Solo Specific

Spring 2015

Sponsored by Specific Advertisement

2 Solo Specific Contacts N.S.C.A. Officers and Committee 2014-2015 !

Title/ Name Address Telephone Email Address

President 24, Mundells, West 01992 626377 [email protected] Roger Gravatt Cheshunt, Herts, EN7 6BP

Vice President 28 Bassett Gardens, North 07763 381285 vicepresident@solosailing Claire Clark Weald, Epping, Essex. .org.uk

Hon.Treasurer 8B Huggins Lane, North 01707 259665 [email protected] David Walford Mimms, Hatfield, Herts.

Membership 6 Tor Bryan, Ingatestone, 07802 484103 membership@solosailing Phil Sturmer Essex CM4 9HJ .org.uk

Hon. Secretary 4 Snowberry Court, 01376 347366 [email protected] Robert Lawrie Braintree, Essex, CM7 9FT

Chief Measurer 98 Norwich Rd, Chichester, 01243 789162 [email protected] Gordon Barclay West Sussex, PO19 5DF

Technical Adviser 17 Shaggy Calf Lane, 01753 529170 Jim Gates Slough, Berks, SL2 5HL

Newsletter Editor 74 Tumulus Rd, Saltdean, 01273 304421 [email protected] Will Loy East Sussex, BN2 8FS [email protected]

Coaching 93 Eaton Rd, Appleton, 01865 863595 [email protected] Tony Thresher Abingdon, Oxon, OX13 5JJ 07729104117

Midland Area Rep [email protected] Nigel Davies

Northern Area Rep 5 Field Hurst, Barkisland, 01422 820212 [email protected] Nick Hornsby Halifax, HX4 0OJ

Eastern/T Valley Rep 28 Bassett Gardens, North 01992 523262 [email protected] Godfrey Clark Weald, Epping, Essex. 07713 871802 [email protected]

Western Area Rep [email protected] Richard White

Southern Area Rep 07809 761623 [email protected] Andrew Thompson

Sea Series Vacant [email protected]

Webmaster Vacant [email protected]

Championship Venues 53 Seaview Avenue, West 07919 171493 [email protected] Steve Ede Mersea,Colchester, CO58BY

Committee Member [email protected] Chris Brown

Scottish Area Rep Crab Apple Neuk, Sea 07939 062156 kevangibb@ardnastangestates. Kevan Gibb Rd,Drumeldrie, Upper co.uk Largo, KY8 6JD

Welsh Area Rep [email protected] Brian Holland

GM and Vet Rep [email protected] Andrew Smith

3 Solo Specific Committee Editorial Firstly, a very Happy New Year to all our members, I regard you as friends off the water and adversaries on it. This is the first publication using the new Apple Mac and Fuji digital camera, I hope you see an improvement in quality if not material. There is also a change to the cover with the inclusion of a National Solo corporate image, The synonymous white sail with five full length battens set on a more modern raked mast. The insignia is slightly larger and the font used is Tahoma. Roger and myself put our heads together on this project, let someone on the committee know if you like it or not, we can then decide if to adopt it or not.

!The breaking news is that Selden Spars are set to sponsor the National and Nation’s Cup at East Lothian Y.C. in August. We are now set for a fabulous championship, we just need a nice south easterly from the Sahara to warm the banks of North Berwick and 90 + Solos’.

The Veteran and Grandmaster Series seem! to have been overlooked in previous years but since i am fast approaching 51 I will be focusing more time and magazine pages to these series. Andrew Smith is the co-ordinator and prompted by Mike Wilkie the two series will have perennial trophies awarded at the EOS. The winner of the Vets will receive the Danny Butler Trophy, named after one of the forefathers of the class and the Richard Lovett trophy will go to the victorious Grand Master. For those new to the class, Richard built some of the finest a fastest wooden Solos’ in the 70-80s and helped develop the shape and flared gunwales so prevalent today.

!Hopefully you will receive this magazine before the Dinghy Show, the prelude to the season although I am not sure there is even a closed season these days. The committee will be on hand to meet/greet old friends and show off the two lovely new National Solos’. There is masses to see and lots to buy so take the credit card away from your partner and earn some air miles.

!Rule 42 continues to be a hot topic and there are some interesting points made by Steve Cockerill in his article in this issue. I had a long chat with Tony Thresher a while back and we agreed that it is down to the competitors to protest if they see illegal actions. As Tony commented ‘’ even at Olympic level the competitors know when it is safe or not to pump, that is what the crew is there for’’. My own view is that there were more protests when a red flag had to be displayed. The commitment to it at the first sign of an infringement adds conviction to the hail. It is all too easy to shout protest once and then not follow it through to the protest room.

!Congratulations to Mike Sims and all the other sailors who competed in the Sailjuice series over the winter. The winds for the six event series were generally and freezing cold, no surprise for dec/Jan I guess. I did some videoing at the Bloody Mary and also had a camcorder on Pete Mitchell’s Solo. He was doing albeit behind Mike by some way but hooked in to a massive gust on one reach. Even for a man of his supreme talent it was too much and he tipped it in..on camera. The shot below is just before the crash!

!See you on the water. Will Loy

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SPRING-INTO-ACTION_A4_Jan15.indd 1 4/2/15 13:40:58 Solo Specific Presidential Report

THE PREZ SEZ

A! happy 2015 to all National Solo Class Association Members and I wish you all good sailing throughout the year.

!I can start by conveying the good news that Noble Marine will continue their Sponsorship of our Class for 2015. They are of course the named sponsor of our Winter Championships but their financial support goes much wider than this and includes training courses, trophies and the like. Your continued use of Noble for your dinghy insurance cover helps us secure this valuable support.

!On the subject of Sponsorship I am hopeful that Selden Spars will title sponsors for this year's National Championships / Nations Cup event in Scotland. Selden have offered to help and I await Committee approval before finalising details.

!I am typing this with crossed fingers in the hope that the previous concerns with our favourite D+ masts have diminished. Insurance claim numbers have reduced although I know of at least one problem at the windy Bloody Mary race. I am still hopeful that a front taper Cumulus section mast will provide part of the solution. So far the taper provided ( similar to the D+ ) has not provided enough power release in gusts but perhaps a maximum length taper (with minimum tip dimension) as allowed by our Rules will provide what we need. I understand that 6 examples have been built for thorough testing on the water.

!Whilst I love our current National Solo the alleged success of newer designs like the RS Aero worries me a little. I wonder if we should reduce our minimum weight requirement ? Modern Merlin Rockets carry up to 22 kg correctors so I do not believe it is beyond the wit of our leading builders to build a strong National Solo hull substantially lighter than we currently allow. How about members agreeing that in future (say) 12kg correctors be allowed (this would enable lighter ends to the hull) and then in (say) 5 years we reduce the hull minimum weight requirement by 10kg and boats built in the interim period can stay competitive by removing some of the lead and having their boats weighed again and a revised Certificate issued. Perhaps it is a case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" but we must ensure that our boat appeals to the next generation. What are members views on this ?

!Finally, I remain hopeful that we will soon have a new and revised website. Updating / changing the current site is not straightforward and therefore the information contained is never entirely up to date. I am hoping that a new site which is amendable even by an old duffer like me will enable Members to get better value from the Association. Watch this space.

!Best wishes to all. Roger Gravatt !

6 Solo Specific Financial ! Treasurer’s Report

!Happy New Year to you all and in financial terms I am looking forward to another prosperous and profitable year for the National Solo Class Association. After a successful 2014 the aim is for this to continue and at least emulate this in 2015

The annual subscription renewal process is well underway. Thanks go to Phil Sturmer our Membership Secretary for recently launching ' Webcollect ' an automated process for subscriptions. The initial take up has been good and no doubt HSBC will also appreciate this introduction as I will no longer need to pay circa 1000 cheques into the bank. This process is also to be used for payment for the Nationals in North Berwick. A notice in this regard will be shortly placed on our website. Similar discounts will apply for prompt payment by 1st June 2015.

Please do note that those who have not renewed their subscription in time for the next issue of our Solo Specific magazine will not receive future magazines alongside the various other offers through our Association.

I am also pleased to advise you that Noble Marine Insurance have confirmed that they will continue to sponsor the National Solo Class Association in 2015

On the sailing front during last year I changed clubs and am now a member of the active Solo fleet at Fishers Green SC. We have our own start and even during the Winter months numbers of the start line exceed 10. Today however was the exception with a steady 18 - 20 mph north westerly blowing with gusts in excess of 30 mph. Challenging on an inland lake with a cold water temperature and air temperature of just above freezing. My fingers have just about warmed up from what was a wet and cold blast on the lake. Roll on the summer !

Graham Cranford Smith at the Inlands

he diary of events from the 2015 Solo list of Open Meetings / Events has once again been scrutinised and dates put on my family's wall calendar. Mrs W's approval has also been given. This includes my first visit to the Salcombe Solo Open at Whitsun alongside other Solo members from Fishers Green SC. This event has always been on my wish list. Mrs W stated that I had better do it in 2015 before I get to old !

Looking forward to a successful 2015 and for those in the Southern half of the UK ~ see you on the water soon with my first event being the Winter Championships at Chew Valley

Dave Walford NSCA Treasurer Solo 5320 'Aquasition'

7 Solo Specific Feature Doing it For the Girls Vanda Jowett is one of the most successful female sailors in the Class.

I had some early sailing experiences with my family in an 11+ dinghy! on the River Thames and in Langstone Harbour (Hayling Island). It was not until we joined Littleton Sailing Club when I was about 14 that I really learnt to sail though. That was in the early 1970’s. My brother Geoff (Carveth) and I began racing together at Littleton, and after discovering that with Geoff helming we could actually win the odd race against the adults, we chartered an . Later my parents bought us a , which we raced together for a while.

!The 80’s saw the rise in popularity of windsurfing and both Geoff and I got the bug for it. I my greatest achievement in windsurfing was qualifying to represent the UK in the Ladies IYRU World Championships. Our windsurfing team did not exactly cover itself in glory at the event, but it was an honour to be there at La Rochelle, with the other girls and with Jim Saltenstall as RYA coach.

!I didn’t really start racing Solos till the 90’s, after I gave up trying to windsurf through the winter months. By this time Geoff had won the Solo nationals and worlds on a number of occasions, and had moved on to other boats. My first Solo nationals at Penzance in 1996, was a baptism of fire. The wind was rather fruity on a couple of days leading to me having to be towed in because I couldn’t cope – I couldn’t believe the size of the waves – it was all quite scary! One person I was delighted to be reacquainted with was Liz Robinson, who was also in the GB windsurfing team with me. The fact that she was there, helped build my confidence in an otherwise all male fleet. She and I had a tussled all week, at the end of which I just pipped her to the ladies trophy.

!Geoff gave me plenty of tips at the beginning of my Solo sailing career, although I didn’t sail against him in a Solo till the 1997 Solo Nationals at Looe, when he was loaned an FRP boat by Holt. He always has had a reputation for boat bimbling and at Looe he got me fairing in every screw hole along the slot gasket and helped tweak the rigging of my new Ledger Solo no. 4123 (built to the same hull shape as Geoff’s previous Ledger). Geoff’s attention to detail in this respect has certainly stayed with me, so I don’t feel psychologically ready for a nationals until everything on the boat is perfect. We had predominantly light conditions at Looe, and I found myself doing pretty well. Geoff reckoned I was following him up the beats. I wasn’t, but certainly in a couple of races I did finish only a short distance behind him which was very pleasing, however as soon as the wind picked up I struggled especially as the races in those days were about 3 hours long one thing about sailing is that people better than you are always ready to help and the Solo fleet is no exception, so I have had lots of advice on technique and rig setting over the years, from fellow competitors, which has helped enormously. In the late 90’s I also co-owned an RS400 with Solo sailor Jerry Garner. Jerry was always up there in the results at Solo events and I’m sure crewing for him sharpened my tactical ability. Jerry was on the Solo committee at the time and experiencing the short race format adopted by the RS fleets, led him to suggest a similar format for the Solo fleet, resulting in the race format we are still using today at the nationals.

!In 2000 I met my now husband, Jonathan Jowett. He was a good tennis player by all accounts, but unfortunately I am a very bad tennis player, so he had no choice but to learn to sail. He learnt by crewing for me in an RS200, until he decided he wanted to helm for himself. After a period in a , he borrowed a friend’s Solo and joined me in Holland for the Dutch Nationals. The event was a windy one and poor Jon spent most of the time upside down (Andy Davis and Chris Brown can vouch for this!). Later that year he bought Solo 4283 from me as I traded up to my first Winder. Having been thrown in at the deep end by me so to speak, he soon began to find his feet at events, so that back at our club he found himself doing pretty well. As he has moved on he has upgraded to a stiffer mast and now when the wind blows he is often ahead of me. The competitive side of me is not so happy about this, but on the other hand I am delighted he has come to love the sport as much as I do, and he deserves to win sometimes!

!There are a fair few lady Solo sailors out there, a few of whom I have had the pleasure of competing against nationally. Apart from Liz Robinson, those that stand out are Brenda Holt, Elaine Turner, Marleen Gaillard and Claar Van De Does. Elaine, Marleen and Claar are great all round competitors, whilst Brenda, being somewhat on the light side, is pretty unbeatable in light winds. A mention should also go to Sam Husk, who must be the longest serving lady sailor (and top party girl) in the fleet.

!It is a great shame there seems not to be many lady Solo sailors who feel confident enough to want to do bigger events. My advice to anyone considering it is to start by travelling to some local open meetings. If there are other Solo sailors at your club who travel, then they will be pleased to give you their support I’m sure. Doing this will build your confidence and you will soon get to know others who do the circuit, so that when you feel confident enough on the water to try a bigger event you will already be experiencing the sense of camaraderie within the fleet and I can guarantee you will have a great time. 8 Solo Specific Feature

I started off in Renee`s old Lovett. No. 3250. Moved on to a new Ledger that I got Gerry to build in the same shape as geoff had. That was no. 4123, I sailed it with a sleeved C (can't remember the sail though). Next came the Miles (4283), also with a sleeved C and Purple then Speed. The first winder was 4620, when I decided that my attempts mixing and matching to try to get a sail that worked without 'S' bending in higher winds with a bendy mast was not really working for me. That was when I changed to a Wavelength mast and matching sail. It took me ages to get used to (a year), but I really liked it and the sail was the first I had experienced that kept its shape in any weather. Fabulous for lake sailing especially. With my latest winder (5126) I went for the Fat boy slim, just because I wanted to try something different again. I had a Hyde laminate with it that the hayling guys were experimenting with, but went back to a Wavelength sail as I was convinced the laminate could not adapt so well in higher winds. Claar Van de Does uses the same mast as me very successfully, with a north laminate st1, so I have copied her now with a slightly modified st1 which works well with the soft mast. Vanda Jowett

9 Mike Sims working his P+B powered Winder to windward at Rutland last september. Mike favours a wind indicator mounted just below the gooseneck. He is then able to monitor wind shifts and anticipate wave patterns without stretching his neck up to the top of the masthead. The NORTH SAILS SUPER SERIES 2015

Full details to follow

10 events- 4 to qualify ! Noble Marine Winters Chew Valley (West) ! Spring Champs Draycote Water (Midlands) ! Nigel Pusinelli Trophy (South West) ! Welsh Champs Abersoch (North) ! Southern Champs Bough Beach (South) ! Northern Champs (North) ! Scottish Champs (Scotland) ! Nationals East Lothian (Scotland) ! Inlands Grafham Water(West Midlands) ! EOS Oxford (Midlands) Qualifiers will have to attend the EOS prize giving to be in the draw. Solo Specific Feature

A TALE OF TWO CHAMPIONS

Andy Couch won the Nation’s Cup in Garda and Charlie Cumbley won the Nationals. Here are their stories. Andy! Couch

!I was born into a family in 1979 and became a member of Rudyard Lake Sailing Club. I cannot really remember starting to play around in boats but I know I had an oppie at an early age and my dad used to put me into without the sails and push me out until the end of the rope was reached then pull me back in. Eventually I graduated to playing in it with my friends, our favourite activity was seeing how many of us could get into it before it capsized, eventually sailing it.

!I then moved into a and crewed for my granddad in a . In Andy relaxes in the bar in Lake Garda as 1990 my family changed from N12’s to enterprises, when I was 11 I did my Charlie prepares to glass him. first event away from RLSC , the enterprise juniors at Shustoke S.C. and discovered that I liked doing open events, many enterprise events followed during the early and mid 90’s with my brother Martin crewing and some successes. At 13 I also moved from the topper into a laser (144283) and got involved with the RYA youth training programme, I loved everything associated with this programme, even the winter training on Grafham Water and the early morning runs, I took part in all the winter training programmes and a few years later won a place in the Laser Youth squad. I recall one year doing the laser nationals at Mumbles in a full rig, my brother was by then in and then going directly to Looe for the Enterprise nationals, Abersoch dinghy week and the Southport 24 hours race also featured highly on our priority list. Eventually all this carefree Laser and Enterprise sailing had to end, that time came for me when I left the RYA youth squad in 1997. I had already left school and had started my electrical apprenticeship and lost interest in sailing and thats the way it stayed until my dad who had taken to sailing my old laser started to discuss with his Rudyard pals the possibility of a visit to Lake Garda in 2004 in a solo. He bought solo 4459 from John Clarke in 2002/3 and signed up for the 2004 trip to Garda, the prospect of going to Garda slightly re kindled my sailing interest, I did a few opens in his Solo on the Northern Circuit and discovered that I still had some idea of how to sail, by doing a few Solo opens I met someone who was to become a good friend, Steve Boon of Boon boats.

!During the 2003/4 seasons Steve kindly loaned me several of his Solos, I eventually took 4554 to Garda along with 5 or 6 other Rudyard helms and re discovered my love of sailing and Lake Garda, so it was the solo that re introduced me to dinghy sailing but despite being fit I was on the big side for a solo. Steve and Jane continued to encourage my solo sailing post the Garda visit by making other solos available during the following season, I am very grateful for their friendship and support.

!In 2006 I discovered the . Where I had been on the heavy side for a solo I was now on the light side for the phantom but thought I that could make up for lack of weigh with fitness, fortunately I enjoy keeping fit, something my time with the RYA and the RYA coaches impressed upon me. I used to run and mountain bike but for the last few years I have taken up a gym based regime called cross fit which was an important element of my preparation for the 2014 Garda trip.

12 Solo Specific Feature

Although I have concentrated on Phantom sailing since 2006 I still enjoy sailing the Solo, the people, the fleet sizes and competition make it a unique fleet. I enjoy sailing and competing in both boats but there is little sailing similarity between the Phantom and Solo, the rigs are entirely different and the hull shape of the Phantom means it planes much sooner however there is nothing like a good solo event for sharpening up sailing skills. When the prospect of a second Garda Solo Nations Cup came along for 2014 I knew I needed to go but now I had a wife, a six month old daughter and derelict house under re build to consider, the good news was that my dad had just bought a new Boon boat 5418 In 2004 I hadn’t met my wife Emma but she was sick of hearing me bang on about the merits Riva Del Garda so she was keen go, Ruby my daughter didn’t have a vote but she enjoyed the pushchairs trips around the town. Flights were booked for the ladies and ferries for myself, dad and the boat but I wanted to win this time. I knew it would be very difficult despite Garda’s windy reputation. My gear was excellent, a race proven boon hull, North F1sail, seldom D + mast and a spare mast loaned to me Steve Boon I was still on the big side for a solo. I stepped up my fitness training programme in an effort to trim a few kilos, fitness was never an issue and I managed to get down to 90kgs. The whole visit and event lived up to expectation although a bit lighter wind wise at times along with the competition. Sailing against Charlie in the last few races was some of the best sailing I have experienced. Charlie is as competitive as it is possible to be but at the same time true gent. Going into the last day I knew that I needed to win at least one race and prevent Charlie from winning the other. After the five minute gun in the last race I just needed to stay between Charlie and the windward , the rest we know. Much as I would like to have done I was not able to accommodate Charlie with a re match at the 2014 Solo nationals later in the year- work commitments etc, we did however get together for the VX One Nationals at Paignton in September, Charlie helming and myself up front, good fun, good company and topped off by winning the first ever VX One UK nationals.

13 Technique Matters

Charlie Cumbley on his way to winning the EOS in 2014. The boat is heeled slightly to windward, reducing wetted surface area and bringing the COE over the centre of the hull. Charlie is also bearing away without use of the rudder, reducing drag and promoting a plane with a pump of the main…sheeted from the boom. No wonder he wins ! Solo Specific Feature

Reigning National Champion Charlie Cumbley successfully defended his title at Brightlingsea

!I learnt to sail messing about in boats on the river Teign where i grew up, it was a great environment to just enjoy being on the water, both my parents sailed and were heavily involved in Teign Corinthian YC the local club who of course have always had a solid number of Solos involved. It was all relatively low key racing club boats and on the yachts locally, it was in my early teens i really got into it, i started racing a 420 and going to events and doing ok but i was 6 foot by the time i was 13/14yrs old so it didnt lend itself to helming a 420! I messed around in whatever i could get my hands on until a local member Nick Whyte who had always supported my sailing let me have a go in his aged 16, 8 yrs later i had been able to sail a Finn on pretty much every continent with the likes of Iain Percy, Bart Simpson and Ben Ainslie who you just never stop learning from. I stopped Finn sailing and went pro big boat racing for a couple of seasons then decided to give that up and get a proper job as an Accountant! Big mistake! 18 months in i was bored stiff so fortunately thats when i got the opportunity to switch careers and joined North in 2006, 8 and a bit years on I am still here!

! !2014 was pretty good for me, i made a conscious decision to try and do a bit less sailing and spend a bit more time with the family but it meant i could focus on a few bigger events, after winning the 2013 nationals at HISC i really wanted to win it back to back and for a 4th time in total at Brightlingsea so that was the main aim for the year. As it turned out it was an incredibly tricky event with light shifty breeze, tide and plenty of very fast people so to win was a real highlight. Garda was a great event in a fantastic location and it was nice to go there with a holiday mindset to follow but believe me when i say i was still trying hard!

!Once we had made a major step on with the 3DL sails following the HiSC nationals it was really some fine tuning, we did’nt alter the flying shape but instead moved some of the yarn passes, these are the groups of 8 fibres that run continuously between the corners of the sail, we took some out of the luff range and moved the remaining ones closer to the luff to improve even more the effect of the cunningham, you can notice on the 2014/2015 sails the single window on the 3DL sails as opposed to the split window of the previous yarn layout, basically just fine tuning. Same thing on the panelled ST-2 range was really just a tweak to add shape to the lower leech area, just to improve the grunt and pointing ability on flat water/inland venues, these sails remain the same for this season, but we are always looking to keep ahead of the competition either by testing new cloths/tweaking designs etc but nothing is a knee jerk reaction as the sails are so refined now its hard to make gains, so a lot of testing is needed.

15 Solo Specific Feature

I generally sail the Solo at 84kg, and I am 6 foot, but now I am 34 i may start shrinking! i have been heavier at times up to 87kg but i felt 84kg is a good average for the variety of conditions you see in the UK . I generally lose interest in training after a while so in 2014 i just tried to get some gym training in the 5-6 weeks leading up to the Nations cup for example but after that laziness set in and just relied on sailing fitness to get me through. But since early november i have been training with a mate midweek 3 times a week, 1 spinning session and 2 weights sessions, 1 upper body, 1 lower body, this is about as much training as i can get in without getting out of too many bath and bed stints with my little girl and getting the cold shoulder from the wife! But i have to say training with a mate/partner makes a massive difference and it so much easier to spur each other on and stop you from saying ahh sod it ill go tomorrow (which of course never happens!)

!How did you deal with the Nations cup result and that last day's racing with Couchy?

!In reality the disappointment of the Nation’s Cup was the perfect lead up to the Nationals as it spurred me on to really nail that event, Couchy was unbelievably quick that week in particular, he is always quick in a breeze but that week was unreal. I remember Andy Tunnicliffe leading one race around the leeward mark, Couchy 2nd and me 3rd, Couchy just dropped the traveller sailed underneath Tunni and out the other side into the lead, at that point I knew I was in trouble! Fair play he deserved that win as he sailed really well. The last day was tough, no-one likes losing but once I had a beer in hand I soon forgot about it and enjoyed finishing 2nd. I had done the same to him at the Phantom nationals a few years ago so now we are evens!

!Lake Garda is one of my favourite venues in the world, I think it was the 2nd day there when it was 25 degrees and 25knots by the end of the day on the sail in that i just thought i cant get any better, great scenery, fresh water, warm weather, nice pizzas! where does the list end.... Plus its nice to have a variety in where we go, it keeps things fresh.

!As i said before, the result at the nations cup made me more determined to nail the nationals. I had not sailed at Brightlingsea before so it was a new experience but equally nice to get a venue where there is plenty to think about, tide and its effect on sea state, land effects, shifts etc etc, again it was down to being consistent, being black flagged in what was one of the worst races I have competed in as the first race was not the start I was looking for but it fell into place after that. I started well and then played the fleet and the shifts to always try and be in the hunt at the top mark as I was confident I could take places downwind. That I think is the key to big fleet racing, you just HAVE to be quick downwind, it gets you out of trouble when you need to. My aim at the nationals was to be in the top 10 at the 1st top mark, easier said than done in a tricky venue but once in the top 10 its such a nicer place to sail in, much less tacking on you etc. Sometimes you can chat to people about not messing around with each other until the last lap, until then just sail as fast as possible to get away from the boats around you then once in a group of 4-5 boats with a bit of space you can start trying to nail the gun on the last leg or 2 You did the VX one Nationals together ? Couchy and i get on well and we had done a similar event a couple of years before so as i needed a big lad he was first on my list. it was just really relaxed sailing together, we would have a chat pre start on what we each thought would happen then i would just try and put the boat where he had asked for. But its a great boat to sail and was just a fun regatta so i would like to do some more with him,but maybe ask him if he feels the same! Funnily enough Mark Jardine was on the water covering the event for Y&Y and he commented in the evening debriefs that were being run how we looked like 2 helms sailing together just in the way we crossed the boat during tacking gybing etc you could easily imagine us swapping roles and looking the same.

!You are spending some time in the OK now, plans for 2015 in the solo and ok? The OK is a project for North Sails, its a big market particularly on the continent which is largely untapped for us, i now have a new boat and will be heading to the worlds/ Kiel Week etc trying to put a real effort into it this year and maybe next but i will still be doing the key Solo events as i always do, the Ok worlds finish the week before the Solos so its a bit of a logistics nightmare with flights and helpful people taking boats and so on but im planning on being there. Plus there is Pete Mitchell who is getting better every year, he is still only 24 but seems like he has been around a long time but i think 2015 could be his year to win some big events in the Solo. Tom Gillard has also dabbled in the class winning plenty of events but his focus will be and 505 this season but im sure he will do the odd event and is exceptionally quick so with those 2 in particular i may be put out to pasture in the non too distant future but now into my 8th season of Solo sailing i dont want to let my record of 4 x nationals wins and 3 x 2nd place finishes get tarnished just yet so for 2015 lets bring it on!

!Charlie Cumbley

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SOLO specialists

sails | new | mk1/mk2 solo | spars | covers | repairs P&B Northampton. Heathfield Way, Kings Heath, Northampton, NN5 7QP. UK. Tel. 01604 592808 P&B Fareham. Mitchell Close, Segensworth, Fareham, PO15 5SE. UK. Tel. 01489 577748 Solo Specific Championship National Solo End of Season Championship 2014 Sponsored by Noble Marine Draycote Water S.C. kindly hosted the EOS and the 64 entries reflected the popularity of this venue, the good health of the class and the very welcome forecast. All the main players were in attendance including current National champion Charlie Cumbley. His nemesis in Italy, Andy Couch, Nation’s Cup champion had taken time away from his extreme fitness program to also be there, as was Andy Davis, Spring champion and Mike Sims, Northern Champion. Other potential front runners were Andrew Wilde, Pete Mitchell (current EOS Holder) Ian Pinnell, Chris Brown and Dave Mitchell.

Race 1 The PRO was taking no nonsense and was quick to hoist the black flag following a rather over-enthusiastic first attempt. On the start there were two clear strategies in play, go left or go right. Mike Sims and Andy Couch were in the go right group while Ben Cooper and John Webster were in the kack-handed group. Ben and John had started on the pin and hooked into a big left hander to round ahead of Dave Mitchell, Mike Sims and Ian Hopwood. Davis was in sixth, Cumbley eighth and Wilde was in the teens with Couch and Pete Mitchell. The leeward leg saw place changes as the lucky ones found pressure and avoided the huge wind shadow that 60 plus sails produce. John Webster who has been putting the hours on the water at Carsington pulled through to win convincingly from Andy Davis and Andrew Wilde who must have done everything right. Cumbley, Couch and P. Mitchell were unable to make sufficient ground to gain a counter. Special mention to Ben Cooper, he sailed a great race to finish fifth in a 30 yr old + Wooden Solo.

!Race 2 The wind was building and the sun was shining, perfect sailing conditions. The fleet were away and the heavier sailors were secretly smiling as they powered up to the top mark. Charlie Cumbley would make no mistakes this time, starting midline he worked the substantial shifts to round first and would not relinquish this position. Behind him Kevan Gibb led the posse from Jonathon Swain, Nigel Davies and Jarvis Simpson. Sims was sixth, Pete Mitchell tenth with Wilde and Davis on his tail and Couch was sixteenth. The breeze was building to a nice 15mph + and the fleet were crying out for a reach but the PRO had stuck to the windward/leeward so gains were hard to make. At the gun it was Charlie Cumbley with the bullet from Mike Sims, Pete Mitchell, Nigel Davies and Andy Davis. Couch took a useful eighth and Chris Brown was starting to get used to his new Winder in sixth.

18 Solo Specific Championship

Race 3 The PRO went to the familiar triangle sausage course and with the wind peaking at 20mph the fleet set off with hiking strap mounting points being tested to the maximum. At the top mark it was Jonathon Swain who took the bragging rights from Chris Brown and Charlie Cumbley. The fleet screamed down the well angled reach and there were no casualties at the gybe. Brown and Cumbley broke through to lead from a fast approaching Couch, proving he is no potato. Cumbley was not to be denied and past Brown to take the win and the Top Ten championship. Davis, Couch and Sims overtook Brown who put it in on the run, and he lost his new carbon burgee to add to his pain. 1. Charlie Cumbley ! 2. Andy Davis !Overall Charlie Cumbley was a worthy winner from Andy Davis, Mike Sims and Andy Couch. There were 3. Michael Sims many good performances and cause for optimism for 2015 for those who want to break the hold of the 4. Andy Couch top five. Sailors are putting in time on the water, seeking minuscule gear advantages and getting eyes 5. Andrew Wilde tested and joints fixed to improve. There is a around the boat park that next year will be a good 6. Jonathan Swain one. 7. Chris Brown Thanks to Draycote Water S.C for providing excellent on and off the water management, a kick ass 8. David Mitchell chilli and chips and a warm welcome. Congratulations to Charlie and all the competitors for their efforts 9. Pete Mitchell this year in making this such a great fleet to film. Finally, special thanks to Noble Marine for their year 10. Kevan Gibb round support of the N.S.C.A. !Full results @ !Will Loy draycotewater.co.uk

19 EOS Snapshot

!Phil Sturmer, the N.S.C.A. Membership Secretary works his Winder/Edge Solo to windward at Draycote Water. Solo Specific Area Report

Hello All, My name is Nigel Davies and I have taken over as the Midland Rep and, with the help of Chris Brown, I will be running the Midland Area Series.

I would like to thank the retiring Midland Rep, Stuart Bush, on behalf of the Midland Area for all his hard work over the last few years.

For winning the 2014 Midland series congratulations go to Stuart Hydon. He won the first five events! We hope to see him defend his title in 2015. I would also like to congratulate David Liddington for winning the Grand Master prize as well as coming second over all; then followed by Kevin Hopkins, Stuart Bush and David Day coming third, forth and fifth respectively. I have the prizes for the two Davids so if they get in touch I can try and get the prizes to them or they will be presented at the next event.

My main priority for the 2015 series is to increase turnout and the numbers qualifying. While planning the 2015 series I was keen to avoid event clashes and this has been largely successful. I was also very keen to ensure every series qualifier would receive a prize at the end of the season and so to fund this I'm really pleased to announce that Rooster have agreed to support the Midland series and therefore the series will be known as the '2015 Rooster Midland Series'. Rooster will provide every qualifier with a meaningful prize at the end of the 2015 season and will also offer advice and information around water sport clothing.

The 2015 calendar has been published and there are a few changes to note, mostly at the start of the season. The first event will be at Banbury on Saturday 28th March and on Sunday 29th March Draycote have invited visitors to join the home Solo fleet to sail in the 3 Club Races (Draycote normally have 10-14 Solos sailing). Visitors will be able to leave their boats at Draycote ready for the Solo Spring Championships the following weekend. This is not an official Open meeting but it’s hoped that allowing visitors to join the club racing and leave their boats at the club afterwards will encourage visitors to attend both the Banbury Open and the Springs. However more details will be available on both the Facebook Group and Solo webpage nearer the time. Draycote will charge £12 to sail on the Sunday, which includes berthing your boat at the club for the week. Photo; Mark Dunkley

This year the Springs will be part of the 2015 Rooster Solo Midland Series. Then following the Springs there is a joint event with Carsington, this is a great piece of water and was on the Midland circuit a few years ago. For the Midland Open in July a different format will be trialled, holding six thirty minute races, and the event will be called 'The Rooster Midland SC Short Course Open'. Being central to our area I hope this 12 Events 4 to Qualify event will attract people who wouldn’t normally attend a small lake event. Sat! 28th March Banbury I hope having four events to qualify Sat 4th April Draycote and the prizes from Rooster will Midland Regional event increase the numbers who qualify in and Spring Champs. 2015. If you come to the Springs and Carsington events you will only Sat! 11th April Barnt Green need a couple more to qualify. Sun 17th May Carsington Joint Midland and Northern event. I have setup a Facebook Group called ‘Solo Dinghy Midland Area’ Sun! 7th June Shustoke which I would encourage you all to join; it will be a central place, along with the Sat 13th June Northampton Solo Web site, for information about Midland events and what is happening in the Midland Sun 21st June Hollowell area. th Sun 28 June Chelmarsh Nigel Davies. th Sun 12 July Midland 5478 Sat 5th September Notts County Sun 4th October Bartley Sat 10th October Staunton Harold

21 Solo Specific Area Report

Eastern Area Report Roundup of 2014 The Eastern Area is now complete, with Steve Ede having an easy run to yet another series win despite having to retire for a month suffering broken a toe walking along a jetty at Hickling Broad. I spent a month ‘between boats’ and missed some events, while the Maskell brothers battled with Ewan Walls for the other podium places. The regional prizes were once again presented at the End of Seasons Champs, but not everyone was there and some went home before the prize giving. Therefore, please chase me at our next Solo event if you think you are owed a bottle of wine for qualifying. Any not claimed by 2015 will be consigned to the Clark family cellar for in-house consumption. This year we had 15 qualifiers which is an increase on 2013, and a couple more helms could have qualified if they had sailed just one more event. Turnouts have been a little down on average with the new venues at Leigh on Sea being successful with 23 boats and a lovely summers day at the seaside. The Norfolk Broads YC event at Wroxham unfortunately fell rather flat with only 2 of the promised 10 home boats showing up in the torrential rain and no support from the neighbouring Broads fleets. For 2015 we remain with our usual back-to-back Broads weekend. Forward to 2015 For 2015 we are losing Marconi YC, who voluntarily have stood down from the Eastern circuit while they are unable to find a Race Officer with tidal water experience. In their place, we have a slot at Blackwater SC at Heybridge. This is similar to Harlow Blackwater, where sailing was only possible for 3 hours either side of high water. Like HBSC, camping will be available for those wishing to stay overnight. Racing takes place on the upper sections of the Blackwater estuary so we maintain our number of Sea/Tidal water events. We also have an invitation to the Royal Harwich YC, where we now have a small presence ofl Solos including Chris and Derek Mayhew. We should have a class start and share the day with their Laser fleet as a trial event, with possibly increased support next season. Area Presentations Due to the general trend of Area awards being made at the final Open meeting of the season among all the other areas, I am going to be brave and return to this format. This means that with Fishers Green being the largest assured turnout on the eastern circuit, we should make this the Grand Finale and present the awards here. I am told that this was done until pond weed became a major problem and FGSC moved to an earlier slot. In 2014, ‘the Green’ has been weed-free so fingers crossed for the same next year. This season was characterised by the wettest winter for years, although very mild. No harrowing was done, no barley straw deployed, and the water became full of filamentous green algae, effectively blocking out the sunlight. So a weed free season then! Hooragh! Publicity One factor that has gradually become noticeable is the lack of any media coverage from the host clubs of Solo Open events. Most of us look expectantly at Yachts and each week to see if we are reported and/or how all our sailing buddies have got on. This season, however, only 4 of 13 host clubs made any report to Yachts & Yachting. One would have thought the clubs would be glad of the free publicity in their own right? Thames Area Report Another series completed, and a win for Vince Horey from King George SC, since King George has been used to make up the numbers on the Thames Valley after the closure of Wraysbury Lakes. Wraysbury’s Solo class trophies have allegedly been donated to Silver Wing SC and I will henceforth do the same with the Open trophy as the final winner of that event. Meanwhile, the battle for second place ended on level points between myself and Mike Dray, with Mike clinching it on count- back after we tied at Kingsmead with Mike also winning that one on a tie-break! Papercourt, as always, had the largest turnout with 34 entries including good home support but this left Island Barn in a weak position as the Thames series was already won, and just the minor placings to be decided. Again, it is a pity that more people don’t quite manage to qualify when they are only one event short of the 5 required. Again, please chase me at our next Solo event if you think you are owed a bottle of wine for the qualifying places. Any not claimed or collected by a friend at one of the early events will be consigned to the Clark family cellar. I’d like to echo the Eastern Area comments about lack of race reports from the clubs. Only Kingsmead, King George and Island Barn sent in reports. Perhaps the other clubs don’t have Publicity Officers any more but from the 10 events sailed, only 3 clubs posted reports to the media. I notice that a lot of these Yachts and Yachting reports are coming from the Class, rather than the host club of each event. Unfortunately, some of these race reports are thinly disguised fanfare for how great the latest RS/Devotti or Laser design is! Should one of our competitors be nominated to send in an open event report instead? Discuss. Godfrey Clark Eastern Area/Thames Valley Rep [email protected] 07713 871802

22 Solo Specific Information

23 Solo Specific Clubs

A Diamond Year at South Cerney Sailing Club

!South Cerney Sailing Club is celebrating its Diamond Jubilee in 2015 - 60 years of sailing excellence. The club was formed in 1955 on the largest and most beautiful lake in the Cotswold Water Park (between Swindon and Cirencester), and is now one of the most successful clubs in the region. The club prides itself in its training and racing, whilst not forgetting those who just want to cruise. An RYA training centre and RYA Champion Club; for the superb work in its Fleet - the 96 Cadet Squadron, currently having sailors in both National and Olympic training programmes. Racing is a key feature of the club with events on Wednesday evenings, Saturdays and Sundays throughout the Spring and Summer. Sunday events continue through the rest of the year. In 2015 there are 243 organised races over 109 days, a lot of work for the dedicated members who volunteer for duties. In addition we are hosting opens for Cadet, Laser, Flying Fifteens, 420, , Asymmetric and Solo fleets as well as the Inland Championships. The club, in conjunction with a small number of

others across the country, is pioneering work on weed control and winning. Weed simply is not a problem for us with lovely blue water. Solo’s started to arrive at the club in the late 1980’s and, being particularly suited to the lake, formed a fleet in 1997. The Solo Association Training and Tuning Guide DVD was largely filmed at South Cerney SC, with a much younger Jim Hunt helping us all get the best out of the boat. With 40 boats, the fleet is still the strongest on the lake, dominating the club events. This is helped by some really good sailors like Andy Miles, Guy Lonsdale, Phil Milanes, and the list goes on. Many new members to the club have started in a Solo, with the fleet providing much encouragement, training and plenty of banter. I, myself, joined in October 2013 having never sailed before, starting in a Solo. I am hooked and am now competing successfully with the support of some great guys. On 4th October 2014, we had 24 Solos compete in the club’s open event; the final event of the Western Series. 10 of these were visitors from other clubs. The overriding memory is that everybody enjoyed themselves; even if James Ross came along and took the silverware from our Guy Lonsdale and Andy Miles with Vanda and Jonathan Jowett, Rob Mitchell and Paul Teague filling the rest of the first 7 results the event was hotly contested. We are looking for a larger, and no less prestigious turn out this year on 3rd October. We encourage visitors to join us, so if you are Neat continuous control system thinking about bringing your boat, then contact me first. Who knows you may end up staying.

!Vernon Perkins, Solo Class Captain,

[email protected], 07469 701154

24 STRIKE A POSE

Tom Gillard on his way to winning the Inland Championship last year at Rutland. He was leading overnight and claimed the yellow jersey but needed a great race 6 to be sure of the title. Here he is working his www.Sailboat 5.5 up the first beat in the freshening breeze. He rounded first, consolidated second place behind Andy Davis and the rest is history. Solo Specific Championship National Solo Inland Championship

Sponsored by Noble Marine

!Rutland S.C. once again hosted the Inland Championship over the weekend of 20-21 September. The N.S.C.A. organised a training day on the Friday and 34 sailors were given on and off the water coaching by the team of trainers, headed by current National Champion Charlie Cumbley. The wind strength and mist meant more off the water than on it but all felt they benefitted from the experience. Thanks to Charlie and all the association trainers whose continued support and enthusiasm make this class so special. To the main event then... and 83 sailors rigged and made their way out to the course area, the grey overcast skies looked set for the day but the breeze was holding at 6 knots from the east. Principle race officer John Fothergill set a windward/leeward course and after one general recall the fleet were started under a black flag. Race 1 Tom Gillard made a perfect start two thirds of the way down the line, the lag and his shrewd transit setting giving him clear air to pick a lane to the top mark. Dave Winder was also on the money and he led at the top mark with Gillard second and Phil Sturmer and Paul Rayson close behind. Mike Sims, the defending champion was in fifth. Gillard took the lead by the bottom mark and consolidated on the

second lap to take the win from Winder, Rayson, Sturmer and Sims. Race 2 The breeze increased to 8 knots and anyone under 85kgs was in hike mode with fully powered up rigs. There was some rafting and friendly banter as the fleet congested at the committee end and this left a nice pocket for Steve Graham to jump into. Gillard picked the shifts to round with a healthy lead from Graham and Winder, who was having a blinder. Andy Davis who has finished 1-2-2-3 in the last four years was once again racing to form and Sims and Harvey were also on the scene. The race was pretty uneventful, the 6kts of pressure and grey sky adding nothing to the drama and it was Gillard with his second bullet of the day with Davis, Winder, Harvey and Sims completing the top five. Race 3 The pin end was favoured and the leading players were all down there, judging their timing to perfection. Gillard had a nice lead after the first lap, the change of course to the triangle sausage and the odd gust provided a platform for some downwind action for all. Steve Denison, Ian Pinnell, Harvey, Davis, Jon Clarke, Vanda Jowett and Andy Wilde were all in the mix and the beat and last run saw Gillard hold for the bullet to complete a day 1 clean sweep. Jowett broke through to take second from Pinnell, Denison and a fast finishing Davis. So Tom Gillard would be the event leader after day 1 with an emphatic display of tactics and boat speed. Davis, Harvey and Sims would all be in the queue to take him down and Winder would be looking to discard the ugly 24 from his scorecard. The fleet split with some opting for the favoured canteen where the catering was steady while the remainder took the longer route to the local pub, hoping the culinary gamble would pay off. I can report that the food was good at both locations but the beer produced the odd gust.

26 Solo Specific Championship

Day 2 Overnight the breeze picked up, and by morning the fleet were greeted to sunny skies and a healthy 12 knots. There was a buzz around the dinghy park, Bart's Bash has gripped the nation of sailors and the club sailors were out in force to celebrate Andrew Simpson's love of sailing. The youth especially were relishing the club race and out on the National Solo course there was also a 'special' feeling about our first race of the day. Race 4 With the black flag once again casting it's shadow over the start sequence and the race start being videoed you would think it would have been a good one. Unfortunately, 20 or so likely lads thought differently, the testosterone rushing through their veins as they pushed towards the line....and over it, too early. The PRO, took the decision not to take numbers, mainly because only one was visible. A good shout and unsurprisingly, no one complained. The second attempt was successful and the fleet set off, revelling in the 12 to 21 knots of northerly with bright sunshine and fluffy cloud. I was especially pleased as I was filming and the grey skies of day 1 had bought nothing to my photogenic party. My Fujifinepix S1 shutter was flicking as quickly as the fleets wind indicators and at the top mark it was Ian Pinnell from Ross Harvey and Jon Clarke. These three had a decent gap to the chasing pack and significantly, Tom Gillard was well down the pack. The fleet were using the triangle sausage triangle course and there was plenty of opportunity to work the chop on the reaches. Harvey took the lead and maintained despite some big right hand windshifts up towards the top mark. Pinnell, Davis, Sims and Shane MacCarthy were all in the hunt and Gillard was up to 20th. At the gun it was Harvey from Sims, Pinnell, MacCarthy and Davis. Tom Gillard finished 16th.

Race 5 The wind was dropping slightly as the fleet set off with no casualties. Dave Mitchell nailed the start and first beat to lead from Pinnell, Chris Goldhawk, Harvey, Sims and Simon Jones. The wind was coming in gusts from the right and those that hooked into it made big gains. Gillard was in the teens and his grip on the title seemed to be weakening. Gillard though had other plans and made places down the two reaches. By the start of lap 3 it was Pinnell, Mitchell, Goldhawk with Gillard in sixth. Not to be outdone the wind gods played their games as the leaders closed in on the top mark. A wicked shift to the right undid all Gillard's hard work and he dropped to tenth as Sims and Davis to name two reached into the mark from the right. There was furious forearm activity as the leaders completed the two reaches to the finish line, the gun going to Pinnell with Goldhawk, Mitchell, Sims and Davis completing the top five. Event leader Tom Gillard was 8th and these first two race results were reflected in the gleeful faces of his nearest rivals. Gillard found some quiet piece of Rutland to re-group – reflect –analyse while the rest of the fleet re-hydrated and stretched out. Race 6 I fully expected Gillard to seek out his nearest threats and stay close, no doubt they would be at the favoured end of the line and all he had to do was finish in the top seven. The breeze was at 12 -16 knots and as the fleet lined up I spotted Davis, Sims and Harvey all at the pin end. I rotated my Fuji S1 along the line, the laminate sails glistening like shards of glass on the top of a well guarded terraced Earlsdon abode. The yellow event leader vest stood out in the sunlight like the first daffodil of spring...at the committee end. Gillard was rolling the dice and made a clean start in clear air while the majority headed up the left of the course. Half way up it did not look good as the port tackers came in on a lifting port tack but like the erratic behaviour of a hormonal woman it switched back and Gillard was ahead. Davis rounded second, a classic rule of Rutland, play the corners, with Sims, Andrew Wilde and Nigel Davies all close by. Davis broke through Gillard on the second beat and these two held a comfortable lead over the pack. Gillard was happy to let Davis go so the finishing order was Davis, Gillard, Wilde, Davies and Sims. So Tom Gillard is National Solo Inland Champion 2014 with a 1-1-16-8-2 and a well-deserved win. The bullet in race 6 gave Andy Davis 2nd, Michael Sims 3rd, Ross Harvey 4th, and Ian Pinnell 5th (and first veteran). Andrew Wilde, Dave Mitchell, Steve Denison, Paul Rayson and Nigel Davies complete the top ten. First lady is Vanda Jowett in 17th. First Grandmaster is Brian Holland in 20th. A massive thank you to the teams at Rutland Sailing Club. John Fothergill and his on the water team were brilliant and the catering was well received. Thanks also to Harken and Noble Marine for their generous sponsorship. Full Results at wwwsolosailing.co.uk

27 Solo Specific Area Report Southern Area Report

We have an exciting southern travellers series lined up this season as! always. Some of the regular dates have changed so please check the calendar so you do not miss your favourite events! The series kicks off as always with the traditional season opener at Broadwater on March 8th. Always a bracing event it ties in with the Eastern series as well so always has a great turnout. A change this year sees HISC hosting a one day event. Undoubtedly one of the countries premier sailing locations I have to strongly recommend this Open to all - If you enjoy sea sailing that is.

!The Southern Area champions are again kindly held at Bough Beech on the 23rd May.

!This year we are hoping to encourage more of you to attempt qualification by reducing the number of races to count down to 4. To avoid confusion in the event of a tie we will have joint winners.

!Last year saw light winds across most events. Like most I am hoping for better conditions this year. However should the doldrums continue I would remind everyone that pumping, rocking and ooching is illegal and outright cheating. If you see it, please shout out on the water, even a jokey message along the lines of "I must have missed that wave you were clearly trying to surf" can get across the message that they were seen and most of the time they will stop. If you don't shout on the water, don't complain in the bar ....

!Finally I am moving this year down to the west country so you are unlikely to see me on the southern circuit this year. I wish you all a great season and hope to see you at the series prize giving at the Chipstead SC open on the 10th October. If you are interested in taking over as the southern area rep please let know as I will be resigning this position at this years AGM. ! Sea Series Report

Reflecting on the disappointing number of qualifiers in the sea series! in 2014 I have taken various opinions on board and dropped the number of qualifying races to 4. We have eleven races which cover the Southern, Western, Eastern and Northern circuits. This should mean that people can qualify without having to travel too far from their own region. There are a couple of weekends with conflicting events for which I am sorry but as these are core-region conflicts I am sure it will not affect qualification of the sea series.

!Kicking of in April in the north at West Kirby before traveling south to Salcombe in May and two further events in June. Five events in July will keep you all busy and we tie up the series with two events in September. All being well I would hope to present the prizes at Mengeham Rythe on the 19th September. !Andrew Thompson Coaching Matters

The! new season is fast approaching and a number of Clubs have already organised training days for their members. Others may also have done the same without the need to utilise the NSCA's resources. If you have and would like to advertise the fact by having the day posted on the events page of the website let me know the details and I'll get it posted. If you are able to offer places to non Club members then it is a good way to let other Solo sailors know where they can potentially find a training day in their area.

!The NSCA's role in providing training to its members is very much as a facilitator by putting coaches in touch with Clubs and providing other resources and advice on how best to set up and run such days. If you are thinking of running a training day, in the first instance you should contact me directly by telephone or email and we will help you in any way we can get a day in place.

!We are always looking for experienced Solo sailors to come forward and help with coaching and to this end I would like to encourage experienced club sailors who feel they may be able to impart some of their wisdom to their local fleet to get involved. A training session even if it is only in an afternoon is very worthwhile and better still if you are able to get sailors together for two or three afternoons through the season. You may be a little concerned as to how exactly to run such sessions. This is where the Association can help by providing a coach for your initial session to guide you through and give you some advice on how best to run your training. Within the next month I will have produced a very basic training pack for Clubs with suggestions on how to run their own Solo training program. I will post on the forum when it is available and will then email it to anyone interested.

!Remember the help we can provide is free to Association members. We are always open to suggestions as to how to help improve our sailors at all levels and I'd be very pleased hear from anyone with bright ideas! Remember what seems simple to you is often not obvious to another sailor so never be reticent to pass on your knowledge to a sailor you see struggling. Often this is the best training a sailor of any experienced can have.

!Tony Thresher

28 Solo Specific Letters Rule 42 ! Some thoughts on Illegal Propulsion from Steve Cockerill The situation as I see it: Sailors instinctively take the mainsheet from the boom in nearly all conditions. The elastic pumping strap, holding the boom, makes pumping easier. Sailors are often seen to be moving their bodies or just arms in and out which fans the sail. Any fanning of the sail that is independent of changes of direction (change of direction requires an excuse such as wave avoidance or mark rounding) is a pump. You can pump but it can only be used if the boat successfully surfs (rapid increase of speed down the face of a wave). In light wind conditions, taking the sheet from the boom and fanning it has a massive beneficial effect to boat speed. It is very satisfying and the increase in boat speed is a symptom of fanning rather than surfing in 99.9% of the circumstances I have witnessed.

!Sailors at the front of the fleet will be inclined to push and continue to break the rules to remain at the front of the fleet. It is natural. Its also hard to self police as the only course of action is to protest and then a possible disqualification which is not an entirely friendly way to compete. ! !What Have Other Fleets Done: • Finn Fleet - Allowed pumping over certain wind speeds. I have heard that Masters Finn sailors argue that pumping has stopped them enjoying racing their boats. They apparently finish racing in a sweaty smelly heap and wished they had never permitted pumping. • OK Fleet - banned taking the sheet directly from the boom; they are only allowed to take out the ratchet block, which is in effect taking the sheet from the last purchase. • Laser Fleet - pay for on the water judging. Laser sailors do not tolerate pumping - they know too well what is and what is ! not legal through bitter experience. !What should the Solo fleet do next? Do Nothing? - I believe that we are loosing members who would prefer to race boats with on the water judging; even some successful sailors are considering not going to Solo events due to the lack of rule 42 observance. What could we do? I think anything is better than the current status quo. Opt to allow pumping - if you want to work hard on the water. Opt to take out the ratchet block if you want to reduce the effectiveness of illegal fanning, or pay to have lots of ISAF Juries on the water to cut out all rule 42 abuse.

29 Solo Specific Archive SOLO HISTORY

Here are some long lost images rescued by our Honourable Secretary,Robert Laurie.

! Anne Fryer Ladies Champion ’78'

Cees Van Grieken NED Cor Van Shouten NED World Champion ’79' World Champion ’78'

Gerald Rocket racing to the start at Hayling Island

Nigel Pusinelli prepares to race in ’78’.

Sue Shaw, Ladies Champion in ’79'

30 Solo Specific Area Report

NORTHERN AREA TRAVELLERS SERIES 2014 Kindly Sponsored by WINDER BOATS

After the summer break, the series continued with events at Hollingworth, Leigh & Lowton, and Nantwich but unfortunately the wind gods were not kind and both Notts County and Budworth were lost to no wind.

!With a win at Hollingworth and 4th at L&L, Steve Denison was leading going into the last event scheduled for Budworth, which was also the Prize giving. Paul Heath with a 4th at Hollingworth and win at Nantwich was breathing down his neck and a win on the last day, would see him dislodge Steve on count back. As it happened no sailing at Budworth and Steve Denison took the Northern Travellers title for 2014, closely followed by Paul Heath, and Steve Graham from Burwain in third, who had attended every event in 2014, bar one, well done Steve. Innes Armstrong followed through for 4th, ahead of previous area Steve Denison takes winner, Ollie Dumbleton, 5th, and the spoils of war. new boy Lee Tennant in 6th. Then followed Ian Hopwood, Chris Robinson, Nick Hornsby, Chris Gillard and Steve Farrington, in that order who all collected prizes for qualifying.

!Special prizes to Steve Owen and Tony Sampson who would have qualified had sailing been possible on the final day.

!Prizes were presented in the Budworth Sailing Club bar and with prizes from Winder Boats, and from the Solo Association much appreciated by all recipients.

!The 2015 series is on the website and has been cut from 14 to 12 events with 5 to qualify. Look forward to seeing you on the water. Nick Hornsby Northern Rep

NORTHERN AREA TRAVELLERS SERIES 2014 TEAM TROPHY

As part of the 2014 series a Team Trophy was presented to the Club that had the three boats with the lowest aggregate score, counting six results from the potential 14 events.

From the start of the series, which was at Burwain SC, the team from the home club embraced the challenge and with three qualifiers and good positions in many opens and three in the top six in the overall standings, the “Burwain Team took the trophy by a country mile”.

The team of Steve Graham, Innes Armstrong and Lee Tennant, collected there individual trophies and the Team Trophy at the Prize Giving at Budworth in October.

Runners up were Hollingworth, with overall series winner Steve Denison, Nick Hornsby and Oliver Whitehead some way back on points.

Third place went to Nantwich, with Oliver Dumbleton and Ian Hopwood carrying the flag.

Although Burwain had it their own way in 2014, there are a number of clubs trying to muster a crack team in 2015, and we look forward to the contest.

Nick Hornsby Solo Northern rep

31 Solo Specific Calendar

32 Solo Specific Calendar

33 Solo Specific Area Report Western Area Report

!Over the winter months I have put together the open meetings for this year. We have lost Tata S.C. from the area. This has now moved to the new Welsh area.

!The season for the travellers trophy starts on April on The 18th at Bristol Corinthian Y.C. near Cheddar in Somerset. Then on to Bowmoor S.C. in the Cotswold's of Gloucestershire week later. In May Salcombe Y.C. host a three day open on the bank holiday weekend 23/5-25/5. There is a very large club fleet of some forty boats with some top sailors so this should be the a very well attended open with some red hot competition over the three days. Then into June, Sutton Bingham S.C. have there open on the 6th. this is a lake near Yeovil in the southern part of Somerset. A week later the event continues at Chew Valley Lake S.C. A short distance south of Bristol the club is situated on a large reservoir again a club with some top sailors. A good opportunity to revisit after the Winter Championship. There is then quite a long gap to the next travellers event in July. But on the 20/21 of June there is the very well attended Nigel Pusinelli Trophy event at Weymouth . So the next open in the travellers trophy is Dittisham S.C. in Devon this is the last open before the Nationals at North Berwick. And the only one in July. There is a complete rest in August with the next open on the sea at Clevedon S.C. on the Saturday 5th September. A small club in terms of Solos but offers some great sea sailing on the Severn Estuary. The next event is Teign Corinthian Y.C. the next day on Sunday. The club is a couple of miles up the river Teign from Teignmouth and events are sailed in a tidal lagoon in the beautiful Devon countryside. So if you are planning a good weekend sailing this could be it. Another open in September is Frampton on Severn S.C. in Gloucestershire an interesting small lake with some very close competition very similar to Sutton Bingham. Then on to the last event in the traveller series South Cerney in the Cotswold water park area of Gloucestershire. This event has been growing in popularity in the last couple of years. The prize giving is planned to be held after racing rather than at the EOS to give it some local importance.

!As the qualification has been poor for the traveller series over several years I thought this year it would be FOUR to count and if boats are tied on points it would then be on count back to fifth or sixth events and so on. This would encourage better open meeting attendances especially among the contenders and those in with a chance.

!The last event in the west is the new Western Area Championship to be sailed at Salcombe Y.C. on the 17/18 October. This promises to be a great event. As already mentioned Salcombe has a large home Solo fleet with some top sailors. At this time of the year most of the moored boats will be off their moorings so this will open up the sailing area. I am led to believe this will be a mixture of open sea and harbour sailing dependant on the weather . Another good point at this time of year are that accommodation costs are much cheaper in this popular seaside town.

!So by the time you read this the Winter Championship at Chew Valley will be over and the rest of the season to look forward to. For next year there is the question of splitting the area into two distinct traveller events. That is North and South as there is a large distance to be travelled up and down the M5. Perhaps Weymouth should be included a possibly a new event at Roadford Lake although I am not certain there are many Solos there. Although it looks to be a great sailing area as it is a very large lake 730 acres. The division would cut down on travelling costs and save a good deal of time and increase local competition. All of which are good for the competitors and the class. Have a good season and take part in at least one open other than your own.

!Richard White

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