled on the ground and snowflakes blowing in
from the East. After throwing the white stuff off the covers and grabbing
a quick bacon butty (or three) the fleet took to the water dressed in
everything they could find to fend off the cold ready for the planned
four races.
The third race started promptly in a shifty Easterly F2 with F3 gusts
dropping off the Mendip Hills. Making the best of the conditions it was
Johnson who led at the windward mark from White mark with the rest of the
overnight leaders in close pursuit. Downwind the heavyweights managed to
keep ahead of the pack before extending their lead up the right hand side
of the second beat. As the leaders began the final run the wind dropped
to an F1 and progress slowed. The Mendips then provided a lake wide gust
which barrelled down just as the middle of the fleet arrived at the
windward mark. This compressed the top ten boats, resulting in a frenzy
of gybes and luffs for position going into the leeward mark. Johnson held
his nerve, rounded first and led to the finish. Walbank worked the gust
brilliantly and sailed around the fighting pack to finish second followed
by Marshall and Humphreys in 3rd and 4th.
For the fourth race the wind built to a shifty F3 with F4 gusts. Johnson
was again fast off the line and led at the windward mark from Humphreys.
They were locked together around the course over the next two laps with
both winning alternate shifts and gusts. So intense was the contest they
missed the shortened course and allowed White to steal the win with
Smithwhite and Marshall closing out the top five.
The wind was building; veering further South and the temperature dropped
even further. Fingers were numb and hands were beginning to lose grip.
Even the hardest 700 sailors had hats and gloves on as F5 gusts ripped
down the lake as the fifth race started. It was White who led at the
windward mark, followed closely led by Johnson, Humphreys & Albrecht.
The gusts produced some wildly varying downwind lanes which resulted in
all four boats converging on the leeward mark at speed from different
directions. White rounded first, and dominated the race from that point
onwards. Albrecht gybed early on the final run to overtake Humphreys for
second, whilst Smithwhite and Marshall sailed to a controlled and secure
4th and 5th.
For the sixth and final race the wind was building to a South Easterly
shifty F5 gusting F6. The intense cold, evil shifts, sledgehammer gusts,
sailor damage and the thought of the long drive home was causing
attrition in the fleet with only 11 of the original 25 finishing. Again
it was White, Johnson and Marshall who led around the windward mark as a
F6 gust arrived. White capsized as he gybed off, joined by Johnson
leaving Marshall to provide a demonstration in downwind technique. He
quoted in the bar afterwards. �As I looked back upwind all I could see
were 700s capsized.� With the race turning into a battle of survival, the
hares were spending too much time swimming and it was the quality of
Marshall, White, Smithwhite, Walbank and Offer which shone through as
they finished 1st through 5th.
Despite a late charge from White Johnson and Marshall, it was Matt
Humphries who had sailed consistently at the front of the fleet over both
days who took a deserved overall victory. In the silver fleet Nolan held
onto his overnight lead followed by Jonathan Cameron and Stewart Speer.
Our thanks go to CVLSC for their warm welcome and to the event sponsors
Fat Face for their continued support This was a great turnout for the
first Fat Face event of the season with a lot of new faces as well a
number of the more established names returning to the fleet. Things are
certainly looking promising for the rest of the season continuing the
improvements seen last year.
The next event on the circuit will be at a new venue for the 700 fleet,
Hunstanton Sailing Club on the North Norfolk coast on the 22nd and 23rd
of April.
Tim Johnson & Ian Nolan
Chew Valley Lake Sailing Club | ||
RS 700 Fat Face Open CVLSC 11-12 Mar 2006 |
Sailed:6 Discards:1 To count:5 Entries:25 | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Fleet | Class | SailNo | Helm | Club | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | Total | Nett |
1st | Gold | RS700 | 933 | Matt Humphreys | Weston SC | 2.0 | 1.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 39.0 | 13.0 |
2nd | Gold | RS 700 | 900 | Andy White | Draycote Water SC | 6.0 | (17.0) | 6.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 33.0 | 16.0 |
3rd | Gold | RS700 | 762 | Tim Johnson | CVLSC | (8.0) | 2.0 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 7.0 | 6.0 | 26.0 | 18.0 |
4th | Gold | RS700 | 760 | Steve Marshall | Margam SC | 4.0 | (10.0) | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 28.0 | 18.0 |
5th | Gold | RS700 | 775 | Nigel Walbank | Lymington Town SC | 3.0 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 8.0 | (9.0) | 4.0 | 31.0 | 22.0 |
6th | Gold | RS700 | 922 | Dave Smithwhite | Hayling Island SC | (10.0) | 4.0 | 7.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 32.0 | 22.0 |
7th | Gold | RS700 | 939 | Leigh Albrecht | Queen Mary SC | 7.0 | (8.0) | 5.0 | 7.0 | 2.0 | 7.0 | 36.0 | 28.0 |
8th | Gold | RS700 | 906 | Andy Holland | Hunstanton SC | 1.0 | 6.0 | 8.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 69.0 | 43.0 |
9th | Gold | RS700 | 941 | Rob Chaplin | Queen Mary SC | (13.0) | 7.0 | 9.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 8.0 | 57.0 | 44.0 |
10th | Gold | RS700 | 822 | Tony Freer | CVLSC | 5.0 | 11.0 | 11.0 | 6.0 | 13.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 72.0 | 46.0 |
11th | Silver | RS700 | 912 | Ian Nolan | Hunstanton SC | 12.0 | 3.0 | 10.0 | 17.0 | 11.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 79.0 | 53.0 |
12th | Gold | RS700 | 834 | Tom Offer | CVLSC | 21.0 | 9.0 | (26.0 DNF) | 13.0 | 6.0 | 5.0 | 80.0 | 54.0 |
13th | Silver | RS700 | 945 | Jonathan Cameron | Queen Mary SC | 16.0 | (25.0) | 15.0 | 20.0 | 15.0 | 9.0 | 100.0 | 75.0 |
14th | Gold | RS700 | 907 | Duncan Ellis | Hunstanton SC | 9.0 | 13.0 | 13.0 | 15.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 102.0 | 76.0 |
15th | Silver | RS700 | 777 | Stewart Speer | CVLSC | 20.0 | 12.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 16.0 | 17.0 | 11.0 | 102.0 | 76.0 |
16th | Gold | RS700 | 948 | Alex Bebbett | Whitby SC | 18.0 | 22.0 | 19.0 | 11.0 | 8.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 104.0 | 78.0 |
17th | Silver | RS700 | 721 | Neil Sanders | Corus SC | 15.0 | 20.0 | 16.0 | 12.0 | 18.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 107.0 | 81.0 |
18th | Silver | RS700 | 934 | Matthew Stark | Netley SC | (24.0) | 24.0 | 20.0 | 18.0 | 12.0 | 10.0 | 108.0 | 84.0 |
19th | Silver | RS700 | 767 | Stuart Riches | HSC | (26.0 DNS) | 14.0 | 12.0 | 21.0 | 16.0 | 26.0 DNS | 115.0 | 89.0 |
20th | Gold | RS700 | 927 | Alex Southon-Newton | RYA | 19.0 | 21.0 | 17.0 | 9.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 118.0 | 92.0 |
21st | Silver | RS700 | 781 | Carl Short | Draycote Water SC | 14.0 | 19.0 | 14.0 | 19.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 118.0 | 92.0 |
22nd | Silver | RS700 | 726 | Tim Royal | Mounts Bay SC | 11.0 | 18.0 | 18.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 26.0 DNS | 125.0 | 99.0 |
23rd | Gold | RS700 | 843 | Dave Aston | Llandegfed SC | 17.0 | 15.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 26.0 DNS | 26.0 DNS | 136.0 | 110.0 |
24th | Silver | RS700 | 778 | Andy Scott | CVLSC | 23.0 | 23.0 | 21.0 | 22.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 141.0 | 115.0 |
25th | Silver | RS700 | 920 | Ali Wyatt | Bristol Corinthian | 22.0 | 16.0 | (26.0 DNS) | 26.0 DNS | 26.0 DNS | 26.0 DNS | 142.0 | 116.0 |