Record entries in Tyco Healthcare Hamble winter series

Eddie Mays reports on Sunday's action on the Solent

This was the week when records were both set and broken in the TYCO Healthcare Hamble Winter Series. Yachts & Yachts sponsored the penultimate week’s racing and the total number of boats now entered for the series has reached 263, surpassing the previous best of 262 in 2001.

On the down side both Eurof Philips (IRC 3) and Ian Dawson (X-332) lost their clean sheet of victories. The strong winds of Saturday had moderated to a light souhheasterly breeze by Sunday morning and the strong east going tide caused problems for most starts on the Black Course.

Mike Greville, on the new DK46 Erivale (IRC 0), made it three in a row but Robbie Cameron-Davies, I-Site, finished second and holds a healthy lead overall.

Shaun Frohlich won IRC 1 and his victory in the IMX-40, Exabyte 2, narrows the gap to the leader Nick Jones to one point.

IRC 3 leader Eurof Philips' Great Scot II, was one of four boats that were adjudged OCS. Stephen Liebmann sailing the Swan 44 Breakout had established a good lead by the time the class turned upwind at Seascope but he couldn’t save his time over Malcolm Goodall sailing Aztec. Goodall’s win moves him to third place one point behind Ed Holton in Shades of Blue.

The tightest class is the Sigma 33s. Richard Puddifoot sailing Whippa Snappa just won this week but Richard & Mark Smallwood in Scaramouche came third and this keeps them in joint second place with Richard & Valerie Griffith, Cerefe.

Ian Dawson had so far been invincible in the X-332 class. However they rounded Marinetrack third behind Jonathon Butler on Peanut, and James Crockatt on Jump & Shout and this was the finishing order. Crockatt started off with a string of mid-fleet finishes but has been improving since the mid-series break and this was his best result to date.

Closer inshore the White Group had a good day’s racing. In the morning starts the tide was running towards the pin end and this caught a few crews out. Ian Gill and James Ives sailing their Mumm 30 Offbeat had to dip back over the line and this left them in third place behind Gregor Logan on Highlander III and Jack Kelly on Moonshine. Logan has now won eight of the 11 races sailed and has won the class with a week to spare.

Talent was unlimited in the 1720 class and perhaps this is why there was a premature rush to the line at the pin end and a General Recall on their first race. Dinghy champions Rob Larke helmed Twister and Geoff Carveth was onboard Oi! Andrew McLelland had Andy Beadsworth trimming on the class leader Splash Test Dummies but they made a poor start on the second attempt and by sailing a more extreme course inshore they lost more places and finished sixth. Ahead of them Nigel Brooke in J D Chaser had a good lead going down the second run but Ian Atkins on boats.com made up ground and had the inside berth at the mark. He kept this lead to the finishing line. Atkins also won the afternoon race ahead of McLelland and is now second overall.

Ian Southworth and Nigel Smith had a week off in the 707 class. This left the other main contenders to make up ground. Charles Whelan and Phil Green on The Sweeney shared the honours with Mark Gillett in Pocket Battleship with a first & fourth each. Whelan and Green have missed three of the weekends and are consequently lower in the overall table than their string of good results allow.

Jerry Hill on 3 Sad Old Blokes took both Laser SB3 races and this now puts him one point ahead of Mike Ewart-Smith going into the final week’s races.

Class winners

IRC 0	236	Erivale	DK 46	Mr. M. Greville
IRC 1	6505	Exabyte 2	IMX-40	Shaun Frohlich
IRC 2	7301	Sanguma		Chris Walmsley
IRC 3	IRL 811	Aztec		Malcolm Goodall
IRC 4	7070	Purple Haze	¼ tonner	Tony Dodd
X 332	7322	Peanut		Jonathon Butler
Sigma 38	8404	Festina Lente		Philip Meakins
Sigma 33	4416	Whippa Snappa		Richard Puddifoot
Bowsprit	9319	Jazolo	J-109	Robert Shaw
Mumm 30	Races 1 & 2	Highlander III	8930	Gregor Logan
1720	Races 1 & 2	Boats.com	1785	Ian Atkins
Laser SB3	Races 1 & 2	3 Sad Old Blokes	3029	Jerry Hill
Sportsboat	Race 1	Impetuous	2505 T	Morton, Brown & Devonshire
	Race 2	Eat my Shorts	255	Marcus Gabriel