A lot of skippers away and after a an impressive IOM Nationals turnout was expected to be a little on the low side with many all sailed out. However 5 skippers turned up on what has to be the best day of the year with bright sun and a wind at times to of A+. I arrived early mainly to get out of emptying the dish washer and it was so pleasant to be at the lake just watching the wild life and listening to the Cuckoo. Doctor who had obviously left as the Tardis was no longer there (that was the name of the extra porta loos for the nationals). Every thing was laid out and we would be sailing straight down the east bank towards the club house. As soon as Jen, Martyn, Sam and Adrian were there I jumped in the boat and had my first attempt at setting a course having watched Pete do it so effortlessly the previous week. It was set so perfectly that we never had to adjust it although cut the course to one lap as it was on the long side.
I must admit I find the 65’s difficult partly due to this being the first rig I built and super glue finger prints are still visible on most of the joints with skin attached and most of the joints not in the right place…. The warm up went well and I was please with my boat speed compared to Martyn so one last adjustment was needed to really slow it down. (lesson one not tinker). The racing started the first three were all won by Martyn (who hadn’t tinkered) well not with his boat. The banter was good and I bobbed around at the back with a very sick jib that only worked one way (lesson 2 check everything). Martyn and Jen were having one battle, while Sam and Adrian had their own even threats of no dinner didn’t persuade Martyn to let Jen win I’m not sure if that’s a reflection of Martyn’s competitiveness or Jens cooking. Race 4 saw Adrian get a growth spurt and have a really good win before returning to the back of the fleet in the next race and Martyn back at the front. Coffee break was spent with an origami lesson from saw who after many years at Walkers Crisps can do a 101 things with a crisp packet. Apparently Martyn also shares this passion. After the break it was the Jen show with three straight wins….even I managed to beat Martyn in one race as his mind was still folding crisp packets. The last 4 races were spread with everyone one taking a victory accept me which personally I don’t think was fair although we all mucked in and everything was put away quickly.
The day was as near perfect as you could get with lots of laughs some good sailing and apparently the first piece of weed collected by Martyn although to be honest it was so small we struggled to see it. Thanks for everyone and we await the results although I know who came 5th….but enjoyed himself and has now dismantled his rig and planning to use a crisp packet as a sail….are Quavers packets lighter sam?
Exciting racing every Sunday at Lincoln, This Sunday 4th May 3 hours of hot I.O.M Racing.
11th May , DF 95’s The Martin Lambert and Absent friends trophy , this is an all day open event for DF 95,s Always well supported, remembering the skippers at Lincoln who have sadly passed, get your entry in now HERE , it should be a fab day and is usually quite competitive.
Saturday 31st May , Its our Open day, an all day bonanza with club members bringing a variety of boats for any body who is unsure what it’s all about , so they can have a go, This will be publicised on Social media around the county an beyond, we will be setting up a race area as well so more than a few races will be held, and we know what happens once you have that transmitter in your hands.
This will be a fun day for all relaxed with tea and coffee , bring your own sarnie.
For full details give mick a shout on the poster below
I.O.M Extended days racing at Lincoln SUNDAY 6th April . This will be your last chance to have some great race’s prior to the 2025 I.O.M National Championships held at Lincoln , always great racing, If you fancy it just leave a comment on the MYA Downwind FaceBook page .
Not to late to enter, The 2025 IOM National championships at Lincoln over the Easter weekend, Get your self entered HERE , best make it snappy cos entry could well close on Monday, and you would not want to miss out would you .
DF 95 open event, “The Martin Lambert & Absent friends trophy“.” 11th May , this is definitely a date you don’t want to miss if you are a keen DF 95 racer Entry will be going up on the MYA site soon.
Where do I start with such a perfect weekend of sailing. The only thing that was missing was Mediterranean temperatures.
The organisation was impeccable. From the time I arrived in my camper on Friday, parking pitches were organised as close to the race centre as possible. The race team were on site to greet us, a course was laid out to practice on, banks were neatly trimmed, there was easy access to all sides of the race course and free tea and coffee available all weekend. What more could we ask for.
Our thanks must go to the organisers Judith and Sharon on the heat board, Colin the scorer, Mary Ann and Mike on finishing and other jobs, and Tim Hand the ARO (in the boat) and of course Jen Hand who brings everything together at the club. Mick Chamberlain was in his ambassadorial role and sadly did not commit to making bacon sandwiches for breakfast this year. The team’s tireless efforts meant we experienced a faultless weekend of racing topped by a superb performance of our race officer Wayne Stobbs, who kept the two heats sailing at a pace acceptable to all. The Lincoln team should be proud of how they have developed their club and prepared for the weekend.
The conditions could not have been better. The club is sited on a trial, squarish gravel pit who sides face roughly North, East, South and west. On the Saturday the wind conveniently blew down the East bank and on Sunday shifted to the South bank so the course could be its maximum length and rounding marks would not be an eyesight test. Conditions varied through all the ranges of the DF65 rigs from A+ to C as the wind varied from light to 20+ MPH gusts.
The DF 65 is one of the smallest radio sailing boats, produced in China and shipped all over the world. It is a marvellous design and has spawned many clubs and sparked interest in radio sailing across the globe. Rumour has it, the numbers sold are in the tens of thousands. The boat comes in a box, is simple to rig and only a few hundred pounds to put on the water. There are four rigs. A light weather rig called the A+ for conditions up to 10mph, a slightly smaller A rig which has a very narrow wind band of a few miles an hour, then a smaller B rig for 12-18mph and a C rig for windier conditions. Interchanging the rigs can be done in seconds.
Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny and while I took breakfast in the van at 7am, I could watch Tim Hand, moving marks and prepping the course for the day.
Competitors were out early checking rigs, boat tuning, analysing wind shifts and testing the course. At 9.30 ish, the call was made for boats to be removed from the water for a 9.45 briefing by our race officer. The event was great practice for Wayne Stobbs, who later this year will be running the DF95 Globals (world championships) in South Africa on a lake a couple of hours from Cape Town.
Racing started promptly at 10am. There were 31 boats entered so racing was run under the MYA Heat management system. The fleet is split into two and sorted by the current ranking
of competitors so there is a mixed set of abilities in each of the two seeding races. The top six from each seeding race go into the heat A and the rest in heat B. Heat B races first and the top six are promoted into heat A. Heat A then race and the bottom six are demoted into heat B and racing continues like that until the end of the championships. This system allows up to 80 boats to race as one fleet.
PHOTO THE FLEET AND COURSE BOARD
The seeding and subsequent 3 races were sailed using the biggest A+ rigs. Nigel Barrow and John Tushingham won their respective seeding races and after 4 races with one discard at lunch Nigel had a lead over John with Peter Baldwin, David Burke and Simon Clarke making up the top 5. However, that was to change as the wind built over lunch and the fleet changed down to B rigs.
PHOTO – A DOMINANT START BY JT
With the increased wind, John stamped his dominance on the fleet and won all 5 races in the afternoon. His experience was telling and reflected the fact he has his name on the trophy whenever he entered the event. He is also the key designer behind the boat which must help. Nigel had a hiccup after lunch with a 10th, and he and Peter put together a string of top 5 results to be separated by 6 points at the end of the day. Dave Burke was 4th and Derek Priestley climbed up to 5th place.
PHOTO – TOTAL CONCENTRATION WHILST RACING
On Saturday night we all went to the Railway Inn for dinner of excellent pies containing either chicken, steak or veggie with crispy chips and peas. Quality food, hot and tasty. Two competitors shared their birthdays, Nigel Barrow and Paul Plested so they were each given cake and card and all sang happy birthday.
PHOTO – THE BIRTHDAY BOYS
Sunday dawned bright and windy, conveniently down the south bank of the lake and there was much discussion over whether to use B, or the smallest C rig and after the briefing from Wayne, most elected to use their C rigs.
PHOTO – LAUNCHING 572 IS ON B RIG, 438 IS A C RIG
John continued his dominant form although in one epic race he was beaten into second place by his wife Liz. Barrow might have challenged for the lead if he learnt how to tack in a chop. He demonstrated good speed upwind but lost ground with several failed tacks in each race. Ah well there is always next year.
After 7 races on Sunday, we had completed 16 races overall which brings in a 3rd discard and after a fleet vote, we decided to leave for home early and forego the last race.
When the scores were added up, John’s lead over Nigel was 18 points who 9 points ahead of Peter Baldwin. Simon Clark was 32 points behind Peter and Dave Burke 7 points adrift of Simon to make up the top 5.
THE WINNER WITH LIZ AND HIS BOAT WITH B RIG
At the prize giving, our PRO who had worked with a fluey cold all weekend, thanked the club and organisers who delivered an exceptional weekend.
The next event at Lincoln is the IOM Nationals which if the wind delivers will be a stellar event.
PHOTO FINAL RESULTS
Final piccy from Chris More of a hotly contested A fleet,
If you fancy a bit of Radio Racing , come on down and have a go, It really is exciting, and great fun.
Lincoln Radio Sailing Club 