Winners (almost) decided

Eddie Mays reports on the final weekend of the Tyco Healthcare Hamble Winter Series

The strong NE’erly breeze and bright sunshine made this a rumbustuous finale to this year’s TYCO Healthcare Hamble Winter Series. The biting wind was also a timely reminder that it is the season to put away our toys and sit in front of a warm fire enjoying proper Sunday lunches. For the third consecutive year the final day sponsor was the Quantum Sail Design Group. The outcome of several classes was in doubt and results in IRC 1, the Sigma 33 and the Laser SB3 would be crucial.



The Mumm 30 class has been small this year and it has been Gregor Logan, Highlander III, (above, nearest the camera) who has won most races. This week he started by the committee boat and seemed to have the others covered on the first beat. Approaching the windward mark his main started to come down and the boat was forced to retire from the day’s racing. This left line honours to be shared between Jack Kelly, Moonshine, in the morning and David Wilkinson & Ian Poynton, Monkey Business, in the afternoon.

In the 1720s Ian Atkins, boats.com, has been improving all series and closing the gap on the early leaders, Andrew & Jane McLelland in Splash Test Dummies. Boats.com established an early lead on the beat and further extended this on the first downwind leg. Splash T.D. was somewhat hindered in their pursuit by having to hove to with their genniker up to avoid a large yacht returning up Southampton Water. Their 2nd place, behind Atkins, was enough to secure the overall title and allowed them to return home before the afternoon race, which Atkins also won. Between them they won 12 of the 14 races completed.

Ian Southworth & Nigel Smith missed last week’s racing in the 707 class. They needed to put in a good performance this week to ensure their class win. At the bottom mark on the first lap of the morning race they were alongside and inside of James Ross, one of their main rivals. Ross was forced to tack off, misjudged the tide at the mark and lost about ten boat lengths. Behind him Mark Gillett, the other main contender had major problems with the spinnaker drop and retired from the race. Southworth & Smith duly won that and the afternoon race to end the series with an 18 point advantage over Mark Gillett with James Ross in 3rd place overall.

The Laser SB3 class result is still undecided. In the final race the final windward mark was lifted in error before the boats had rounded it. A special Protest Committee will meet next Thursday evening at the HRSC Clubhouse to decide whether a valid race result can be achieved and on their decision will rest the outcome of the overall result.

Since joining the Series after the Charity Pursuit Race Mike Greville in his DK46 has been unstoppable in IRC 0 and so it was again this week when, in the strongest winds so far, he pulled ahead of the two Swan 45s by over 5 minutes on the water and two minutes on handicap. Robbie Cameron-Davies had already secured overall victory and did not race.

Inter-class competition for the Yacht of the Series Trophy, presented by the title Sponsors Tyco Healthcare, Has been very keen. Several boats were in contention but for at least two contenders their hopes were abruptly dashed. Tony Dodd, Purple Haze, in IRC 4 sailed out to the start area but then decided against racing. Ian Dawson in the X-332 class was co-leader at the windward mark with Jonathon Butler when his mainsheet trimmer, Clive Garner, fell badly and sustained what appeared to be a fractured collarbone. The boat retired immediately and Clive was taken to hospital for a check up. Happily his injury was a severe bruise rather than a fracture but Ian has probably lost his chance of being Yacht of the Series. Incidentally the choices of Yacht and Sportsboat of the Series is the province of the Race Director, Jamie Wilkinson, and will not be announced until the prize-giving next Saturday evening at the Hamble River clubhouse.

In IRC 1 Nick Jones sailing Tarka had a one-point lead over Shaun Frohlich, Exabyte2 going into the last race. The heavy breeze favoured the IMX-40 and they had a convincing win whilst Tarka could only finish 6th. Jones finished on 17 points equal with Jon Perry’s Prima 38 Firestorm. Perry took 2nd place overall by reason of his two wins earlier in the series.



The final race also decided the Sigma 33 class. Going into the race one of three boats could have taken the title. Richard Puddifoot, Whippa Snappa, held a slim lead over Richard Smallwood, Scaramouche (above), and Richard & Valerie Griffith, Cerefe. All three started close together at the committee boat end of the line but slowly Whippa Snappa edged ahead into a lead that was not challenged.

Sunday's race winners:

IRC 0	Erivale	DK 46	Mr. M. Greville
IRC 1	Exabyte 2	IMX-40	Shaun Frohlich
IRC 2	Kier building with Flair	Elan 40	Jim McGregor
IRC 3	Great Scot II	Mills 10	Eurof Philips & Barbara Mackay
IRC 4	Burhou	Mod. Impala	Donald & Julia Wilks
X 332	Peanut		Jonathon Butler
Sigma 38	Gauntlet of Tamar		R. N. S. A.
Sigma 33	Whippa Snappa		Richard Puddifoot
Bowsprit	Charley J		Charles Ivill
Mumm 30 - R1	Moonshine		Jack Kelly
Mumm 30 - R2	Monkey Business		David Wilkinson & Ian Poynton
1720 - R1 and R2	Boats.com		Ian Atkins
Laser SB3 -R1	Sublime		Michael Ewart-Smith
Sportsboat R1 and R2	Impetuous		Messers Morton, Brown & Devonshire
707	Chilli Chaser		Ian Southworth & Nigel Smith

Provisional Overall Results

IRC 0	I-Site	Ker 11.3	Robbie Cameron-Davies
IRC 1	Exabyte 2	IMX-40	Shaun Frohlich
IRC 2	Kier building with Flair	Elan 40	Jim McGregor
IRC 3	Great Scot II	Mills 10	Eurof Phillips & Barbara Mackay
IRC 4	Purple Haze	¼ Tonner	Tony Dodd
X 332	Glide-X		Ian Dawson
Sigma 38	Festina lente		The Meakins Family
Sigma 33	Whippa Snappa		Richard Puddifoot
Bowsprit	Jazolo		Robert Shaw
Mumm 30	Highlander III		Gregor Logan
1720	Splash Test Dummies		Andrew & Jane McLelland
Sportsboat	Impetuous	Ben. 25	Messers Morton, Brown & Devonshire
707	Chilli Chaser		Ian Southworth & Nigel Smith
Laser SB3	TO BE CONCLUDED