Issue No 126 Summer 2011 Chairman's Natter It seems an age since I was writing for FLASH, so time really is flying by this year, we're in June already with 7 events behind us, including the Haversham Training Day and are almost half way through the season. I must say with travel costs rising against the background of the general economic conditions at the moment, I was concerned we might see a drop in attendance at open events as people elected to stay local, or sail at their home clubs, but not a bit if it. Turnouts so far this year are actually improved once again, which I think shows we are generally doing the right kind of things and people are enjoying the Class Events. By way of a quick comparison here's a little table of attendance so far and we've some big events to come. Given the good start we've made, I'm hoping we might get through the two hundred attendances mark for the season, which would be a first for many years. We managed 189 last year, so we're pretty close if the second half continues to be as well supported as the first. Event 2010 2011 Rum & Mince Pie 17 20 Haversham Training day 16 20 Hillingdon 17 20 Oxford 14 10 Cotswold 15 16 Weston 5 9 Lymington 10 9 Totals to Date 94 104 With good attendances and new boats out on the water, the Class is looking in good shape, LN402, 406, 407, 408 and 409 are all regulars at the opens, but as always with the Lightnings, new kit is no match for skill, so the new boats are spread out, right through the fleet, the older steeds continue to mix it up with the new ones, which makes for some great sailing all round. Sue Thomas has ordered another new boat, the first of the 2011 crop, so the fleet continues to grow and as more owners get to know about Class Association activities, the Boat Register and Clubs Directory continue to fill. We've revamped the website (www.lightning368.org), in preparation for a move to a new website host in September. The new site provides lots more features under a single log-in, however the look and feel of the new site is very different so the jury is still out on which is best for the Class. We can use either 'style' in the new hosting facility, so if you've a view on this please let the webmaster know. The website is there to provide help and support to the Class and the CA, so it's important we provide a facility that people like and enjoy. We try to keep the website very up to date and it would be unusual for a week to go by without some comment, or new info appearing on the pages or forum. For CA members there is a facility to 'Blog' which in our case means telling the rest us about your sailing exploits and adventures, so if you've been sailing in new or unusual places then why not tell the tale, even if it is not all Lightning stuff, reading about other Classes, or sailing in other places always provides a good read and gives another perspective on sailing and what Lightning sailor do in their 'spare' time. The Nationals are not far away now, so you'll find a few pages on the new website giving details and schedule info. For the first time, we are going to split the prizes into Gold and Sliver fleets and there is more info on this concept elsewhere in this issue. We're also planning a bit of a Lightning jumble on Saturday after the racing, so whether you're sailing or not, do pop along if you've any old bits you want to sell, or things you need, doesn't matter how large or small, many or few, I'm sure many people would welcome the opportunity to browse around looking for the odd bit or two. After all that buying and selling we have the AGM, then to recover from that, there is a curry in the club house which everyone is welcome. I'm told a good curry and the odd beer, greatly helps the racing on the Sunday morning!!! So to close, we have a lot going on, the Class continues to expand and grow, not only in terms of new boats, but older boats being refurbished and put to good use in even more clubs. Sarah down in Weir Wood SC is once again pushing the class along nicely, refurbishing a couple of old boats and getting them out on the water once again and this is typical, with clubs that once had established LN fleets kicking them back into life, let's hope this continues and grows. Please do come along to an open event, even if just to watch and pick up on the latest boats and info, you will be most welcome. I know if you put your kit in the car, you'll almost certainly get a sail in one if you want to try the new boats. I hope you enjoy the rest of this edition of Flash and remember if there is anything specific you want to see in future issues or on the website, just drop us a note. Best Regards, Wayne Lightning Fixtures 2011 16 July Southern Champs Cookham Reach SC 6 August Northern Champs Combs SC 20-21 Aug National Champs Northampton SC Two Day Event Saturday Evening Lightning Parts Jumble & AGM 10 September Informal Training Day Up River YC 11 September Open Event (Sunday) Up River YC 24 September The Noble Marine Inland Championships Haversham SC 15 October Open Event Dorchester SC 12 November Rum & Mince Pies West Oxfordshire SC (1st event of 2012 Traveller Series) “Podding” An Amateur view Having been an amateur boat builder in sometime past and my degree says I am a Materials Engineer I decided that ‘Podding’ 288 myself was the way to go and use the money saved to buy something else from John. I then went on to do 253 later and thought I would share my experience as both through up different challenges! We started by removing all control lines, fittings and toe straps. Upon examination the thwart in 288 was was bolted into the side tanks, where Mark Giles had glassed in some metal plates with appropriate threads. Simple job with a 10mm ratchet and 15 minutes later the thwart was out of the boat! Remember these plates for later when it is time to fit the hand holds! Look at all that space! Pod preparation The pod is supplied with an inner ‘filler’ for want of a better description. Whilst these are roughly prepared by John it is best spending some time making sure they are a good fit before they get anywhere near any glue! I would say the fitting and fairing of the filling pieces took up by far the most time in the whole job. When faired I secured using a couple of G clamps and grips to hold the parts together and drilled through the Pod and fitted one screw to secure the ‘filler’ in the correct position. Once that is complete the next job was to prepare the boat. I started by masking off around the pod to keep to mess to as small an area as possible. Then to make sure the glue John supplies gets as good a bond as possible I roughed up and scored the wooden backing of the ‘filler’ and then did the same to the boat. Now don’t be shy the more gel coat you remove and fibreglass you expose the better the bond. When I did 253 later if chipped off much more gel coat. Assembly of the filling pieces to the hull Now was the time to go for it and start fitting the pod. I had left opening the tube of marine adhesive John had supplied as late as possible so it did not go off before I had finished (as I was doing this in evenings after work). With the pod and ‘fillers’ still assembled I applied a liberal amount of adhesive to both surfaces and pushed together. Now is a critical bit. Make sure the top of the pod is level in both directions and in the middle. I did this by sitting the front of the boat on a trolley jack until the floor was horizontal and used a builder’s level across the top of the side tanks. This gave me some confidence the boat was level and I then used a smaller level to get top of the pod level in both directions. I did not worry too much that the pod did not touch the floor on both sides this will be hidden later with the fillet of adhesive. Then for the technical bit I weighted it down with two house brick and left over night to cure! When I removed the pod the following day as you can see from the picture the ‘liberal amount‘of adhesive I used was not as liberal as I thought but it did the job of keep securing the fillers to the hull for the next stage. I filled all the gaps around the ‘filler’ with Isopon P38, which is just premixed chopped glass and resin as found in all motor accessories shops. Once more leave to set.