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The 1999 Flying Fifteen Results Archive
THE MERCEDES-BENZ TROPHY - Datchet Water Sailing Club13th / 14th MarchTom Bayliss fresh back from Esperance, took line honours in the first three out of four races in the Datchet Open, and so won the Mercedes Benz Trophy. Tom was crewed by his father Geoff in FF 3520. Saturday's racing got underway in welcome sunshine and a pleasant 10 knot breeze. Race Officer Colin Waters set an Olympic course, and Grayson Eacott crewed by Gary Lane in 3595, was first to the windward mark, but their spinnaker problems on the run gave a window of opportunity for Tom, chased by Gerry Sheard crewed by Howard Shawyer in 3498. The finish was a run in lighter airs when Mike House and Alan Moss in 3652, came through into third place. The wind filled in for the second race but a major shift on the first beat caused some alarm, but again Tom and Geoff got to the front and held on, followed by Dave Lucas and Stephen Carson in 3474 from Grafham Water SC, with Gerry Sheard and Howard close behind. Sunday morning was bright and clear but the start had to be delayed until a steady 5 knot breeze set in. The name of the game was to find the puffs and not to get into a hole. There were plenty of place changes but again the Bayliss team got well ahead followed by Gerry Sheard and with Phil Owen and Peter McKenna in 2948, in third place. In the afternoon Phil and Peter seemed to have got the measure of the conditions and took the lead with Gerry Sheard in second and Geoff Bayliss now crewed by Tom, in third place. Datchet Water SC Commodore Mike Rothery presented the Mercedes-Benz Trophy to a well deserved winners, and awarded the Classic boat prize to Phil Owen and Peter McKenna. All contestants enjoyed a spring-like sailing week-end to start the Open season. RESULTS
Report from Gerry Sheard
Classic Boat: 2588 David and James Stuart (Weir Wood)
Report from Ian Ramus Inland Championship - Rutland8th - 9th May
Bassenthwaite Sailing Club15th/16th MayOnce again Bassenthwaite Sailing Club hosted another excellent open meeting for Flying Fifteens on 15th/16th May but a date clash with Draycote reduced entries somewhat. Boats travelled to the event from as far away as Bala, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Bolton, West Kirby, Royal Western YC and Derwent. A four race series over two days with best 3 results to count was scheduled but, with a distinct lack of wind on Saturday, the joint O.O.Ds Neil Campbell and Nick Smith had more than their fingers crossed. However they managed to get the event away in very light winds after a postponement. Over the weekend die winds got stronger gradually with the last race ending in a nice steady force 2-3. Andrew Dunning and David Lawson still fresh from World Championships in Australia showed that they were in form by opening their score with a win in race 1 but were pushed all the way by GP14 sailor Neil Platt who was rapidly getting to grips with FF3366. Terry Crumpton/John Mathie retired from this race after failing to give enough water to Ian Campbell and Mike Moore causing Ian Campbell to hit both the mark and Mike Moores boat with Ians boat showing tell tale marks of paint and gel coat to prove the point. Terry was very unfortunate at this point as he had just got under way again after being becalmed but Ian and Mike had picked up a gust from behind and were able to come up fast carrying spinnakers, fortunately damage was only superficial. Andrew Dunning was in action again in race two pushing club commodore William Carruthers/Alan Smith over the line before the start gun. A slight collision for good measure meant William had to do a 720, effectively putting him at the back of the fleet. The race was won by visitors Dave Douglas/Andrew Weatherspoon from Derwent with Neil and Judith Currie 2nd and Andrew Dunning 3rd making it a close fought competition. Sunday saw slightly stronger winds yet still warm giving superb sailing weather. Neil Currie sailed an excellent race gradually picking off boats to cross the line in first position with Andrew Dunning and Neil Platt 2nd and 3rd respectively. An excellent lunch served by the ladies from Bass, club's brand new kitchen set everyone up for what was to prove a cracking last race. An exciting start was led by Neil Platt but he crossed the line just before the horn and then failed to hear the second horn. He sailed the whole race generally in the top three only to find he had been disqualified after finishing in second place - very disappointing for the Liverpool visitors. Wendy Somerville/Elaine Fairlamb were in fine form in her new boat leading the fleet to the first mark for the second time before being gradually reined in by other more experienced teams. A ding-dong battle between Andrew Dunning and Neil Currie was resolved in Andrew's favour him and David worthy winners of this series by just one point. Bass member and FF stalwart Scott Beattie missed the event as he watching son Ross play at no. 8 for Newcastle against Wasps in the RU Cup Final at Twickenham. Ross sailed with Scott in the 1997 Worlds at Cowes well as other events when John Somerville was not available. The overall results were
Aldeburgh Yacht Club12th and 13th JuneFlying Fifteens gathered at Aldeburgh for the Tom Ratcliff Trophy over the weekend of the 12th and 13th June. One visitor was Mike Hart, the 1998 National champion, fresh from his 2nd place in the 1999 World Championships held in Esperence, Western Australia. Local sailor Jock Mawson held off the champion for most of the 1st race and Nick Heath of Grafham was well up but by the line Mike had taken the lead. The 2nd race started in torrential rain and no wind. Once the downpour eased the fleet slowly moved off, with Mike again in front. Nick Heath and Jock Mawson gave chase but to no avail. On Sunday, sunshine and a decent breeze made for good competitive sailing. Mike won the 3rd race, again from Nick Heath. A well judged flyer in the 4th saw newlyweds Nick and Jeannie Barker from Aldeburgh take the line and deny the Champion a clean sweep. Richard Burton maintained good mid-fleet results in the Tormentor built "Clovelly Whippet" to retain the Classic Prize for the 2nd year. Results
The Classic Boat Prize : Clovelly Whippet 1046 Richard Burton Draycote Water SC Report from Jock Mawson Dovestone Classic3rd - 4th JulyThe fifth running of this Dovestone Sailing Club classic event (for boats below sail no 2700) took place on the 3rd and 4th July. The fleet was evenly split between the older (boats below 2000 sail no) and younger (boats between 2000 and 2700 sail no) sections. Saturdays condition were generally light and variable. The first race was led from start to finish by Mick Hampson (2641) closely challenged by Richard Burton (1046). The second race sailed in similar conditions saw Richard Burton sail away to a comfortable lead with David Naylor (798) achieving a good second in his recently relaunched Richardson boat, sailing without a spinnaker. Over night with the exception of Richard Burton who had two good results, there was little to separate the others. With all to play for, the competitors were treated to another fitful force one on Sunday morning, probably just as well as they recovered from the evening party and early morning bacon butties. In the third race, the boats remained bunched for the first lap. There were many place changes throughout the fleet. Richard Burton unluckily went for the wrong windward mark and dropped temporarily to the last place. Nick Heath established a good lead mid race and stretched this to a good win. Richard Burton worked his way trough the fleet to second place followed by Mick Hampson. Potentially three boats were in a position to win overall. For the last race, conditions were still taxing Nick Heath gradually established a lead that he held to the finish as the wind gradually rose to an enjoyable force two.
Results:
2001-2700
"Concours" prices were awarded to 1035 UFO, John Dinnie and to 2700 Ffrohlich, Julian Gordon. Report from: David McKee Lowestoft24th - 25th JulyThe conditions were really nice - plenty of sunshine and good breezes. On the Saturday the southerly breeze was shifty enough to make the beats interesting. Bob Smith won the first race comfortably with Robert Hogben in second place. Robert then won race two and so was points leader by Saturday evening. On Sunday there was a steady northerly force four and the Falats won both races to take the Martello Trophy by one point ahead of Robert who in turn was two points ahead of Bob. Results:
Report from Ben Falat
Poole Classic24th - 25th JulyIn conditions that rivalled the Cote d'Azur, 23 Flying Fifteens, including ten visitors, attended the Southern Classic Regatta based at The Royal Motor Yacht Club, Poole in Dorset on 24th/25th July. The competitors enjoyed a variety of courses and conditions, as the two races on Saturday were held in the harbour, whilst on Sunday the fleet stretched its legs in the beautiful confines of Poole Bay. Racing was extremely close and as the results show, a different winner emerged for each of the four races, with everything resting on the final one as the decider. Sailing on their own patch the locals tended to be inhospitable to their visitors on the water, although on shore it was entirely a different matter altogether! The boys who really must be feeling a little "miffed" because they had the boat speed to win, were David Ramsden and Keith Snow, sailing 2932 Copy Cat. They finished first in three races and second in the other, but two OCS cost them dearly! The hospitality and organisation of The Royal Motor Yacht Club were quite excellent, and Sail Chairman Mike Tombs and chief Race Officer Bryan Drake and their teams did a first class job in giving everyone great sailing and a wonderful weekend to remember. Results: 2700 and under
3000 and under
Overall Results
Report from: Nigel Yeoman
Pimms Flying Fifteen Championship of the British Isles4th - 7th AugustTen years after first winning the British Isles Flying Fifteen Championships, sailmaker Alan Bax has become national champion again. This year's event, hosted by Hayling Island S.C. and sponsored by Pimms, consisted of six races sailed within four days (August 4th to 7th). The entry of 45 boats was lower than had been expected but lacked little in competitiveness, containing seven helmsmen who have won world or national titles in the class. Alan's crew Bill Masterman is himself no stranger to Fifteen glory having crewed the winning boat (with Ian Barker) in the 1993 Nationals. Bax and Masterman showed they meant business by winning the first race. The force three south-easterly provided enough shifts to catch out the unwary (or the unfortunate!). David Lucas and Steve Carson took second place and the husband and wife team of Nick and Janet Jerwood were third, a place ahead of reigning world champions Steve Goacher and Phil Evans. Two races were sailed on the following day, both slightly shorter than usual as they were finished at the end of a reach with no final beat. The conditions were ideal with plenty of sunshine and a south-westerly force four. In the morning Goacher and Evans finished first, with last year's champions Mike Hart and Chris Gowers second and the Jerwoods third again. Bax and Masterman were fifth but a second place (behind Hart and Gowers and ahead of Brett and Ben Dingwall) in the afternoon race meant that with three races gone they held a narrow points lead. On the third day the wind was back to a more easterly direction which obviously suited Bax and Masterman who finished first in the morning's race and second in the afternoon. The Jerwoods also had a good day with a second and a first. Hart and Gowers were third both times. So with just one race to go Bax and Masterman were leading overall with the Jerwoods tying with Hart and Gowers for second place. However there was still time for a bit of drama because, despite the black flag flying from the committee boat, the fleet had two general recalls before finally making a clean start. After each recall the sail numbers of the boats caught OCS were shown on a blackboard and amongst them were Alan Bax's and Mike Hart's. While these boats returned to shore, the Jerwoods now had a chance to take the title. In a rather fitful westerly breeze, the lightest of the championship, they rounded the first mark back in eighth place and gradually worked their way towards the front. A win would have given them the championship but they couldn't catch Tim Rush and Jonathan Clark who had established a good lead, and although they managed to take second place this was not quite enough. So the Championship was won by the very relieved team of Bax and Masterman, with the Jerwoods only 1.4 points behind. The first four places all went to Ovington-built boats but Dingwall boats are also making their mark, taking fifth, sixth and ninth places overall. Thanks must go to Peter Wareham and his team of helpers at Hayling for making the event so enjoyable. The berthing at Sparkes Marina worked very well and we were made welcome there as well as at the club itself. The Race Officer kept the whole event running to schedule and even the weather was kind while we were out on the water, the sun shone much of the time and the wind was never too light or too strong. The only time it did really rain was the evening of the hog roast at the Bayliss's house. And then boy did it rain! The hog was last seen swimming, I think! Thanks to Fran and Geoff for what, despite the weather, was still a very enjoyable evening.
Report from: Veronica Falat
Falmouth Week8th - 14th AugustSponsored by Red Stripe Jamaican Lager/Beer The Eclipse put off many of the regulars but there were still fifteen entries of which eight were from Chew Valley but only two Classics. Socially there was a Balti night, a Cantonese night, a buffet at Mike and Ann St. Paer's house and a barbecue at Mylor Yacht Club.
Helford
Mylor
Restronguet
Falmouth Town
Royal Cornwall
St. Mawes
Flushing
Overall
Report from: Gerard Smart
Notts. County11th - 12th SeptemberSaturday 11th September saw a steady 18 knots from the south giving two superb races for the FF meeting held by the growing Notts. County fleet. Seven visitors from as far afield as Royal Windermere joined fourteen home boats to give a fleet of twenty-one. Local hero and sailmaker Tim Rush sailing with Andrew Walters took an early lead in the first race and were never headed. Roger & Claire Wood were second followed by National Champion Alan Bax & Andrew Farmer. The leading boats had an interesting time negotiating the first windward mark which was set to starboard so that spinnakers had to be raised while negotiating the rest of the fleet approaching fast on starboard tack. The second race saw a reverse in fortunes for the leading three boats. Bax & Farmer took first from the Woods with Rush & Walters third. This left all three boats equal with four points overnight. Pauline and her team again gave us a sumptuous evening meal enjoyed by most of the sailors and several visitors who were camping on the club site or staying locally. Sunday dawned with plenty of sunshine but no wind. It looked as though Alan Bax would take the prize on a tiebreak. A very extended breakfast with much discussion about the odd zephyr to be seen on the water allowed us to watch the Grand Prix race start at Monza before Race Officer Alan Stevenson and his Fireball duty crew correctly predicted that a 5 knot wind would come in at 2.30pm allowing a third race to decide the outcome. The three reluctant contenders were eventually persuaded to join in and literally dragged out to the start line. The light conditions suited the Woods who took an early lead and the trophy. Second home were Alex Piggott & Rob Flanagan with Paul Brown and Tony Fenn taking third by a whisker from Will Gardner and Sam Parker. Rush and Walters just beat Bax & Farmer to decide second and third places overall. Will Gardner and Sam Parker took fourth overall with two fourth places. Fifth place and the first Non Smoothie went to Paul Brown & Tony Fenn from the home club. The Classic prize went to Alex Piggott and Robert Flanagan in FF2891 closely followed by John Parr and Martin Kearsley sailing FF 2786. Overall Results:
Classic Prize:
Report from Paul Brown
Middle Nene Sailing Club16th October
On Saturday 16
The light variable E to SE wind contrasted strongly with the gale which decimated the fleet
in October, 1998, and provided a pleasant day of well contested races.
The first race was won by David and Jan Marks (MNSC) in their newly acquired boat ff 2502,
followed by Roger Finch and Jim Reid (MNSC) in ff 2213. Third home was Geoff and Hazel Town
(Broxbourne) in ff 598.
Richard Burton and Tim Gater (DWSC) in ff 1046 won the second race from Roger Finch with
David Marks 3rd and Geoff Town 4th.
This left the final result to be decided on the last race. Richard Burton took and early
lead while David Marks and Roger Finch struggled through the fleet into a final battle for
second place, with David Marks taking the honours.
This gave the trophy to Richard Burton with two first places. David Marks came 2nd
(1st and 2nd) with Roger Finch 3rd. Geoff Town sailed
consistently well to take 4th place.
The competition was followed by a convivial dinner in the MNSC clubhouse which concluded
an enjoyable day for all concerned.
Report from Laurie Jones
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