42 this year and still going strong

We speak to builder Dave Winders and World Champion James Meldrum about the latest from the Fireball class

On the Fireball Class Assosiation stand at the RYA Dinghy Sailing Show recently we caught up with Dave Winder, the man responsible for building the superb piece of hardware on display and James Meldrum, who with Andy Smith in early January down in Adelaide was crowned the new Fireball World Champion.

The next 18 months is likely to see growing interest in the Fireball in the UK as the Worlds return next year to be held in Teignmouth, Devon. "There are a lot of people talking about getting back in," says Dave Winder. "Dave Hall. I think Chips Howarth, might do it. Stevie Morrison might come back. Realistically the UK could put five or six ex-World Champions out there to teach the Australians a real lesson..." His company, based up in Bradford, is now building 25-30 of the blunt-bowed Peter Milne-designed classics each year.

The boat on display, going to a proud owner in Brightlingsea, is pretty standard for a modern Fireball, says Winder. Since going across to glass construction in 1994 the moulding has remained the same, but he says that they have been putting increased amounts of Kevlar into the bow section to increase stiffness and strength. "The Fireball being a flat panelled boat there is a lot of pounding through the waves." While there is no structure in the hull in the bow the laminate here is now 16mm thick and there is additional structure in the deck.

Winder continues the guided tour: "The strut system controlling the mast bend is pretty standard on the Fireball now. This boat has got tracks that control the jib sheet angle so you can move it in and out. Most people are using that system or something similar. It has also got a two speed rig tension system so you can adjust your rig tension easily - you have a course and a fine adjustment so you can play the rig tension while you are sailing."

The boat also has a purchase system on the shrouds to control mast rake compared to the usual system of a metal plate and a fast pin. "It is easy to go back upright, but it is not as easy to rake," says Meldrum. The adjust-ability of the rig allows for a wide range of crew weights - from around 7 to 15 stone, so it is ideal for two strapping blokes as well as father and son or husband and wife teams.

Older Fireballs can be awkward for big crews, but the World Champion adds that the layout in the middle of the new boat is a lot cleaner, making it easier for the crew to move about without damaging or ensnaring themselves. "A lot more thought gone into where the ropes are. Also the angle of the tanksides has dropped as low as possible." The centreboard case is also lower.

A relatively recent development in the class has been to allow moulded sails. Remarkably James Meldrum says the school is still out as to whether or not they are faster. "The Australian and Swiss are still on Dacron. The advantage of Dacron is that it is easier to read in the light stuff. Some people have been talking about going back to the Dacron from the Kevlar." However he acknowledges that they are lighter and do keep their shape for longer - and it makes the boat look more modern.

So 42 years after its inception why is the Fireball still so popular? One reason is that boats have good longevity and stay competitive for a long time. "At the Worlds this year Malcolm Davies [who finished fourth] was sailing a boat that was built in the late 1980s. It was the same construction as ours, but built in Australia - epoxy foam sandwich construction," says Winder. "It doesn’t put weight on and it doesn’t go soft." Thus you can pick up an old boat and provided you sail it reasonably well you can still be in the frame.

They are also strong. During the Worlds James Meldrum says a boat hit them on port and just took a bit of gelcoat off. No doubt due to the Kevlar in the construction it absorbs impacts well too. "We had one boat that was hit at 70mph by a car. It wrote the car off and it just damaged the boat a little bit," says Winder.

Meldrum adds his ha'penth: "There is a lot of performance for your money. And the fleet is very competitive and it is good racing. You turn up and you’ll get a good sail. There is healthy club scene out there." Meldrum sails out of Notts County Sailing Club but there growing fleets in Draycote, Brightlingsea, Paignton, etc.

Aside from club sailing there are active circuits with the four event Typhoon Super Series, the Golden Dolphin Traveller Series, a classic series and a series in Scotland. This year these will culminate in the Typhoon Nationals at Porthpean Sailing Club, St Austell on 21-27 August.

	Fireball UK
	Fixtures list
UKFA Promoted Series & Championships
March
27/28	Staunton Harold S.C.	Golden Dolphin
April
17/18	Parkstone Y.C.	Typhoon Super Series & Golden Dolphin
May
08-Sep	Brightlingsea S.C.	Typhoon Super Series & Golden Dolphin
22/23	Weir Wood	TRAINING WEEKEND Contact: 020 7831 8068
June
Dec-13	Grafham Water S.C.	Golden Dolphin
19/20	Draycote Water S.C	TRAINING WEEKEND Contact: 020 7831 8064
26/27	Shoreham S.C.	Typhoon Super Series & Golden Dolphin
July
17/18	Stokes Bay S.C.	Golden Dolphin
August
21/27	Porthpean S.C	TYPHOON FIREBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
September
11-Dec	Notts County S.C	Typhoon Super Series & Golden Dolphin
October
23/24	Draycote Water SC.	Golden Dolphin
30/31	Chew Valley Lake S.C.
Other Fireball Events
April
4th Sun		Open Meeting
24/25	Highcliffe S.C.	Open Meeting
May
23rd	Ogston S.C.	Open Meeting
22/23	Blackwater S.C.	Open Meeting
June
19/20	Maylandsea Bay S.C.
July
4th	Budworth S.C.	Open Meeting
03-Apr	Newhaven & Seaford S.C.
10-Nov	Rutland S.C.	Symmetric Grand Prix www.fastsail.org
24/25	Thornbury Regatta	Open Meeting
September
04-May	Hayling Island S.C.	Open Meeting Helen
19/24	Izola, Slovenia	European Championships
October
09-Oct	Portishead Yacht & Sailing Club Open Meeting