ff world january 2016

ffWORLD January 2016

1• I N T E R N A T I O N A L F L Y I N G F I F T E E N •

Contents January 2016

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Front cover image by Rick Tomlinson

Editorial 2

UKFFA Presidential Review 3

Secretary’s Scribbles 6

Will Heritage 7

UK National Championship 10

Reflections from France 2015 14

Prizegiving France 2015 16

Dream World 18

Strangford Lough 23

2015 Poole Week 26

Winterising your 15 28

FF World Championships 2017 29

Ossie McCutcheon Regatta 32

2• F L Y I N G F I F T E E N W O R L D 2 0 1 6 •

Changesare afoot.

For the international members the

magazine is going digital and will be

posted on the FFI website. This will be a

cheaper and simpler way of

communicating.

2015 was a world championship year and

hence we have foregrounded that event.

Patrick Constant, Michel Pelegrin and

Olivier Latin were the three Frenchmen

who made it all possible, and we are

delighted to include an article in both

French and English on Michel’s experience

in realising the dream. We are also lucky

enough to have Jeremy Davy’s first-hand

account of his and Martin Huett’s valiant

attempt to take on the mighty Vials and

Turner.

UKFFA President Simon Thompson in his

review of the year analyses current trends

in Flying Fifteen sailing around the British

Isles. In this context it is remarkable that

Will Heritage, at the age of 14, crewed by

his father, won both the Charles Stanley

Cowes Classic Week and Cowes Week.

Moreover, he is shortlisted for the Yachts

& Yachting Young Sailor of the Year. Who

says the Flying Fifteen is a boat for old

men?

As the northern hemisphere season draws

to a close, so it takes off the other side of

the globe. Alongside Chris Turner’s advice

on winterising your 15, you will find an

account of a state championship in

Australia. And because the next World

Championship will be in Napier, New

Zealand in February 2017, a mere fourteen

months away, those thinking of going need

to start planning soon. Graeme Robinson

has written an extensive preview of this

event to help us make up our minds. As

Shakespeare puts it in The Winter’s Tale,

“Thou met’st with things dying; I with

things new-born.”

Crispin Read [email protected]

Editorial

WorldsFrance2015Courtesy of RDB Photographie


UKFFAPresidentialREVIEWOF2015

I am writing this following a

very enjoyable visit to the AGM of the

Parkstone Yacht Club’s Flying Fifteen

fleet. This is probably (“definitely!”, I hear

in the distance from Parkstone) the

largest and most active fleet we have, so

I took the time to hear what their

members had to say about the

challenges the fleet faces over the next

few years.

These can be divided into societal ones

that are not something we can change,

but we can respond to; and more

parochial ones to do with the boat we

sail, and how it is perceived by those

that do not sail it. This latter area leads

us into the discussion of how (if?) we

develop the boat in various ways over

the next few years whilst protecting the

investment and grass roots racing that

happens now.

As I wrote in the previous issue of FF

World, the role of your President has no

job description apart from being a

figurehead. I have striven during the

season just past to discuss with as

many of you as possible your views on

the rights and wrongs of many areas of

our fleet. I find high levels of interest

amongst those that travel to ensure that

we can address the issues of getting

younger sailors into our fine craft and

also getting more new boats built.

However, it will come as no surprise to

you to hear that solutions are not simple

as well as not being ones to be

addressed at an Association level.

Overall situationThe fleet in the UK seems to be suffering

from declining participation due to such

things as an aging crew base and the

increasing issue of commitment of

people to devoting a day to sailing, or to

crewing a two man (as opposed to one

man) boat. A notable exception from

reports is Parkstone YC in Poole, where

new sailors are coming in from other

classes.

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The President in hiking mode


Attendance at Association Championship

events is down which is the trend in a

year when Worlds qualification is not

required.

The UK background is one of declining

participation in dinghy sailing in general,

especially at inland venues. People are

trading down; from cruisers to day

boats, from two man dinghies to single

handers, which is a more a reflection of

crew availability (and willingness to

commit) than one of cost alone.

We also face the competition from the

new growth mass participation sport (in

the UK at least) of cycling. A solo sport

that can be undertaken with others if

required, without taking up a whole day.

This challenge needs to be met at club

level with experience shared via the

association.

Boat availabilityOther issues are a lack of good quality

used boats for sale for new entrants to

the class to purchase. Current owners

are benefiting from the build quality and

longevity of our craft from Ovington

Boats and so changing them less

frequently.

What is missing are 4-6-year-old boats

on the second hand market that are a

competitive route into the class for those

looking to make the move across from

other fleets. These people do not wish

to risk paying for a new boat if they then

find that due to location, crew availability

or other factors that the boat is not for

them. They would be willing to pay

something in the mid-teens (£,000) for a

well put together boat in order to give it

a go.

We saw this happen this year after the

worlds when 3 boats in this price and

age range went up for sale on the

UKFFA website. All were sold for or near

the asking price within two weeks.

My boat was one of these. We were not

planning to change but the discussions I

was having suggested that we could

both sell the boat quickly and get a new

one self–fitted out for a sensible

investment. We made the mistake with

our last boat of not changing it before it

aged too much. In the end we had it for

11 years from new and this was too long.

Hopefully this may provide food for

thought amongst some of you.

Attracting new sailors tothe fleetOur boat was bought by sailors new to

the class who saw all the benefits we

ascribe to the boat when they were

Race Officers at our Scottish Nationals

this year. These were close, competitive

racing in a traditionally rigged boat.

How else are new entrants going to

experience the class? Well, I did suggest

at the FFI meeting in August that we

need to hold special open meetings

where outsiders can come and

experience sailing fifteens in a

competitive environment, perhaps a

combination of coaching on what makes

a F15 different from a dinghy (or larger

sports boat) to sail and then racing in

both long and short form.

Greg Wells took away an action to

develop such an event and hopefully we

will see this in 2016. This cannot happen

however without the co-operation of

current class members as it will have to

be your boats that are used. So please

give feedback to me if you are willing to

be part of this experiment.

Attracting youngersailors to the fleetI keep hearing the phrase - ”the F15 is

an old man’s boat”. Even if we do not

really believe that, we should be careful

about expressing the thought as others

may come to believe it.

We need to start expressing different

thoughts about the boat, and about how

it is so well designed that it is open to the

widest range of sailors of any boat – in

terms of age range and in terms of

overall crew weight; all of whom can

compete effectively for top honours.

Affordable boats are available to younger

entrants to the class that can be

competitive. I note that the second boat

in this year’s world championships is 13

years old! All it usually takes is some skill,

practice, regular boat maintenance and

reasonable sails.

One generic problem that we all face is

that we have lots of youth who sail and

then they go to University and then get

lost to the sport. The 18-25 age range is

an important one to keep in touch with.

They usually cannot afford a boat

themselves even if they wanted to

continue sailing. I also had this problem

when in that age range but my solution

was to crew an older person who did

have a boat; just another member of my

sailing club. That took me through my

first 7 years sailing International 14s by

which time I was hooked!

We need to have both a push and a pull

programme to grow sailors in this age

range – current fifteeners can do their bit

by asking younger people to crew them,

but it also needs a bit of push to ensure

that the attractions of a F15 get more

widely known and appreciated.

As part of that push, I am pleased to

announce that we have had a volunteer

for a role that did not previously exist in

the fleet, that of Youth Development

officer. Patrick Condy from Scotland

came forward and said that he loved the

class and wanted others in his age range

to be able to appreciate it as well. I

asked Patrick to present a plan for this

which he has done and now have asked

him to implement this. If you or your club

is approached by Patrick please provide

him with help and support and perhaps

also be proactive and supply him with

information from your fleet. He can be

reached at [email protected].

He will focus on generating publicity for

the class that emphasises cost effective

ways to get sailing from boat ownership

to finding a crewing slot.

Future developments tothe boat itselfThere are two areas currently being

discussed in relation to where we take

the development of the boat itself;

Weight and Sails. Neither should be a

surprise to any of you.

There are good arguments in favour of

action and inaction in both areas, but I

wish to develop these further here to

help all see both sides of the issues and

perhaps enable solutions to be

uncovered.


Boat weightThe all up boat weight is currently

307Kg. Of this the Hull component is

136Kg. This is not the weight that Uffa

Fox designed the boat for however.

Following the introduction of exotic

manufacturing materials (that is – not

wood) the minimum weight of the boat

was increased by 11Kg to ensure that

wood and GRP boats sailed on an even

keel.

As Uffa Fox said “weight is only useful in

a steam roller). The impact of this

change was that sheet loads became

higher.

Over the passage of time boat builders

have improved their art and can now

build new boats well under the original

minimum weight. Most new boats now

come with >20Kg of lead to bring them

up to weight.

What FFI are going to be proposing is

that a start be made in redressing this

bulking up of the boat by an initial weight

reduction of an amount yet to be agreed.

The FFI council meeting at Crozon

Morgat heard from the FFI Chief

Measurer all the information about the

spread of correctors on our fleet over the

past years. At that time, it was seen

reasonable to go for a 10Kg reduction in

boat weight, given that most boats who

attend championships would only need

to remove correctors and not attend to

other ways to remove weight.

Subsequent feedback from National

Associations is seeing that commitment

waver to be replaced by a 5Kg

reduction. Some even feel that we

should not be seeking to reduce weight

at all. Some facts: for all boats registered

since 1999 (one 3rd of the current fleet),

only 15% of these have less than 5Kg of

correctors.

It seems that the pace of weight

reduction is going to be glacial. You will

be asked to vote to advise UKFFA on the

aggregate view of the fleet. The ballot is

expected to take place in June 2016.

Please think before you vote of the wider

benefit to the fleet rather than a view

based on your current boat. This

reduction would not apply until March

2017 anyway. Will you still be sailing?

Can you actually take some weight out

by replacing some part of your boat?

The questions about sailsThese are;

• How many

• How often

• What Material

• What sail plan

For a fleet like Parkstone where they

race up to 3 times per week, a set of

sails gets worn out pretty quickly. So

having a competitive set for both club

racing and open meetings/national

championships is a difficult balancing

act. The mainsail may last two years but

the genoa and spinnaker could

reasonably be expected to be worn out

in 6 months of racing.

So what does this mean for areas like

getting new sail makers into the class?

If a boat owner can only have one suit of

sails per year, then he is not easily going

to experiment with sails from other

sailmakers or wish to take a risk with

novel sail design. Also used sails are

going to be well used and probably

provide little benefit to the sailor lower

down the fleet who would like newer

sails with a bit more go in them but is

averse to forking out for a new set.

One approach to this I have heard

mentioned is to have a limit on the

number of individual sails purchased in

any one year (a number of 5 was

mentioned) but no stipulation as to what

sails. Others have said why have a limit

at all. I now hear the voices crying

“cheque book” sailing. I do understand

the thought behind that phrase.

However, if someone is buying 2-3 suits

of sails per year then is it not to be

expected that they will wish to offload

some of those the following year without

too much wear? Does this not offer

some benefit to those sailors with

smaller budgets?

What if it is our sail makers themselves

who use this freedom to use extra sails?

Ultimately they are in business to make

a living and are not going to sit on

multiple sets of unused sails for no

reason. It would also give them the

chance to experiment more – not all

experiments are successful.

There is no proposal before UKFFA on

this subject so no change is on the cards

as yet. If you feel this needs addressing

the Association has to vote on this,

before it then goes to the FFI Council. So

if you wish change in this area then start

lobbying your fellow members as a

change in this area was voted down at

the AGM this year.

On the subject of sail material, we enter

a contentious area. I have heard from

class members saying we should move

to new materials as it will make the boat

look more modern. I have heard from

other fleets who have made the change

that we should not do it – the new

materials do not make better sails. The

Association has no stance on this matter

but seeks to be guided by its members.

Finally, on the subject of the sail plan, we

all perhaps remember the abortive trials

of a proposed new sail plan from a few

years ago. Discussions are now

confined to a possible new higher

aspect genoa. This has as its goal

reducing the foot length and thus giving

better visibility to leeward for helms. This

would be achieved by raising the height

of the head towards the mast.

In conclusionI do not apologise for such a lengthy

article. I feel it is my job to both listen to

and communicate back what I hear to

the wider membership; I have done a lot

of listening!

My term as your President ends after the

National Championships in 2016 and

Bobby Salmond will become your new

President. One present I would like to

leave him is a new Vice-President. So

please think about giving back to your

fleet and volunteering for this role. It is

open to any Association member, helm

or crew. It helps if you get to the open

meetings and like socialising. As

President you represent the ordinary

member on the committee. I have

enjoyed the experience and commend

the role to anyone.

I wish you good sailing over the winter if

that is what you do, or have a great

winter beside a warm fire or in the pub. I

look forward to seeing you at open

meetings around the country in 2016.

Simon Thompson

President UKFFA


Secretary’sScribblesThis job can be a lot of fun

and you get to spend a lot of time with

and talking to some really committed

people who love their sailing and love

sailing Flying Fifteens. Many I meet at

open meetings, championships and

other events: these are great occasions

for catching up and getting the latest

gossip on who is doing what where and

with whom; all in the best possible taste,

darlings (sorry, went a bit Kenny there

[Everett not Pietersen]). This is great as I

get to hear what needs to happen to

make the class bolder better and more

attractive and these things are all good

because the people telling me this stuff

are go-ahead competitive people who

really want the best for the class.

This is all good and we really need

people to come up with ideas to help us

attract more sailors into the class and

more members into the association. We

need to show people what good fun the

boats are to sail, that the racing we put

on is good, and that the class makes

financial sense for them to get into. We,

along with the relevant host club, put a

lot of effort into the events to try to give

the sailors what they want, which I’m

sure is not that different from what I

suggest above.

However, as secretary I also get to meet

and talk with other committed and keen

people from all walks of life and also

from all over the country who rarely if

ever travel with their boats. If they attend

a championship or open it’s because it

is being held at their club. These sailors

are no less enthusiastic and would share

the same desires as I mention and they

too will help us attract more sailors into

our boats.

We are indeed a broad church and this

is a good thing as we cover off lots of

different benefits to different groups of

people. This, though, can be a problem

when it comes to change as I hear

differing opinions, very often polarised.

One group will want radical decisive bold

changes and see this as the only way

forward, the other want a steady

programme of development and

updating that keeps their boats

competitive and relevant.

The dilemma, then, for us your loyal

administrators is how we keep both

schools of thought on board [no pun

intended] because we need each other.

We need the dynamic individuals who

will attend championships and open

meetings, giving us something to write

about and make us look attractive in the

sailing media. We also need the

committed club sailors who turn out

once or twice a week, sail 20 – 30 or

more races a year but never travel, and

enjoy their leisure time at their club.

These are our grass roots, those people

who demonstrate on a local level that

you can have great club racing in a really

fun boat that allows a great cross

section of the sailing community to

compete on a level playing field.

So when we are thinking of putting

forward changes for consideration,

making arguments for or against

change, even drafting a suggested rule

or ballot paper, let’s not look at it through

the narrow prism of our particular view.

Let’s not even think about how it will

push the class forward or hold it back,

let’s think about how we can keep

everyone in the boat they chose for

whatever reason, or on which side of our

broad church they are sitting.

I’ve had a great season and I hope you

have too, hoping you have a festive

Christmas and a good season next year.

Keith Jamieson

Keith crewing Justin Waples in hot pursuit of brother Chris at this year’s Nationals

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Sailing the Flying 15 with

Dad this summer has been fantastic.

We bought a 1996 Ivan Coryn boat that

Dad re-painted and re-fitted adding new

spars and sails. I am very keen on

ropework so, with the help of Dad’s

rigger at work, I made a lot of the control

lines and sheets for the boat myself.

We sail from Cowes Corinthian Yacht

Club and as well as us there were a

couple of other boats joining the fleet

this year. A further new boat will be

joining next year (4004 Foof, the double

world champion boat, now owned by

Andy Storrar. Ed.) so resurgence is

continuing within the Flying 15 fleet in

Cowes.

Before we competed in our first race we

had a couple of training sails as I had

never sailed a Flying 15 before (and it

has been years since Dad sailed one).

The Tuesday night series was good for

us and as well as being great fun it

helped us get up to speed with the other

club boats in a series of short evening

races in varying wind strengths.

Our main goal this year was Cowes

week, but at the last minute we decided

to enter the Charles Stanley Classic

Week. This turned out to be the heaviest

conditions we had sailed in with plenty

of wind and a good Solent chop which

took a bit of getting used to. I am so glad

we took the spinnaker chute out and

fitted cockpit bags instead, especially

when we hit a big wave. I was also really

happy to have 120kg of Dad crewing for

me, but I will have to get him to hike

even harder.

Dad was happy for me to make most of

the tactical decisions. We did discuss

the tides and our best route but the

starts were all mine.

We had a great four days ending up

winning the Regatta. With visiting boats

from as far away as Scotland and Kent

it was a good pointer towards our next

event.

Cowes Week was a great fun week with

eleven boats participating. We had a

variety of conditions and some good

battles with Rupert Maunder, the man to

beat and World Champion in 1992. We

managed to get ahead of him in some of

the races but just couldn’t hold him

behind us. We finished second in all but

two races; Rupert did not sail the

Saturdays which allowed us to win the

week (thank you Rupert!). Winning the

last race with the classic Cowes Week

finish, running down the green with the

spinnaker up to the line at the Royal

Yacht Squadron was a real highlight for

me.

It was fantastic to win such a famous

week and I also won the Young Skipper

trophy for under 25 helms, which was a

great bonus. I’m looking forward to next

year already.

Having done nearly all my sailing in

Optimists, Laser 4.7 and Radials since I

was eight years old, I was surprised how

good the Flying 15 was to sail, even with

a keel. The first windy spinnaker reach

we had was fantastic. It was at that point

I was sold on the 15. As well as racing

the boat I enjoy setting up the rig and

sails, although I still have a lot to learn

and have found Steve Goacher’s tuning

guide really helpful. I am really looking

forward to next year; as well as sailing in

Cowes it would be great to do a couple

of open meetings and with the Nationals

at Hayling Island that is not too far away.

Dad is always telling me how he started

sailing Flying Fifteens with his Dad in

1971 on the river Medway and now I am

sailing one with him. It has sort of come

full circle and I am really looking forward

to sailing the Fifteen for many years to

come.

Will Heritage

WillHeritageCleansupatCowesATTHEAGEOF14

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Straight away, competition was hot with current World

Champions, Graham Vials and Chris Turner, leading the way

in the first race. They were not to have it all their own way

though, and at the end of the first day, although they topped

the leaderboard, they shared the same points tally as Richard

Lovering and Matt Alvarado. Steve Goacher and Tim Harper

were also in the mix with a bullet in the third race.

Unfortunately, day two was a disappointment; with no wind

whatsoever, no racing was possible. We were also due a visit

from HRH the Princess Royal but technical problems with

aircraft meant that too was off the menu.

So to Tuesday, and with an extra race squeezed in to make

up for the previous day, three races were held in excellent

conditions. Charles Apthorp and Alan Green led the way in the

first race but two seconds were sufficient for Lovering and

Alvarado to retain top spot, Vials and Turner having headed

home to fulfil other commitments. David McKee and Andy

Weatherspoon had also obviously found form and a string of

solid results were topped off with a first in the last race of the

day.

Only one race had been scheduled for the last day to make

for an early start home for those with a long distance to travel.

The decision was made, however, to make the most of the

superb conditions and run two races to complete the full

series. It was to prove Goacher/Harper's day with two bullets

but a second in the first race was enough to secure top spot

for Lovering/Alvarado, just one point ahead of

Goacher/Harper. Third and fourth places were also separated

by just one point with Apthorp/Green just sneaking it to take

third overall.

In the Classic Fleet the father son duo of Alasdair Ireland and

Alasdair Ireland Jr secured top spot with the aid of a very

creditable ninth overall in the penultimate race.

UKNationalChampionshipNEILLROSSREPORTS

35 boatscompeted in the UKGlobal Flying Fifteen UK

Nationals hosted by the Royal Northern & Clyde Yacht Club from 12th to 15th

July on the Clyde.

Goacher/Harper

Photography by Neill Ross


Lovering/Alvarado


Nationals2015


On arrival at Crozon-Morgat,

any concerns about the late change in

venue for the 2015 Worlds soon

subsided as it became clear that the

Centre Nautique Crozon-Morgat was in

a great location and was professionally

managed by a team who knew how to

run successful sailing events. Martin and

I were unable to take part in the Pre-

Worlds due to other commitments and,

therefore, we arrived in France knowing

that we would be playing catch-up with

the majority of competitors who did

compete in the preliminary event.

Fortunately, the talk in the boat park after

the final race of the Pre-Worlds

reinforced our perception of the venue:

it would provide a fair test and was not

a particularly technical race track.

Before we could go sailing, we had to

put the boat and equipment through

scrutineering. In my view this remains an

essential part of any Worlds and the

Fifteens are fortunate to have an

extremely well-organised international

measurement team that focus on the

key performance areas to ensure that

the measurement process is robust

whilst being relatively painless! Most

importantly, all boats were weighed,

which is the absolute bare minimum

measurement requirement at a major

championship for any serious racing

class. I have to salute the FF

measurement team for doing such an

excellent job – we should not forget that

we rely heavily on the work of volunteers

who undertake often thankless tasks for

the love of our great class.

When racing finally got underway on day

two after a “false start” from a lack of

wind, Race 1 (arguably, the trickiest race

of the whole event) provided light and

patchy winds which tested everyone’s

patience to the limit. Graham Vials and

Chris Turner did what Graham and Chris

often do and sailed a flawless race to

win comfortably. In fact, the winning

margin was so comfortable that Graham

even had time to relieve himself whilst

sailing the final reach to the finish!

ReflectionsfromFrance2015JEREMYDAVY

Jeremy Davy and Martin Huett finished second overall in their fourteen year old boat, 3760

Crowded start line

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We (in second place) consoled ourselves

that our bladders had stood up better to

the rigours of a long opening race and a

plentiful supply of hydration drinks! Alan

Bax and Mark Darling held off the

chasing group to secure third and

proceeded to spend the rest of the week

at the sharp end of the fleet.

Race 2 proved to be our regatta high

point (although we didn’t know it at the

time) after managing to hold off Graham

and Chris for a race win. After a

disappointing first race, Greg Wells and

Richard Rigg found themselves back in

familiar territory, finishing third.

Day 3 was an impromptu Lay Day, this

time due to too much wind. The

undoubted highlight of the day was an

al fresco lunch in one of the many

restaurants in Crozon-Morgat, watching

Apthorp senior and Apthorp junior

(surely a future FF champion in the

making?) put their FF through its paces

in seriously windy conditions in the

harbour! If you’ve missed the YouTube

clip I can recommend it although, to

properly recreate the moment, you’ll

need a full glass of red wine in one hand!

The following day dawned with strong

winds and Race 3 was certainly a

memorable affair with gusts of 30+

knots. Just keeping the spinnaker pole

in the retainer on the boom was a

challenge as boats bounced around on

the large waves before the start,

something Steve Goacher (and crew

Tim Harper) found when they managed

to snap their spinnaker pole in half

during a pre-start tack, proving that even

the best can fall victim to the sort of

mishaps that usually only affect us mere

mortals. If anyone was under the

misapprehension that Graham and

Chris’ phenomenal speed derives from

their un-Ffifteen-like reduced all-up crew

weight, the first beat of Race 3

demonstrated that technique trumps

“grunt” every time! They flew upwind and

rounded first having had, by their

standards, a mediocre start. From that

point, they sailed unchallenged to their

second win. Andy McKee and Rich

Jones demonstrated that they intended

to provide a robust challenge by scoring

the first of three consecutive third

places.

Day 5 provided perfect sailing conditions

with winds of 12-15 knots. By this stage,

Graham and Chris were firmly in the

groove and two race wins all but sealed

their third World Championship victory.

As their nearest rivals, we were keen to

keep the pressure up but, if a fifth place

in the first race of the day felt like we had

failed in that objective, the black flag in

the next race all but handed the title to

Graham and Chris. After an uncharac-

teristically slow start to the regatta,

Richard Lovering and Matt Alvarado

were finally showing the form that had

secured the UK National Title in the

previous month and scored two second

places.

The final day brought winds of 10-12

knots and a tricky chop. Graham and

Chris had built up a big enough lead to

enjoy the comfort of knowing that,

regardless of the results of their nearest

contenders, a top six result would

secure the title. They finished sixth and

headed for home, safe in the knowledge

that a historic third title in a row had been

achieved. The day, however, belonged

to Charles Apthorp and Alan Green who

scored a first and a second. Ex-Fireball

World Champion, Crispin Read-Wilson

and crew, Steve Brown, proved that

form is temporary but class is

permanent by rounding the week off

with a dominant performance in the final

race to take line honours.

Throughout our week in Crozon-Morgat,

there was a genuine buzz around the

town and no more so than on the

evening of the prize giving held in the

main square in the centre of the town.

Locals gathered with Ffifteeners to

watch proceedings and applaud the

newly-crowned champions and other

prize winners.

If ever anyone could be described as a

stalwart of the FF Class, it’s Greg Wells.

It was, therefore, fitting that a fantastic

event should end with Greg being asked

to step down from the podium (having

finished the event in third place) to

receive the Uffa Fox Medal for his

outstanding service to the class.

In summary, the Crozon-Morgat Worlds

was an unconditional success with a

good turnout of nearly 80 boats, the full

spectrum of sailing conditions and very

worthy winners. Roll on New Zealand

2017!

A family affair: Martin Huett and Jeremy Davy

Photo

gra

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esy

of S

imon T

hom

pson


PrizegivingFrance2015Photograph courtesy of Simon Thompson

Jeremy Davy and Martin Huett, winners race 2

Charles Apthorp and Alan Green (l), winners race 6

Crispin Read Wilson and Steve Brown, winners race 7

Graham Vials (r) and Chris Turne

Greg Wells receiving

Christian Hardy and


er, winners races 1, 3, 4, 5 and triple world champions

John Clarke and Michael Scholes, winners of the Classic Division

g the Uffa Fox medal from Geoff Bayliss

d Thomas Camus, winners Silver Division

Fabien and Alexia Constant, first French team

Philippa Packer, first woman, crewed by Dean Macaullay (r)


It was a dream that started

imperceptibly, without anyone really

noticing. Our beloved president Patrick

Constant’s opening gambit was, "And

since you seem so determined that the

next World Championship should take

place in France, I suppose you're

prepared to organise it with me?” Then

came the discussions with Hyères - the

club favoured by our British friends - who

agreed to do it, but subsequently

executed a volte-face. This was followed

by the short-listing of other potential

venues, Crozon-Morgat and Douarnenez.

Patrick went off to visit the two clubs and

he came back enthused: "At Crozon-

DreamWorld

Life in the Committee Boat

Triple World Champions stretch their lead

C’est un rêve qui a démarré en douceur, sans

qu’on s’en rende vraiment compte. Notre bienaimé président

Patrick Constant me lançant : « et puisque tu as l’air si motivé

pour que le prochain Mondial de la classe ait lieu en France,

je suppose que tu es prêt à t’en occuper avec moi ? » Après,

sont venues les discussions avec Hyères – c’est le club

qu’avaient pressenti nos amis britanniques – qui a donné son

accord pour faire ensuite volte-face, la sélection des autres

candidatures prometteuses, Crozon-Morgat et Douarnenez,

Patrick partant visiter les deux clubs et son retour

enthousiaste : « A Crozon-Morgat j’ai rencontré des gens

RêvedeMondial

Photography courtesy of RDB Photographie


Morgat I met hyper-motivated people; the director of the club

is a guy like that (gesture of crossed fingers), the place is

superb, the sailing waters are magnificent, and everybody

including the Mayor assured me: ‘Everything that can be done

to make your Championship successful, we will do!’ " And,

hey presto, we were up and running. Or almost. The name of

Crozon-Morgat having not yet gained the full international

recognition that the club, the village and the water deserves,

our then President of FFI, Greg Wells, came and checked out

the venue himself, in order to secure the support of the

(understandably) cautious international federation. Greg was

impressed by the calibre of the club's executive director, Olivier

Latin, and by the total and astonishing absence of current in

the bay, making it an ideal water for high-level regattas.

Normally, this is when the problems start and when reality

replaces the dream: where you realise the enormity of what

needs to be prepared, the difficulty of communicating with all

the people involved, to discuss, evaluate, understand and be

understood, negotiate, extract decisions; the need to make

and re-make checklists, the conference calls, the chains of

email discussions, always with the anxiety of forgetting

something vital. But, little by little, Olivier’s energy and amazing

receptivity created an infectious optimism and with Patrick and

Greg in combination, obstacles were eradicated and

everything became plain sailing.

Our first meeting on site in Morgat with Olivier, Yvon Macé, the

president, and Philippe Quéré, the secretary of CNCM, set the

tone. The late season weather was beautiful and the road via

Plougastel and Le Faou gave us breathtaking views of Brest

harbour and its estuaries, including the Aulne and its

improbable graveyard of warships which you discover at a

bend. On arrival, the Morgat beach at low tide, the little

harbour, the clubhouse, the warmth of the welcome, the

enthusiasm of the staff of the club, all combined to give Patrick

and me the immediate certainty that the event could only be

a magnificent success.

Vials and Turner (22) off the start line

hyper-motivés, le directeur du club est un type comme ça

(geste à l’appui), l’endroit est superbe, le plan d’eau

magnifique, et tous y compris M. le Maire m’ont assuré : « tout

ce qu’il faut faire pour que votre championnat soit réussi, nous

le ferons ! » Et voilà, c’était parti. Ou presque. Le nom de

Crozon-Morgat n’ayant pas encore acquis toute la notoriété

internationale que méritent le club, le village et le plan d’eau,

notre commodore Greg Wells a tout de même eu besoin de

venir vérifier lui-même, sans doute pour mieux emporter

l’adhésion de la fédération internationale, un tantinet

conservatrice. Mais Greg a été impressionné par la qualité du

directeur exécutif du club, Olivier Latin, et par la totale et

étonnante absence de courant dans la baie, qui en fait un plan

d’eau idéal pour des régates de haut niveau.

Normalement, c’est là que les em…bêtements commencent

et que la réalité remplace l’utopie : on se rend compte de la

somme de ce qu’il y a à préparer, de la difficulté de

communiquer avec tous ces gens impliqués, discuter, évaluer,

comprendre, se faire comprendre, négocier, obtenir des

décisions… On se dit qu’il va falloir faire et refaire des check-

lists, des « conference calls », des chaînes de discussion

email, avec toujours l’angoisse de négliger quelque chose

d’important… Mais petit à petit l’énergie et la disponibilité

incroyables d’Olivier créent un optimisme contagieux, et avec

Patrick et Greg à la manœuvre, les obstacles s’aplanissent et

tout devient facile.

Notre première réunion de travail sur place à Morgat avec

Olivier bien sûr, Yvon Macé le président et Philippe Quéré le

secrétaire du CNCM avait donné le ton. Le temps d’arrière-

saison était superbe, et la route par Plougastel et Le Faou

nous avait offert des vues époustouflantes de la rade de Brest

et de ses rivières, dont l’Aulne et son improbable cimetière de

navires de guerre qu’on découvre à un tournant. En arrivant,

la plage de Morgat à marée basse, le petit port, le club-house,

la chaleur de l’accueil, l’enthousiasme de l’état-major du club,

tout nous a donné à Patrick et à moi la certitude immédiate


As a curtain-raiser for the Worlds, we had

three days of our National Championship.

A good warm-up, with fifty boats on the

line, general recalls and "black flags", and

for many the discovery, or re-discovery, of

what it means to navigate in a densely

packed one-design fleet. The French took

the opportunity to become familiar with

some typical phrases: "Starboard!",

"Water!", "Luff!" and sometimes "Protest!".

On our return to shore there was

teamwork and camaraderie to haul the

boats out of the water and back up the

slipway – not a steep incline, but still a

long slope, especially at low water.

Helping hands were happily offered by

young and not so young club volunteers -

they are here gratefully acknowledged, as

are the tireless volunteers who worked to

prepare pancakes and serve (half) pints of

cider and (full) pints of local beer to a

cheerful army of the thirsty who continued the regatta around

this Finistérienne version of the beach-bar.

On the Nationals results sheet, the Brits monopolized the top

of the table; the first "foreigner" at ninth was an Australian.

Overall winners, double world champions Graham Vials and

Chris Turner, and first French, Alexia and Fabien Constant,

newly married and whose speed under spinnaker was up

there with the best.

A break of one day followed to accommodate the latest

arrivals, especially our Belgian friends, and allow them to pass

the measurement checks, and the World Championship could

start. 72 boats at the start now, the line seemed both huge

and densely populated, not easy to create a slot. Fortunately,

each race seemed to offer so many reasons to play the right

or the left or to work the middle of the course that the fleet

Apthorp father and son

que l’évènement ne pouvait être qu’un magnifique succès.

En lever de rideau du Mondial, nous avions les trois jours de

notre National. Un bon échauffement, avec 50 bateaux sur la

ligne, des rappels généraux et des « black flags », et pour

beaucoup la (re-) découverte de ce que veut dire naviguer au

sein d’une flotte monotype dense. Les francophones en

profitent pour se familiariser avec quelques expressions

typiques : « starboard ! », « water ! », « luff ! » et autres «

protest ! ». Mais de retour à terre, c’est une démonstration

d’entraide et de camaraderie pour sortir les bateaux de l’eau

et leur faire remonter la cale, certes en pente douce mais tout

de même… Des bras bienveillants sont par bonheur offerts

par les jeunes et moins jeunes bénévoles du club – qu’ils

soient ici chaleureusement remerciés. Ainsi que les

infatigables volontaires qui s’activent à préparer des crêpes

et servir des (demi) pintes de cidre et des (vraies) pintes de

bière locale à une joyeuse armée d’assoiffés qui refont la

régate autour du bar de plage version finistérienne.

Sur la feuille de résultats du National, les britanniques trustent

le haut du tableau, le premier « étranger » est 9ème, c’est un

Australien. Vainqueurs au général, les (pour l’instant) doubles

champions du Monde Graham Vials et Chris Turner, et

premiers français, Alexia et Fabien Constant, tout jeunes

mariés et dont la vitesse sous spi est au niveau de celle des

meilleurs.

Un break d’une journée pour accueillir les derniers arrivants,

nos amis belges en particulier, et leur permettre de passer les

opérations de jauge, et le Mondial peut démarrer. 72 bateaux

au départ maintenant, la ligne semble à la fois immense et

densément peuplée, pas facile de se faire sa place…

Heureusement, chaque manche semble offrir autant de

raisons de jouer la droite que la gauche ou que de préférer

tricoter au centre, si bien que la flotte se répartit assez

naturellement. Le tarif habituel est malgré tout de 2 rappels

généraux par manche.

Patrick Constant and Michel Pélegrin


divided fairly naturally. The usual tally was still two general

recalls per race.

When we get off to a good start, we can observe from close

quarters the "top guns" who are already in the front rank (but

how do they manage to start better than everyone else?), then

after a few tacks it's over, whoosh, they’ve gone. As we

approach the windward mark on the starboard layline, the fleet

is still pretty dense, careful, don’t gradually sag below the

layline ... Tactically, my crew Erwan Gouriou and I learn a lot,

often painfully. Under spinnaker, on the bananas (the English

call them "sausages") there are options. We see two lines

form: on the right those who bore away at the mark on

starboard; on the left those who gybed off straight away, and

down the middle some smart sailors who have gybed on the

shifts. The leeward mark arrives quickly, or rather two marks,

not easy to choose between the right ("It seems to me that

the right is less crowded, there will be clearer wind for the

beat") and the left ("we can creep down to leeward, if we start

early enough, then we can call water and gain five places"),

damn, we should have chosen the other side, too bad, let’s

go, we start again, we remotivate, we stay focused, there is

still something to be gained…

A dream indeed with images, feelings, memories. I remember

Bernard Demartial getting tips on tuning from an anonymous

Quand on arrive à faire un départ correct, on peut observer

d’assez près les « top guns » qui sont déjà aux avant-postes

(mais comment font-ils pour se lancer mieux que tout le

monde ?), et puis après quelques virements, c’est fini, pfuit,

envolés… A l’approche de la bouée de près sur la layline

tribord, la flotte est encore bien dense, attention à ne pas se

laisser progressivement dériver sous la layline… Tactiquement,

mon équipier Erwan Gouriou et moi apprenons beaucoup, un

peu dans la douleur. Sous spi, sur les bananes (des «

saucisses » pour les anglophones), il peut y avoir des options.

On voit deux trains se former, à droite ceux qui sont partis à la

bouée en « bare away », à gauche ceux qui ont empannés

très tôt, au milieu quelques malins qui suivent les oscillations

et multiplient les empannages. La bouée de vent arrière arrive

vite, ou plutôt les bouées, pas facile de choisir entre la droite

(« j’ai l’impression qu’il y a moins de monde, on aura du vent

frais pour le près ») et la gauche (« on s’infiltre sous le vent, si

on s’engage suffisamment tôt, on réclame de l’eau et on

gagne 5 places »), zut, on aurait dû choisir l’autre côté

finalement, tant pis, allez, c’est reparti, on se remotive, on

reste concentrés, il y a de quoi se refaire…

Un rêve en effet, avec des images, des sensations, des

souvenirs. Je revois Bernard Demartial obtenant d’un anglais

anonyme équipé de voiles P&B qu’il le tuyaute sur ses

réglages, sans se douter qu’il s’agit d’Alan Bax « himself ».

Reaching action


Greg Wells plots his next move

Graham Vials partageant avec son enthousiasme

communicatif ses réglages pour équipage léger dans la brise

(merci Graham !). Gilles Chevalier se faisant pénaliser pour

rocking en se demandant encore pourquoi. Bertrand Semaille

se fendant gentiment tous les soirs d’un résumé de la journée.

Yves Defrance au dîner de clôture accompagnant chants et

danses au bandonéon en tapant la mesure avec ardeur. Greg

en fin de mandat, nettement ému en recevant sa médaille Uffa

Fox. Tous ces échanges multilingues, parfois un peu gauches,

toujours amicaux, souvent chaleureux. C’est bien ça le rêve,

en fait, se retrouver toutes nationalités, tous âges et tous

niveaux mélangés, échanger et participer de tout son cœur à

un évènement qui appartient à tous, ceux qui l’ont préparé et

ceux qui l’ont vécu. Un rêve qui prend corps petit à petit et

dont on s’aperçoit à la fin qu’il a tenu ses promesses. A bientôt

à Dinard, Hayling Island, Medemblik, Napier et ailleurs. J’adore

ce bateau, vive le Flying Fifteen

Michel Pélegrin d’Almeïda

FRA 3932 « jamais deux »

(ex GBR 3932 à Chris Swallow)

Englishman with a suit of P & B sails unaware that this was Alan

Bax himself. Graham Vials enthusiastically sharing his sail

settings for lightweight crews in a breeze (Graham, thank you!).

Gilles Chevalier being penalized for rocking while still wondering

why. Bertrand Semaille kindly churning out every night a

summary of the day. Yves Defrance at the closing dinner

accompanying songs and dances on his bandonéon, beating

time with ardour. Greg at the end of presidency, clearly moved

by receiving his Uffa Fox medal. All the multilingual exchanges,

sometimes a little clumsy, always friendly, often heartfelt. It’s a

great dream, in fact, for all nationalities and all levels and ages

to meet and mix, exchange knowledge and participate

wholeheartedly in an event that belongs to all, both those who

organised and those who lived it. It was a dream which took

shape little by little and which can be seen . Roll on Dinard,

Hayling Island, Medemblik, Napier and beyond. I love this boat,

long live the Flying Fifteen!

Michel Pélegrin d’Almeïda

FRA 3932 "jamais deux"

(ex Chris Swallow’s GBR 3932)


STRANGFORDLough in County Down, on the eastern

side of Northern Ireland, is the largest

seawater inlet in Britain. With its coves,

mudflats, pladdies and at least seventy

islands, it’s an internationally renowned

area for wildlife. It is also a boating

paradise and a great place to sail a

Flying Fifteen.

The lough got its name from the Vikings,

who came from across the Irish Sea to

pillage and plunder. They called it

‘Stronge Fjorde’ in reference to the

fearsome tides which swept their

longships through its narrow entrance

which is still known today as The

Narrows.

An even earlier visitor was St Patrick

who had to navigate its treacherous

waters on his mission to bring

Christianity to the pagan Irish and whose

statue gazes benignly down on the main

body lough from a nearby hilltop. Patrick

built his first church in Ireland a few miles

inland at a place called Saul — the Irish

word for barn — and lies buried in

Downpatrick, the historic county town of

Down, which was once an important

trading port thanks to its proximity to the

lough.

Sheltered by the Ards Peninsula to the

east and the magnificent Mourne

Mountains to the south, Strangford

Lough is a cradle of Christianity. It’s also

a very special place for Flying Fifteen

sailors and with a respectful nod to

those from Dublin Bay and Belfast

Lough, who might claim otherwise, it

can be argued that Strangford Lough is

the spiritual home of Flying Fifteen sailing

in Ireland.

The founding fathers were two brothers,

Max and Peter Browne. After their

interest was sparked by a magazine

article about a 20-foot performance

keelboat, they obtained a set of plans

from Uffa Fox and set about building a

boat in a borrowed shed near their home

at Mahee Island at the northern end of

the lough.

Wood was hard to find in the austerity

years following World War 2 but in 1952

Strangford Lough’s first Flying Fifteen,

Witch of Nendrum (No 84), was

launched. They sailed at Strangford

Lough Yacht Club at nearby Whiterock

and the boat proved such a hit that other

members quickly decided that a Flying

Fifteen was the must have boat.

STRANGFORDLOUGHBYMARCUSCRICHTON

Pat McAuley in Vixen, British champion in 1960, sailing off Portaferry


By 1956 there were over thirty Flying

Fifteens at the club. That same year

SLYC hosted the Championship of the

British Isles and the Browne brothers,

Max at the helm and Peter crewing,

stormed to victory in a 40-plus fleet

which included the Duke of Edinburgh in

the celebrated Coweslip. The Duke’s

crew was one Uffa Fox.

Two years later Peter was a champion

again when he crewed Willie Carson to

victory on the Tay in Scotland. It was the

start of a golden era. Over the next

twenty-five years Strangford Lough

churned out British champions like

goods on a conveyor belt. In 1960 SLYC

were celebrating again when Pat

McAuley and his crew, Tom Finnegan,

won the championship on the Clyde in

Vixen (No 210). Two years later, when

the championship returned to the lough,

the victors were the husband-and-wife

team of Terence and Bridget Kennedy in

Icarus (No 440). They would go to win it

again in 1966.

In 1970 another husband-and-wife team

from Whiterock, Peter and Anne

McAuley, triumphed in Cork in Cuchulain

(No 1095), which was the first glass-fibre

boat to win championship. The following

year, Tom and Dianne Andrews, whose

father was the aforementioned Willie

Carson, went to Cowes and won again

for SLYC in Chinook (1283).

Meanwhile, other clubs in Strangford

Lough had discovered the Flying Fifteen

bug. At Kircubbin the driving force was

Henry Gilmore, a major figure in the

construction industry, who was also a

keen sailor. Using his own materials and

workshop facilities, he build a number of

Flying Fifteens for Kircubbin members,

including his son Edward, who was

British champion in 1972 in Interceptor

(1100).

The success kept coming. Tom and

Dianne Andrews won again in 1974 in

Chinook and in 1978 Kircubbin pair Jim

Rodgers and Paul Kerr finished top of

the pack in Vega (568). The following

year Edward Gilmore was champion for

a second time in a new Interceptor

(2481) and he went on to complete his

hat-trick in Interceptor III (2879) in

Lowestoft in 1983.

Importantly, club racing in the lough kept

pace with all the championship

silverware. Strangford Lough YC and

Kircubbin SC were the pre-eminent

clubs, but there were new kids on the

block in the form of Portaferry SC and

Strangford SC. Then, as now, these two

clubs on either side of the lough sensibly

pulled their resources and sailed

together as one fleet.

At the Strangford club, based in beautiful

Castleward Bay, where the trees can

affect the outcome of a race just as

much as the tide, Oliver Curran, Tommy

Connor and Gerry Reilly were the early

pioneers and worked hard to develop

the class, while in Portaferry Seamus

Byers and the O’Neill brothers, Terry and

Barney, were among the early leading

lights. With Flying Fifteens also at the

Killyleagh and Quoile clubs, it was the

No 1 class in the lough and it wasn’t

uncommon to see 40-strong fleets at

regattas.

The class continued to attract and

nurture some top class sailors, such as

John Miller, Norman Watson, Raymond

Gilmore, John McCann, Brian McKee,


Darren Martin, Roger Chamberlain and

Andrew McCleery.

Sadly, numbers have diminished in

recent years. There are now just a

handful of Fifteens in Whiterock and

none in Kircubbin. Happily, Strangford

and Portaferry remain strong and there

is still a small fleet in Killyleagh. There is

new blood in the fleet and the 2015

season ended with a series of well

attended one-day events comprising

short windward-leeward races, which

could well be the blueprint for the future.

Most of the old guard are still around,

though watching from the sidelines. At

regattas where there may be fifteen or

more different classes, people like Peter

Browne still ask who won the Flying

Fifteen race.

The competition, camaraderie and

friendship of the early years remain, as

do the challenges. There are rocks and

submerged wrecks to avoid, there are

races to be won and the tidal rip, known

to some as the ‘Washing Machine,’ that

brought St Patrick and the Vikings to our

shores, continues to bewilder and

beguile.

Flying 15s in Castleward Bay, home of Strangford Sailing Club


Parkstone Yacht

Club bucked the trend of truncating

sailing events by deciding to revert to a

full week of sailing for 2015’s Poole

Week. Twenty Flying Fifteen teams

entered for Poole Week this year,

including seven visiting boats, despite

the event clashing with the World

Champs in France to which we lost four

Parkstone teams and several potential

visitors.

Parkstone’s mission in organising the

week was to provide each class the

racing that they wanted and, having

canvassed both locals and visitors, the

Flying Fifteens were provided a

programme of variety. Our requirements

were for two races each day and a mix

of Olympic courses in the harbour and

bay and good quality “harbour tour” type

courses – ensuring that we always had

proper beats, runs and reaches. The

2015 race team certainly delivered that

in spades.

Day One:

• Champagne sailing – a steady F4 and

two Olympic courses in the top triangle

of Poole Harbour.

• The top three of the day were

Graham and Ben Scroggie, Patrick

Keats and Richard Whitworth and Bob

Alexander and Huw Willetts.

• Free sailor suppers, free beer and

prize giving – a draw for all competitors

for £400 pounds worth of Zhik vouchers

– attendance and humour is high!

Day 2:

• A little windier and the perfect excuse

for a harbour blast race followed by an

Olympic triangle.

• Top three positions unchanged.

• The fleet heads off for Loch Fyne after

another free beer and another well

attended daily prize giving! A great

evening enjoyed by the local folk and our

guests.Overall winners Bob Alexander and Huw Willetts

2015-TheyearPooleWeekCAMEBACK!PATRICKKEATSREPORTS

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Day 3:

• Was programmed to be a start from

RMYC with a tour taking us in to Poole

Bay – however the f5/6 with poor

visibility due to rain meant a harbour tour

course was arranged.

• Several 15’s decided not to enjoy the

monsoon conditions but those that did

were treated to one of the most perfect

Flying 15 reaches past the beautiful

Brownsea Island – not that anyone

would have been able to enjoy the view

as this was a white knuckle ride of

delight!

• The top 3 boats were consistent but

Bob and Huw were beginning to show a

form of taking the top bullets…

• More free beer, more Zhik vouchers,

then the fleet moved on to a fabulous

Paella night hosted by Sara Briscoe and

Graham Latham.

Day 4

• Still a good breeze, still excellent

racing! Harbour tour first, followed by an

Olympic Course.

• Bob and Huw 2 bullets. Graham/Ben

and Patrick/Richard still trading blows

for 2nd and 3rd.

• The pattern of free beer, hilarious

prizegiving and draw for vouchers from

Zhik, West Quay chandlery and other

sponsors now well established…

Day 5

• Sailing nirvana! Sunny and windy and

two Olympic courses in the bay.

• Bob and Huw recorded two seconds

with Patrick /Richard and Graham/Ben

taking respective bullets in the two

races.

• By now you can guess what came

next…free hog roast accompanying the

free beer, prize giving (heckling getting

worse and led by some of the rowdier

elements of the 15 fleet), voucher drawer

and the party night…great band and

dancing and more beer.

Day 6

• My head hurts and early start to allow

the visitors to get away. Why does it

always rain when I have a hangover?

• All to play for in the top three boats –

only three points separating them. One

series race today and a crew’s race.

• Patrick and Richard took this one but

Bob and Huw in coming second very

deservedly took the plaudits for the

week and Graham/Ben managed to pull

a huge comeback in the race from last

to third to take second overall.

• Two points separated the top three

boats and the competition throughout

the fleet was just as cut-throat! Well

done to Rob Jarrett for winning the hard

fought crews’ race trophy!

Looking Forward: Poole Week 2016Parkstone is committed to Poole Week

and will be doing the same for us in

2016. The dates will be Sunday 21st

August to Friday 26th so no clash with

the Europeans! The Parkstone Flying

15s will ensure you a very warm

welcome and will arrange another

vibrant social programme. Why not bring

your friends from other classes too?

There is a handicap fleet with class

results where the fleet exceeds six

entrants or, if they can get twelve boats

or more together they will very likely have

their own class start. We have verbal

confirmation from our lead sponsor so

the generous prize and beer fund is

looking secure!

Our focus is to provide top quality racing

that is tailored to the needs of each class

and the fleet representatives are already

working on the full racing programme for

2016. The entry fee is less than £100

and if you enter by the 8th April it is less

than £60! The NoR and much more

information is available on the dedicated

Poole Week website

www.pooleweek.org. We look forward

to welcoming you for another week of

first class and varied racing!Photo

gra

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of D

avi

d H

ard

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f S

ailing S

cenes

There were some knockdown gusts

Patrick Keats and Richard Whitworth


The Ovington Inlands

always signifies the end of the Sailing

Season for me, at least here in the

Northern hemisphere…Sadly, this year

we were forced to cancel the event due

to our first named storm Abigail.

With the event over it is now time to put

the boat away, luckily for me that is the

new owner’s job this year as Foof is now

in new hands…Here are a few tips for

looking after your boat.

If like me you are lucky enough to be

able to get your boat inside there is not

a huge amount to do. Once washed

down and dried, I leave off all the covers

and hatches to let the boat ‘breathe’. I

oil the bailers and leave them in the

down position…I tend to use a little olive

oil and just brush it around the seal.

I go around all the blocks and cleats,

check they are clean and give them a

little squirt of lubricant, not really sure

what is really best, Mclube is good when

you are up and running but not sure how

good it is when ‘winterizing’ I use GT85

which I find very good.

I take all the sails out of the boat and

store them elsewhere allowing the

maximum airflow through your tanks…

Over time the boats can take on weight

through the laminate so you can help

avoid this by drying out the tanks…If you

are really keen you can place a

dehumidifier in the cockpit…

I leave all the covers off to ensure that no

moisture can be trapped against the gel

surface, I even remove the rudder from

its bag and place that in the cockpit, it is

often forgotten but is the most common

part to pick up blisters from being

stowed wet.

The reason you do not want moisture

against any surface is that it can cause

blistering (osmosis) and once you get it,

it is very hard to get rid of…There are

some old wives tales of using sugar or

salt and sprinkling it over affected areas

to absorb the moisture and apparently

the blisters reduce although I have had

no experience of this…

If you have to leave your boat outside

then it is important to let as much air get

across the boat as possible…Avoid

where possible cover contact with the

decks…In the past, I have made props

to hold the cover up, there are plenty of

discarded mast tubes kicking around

most sailing clubs so you should be able

to find a stump to drop in the mast gate

and use a longer length propped from

there to the transom.

Hatch covers are again removed and if

you can take everything out from the

cockpit and store inside it would be

best...If not, I make sure the sails are off

the cockpit floor by using the draw

strings on the sail bags to hang them off

the jib plinths with the other end up

under the foredeck. Leave the bailers

down and oil as for storing inside.

I would always take the undercover off

for winter storage both inside and out, it

is offering very little in protection and you

are better to have air flowing over your

boat than a damp cover against the hull

skin…

Where possible avoid PVC or any non-

breathable material in your covers and

always ship in containers with NO

covers on, all for the same reasons as

above and in a sealed box the

symptoms are accelerated. Same

procedures apply for airflow through the

hatches.

If you cannot get your mast inside it is

best you strip the mast as much as

possible. I usually run ‘mouse lines’

down the tube to remove the halyards

more damage is done leaving them out

all winter than in use…A padded mast

bag is useful to help protect the alloy.

If you are reading this in the Southern

Hemisphere you don’t need to worry

quite as much as you tend not to be as

wet as us up here but the same rules

apply, try to avoid leaving anything damp

against any surfaces of the hull.

As for me, no trip South for this winter

so it’s getting the warm kit on and

getting out on the bike and for sailing

next season back to the boat with one

less digit.

Winterisingyour15BYCHRISTURNER


WHEN

• The 21st Flying Fifteen World Championships will be held

at the Napier Sailing Club in February-March 2017.

• Preliminary schedule: from Monday 20 February, through to

Friday 3 March 2017:

o 20 – 21 February: Registration and measuring

o 22 – 24 February NZ National Championship

o 25 February: lay day (additional registration and measuring)

o Sunday 26 February – Friday 3 March: World Championship

o Friday 3 March: prizegiving and closing dinner.

GETTING THERE

• Overseas visitors can fly to New Zealand with most

international carriers.

• It is then a domestic flight of about an hour from Auckland

to Napier, or slightly more than half an hour from Wellington.

• By road, the journey from Auckland to Napier is

approximately 425km - about 6 hours travel time. Wellington

to Napier is a distance of about 325km and driving time is

about 4½ hours

• It is probable that boats will be shipped by container directly

to the Port of Napier, from where the containers will be

delivered onto the Napier Sailing Club site, where they can

remain for the duration of the World Championships.

WHERE• Napier Sailing Club is ideally located in the popular Ahuriri

suburb, 2km from Napier City and about the same distance

from the Port of Napier.

• Immediately adjacent is the Bluewater Hotel, across the

road from which are luxury apartments, many of which are

available for short-term rental and a selection of restaurants.

• A short distance along West Quay are several bars and

licensed premises.

• Within easy distance, in Ahuriri and Westshore, there are

many motels, hotels and other accommodation options,

including houses and cottages for rent, and the Westshore

Motor Camp, which has cabins and sites for caravans,

motorhomes and tents.

• The Napier Sailing Club is about 3km from Napier Airport

and is only a short distance from the main highway routes that

link the region to Taupo, Auckland and Gisborne to the north,

and to Palmerston North and Wellington to the south.

A Little Bit Of Background Geography And HistoryNAPIER & HAWKE’S BAY

• Napier is a small provincial city of some 55,000 population

on the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is on

the same latitude as Mallorca.

• It is a rural service centre with a major Port facility

• Hawke’s Bay province is noted for fine wines, horticulture

and orchards and traditional sheep and cattle pastoral farming

• Tourism attracts many international tourists and some 50

cruise ships visit the Port of Napier every year.

1931 EARTHQUAKE AND THE RISE OF ART DECO

• A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the region on

3 February 1931, destroying most of the buildings in central

Napier and the nearby town of Hastings. 256 people lost their

lives.

• The earthquake affected everyone in the Hawke’s Bay

province, but some good came out of it, as the land around

Napier was upthrust by as much as 3 metres by the massive

forces that were generated in the huge earthquake.

• Despite the Depression, Napier rose from the ashes with

style. Many of the new buildings in the Central Business

District were designed by the nation’s premier architects and

constructed by the finest artisans who migrated to the area in

search of work.

• Most of the buildings are in the Art Deco style that had

recently evolved in California and, thanks to the combined efforts

of the Art Deco Trust and the Napier City Council, many of these

buildings have been preserved and now are a major attraction.

FlyingFifteenWorldChampionshipsTORETURNTONAPIER,NEWZEALANDIN2017


NAPIER SAILING CLUB

• The Napier Sailing Club was founded in 1891 and the World

Championships will be held during the Club’s 125th

Anniversary season.

• The 1931 earthquake completely destroyed the Napier

Sailing Club. Not only was the clubhouse demolished and the

jetty severely damaged, but the 4,000 hectares (10,000 acres)

of tidal waters on which the Club raced was uplifted by the

earthquake and the seabed rose so high that the whole area

became dry land, the middle part of which is now the site of

the Napier Airport.

• It was only in 1939, after Napier had been rebuilt and the

Great Depression had ended, that the Napier Sailing Club was

re-established, on a new site at the inshore end of the historic

Port Ahuriri. Some boat sheds were constructed on reclaimed

land and club racing then took place in the open waters of

Hawke Bay. In 1952, a small clubhouse was built, and over

the following years new boatsheds, pile moorings and other

facilities were developed to cater for the growing yacht racing,

cruising and recreational fishing activities.

• In more recent times a new clubhouse was built and

subsequently enlarged to meet demand, marina berths and

boat launching ramps and pontoons have been developed,

and further land has been reclaimed to create a hardstand

work area and travel lift facility.

• The Napier Sailing Club grounds extend over more than 3.5

hectares (8.5 acres), providing ample space for boats and

vehicle parking. With over 1,000 members, the Club is the

third-largest yacht club in New Zealand

• The Napier Sailing Club hosted the 3rd World

Championship back in 1982. Club member Barry Finlayson

competed as the defending World Champion, having won the

title with crew Ian Norrie two years earlier, at Hayling Island.

• Competitors FROM 1982 still have treasured memories of

the huge swells and glassy waters that occurred one day,

providing unforgettable experiences and some of the most

dramatic photographs of Flying Fifteens. Other memorable

events were Gerald Martin’s woolshed party on his farm and

the prize giving dinner that was interrupted when a fire broke

out against one of the walls of the War Memorial Hall.

• The Napier Sailing Club now has better facilities than it had

25 years ago, Gerald Martin will be at the 21st World

Championships as the Principal Race Officer, and the War

Memorial Hall is scheduled to re-open in February 2017 after

major renovations and extensions, when it will be ready to host

the prize giving dinner if required (hopefully without disruption

this time).

ART DECO WEEKEND

• February is the busiest month for tourism and related

activities in Napier.

• Commemoration of the 1931 earthquake occurs on its

anniversary, on 3 February each year, but it is in the days

leading up to and during the third weekend in February that

the re-birth of Napier is celebrated.

• Art Deco Weekend runs from Thursday 16 to Sunday 19

February 2017. This incorporates a great many events,

including classic car displays, 1930s themed dances, parades

and balls. The vast majority of local people and visitors dress

up for the occasion to greater or lesser extents. Some go the

“whole hog” with stylish costumes, while others simply don a

boater and cravat (for the gentlemen) or slip on a fascinator or

large hat and a boa (for the ladies).

• It is thoroughly recommended that anyone planning to

attend the 2017 World Championships should look to arrive

in Napier a few days early, to indulge in the Art Deco Weekend

festivities.


KAPA HAKA FESTIVAL

• Coinciding with the first week of the 2017 Championships,

Napier and Hastings will host the National Te Matatini Kapa

Haka Festival, which will attract as many as 10,000

participants and supporters, who will take part in and attend

a wide range of Maori cultural events, covering music, dance,

traditional practices and foods and many other activities as

well.

• While most of the attendees at the Kapa Haka will be

hosted by family and friends, this will further increase the

demand for accommodation over this period, but will also

provide opportunities to attend events and functions, which

will have a distinctly Maori flavour.

SOCIAL PROGRAMME

• In addition to the Art Deco and Kapa Haka Festival events,

it is proposed that functions and outings will be made available

to suit everyone’s wishes. Hawke’s Bay is famous for its wines,

with the locally produced Chardonnays and Merlots having

received many international awards. Within the Napier-

Hastings area, there are a significant number of vineyards with

quality restaurants and (needless to say) many opportunities

to sample and enjoy the locally grown and produced wines.

Local foods are abundant, whether it is beef and lamb from

the pasture, fruit and produce from the land, or seafood from

Hawke Bay.

• For competitors, supporters and family, there are many

opportunities and options for filling the days (including the lay

days), such as visits to the Gannet Colony at Cape Kidnappers

riding on a tractor-hauled trailer along the beach or by luxury

overland bus to the east, to the bird sanctuary at Ocean

Beach to the southeast, or to take in the natural beauty of

Shines Falls and the “inland island” or nearby Lake Tutira to

the north. Taupo is less than two hours away to the west.

• Within the local area, there are quality golf courses to suit

every level of handicap and size of pocket, from the public

courses at Awatoto and Mangateretere, to the championships

courses at Bridge Pa (near Hastings) and Waiohiki (near

Napier), to the world-renowned Cape Kidnappers golf course,

which is only a short drive from Napier. For the more

adventurous, visits to country golf courses can be organised

and there are always opportunities for people to visit farms

and other points of interest, all of which can be catered to suit

the individual interests.

The Napier Sailing Club invites all FlyingFifteen Class sailors to come to New Zealandin February 2017, to bring family and friends,to take part in an event that the Club will doeverything within its capabilities to make intoa memorable occasion.

Contacts for Further Information:Further information may be obtained by contacting the

following:

Graeme Robinson

Chairman, Organising Committee

2017 Flying Fifteen World Championships

Email - [email protected]

Shelly Te Uki

Napier Sailing Club Manager

Email - [email protected]

Links:For further information on the Napier Sailing Club, events

and accommodation in Napier, and related links, the

following are some suggested websites:

Napier Sailing Club

http://www.napiersailingclub.org.nz/Napier i-Site, Visitor Information

http://www.napiernz.com/Napier City Council

http://www.napier.govt.nz/Napier Art Deco Trust

http://www.artdeconapier.com/New Zealand Weather Forecast

http://www.metservice.com/national/homeHawke Bay Marine Forecast

http://www.metservice.com/marine-surf/recreational-marine/hawke-bayFlying Fifteen New Zealand

http://flying15.org.nz/


The Ossie McCutcheon Regatta was held at the

Gippsland Lakes Yacht Club for 2015. We were fortunate to

have Gavin Dagley as the coach for the weekend and the

beautiful Gippsland Lakes as the venue to sail on. The weather

was very mild but the winds were light to moderate throughout

the weekend.

On Saturday after registration the information and coaching

session was held in the Clubhouse. Gavin had brought a

series of videos that focused on starting techniques and the

15 common starting errors which were very informative and

provoked a great deal of discussion. The wind was slow to fill

in but the fleet was on the water in the afternoon to work on

starting skills. Gavin instructed the boats to practice individual

starts. It was soon evident that without the cues from a fleet it

was more difficult to time a start correctly and it illustrated the

importance of practicing individual starts in order to develop

better control of the factors leading up to a well-timed fleet

start. Following a series of starts the fleet was soon into short

windward/leeward races. The afternoon sea breeze had

developed so the pressure of close short course racing

brought out many strengths and weakness that were captured

on video and later analysed and discussed at the club.

Sunday was race day and was to start at 9:30am but by the

time the boats had drifted around the committee boat for an

hour it was decided to stop for an early lunch. Fortunately, the

afternoon sea breeze slowly began to fill in. With the full

consensus of all competitors the last race start time limit was

moved from 2pm to 3pm and enabled all 5 races to be

completed. The first three races were sailed in light conditions

with the wind building to a moderate breeze for the last two

races of the day. Each race was closely contested. Dale

Collings and Warren Slater in “Aussie Falcon” started with a

win in race 1 followed closely by Jim Callahan and Rod

Gardiner in “Impulse” and Brian Carol and Kelvin Brown in

“Supertoy Plays On”. Peter Milne and Phillip Dubbin in “Lapse

of Reality” (current Victorian Champions) found a burst of

speed in the medium conditions to win heats 2 & 3. With the

breeze building Dale and Warren came back a win in race 4

setting the scene for a final Medal Race showdown. Going into

the last race, which if completed would allow 1 drop, Dale and

Warren were on 5 points (after 1 drop) closely followed by

Peter and Phillip on 6 points (with 1 drop) equal with Jim and

Rod. At the first rounding of the Last race had Peter in the lead

closely followed by Jim then Dale. Dale quickly set himself up

on the inside for a Port Gate rounding with the building breeze

on the right for the next upwind. Jim followed Dale to the right

but Peter took the Starboard Gate and went out left giving the

lead away. Peter and Phillip would subsequently have

spinnaker gear problems and had to withdraw from the last

race. Trevor Williams and Ian Rainey followed up their second

in race 4 with another second in the last race with Jim being

held out at the final finish by Michael Clark and Keith Hay-

Smith (the steady improvers for this regatta) to sneak into 3rd

in the final race. Full results can be found at

http://www.sailres.com/view.php?s=417.

After the boats were off the water, Gavin showed the videos

of the races and discussed sail trim, boat handling and other

points of interests. At presentation Dale and Warren took

home the winning trophy and Peter Milne and Philip Dubbin

took the Handicap trophy. The Gippsland Lakes Yacht Club

did an excellent job of race management under the direction

of James Frecherville and his team. Though the fleet was only

made up of six registered boats the learning experience and

the individual attention by Gavin was invaluable. It is

unfortunate that more Flying Fifteen members did not avail

themselves of the excellent training opportunity and hospitality

so plan on being there next year.

Thank you to everyone who helped with the planning and

organization.

Written by Jim Callahan,

edited by Dale Collings

OssieMcCutcheonFlyingFifteenREGATTAANDTRAININGWEEKEND

Run by Flying Fifteen International – Victoria and GLYC November 2015

ff world january 2016

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