Russ and Andy Short win the 2012 Inlands in a closely fought event



11 Boats racked up on the slipway of Burton Sailing Club on April 21st to compete for the 2012 Inland Championships. A dodgy forecast had kept some of the more regularly seen teams away but competition was still rife within what is becoming the most competitive fleet around!  

Race one started in typically shifty conditions. With the breeze fluctuating between 10-15knots to… well, very little!!! Russ and Andy Short shot out in front leaving 2-11th place changing constantly. With no clear 2^nd and 3^rd place till the last lap where Jim Hunt and Norman Byrd squeezed ahead and enjoyed 2^nd place with locals Stuart Turnbull and Jason Lunn taking 3^rd from Charlie Walters and Dougal Cram in 4^th; and just scraping ahead to beat the boys in their second boat (8306 Ben Iliffe and Carl Gibbon), Neil Rabbitts and Adam Kenney in 5^th.  

Race two got underway in very similar conditions to race one and also ended in very similar conditions to race one! Russ and Andy Short showed the fleet how to do this inland sailing lark and headed off into 1^st place, followed by Charlie and Dougal, Stuart and Jason and Jim and Norman. The top 4 positions must have changed half a dozen times before the end of the race across a simple windward/leeward course. The Shorts dominated to take 1^st place, Charlie and Dougal 2^nd and a consistant Stuart and Jason came in 3^rd. Jim and Norman doubling their points from race one with 4^th.  

Race three saw the wind pick up and steady (a joyous occasion for those falling foul to the big shifts)! Charlie and Dougal came up trumps and took 1^st place, Stuart and Jason did Burton SC proud with a well deserved 2^nd place and overnight leaders Russ and Andy Short banged in a less than shabby 3^rd. This race proving that there was all to sail for in day 2 and that anyone could have this championship in the bag!  
A weary group of 505ers then headed for a club house to evaluate the days glories and mishaps. A re-fuelling curry was served with plenty of beer and rum (thanks to Charlie’s literary prowess) and crashed out, all in preparation for day two.  

Race 4 started in a not so dissimilar breeze to that of race 3 on the previous day, much to the joys of the heavier teams. This time, however, it was Jim Hunt and Norman Byrd that managed to get their nose out front and led for the whole race. Charlie and Dougal came in 2^nd and the Shorts close behind to grab 3^rd.  

Race 5 saw the wind swing north, much to the annoyance of the race officer! The first start was recalled due to the “gentle encouragement” of certain teams over the line, therefore PRO Bill Hooton took the no-nonsense approach and the black flag came out the bag.             One underway it was quick to see that Russ and Andy were going to have this one wrapped up as they darted out into the lead. However, they were constantly dogged by Jim and Norman and Charlie and Dougal all around the race-course but held firm till the end to cement another win.  

Race 6 being the last race of the Burton Open was the Ross Kenney memorial trophy, the fourth time it has been sailed since his passing in 2008. A Shift up the first beat gave Jim/ Norman and Neil/Adam a boost and managed to round 1^st and 2^nd around the windward mark with a small lead. (The old man giving us some luck I’m sure!)             Stuart/Jason and Tim Rush/ Rich Nurse fought it out in 3^rd and 4^th trying to make the ground back on the boats in 1^st and 2^nd unfortunately to no avail. Despite trying every trick in the book Neil/Adam were unable to snatch 1^st place from Jim/Norman who sailed very well and kept them at bay all the way round, so therefore the winners of the Ross Kenney memorial trophy 2012 was Jim Hunt and Norman Byrd with Neil/Adam 2^nd and Stuart/ Jason 3^rd.  

Another great Inlands at Burton; hope to see more of you next year!
Submitted by TonyM - report by Adam Kenney

Just a qiuick note to thank everyone involved in this weekends event. Jim and I had a great weekend well worth the 6 hour drive down from Fife.  Hope to make it down south a few more times next season leading up to the worlds in La Rochelle You never know Nellies new boat might givew us a little helping hand. Cheers Donald Aitken and Jim Blyth
Submitted by Donald Aitken

An excellent turnout of 20 boats participated in 5 races over the weelend.

Results can be found here:http://www.northamptonsailingclub.org/results/2011/505Inlands2011.htm
Full report to follow

Shotley 505 Open 30/31 July 2011


It was the return of “The BIG ONE”, unfortunately the wind hadn’t and we were left with a light West North Westerly. Although it wasn’t the usual high-speed sailing that we are used to, it was very exciting in terms of the racing.


Race 1 was won by Matt and Daniel Hart, followed by Terry Selfe / Alan Montague and Martin Hodgson/Adrian Miles in third.


Race 2 saw some of the usual contenders moving up the fleet with Charlie Walters / Dougal Cram coming in first, closely followed by the Hart’s and last years winners Terry Scutcher / Christian Diebitsch coming in third.


Race 3 saw the wind drop even further and at times it was a bit of a drifter. Again the racing was very close but as usual in the lighter breeze Charlie & Dougal led around the final windward mark followed by the Hart’s, Martin & Adrian and Terry & Christian, unfortunately the Hart’s went right and lost 2 places by the final leeward mark, however for a moment it would appear that they may be able to get third when Terry fell out of the back of the boat, fortunately he was able to grab hold of the transom and pull himself back in, not bad for someone his age. Again Charlie & Dougal came in first, followed by Martin & Adrian in second and Terry & Christian. The race back to shore was won comfortably by “The Pride of East Anglia” thanks to a tow from Terry’s very fast RIB but at least this time he didn’t receive a lecture from the local coastguard.


The club put on a great BBQ and a good night was had by all and thanks must go to all the ladies and gents for all their hard work.


Sunday morning we were greeted with a great breakfast and beautiful sunny skies, unfortunately no wind, our race officer Doug postponed the start for 45 minutes and his wisdom proved right, the wind slowly filling in from a South Easterly direction. As we passed Felixstowe Docks and entered the wonderful Dovercourt Bay the wind picked up nicely and the previous days flat waters were gone leaving a nice chop.


Race 4 got underway in fantastic conditions with winds between 13-16 knots.  Again racing was close and at the windward mark there were 6 boats closely fighting for top spot.  Unfortunately gear failure put Christian Diebitsch in the water and the end to their race. Throughout the fleet there were battles, going this way and that, Greg Brown with his crew Ella Nicholson who had only sailed a 505 on a couple of occasions were doing a fantastic job and battling against their fellow Southwold boat of Felden & Symes.  The battle for first place went to Martin & Adrian, followed by Charlie & Dougal and the Hart’s.


Race 5 started with slightly more wind and anyone of Charlie/Dougal, The Hart’s and Martin & Adrian able to win the most sort after title of the year. Again the fleet broke up into 3 groups each fighting to gain an advantage.  Unfortunately Terry & Christian had gear failure again forcing them to retire but I’m sure they’ll be back next year with the aim of regaining their title. The top three were amongst the leaders at the windward mark and it was obvious that none of them were going to give up without a fight. On the final lap at the windward mark it was neck and neck between Charlie & Dougal and The Hart’s. The Hart’s raised their kite first and off they went, unfortunately an issue with the kite allowed Charlie & Dougal back in. However the Hart’s with their fantastic twin poles gybed quickly and reached the leeward mark just in the lead, it was now a straight race for the line. The Hart’s tacked giving Charlie and Dougal a chance which they took with both hands to win another race, very closely followed by the Hart’s and Martin & Adrian.


Congratulations to Charlie and Dougal for winning the most prestigious title of them all. Congratulations must also go to the entire fleet for some fantastic close racing, we must also thank and congratulate Doug Brown our Race Officer for setting great courses allowing the fleet to have a great weekend of racing. With thanks also to the committee boat crew and our rescue teams.


Back on shore we would like to thank Shotley Sailing Club again for laying on such a good spread in the evening/morning and being such great hosts, can’t wait till next year.

	Shotley S.C. 505 Open 2011
Position	Boat	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Points	Discard	Final Points
1	Walters/D Cram	4	1	1	2	1	9	4	5
2	M Hart/ D Hart	1	2	4	3	2	12	4	8
3	Hodgson/Miles	3	4	2	1	3	13	4	9
4	Selfe/Montague	2	5	7	7	7	28	7	21
5	Williams/Davis	8	6	5	6	5	30	8	22
6	Scutcher/Diebitsch	6	3	3	RTD	RTD	34	11	23
7	Deane/Turner	7	7	6	4	6	30	7	23
8	H Briddon/S Briddon	6	RTD	DNS	5	4	37	11	26
9	Felden/Symes	10	9	8	8	8	43	10	33
10	G Brown/E Nicholson	9	8	9	9	9	44	9	35

It's time to focus attention on the forthcoming Nationals to be held in Rock starting Thursday 23 June.

Registration should be done as soon as possible so that you only pay the 135.00 GBP entrance fee (goes up after 15 June!) and Rock and the 505 team can complete their planning.

This information will be updated of the next few days so if you are not on the list and are going to Rock, let me know or add your name to the list.

I just need boat number/helm and crew names, your form should just be sent to Roger.

Last year we managed an impressive turnout of 46 boats - can we beat that in 2011?

So far we have 40 boats.

NOR can be found HERE

15 Boats descended on Stone SC on 14/15 May. A cool brisk breeze and blue skies greeted the fleet for some champagne sailing on the Blackwater estuary.

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