Wealden Sailability (Beta)

WS RACING – SPRING SERIES 10 – July 15th

The main celebration today was the Chair of Trustee’s 70th Birthday for which we had a sunny, warm and windy day perfect for a Race. The lunchtime presentation of a Photo Book covering David Mckee’s 10 year association with Wealden Sailability as Volunteer, Trustee and Chair of Trustees was followed by toasting David’s health with a glass of champagne and a piece of birthday cake in the presence of his wife, children and grand-daughter. A lovely occasion for a very special man. (Thank you David! Ed)

WS Racers arrived at Chipstead after the volunteers had launched and rigged enough dinghies, the Rib and Commandos to enable the expected number of sailors and racers to get on the water safely. The weather forecast was perfect for racing but the North wind was veering aand backing between NNW and NNE. The normal expectation for sailing races is that the first leg of the race is a Beat so that racers have to zig-zag into the prevailing wind. The high trees on the north bank of the lake creates a natural baffle for a north wind and this results in the creation of a wind shadow in the area immediately south of the trees and when the wind does get through it comes in swirling and uneven currents. This makes setting a course for the race with a NNW/NNE wind quite tricky. The set course was: START/FINISH line between Buoy K and a Flag opposite Pontoon #5, the windward mark was Buoy D, then Buoy C and the leeward mark Buoy A down near the waterfall.

Here are some photos of activity on the lake as the Volunteers got the dinghies ready and some WS Racers got the feel for the conditions before the race

The race fleet gradually started closing on the Start Line as the 3 minute Gong sounded at 11 am. From the video below, you can decide whether you might have arrived at the start line just as the final Gong sounded (rather than be stationary and therfore needing a few minutes to start moving). Another decision to make before a race starts is which end of the Start Line would most benefit you in sailing to the first Mark. You can test that by sailing up and down the Start Line before the fleet start gathering for the race. (If anyone would like advice on how to select which end of the Start Line to target, please ask one of the Race Organisers. Ed)

The position of Mark D was tough because of the reasons mentioned before. Both the approach to Mark D and the second leg run downwind to Mark C was made extremely difficult by the varaibility of the wind’s strength and direction. When the wind blows from the North, seasoned sailors at Chipstead aim to sail in the middle or south side of the lake and only venture north to round the Marks on their course. Nevertheless you all managed to overcome these challenges which was no mean feat. (Well done and apologies for putting Mark D in such a tricky position. Ed)

As often is the case the front runners around the upwind Mark are able to lead the Race on the water for at least the first few Laps and that was the case for the first two Laps with Peter Wagner and Martin Norman in their Libertys (Sail # 22 and 24 respectively) with Martin passing Peter during the second Lap. Imogen Fletcher and Steve Farmer in their 303s (Sail # 7 and 3 respectively) were similarly closely matched in the first two Laps but then Imogen managed to pull away on Lap 3 and managed to maintain that performance on Lap 4. Bob Fisher, Mark Cayzer and Rachel Ibbott in their 303s (Sail # 9, 11 and 2 respectively) were closely matched on Lap 1 after which Bob and Mark managed to pull away from Rachel on Lap 2 and Bob managed to shake off Mark on Lap 3. Derek Preston (Liberty # 25) was unfortunate to run aground shortly after the Start and lose a lot of time whilst waiting to be rescued by the birthday boy who was crewing on the Safety Rib (Good to see the top brass getting their hands dirty! Ed).

Here are a few more photos of different moments and situations during the Race…

And the winner both on the water and after applying the PY handicap was Martin Norman (Very relaxed. Congratulations! Ed)

The full result of the Race is:

Martin Norman – Liberty Sail White #24
Imogen Fletcher and her crew Mark Cartwright – 303 Sail White #7
Steve Farmer – 303 Sail yellow #3
Bob Fisher – 303 Sail Blue #9
Ann Frewer – 2.3 Sail Red/White #279
Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail Yellow #22
Mark Cayzer and his crew Nigel Lamb – Sail Blue #11
Rachel Ibbott and her crew Paul Chilvers – Sail Blue #2
Derek Preston – Liberty Sail Blue #25
Tom Phillips – 303 Sail White # 8

A big thank you to all the volunteers and sailors and to David Mckee’s family to let us enjoy a moment to reflect upon the devotion and skill provided to Wealden Sailability over many years by David Mckee on a perfect sailor’s day of sun and wind!

WS RACING – SPRING SERIES 9 – July 8th

The wind returned to Chipstead! WS Racers turned up from 10am and were astonished to see Sails flapping on the dinghies and wind-gust induced ripples running across the lake. The volunteers had launched and rigged enough 303s and Liberty’s for those who indicated they would be coming and Ann Frewer’s appearance at 10.30am meant that her Hansa Access 2.3 was readied for the battle to come. We even had sunshine. Another beautiful summer’s day for sailing.

With the wind direction wavering between S and SW and at times veering to W, the Start Line was set on the north side of the lake between Mark C and a distance Marker. This Start line was also treated as a gate for the racers to go through on each lap and the Finish Line. The Upwind Mark was A and the Downwind Mark was K (which had been dragged into a more central position).

There are lots of small things that need to be done to get everything ready to safely start sailing and racing, such as cleaning the Pontoons of bird dirt and having Buoyancy Vests ready….

The race started at 11.05am with the first Gong of the 3-2-1-START sequence and as often is the case only a few boats were close to the Start Line when the final Gong sounded. Take a look to see if you were close to the line or 20/30 seconds back from the line from this video sequence from the Start until when the leaders rounded the upwind Mark (A).

The wind managed to keep blowing, albeit in strong gusts at times, and everyone had an opportunity to keep their dinghy moving. It was especially good to see Captain Bob Fisher back at the helm of Access 303 Blue Sail# 11. (Welcome back Bob! I hope you will feel the urge to send us some of your inimitable thoughts about proceedings as you get back into the cut and thrust of the WS Racing scene. And it was also good to see Keith Eeles and Jon Beck back on the water and getting strong enough to resume racing when they feel ready. Ed)

The main observation of the Race was the temporary absence of our Race Leader Kim Sparkes in Liberty Yellow Sail # 22 when her main sheet started to jam. Fortunately this was rectified quickly by her “pit crew” on Pontoon 5 and with an increase in the wind strength she was able to rejoin the Race and sail her Liberty through the middle of the fleet and overhaul the leaders to regain outright lead on the water and go onto sail an extra Lap. (Which turned out be 1st also even after the PY Handicaps had been applied by the software to the times recorded for each boat as they cross the Start/Finish line each lap. Ed)

Here are some photos taken during the race which show the close racing at each level of the fleet. (Absolutely right! You don’t need to be leading by miles to miss out on the fun. The toing and froing between dinghies at every Mark and on every Leg – up and downwind – is what makes sailing so much fun. Ed)

Rachel taking a tighter turn than Tom at downwind Mark..

The Result of Race 9

Kim Sparkes – Liberty Sail #22
Rachel Ibbott and her Crew Paul – 303 Sail #9
Peter Wagner – Liberty Sail #24
Steve Farmer and his Crew Helen Fairfax – 303 Sail #8
Ann Frewer – 2.3 Sail #279
Mark Cayzer and his Crew Alan Cayzer – 303 Sail #3
Imogen Fletcher and her Crew James Thomas – 303 Sail #7
Bob Fisher – 303 Sail #11
Tom Phillips Liberty – Sail #25

WS RACING – SPRING SERIES 6 to 8 – June 17th, 24th, July 1st

The results for Races 7 and 8 have been added to the Spring Series 2021 spreadsheet on the WS Website. Unfortunately Race 6 was Abandoned due to poor wind and weather conditions which the Race Controller felt warranted terminating the Race. Later in the day an informal race was organised to reward the WS Racers who had turned up at Chipstead but the results of that race were not recorded.

WS RACING – SPRING SERIES 5 – June 10th

Today was a quintessential British Summer’s day. Perfect weather for being near or on water. Either by the sea shore or by or in a lake (or even, as I found my granddaughter when I got home, in a paddling pool! Ed) But sailors are demanding folk and need wind as well as warmth and sunshine. The warmth grew gradually during the morning and by early afternoon the sun was fully on parade! Definately a day for high factor sunscreen. But little wind :(.

BY 1000 the team of volunteers had a sizeable fleet of dinghies in the water and sailors started to arrive soon after the Day Briefing by David Mckee the Session Manager. Alas the two Martin 16s which we had hoped to be ready for use were still in their final stages of testing after a major bit of maintenance. Nevertheless the lake gradually filled with sailors and the Race was able to start shortly after 1100. The course was up on the Board and each sailor was told the course (and every volunteer was told the course! Ed) which was: Start / Finish Line in the middle of the lake between Buoy B and a Distance Marker with a yellow flag; a beat up to the Windward Mark A, left to starboard; then a run downwind to Mark C left to starboard; followed by a Reach across the lake to Mark K, left to starboard, followed by a beat through the start/finish gate before starting a new lap beating to Mark A.

Here is a video of the Start of the race. Try and work out where you are in the video and then decide how well you sailed in comparison to your competitors.

Start of Race 5 of the Spring Series

After an momentary lead by Martin Norman (Liberty White Sail #23), Kim Sparkes in 303 Red Sail #10 grasped control sailing across the fleet on Starboard Tack and only the wind was going to beat her. The rest of the fleet followed in her wake with each contender closing the gap whenever the wind favoured them on the downwind leg from Mark A to Mark C and they were behind…..but they were never able to get ahead. The wind conditions were not easy. The strength varied from a tickle to 8 knots and Alex Ross – a new WS Volunteer (Your knowledge of sailing and racing will be a great addition to the WS Racing Team Alex. Ed) – who was in the Race Hut with Fleur Bryant and myself, said that there was a 90 degree wind shift during the second lap. That means there will be winners and losers. The winners are those whose Tack/Gybe or Reach can be made more direct to the next Mark IF the sailor notices what has happened and adjusts his/her sails accordingly to make the most of the new wind direction – whatever strength it is blowing.

Here are some more photos of the race – in chronological order so you can see the boats nearest to you…..

We had 9 entrants and we had 9 finishers and we had 2 volunteers getting used to the dinghies (and enjoying themselves! Ed). The last boats’ positions were calculated from their time for just one completed Lap. The Race Result is known and the winner is shown below sailing to victory on her to complete her third lap.

The details below have been added to the Summary Scoresheet.

Kim Sparkes 303S Sail #10
Derek Preston Liberty #24
Mark Cayzer and his crew James Thomas 303D #11
Peter Wagner Liberty #25
Geoff Taylor 303S #3
Imogen Fletcher and her crew Peter Moore 303D #4
Trevor Monk 303S #2
Martin Norman Liberty #23
Tom Phillips 303S #7

Well done to all these WS Racers and the volunteers who enable the Race to be run.

WS RACING – SPRING SERIES 4 – June 3rd

Thursday 3rd June was an absolutely perfect day for sailing….if there had only been one group of sailors on the same part of the lake (Which apparently was not the case this week. Ed). Nevertheless David Mckee in the Race Hut, ably assited by Maria Lamb, arranged a course for the 13 entrants to sail around and that is exactly what the WS Racers did, with great skill and determination – avoiding all the obstacles they found in their way. There were two guest visitors amongst the entrants, a young man, Oliver, sailing his Topper dinghy Sail #62 and a volunteer, Ralph, sailing an Access 303 Sail #8. There was also a first time attendee, sailor Noah who came along with his parents to see how Wealden Sailability operated. Noah went out helming an Access 303 Sail #9 with his crew, Peter Moore, and finished a very creditable 9th. (Welcome and well sailed Noah and thank you Peter! Ed)

More details of the course and how the race unfolded may appear but the Race Result is known and the details below have been added to the Summary Scoresheet.

Kim Sparkes 303 Sail #6
Peter Wagner Liberty #22
Martin Norman Liberty #25
Derek Preston Liberty #24
Imogen Fletcher and her crew Meg Warren 303D #3
Mark Cayzer and his crew Alan Cayzer 303D #2
Geoff Taylor 303S #5
Steve Farmer 303S #4
Noah and his crew Peter Moore 303D #9
Trevor Monk 303S #10
Tom Phillips 303S #7

Well done to all these WS Racers and the volunteers who enable the Race to be run.

WS RACING – SPRING SERIES 3 – May 27TH

What a day – horizon to horizon blue sky with bright sunshine amid fluffy clouds and at last some warmth to enable everybody at the lake to shed a few layers of clothing and long trews. As a sailor said to me “Sunshine makes everyone happier!” This was especially welcome after the cancellation of Race 2 last Thursday caused by the arrival of a strong gusty wind blowing across the lake which would have made sailing very difficult and possibly dangerous for WS Racing’s sailors.

As planned the volunteers assembled at 0830 to rig and launch the fleet required to meet the anticpated demand – so we had three Liberty, seven 303 and the lugger plus the Safety Rib and Commando in the water by 0945 and all were ready for the day’s briefing by the Session Manager. Early arrivers, Bob Fisher and Steve Farmer and Peter Wagner and his parents listened into the briefing and Mark Cayzer and his parents. Derek Preston and his wife Kay arrived as the meeting was wrapping up at 1000. Everything was set for a grand time out on the water…but where was the wind? The forecast was for 3 to 4 knots with mighty gusts of 5 to 6 knots from WNW. This made setting a course with a upwind beat to the first Mark tricky. But the course was set and the Safty Boat moved some Marks around to try and ensure they were not in wind shadows (caused mainly by the trees on the north shore).

The course was set:

The Start /.Finish lines and order of Marks and which side to leave them as you pass

A tricky Start LIne which had the possibility of sailors running aground as they jockyed for position in countdown to the race starting

The wind was dropping as 1100 approached so the Race Controller announnced over the Tannoy a delay to the start, hoping for enough breeze to enable the fleet to get off to a reasonable start. A few minutes later that happened and the 3 Minute Gong sounded with boats on both sides of the Start Line but gradually with help from the Race Hut over the Tannoy, nearly all the entrants were to the south of the Start Line and the 2 and 1 Minute Gongs sounded and the Race hut gave a 30 and 10 second verbal warning and a countdown from 5 seconds to get Race 3 of the 2021 Season started with an “All clear” announced from the Race Hut. In the photos below you can see that Peter Wagner (Liberty #22) appeared to have made a good start but of course he also had the whole fleet between imself and the prevailing wind so that was going to slow his progress. Kim Sparkes (303 #2) was well positioned but still a bit hemmed in. Steve Farmer (303 #3) had pole position having started at the windward end of the Start Line and as can be seen in the photo he soon pulled out a good lead.

But the next 5 minutes was when the story of the Race was written. After the race, Steve Farmer told me “I was having a great time. My boat was going really well so I just wanted to keep going. I didn’t mind where I was going and I did not even think everybody would follow me!” (Well that’s exactly what happened and I expect that they will all learn from the experience. Ed) From our view in the Race Hut across the lake, we were expecting the leading boats to tack in the direction of Mark C….but we waited and waited and with no Tack insight and Steve nearly at Mark A, the Race Controller asked the Safety Rib to REMIND the fleet that the first Mark was C (not A?). The next few photos show the beneficiaries of this disarray – namely Peter Wagner and Trevor Monk (303 #7) – as they were able to get to Mark C first and second respectvely. This was a remarkable turn around for Trevor who had been 100 metres behind the Start Line when the Race had started . (Lovely to see your coolness rewarded Trevor! Ed,)

The wind struggled to maintain even 3 knots so the sailors had a tough time. (The 303 and to a slightly lesser extent the Liberty are not responsive to the helm when the wind dies and this can make them very frustrating to sail in such conditions. Ed) However, Peter Wagner never looked back after rounding Mark C and the rest of the fleet gradually sorted itself out as can be seen from the next few photos. Kim Sparkes showed her class by taking a good course from Mark C to Mark A and when Trevor found that he had to put in a late Tack to round Mark A, Kim overhauled him and started chasing down Peter Wagner.

Peter and Kim crossed the Finish Line at the end of their first Lap just a second apart and once the PY handicap is taken into account (By the clever program in the spreadsheet! Ed) Kim was Race 3’s Winner by 40 seconds. Congratulations to Kim – especially since she was close to Steve Farmer as he approched Mark A whilst “enjoying his fun time on the water”! And very well done to Peter Wagner since this was his first sail for 20 months. (After the Race Peter said to me “I did wonder if I was a bit rusty after 20 months of not being behind a helm, but oddly enough my virtual flying did help… a lot! Secret weapon, eh. Ed) Brilliant Peter….and watch out everybody else if this is what Peter can do when just flying by the seat of his pants?

Other Racers were having fun chasing each other and finding out that when leading a group it is even more important to know the course. Here are some photos showing Derek Preston steaming along to what he thought was the Finish Line….but not quite..so he had to Tack twice whilst Rachel and Imogen sailed by.

(The course is always written up on the whiteboard just outside the entrance to the clubhouse – see photos above. And FYI the Marks are set out in clockwise/alapbetical order around the perimeter of the lake – see photo below. Ed)

The Race Controller decided to allow the first and second wave of the fleet to continue for a second lap (even given the difficult/non-existent wind) and to dong just the last three boats after one lap (which is the signal to tell a helm that they have finished and can stop racing). So the five boats who completed their first Lap were doing EXACTLY what they should have been doing (and hence apologies to some Racers who were advised by a Volunteer in the Safety Commando that the Race was only one Lap and they were no longer racing. That instruction was incorrect. So next time, please carry on racing until you are gonged over the Finish Line or you hear an announcement/multiple gongs from the Race Hut. Ed.)

With the wind dying almost completely, the Race Controller stopped the Race and another exciting day on the water at Chipstead ended. Well done to everyone and many thanks to all the volunteers on and off the water who make this possible.

The Race Result was:

Kim Sparkes 303 Sail #2
Peter Wagner Liberty #22
Rachel Ibbot and crew Paul Chilvers 303 #10
Imogen Fletcher 303 #5
Derek Preston Liberty #23
Steve Farmer 303 #3
Mark Cayzer and crew Alan Cayzer #8
Tom Phillips 303 #9
Trevor Monk DNF

Onward to next week!