Report thanks to Angus Jolly

Ten boats lined up for the final two races of the IOMA FIM series on Sunday morning. Race officers Ian Moffett and Barbara Jolly, having been thwarted by an uncooperative start boat took to the end of the stone pier and set a starboard ‘windward / leeward (sausage) course for race 1.
An over enthusiastic pack, all crammed at the pin end forced a general recall as most were clearly over the line as the hooter went. The second attempt was equally messy with several boats being squeezed out and one or two early starters having to re-cross the line.
After much place swapping and the odd collision, Dave Batchelor (Laser Std) emerged as the clear winner both on the water, and on corrected time. Andrew and Katie Dean (RS200) took second with Ali Hinds (Laser Radial) closely behind. Series leader Angus Jolly, crewed by budding ‘junior’ Connor Christian tied for fourth with Ralph Kee.

Race two and the Laser fleet once again seemed really keyed up - was it the influence of the Olympics, or the presence of ‘Jim the Coach’ that was hyping them up? Anyway, everyone got away first time with much barging and shouting.
A ‘P’ course was in order and again, there was much place changing throughout the fleet. The racing so close that there was only 36 seconds between the first nine finishers.
This time it was Andrew and Katie who took the glory (and the series), with Ben Swindlehurst (Laser Rad) second and Simon Pressly (Laser Std) third. Ralph Kee maintained his form and was fourth, Mike Pridham fifth (both in Laser Stds).

Thanks to Peter Hoosen-Owen and Jim ‘The Coach’ for manning the rescue boats.

Race 1 Results:
1: Dave Batchelor, 2:Andrew & Katie Dean, 3: Ali Hinds, 4=: Angus Jolly & Ralph Kee, 6: Ben Swindlehurst, 7: Mike Pridham, 8: Simon Pressly, 9: Chris Hill, 10, Theo Leach & Josh Gaines.

Race 2 Results:
1: Andrew & Katie, 2: Ben Swindlehurst, 3: Simon Pressly, 4: Ralph Kee, 5: Mike Pridham, 6: Angus & Connor, 7: Dave Batchelor, 8: Ali Hinds, 9: Chris Hill, 10: Theo & Josh.

Final series standings:
1st Andrew & Katie, 2nd Angus & Connor, 3rd Theo Leach. (Full results available on Manxsailracer.com

The dinghy season has now ended at the MS&CC and to bring things to a close there will be a Sponsors Presentation evening on Friday 10th October, 7.30 – 9.00 to include the Bridson and Horrox, WI-Manx, IT Works and IOMA FIM series. All are welcome especially competitors, Race Officers, Rescue Boaters. So please do come along and make an evening of it.

Report thanks to Ollie O’Day

Sunshine, calm sea and a gusty offshore wind greeted the competitors at the start of the IOMYC Autumn series in Port St Mary.

Both races were won by the RS200 of Russell and June Collister with Angus Jolly and Christopher Hill close behind in the other RS200. Ben Swindlehurst sailed to a good third in the first race when Simon Pressly and Ali Hinds went swimming.

Pressly took third in the second race while John Dowling and Terry Holt retired after capsizing with spinnaker problems.

Roger and Helen Cave enjoyed playing with their new jib (once it was tied on properly) and Richard Baker was super to watch, flying across the bay on his windsurfer.

Results
Race 1
1st Collister, RS200; 2nd Jolly, RS200; 3rd Swindlehurst, Laser Radial; 4th Dowling, Wayfarer; 5th Pressly, Laser Standard; 6th Hinds, Radial; 7th Baker, Windsurfer; 8th Cave, Laser Stratos.
Race 2
1st Collister, 2nd Jolley, 3rd Pressly, 4th Swindlehurst, 5th Hinds, 6th Cave, 7th Baker, rtd Dowling

Note from Mick Kneale

September has turned out a bit thin on the Sunday club racing front at Port St Mary. The Pico Challenge took up the 7th. On the 14th, five boats went out for a play in lovely conditions. The 21st dawned a beautiful flat calm day and the ten or so crews that appeared were disappointed that no race was possible. The last Sunday of the month, the 28th, was a reserve date in the calendar. As it happens, this coincides with both Laser training at Ramsey and Youth Squad training at Port Erin, so there will be nobody left to sail at PSM. Russell and June are off to Wexford with the RS200 that weekend for the Irish Nationals and we wish them well. So, no racing at PSM on the 28th September.

The IOMYC autumn series will start on Sunday 5th October (1030 first start) and, like last year, we intend to run races up to Christmas from the RIBs. There are proper spaces in the boat-park for dinghies - please email manxSailracer for the paperwork. Thank you.

Report thanks to Mick Kneale

The annual Pico Challenge, sponsored by the Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fishermen took place at Port St Mary on Sunday 7th September- a day late because of atrocious weather on Saturday. The weekend weather since Easter has been rather unkind to sailing, causing postponements and then either too much or too little wind, more often than not. This time, the 24-hour delay worked out just fine.

IOM dinghy champions Russell and June Collister again organised and ran the event, now in its fourth year. The Pico Challenge is a match-racing event sailed over two very short courses using the IOMYC’s Laser Pico training boats in the form of a knock-out competition.

Twenty people entered including last year’s winners Stu Brew and Ben Swindlehurst, who by the semi-final stage had both been knocked out. The finals were contested by Tom Howitt and Jack Lakeman on course A and Ali Hinds and James Walker on course B.

The race area was set in Chapel Bay where the offshore breeze was gusty and shifty. Most juniors (and some seniors) were given plenty of capsize practice.

In the junior section the winner was Jack Lakeman and although she’s still a junior by age, Ali Hinds won the seniors. Commodore David Hill presented the trophies on behalf of the RNMDSF and Ali thanked everyone who had helped smoothly run the challenge.

Report thanks to Andrew Dean

Hard on the heels of huge British Olympic success, the sailors of the Isle of Man held their own Championship in Ramsey at the weekend.  Three of the Olympic classes were represented, the Finn, the Laser and the Laser Radial, and in a mixed fleet it could be argued that those types are harshly handicapped due to the exceptional standard at Olympic level.  But the other classes also have their stars, in particular defending champions Russell and June Collister in their RS200 (the largest double-handed Nationals fleet in the UK) and Mike Kneale, with Phil Hardisty and Donald Edwards as crew, in the National 18.  Not to forget Andrew Williams and Tom Cringle in the rapid RS400, always a threat.

In the event, conditions on the water had a considerable influence on the results.  Given a wind steady in direction, the Race Officer for the weekend, Neil Boyes, ably assisted by Commodore David Edwards, would have been able to set perfect, fair courses, ensuring that each type of boat could sail to its handicap.  But the winds for the weekend were extremely fickle with almost any change of direction favouring the assymetrical-spinnakered RS’s, whose comparative weak point is dead downwind.  Not only did the direction change during all the races, in the first race the direction actually reversed.

The first race on Saturday morning was delayed by one and a half hours, while everyone waited for the wind to arrive.  Eventually a light Northerly arrived and a short race started.  The leaders sneaked round while the direction changed, leaving the single-handers a little stranded.  Williams, closely followed by Mike Kneale, finished first and second but were unable to save their time on the Collisters and Andrew and Katie Dean in the other RS200.  Simon Pressley and Ralph Kee led the Lasers home.

After another wait, a more steady South-Easterly filled in and Pete Barlow with Rob Cowell in the other National 18 had a superb race to cross first, but had to settle for 2nd behind the flying Collisters, who were only briefly headed by the Deans (3rd).  4th was John Dowling/T Holt in a Wayfarer, Mike Kneale 5th and the Finn of Keith Holden 6th.

By now the race starts were becoming fraught affairs, not for the faint hearted, but all three races went away with few recalls.  The wind was becoming fickle again but the same faces were appearing at the front.  Third bullet for the Collisters, 2nd to Kneale, 3rd Williams, 4th Deans, 5th Presley and 6th Holden.

In the meantime there was a battle for the Junior Championship.  Ali Hinds sailed consistently in the Laser Radial (10th, 10th and 11th) to win, from Chris Hill and Ben Swindlehurst.

The three races scheduled for Sunday were abandoned due to no wind at all.

The weather was not at all kind but the 31 sailors were welcomed with a barbecue on Saturday after racing, and the famous Regatta tea on Sunday followed the prizegiving.  Russell thanked the Club members for the organisation of the food and drink, and the hard work of the Race Officers.  Particular thanks to the crews of the rescue craft (called “crash boats” by Russell, that’s what they must be called in the land of Team GB).

Overall results:

1st The Collisters, 2nd The Deans, 3rd M. Kneale, 4th Williams/Cringle, 5th P Barlow, 6th Pressley, 7th Holden, 8th Dowling, 9th Kee, 10th Hinds, 11th Jerry Colman and Charlie Edwards (505), 12th C. Hill, 13th B Swindlehurst, 14th J & K Stockman (Laser 3000)

Report thanks to Mick Kneale

IOMYC hosted a regatta for Lasers over the weekend – an indicator event for the 2009 Island Games sailing team. The team of four, which will be selected next year after a series of regattas and monthly training sessions, will consist of two sailors in the Standard Laser and two in the Radial rig Laser.

Like the previous weekend, the weather on Saturday turned the sailing into an ordeal.
Three races were scheduled for Saturday afternoon and three more Sunday morning.

In the event, racing was abandoned after two on Saturday – sea conditions were getting dangerous even for the experienced sailors involved. Four much more pleasant races were held back-to-back Sunday morning, Race Officers Mick Kneale and Pete Hinds alternating courses between P and windward/leeward. The quality of the racing improved as the regatta progressed and by race six you could almost throw a (largish) blanket over the fleet at the finish.

Unfortunately some sailors were off-island, so only two Standard Lasers appeared.

There was no trophy or prize for this event but the results were as follows:
Radial: 1st Peter Whipp (5 wins and a 2nd), 2nd Mike Pridham (1 win and five 2nd places), 3rd Ali Hinds, 4th Ben Swindlehurst, 5th Rob Cowell, 6th Chris Hill, 7th Patrick Evans.

Standard: 1st Simon Pressly, 2nd Dave Holland.
More photo’s by Volvo Ocean Race photographer Dave Kneale are in the MSR Gallery