Results / Volvo Noble Marine UK National Championships Mounts Bay SC - 24/08/2014

Photos by LPB Aerial Photography

Volvo Noble Marine RS400 Nationals Day One - Baptism of Fire at Mounts Bay

After Saturday’s sunny arrival in a picture perfect Mounts Bay, day one dawned grey and breezy with the 73 teams keen to get out on the water into the solid F4+ south easterly and building waves. Team Bedborough / Dunn made an early grab for the Duckhams with a capsize 100 feet off the shore much to the amusement of the entire rest of the fleet. Most others managed a more successful and straightforward sail down to the start.

After a practice gate to allow the fleet to put into practice the theory from Nick Craig’s starting seminar, Race One got off cleanly with a lot of boats fighting to get the lead on the port lay. Ultimately right paid and it was Nick and Tobytastic who hit the starboard lay to round first just ahead of pathfinders Andy Hatch/Dan Hawkins and returning rockstars Roger and James Gilbert. Eurocup champions Jon Gorringe and Nikki Bass picked up a great right hander on the 2nd beat to move into 2nd, but Jim Downer / Jon Price used their height+weight+fitness to perfection to storm through the fleet to pass Gorringe on the last beat for 2nd . Mr and Mrs Gilbert sailed a very solid race to finish 4th and dispel Roger’s claims that he had forgotten how to hike.

For Race Two the wind had risen to a solid F5 and with waves building to cathedral size the fleet rested their legs and consumed energy products whilst the committee boat repositioned for the start. Team Wales (Josh Metcalfe and Elaine Jones) were pathfinders and the majority of the fleet elected to start mid to late perhaps to enjoy an extra 1 minutes rest of their legs. Jack Holden / Alex Lee however went early and crossed the fleet but were narrowly beaten to the windward by Craig / Lewis. Mike Sims / Richard Brown had found 2nd gear in their new boat and came flying through the fleet to take 2nd and put Craig under a bit of pressure, followed by Downer / Price and Gilbert / Stewart both already showing great consistency in the challenging conditions.  The usual suspects were all there or thereabouts with Teams Gorringe, Farbrother and Metcalfe all posting top 10 solid results. Sean Cleary / Steven Tyner from Greystones SC had a great day to sit 9th overnight, whilst Mike Saul  / Demo Dave in THAT orange boat posted an 8th in Race 2 to round out the top 10 and prove that there’s life in the old dog yet.

So after day one Craig still appears to have a slight edge on the rest of the fleet but the competition for the top 10 is incredibly close.

Further down the fleet there was epic racing at all levels with small issues rapidly becoming major problems as the opportunities for clean kite hoists and drops shortened as the waves heightened.  The Silver Fleet winners, in 13th place overall were Mark Somerville & Joe Roberts, and the Bronze winners, in 20th place overall, was Richard Cain & Barney Dearsley.   

There were plenty of big smiles in the dinghy with several people claiming they had broken the world RS400 speed record, whilst the free tea and cakes on offer at the top of the slipway were very gratefully received. With plenty of material for Captain Duckhams the fleet are now rehydrating with the copious quantities of Penzance Brewery’s legendary “RS400 Awesome Anniversary Ale”  whilst awaiting the daily prizegiving. The fleet observe the forecast with interest as there is no shortage of wind on it’s way.

Keith Bedborough

Day 3

Had there been a vote among the 72 boat fleet as to whether anyone would rather be the race officer for the day it is unlikely that there would have been a single show of hands given the challenging forecast conditions.

After Monday's (Day 2) racing had been called off due to the lively conditions everyone was keen to get back into the competitive groove but a forecast of light and variable winds of under 5 knots along with a big left over swell from the previous day's action was always going to make racing challenging and a  long postponement likely.

After three hours drifting around in the waves watching what wind there was circle around the fleet, the race committee abandoned racing until further notice.

That's was the cue for an 8knot+ breeze to come in from the East - Sod's Law in the extreme, along with a strength and direction that hadn't been seen on any of the forecasts.

Just as the front runners in the race to the bar and the club deck chairs were setting foot on the beach, the race officer saw an opportunity to turn the fortunes of the day around and called the fleet back to the race area.

The breeze did the decent thing and kept steady as crews turned around and got used to sailing downwind into a head sea and surfing upwind. Just as the fleet got back to where it had started an hour before, (a couple of miles from the sailing club), and had settled into this unconventional routine, the breeze decided to go for a wander and danced from side to side, teasing the race officer and taunting the sailors as the strength dropped too.

Eventually, 4 hours after leaving the shore in the morning a start got under way but the breeze had another trick up its sleeve. Seeing the pathfinder hobby horsing its way on port towards the expectant fleet that had lined up where they thought the line would be, the breeze went hard right leaving many with the prospect of being stranded to windward of the line. As they turned to head back the pathfinder decided that the potential head to head was a risk not worth taking, even with a guard boat and tacked off. Cue a general recall.

No doubt seeing that the fluctuating breeze was going to cause problems with a gate start the race officer went for a line start. Given that it was now 16.30 and we had yet to get a race in it was hardly surprising that a black flag was hoisted to discourage any monkey business this late in the day.

It didn't and a general recall followed with two boats slapped on the wrists, (James Downer 1321 and Nick Bonner 1344), as their names went up on the naughty step blackboard.

The next start did succeed in getting away for two laps of a modest sized course littered with snakes and ladders.

In the end it was Keith Bedborough who got the best out of a long day and a short race with a convincing win while the race committee also scored with a race on the board, our third of the event so far.

But the fun hadn't finished as the breaking swell on the beach made for a challenging and spectacular return to base. With boats leaping out through the surf it was all-hands on the beach as crews helped each other to get ashore safely.

That, at least, got everyone's vote.

A wonderful trip to the Mounts for a private view of the castle and wine on the terrace with spectacular views rounded off a crazy day.

Wednesday's conditions look like a return to more saucy conditions.

Matt Sheahan

Day 4

Big Wednesday – I was there !!
 
When Llanelli beat the all conquering All Blacks in the 70’s the event became such a part of Welsh folklore that Max Boyce pointed out in his song “I was there” that 500,000 Welshmen now claim to have been in the 10,000 crowd. In a few years time there will be hundreds of RS sailors that will claim they were racing at Mounts Bay SC for Big Wednesday; day 4 of the 2014 Volvo Noble Marine RS400 Nationals.
 
After the sunshine and no wind of Tuesday it was back to the fresh southerly under slate grey skies, the fleet launching into 14 knots with a decent sea already running with the promise the wind and sea would slowly increase all day.
 
Race 4 started in a steady 12-14 knots and normal service resumed straight away with Nick Craig smarting from being beaten by his old crew on Tuesday was having no mucking around to lead straight away. Half way through the race something big and black was approaching from the general direction of the Lizard bringing with it rain, an extra 6-10 knots and making a mess of the course but producing a very memorable full tilt reach on the last loop. Craig and Tobytastic Lewis won from Jon Goringe/ Nicola Bass and Jim Downer/Jon Price.
 
With the wind now around 20 knots and the course rejigged race 5 started in a big running sea then half way up the first beat down came quality heavy Cornish mizzle, more wind and much reduced visibility leading many a crew at the spreader mark to exclaim “where is the leeward gate??” for the helm to answer “sod the marks where is the Mount!!??”  Downwind was now a full on strap yourself in Alton Towers special white knuckle ride; you had to be there to believe the waves! Getting the kite up was a major issue but the drop at the bottom was impossible for many unfortunately including Keith and Julie Willis. Having just overtaken Nick Craig/Tobytastic they wiped out and Keith’s knee reacting to the shock of overtaking Nick/Toby stopped working in a bad way. They had to be taken off the capsized boat by the rescue crew and taken to hospital; thankfully Keith was fine and back in the bar later. Josh Metcalfe and Tobytastic went back out after the race to help recover the boat and sail it in; star work boys.
 
Back in the race with the wind and sea getting even bigger there were now more wheel barrows in the race area than in a major garden centre. Craig and Tobytastic were majestic and were so far clear after 3 laps of major sailing to win with Jim Downer/Jon Price 2nd and Mike Sims/Richard Brown 3rd.
 
It was a very tired, shaken and quite emotional fleet that reached the Marazion beach. What a day – it is rare that photos give a real impression of the size of the waves but these really do.
 
Pete Vincent

Day 5

While those that had raced at Mounts Bay before had told those that hadn't about the legendary waves, what they hadn't mentioned was the 50 or so different varieties. In a challenging week for all, the range of sea states and weather had stretched from a whisper of a breeze and left over slop to full-on and frightening white crested growlers with a breeze, no viz and rain to match.

But for Day 5, Mounts Bay delivered champagne conditions midway between the week's extremes, along with a few more varieties of sea states and wind combinations.

Still battered and bruised from Wednesday's 20-30knot pummelling, the fleet headed out to a new race area to the east of the famous Mount. The decision by the race committee to take the fleet to this new location proved to be spot on.

The first of three races started in a 10-12 knot breeze that didn't really match the sea state, particularly on starboard tack where every fifth wave seemed to have a steep front and vertical back. Stopping the boat was easy, getting it going again was a far tougher task.

By the windward mark it felt like we had carried our boats to the top of the course using the mainsheet and toe straps.

The short stretch from the windward mark to the spreader buoy served up an entirely new sea state based on a washing machine's spin cycle. White chop, waves from everywhere, it felt like the entire fleet had headed off road.

And then came the downhill slide.

The waves suggested that there should be plenty of hiking and surfing but the breeze was holding back making the first two laps a bit of a struggle for all but the lightest crews.

By the third and final round of the first race the breeze had woken up and added a few more knots making the upwind legs a full hike and the downwind slides more fun.

By the finish Nick Craig and Toby 'Tastic' Lewis had led the fleet around the course once again.

Race two saw the conditions perk up a few more notches with some more breeze to match the building swell from the South West. But while the waves were longer the beats were still hard work and the battle for clear air just as intense. Fortunately the downwind slides became more fun too, especially for the extra-medium proportioned crews who had struggled to keep their boats on the boil. (No names, we know who we are!)

Again, Craig and Lewis scored a bullet and sealed their overall win of the championship. But for everyone else there was more to come.

First was a return to a three lap course, race two had been a teasing two lapper. Second was the waves,  stretching out a little further to make longer surfs downwind easier. But for some there were bigger surprises in store.

One was for Jim Downer who beat Nick Craig to the finish, but the other was for David Brown and Rebecca Witt (1290) who capsized at the start, (not something they make a habit of), but onto a rather sick looking shark. Rebecca refused to to leave the boat and enter the water by hanging onto the gooseneck to keep her feet above the water making life a little trickier for David who was trying to right the boat while convincing her that the shark was dead.

For the rest of the fleet the race was a perfect finish to a boisterous week but there was one more surprise in store - the ride home.

As we headed back towards the Mount the breeze kicked in with a 10knot bonus on top of the 15knots we had got used to making for a full on foam up for the two sail reach home. Some, no names, didn't quite make it without a swim on the way.

Overall, as far as conditions were concerned, the week could not have ended on a better note - sunshine, breeze, another variety of waves and big smiles around the fleet.

The last challenge was the long haul up the beach at low tide. A proper work out at the end of the day and a good excuse to use the stair lift in the club.

Congratulations to Nick Craig and Toby Lewis for taking an emphatic win.

Matt Sheahan

Final Results below.