Minima Yacht Club - Kingston Upon Thames - Reports

Regatta 2006 Enterprise & Solo Open 2007 Vintage Merlin Race 2007 May Merrie 07 Regatta 2006 Vintage Merlin Race 2006 May Merrie 06 Long Distance Race Merlin Open Regatta 2005 Home

Minima YC Regatta September 1st and 2nd 2007 The weather was fair to kind, said the legal eagle from sponsors TWM Solicitors (a leading south-west London firm), unwittingly perjuring himself in his speech to the après-racers, because from a sailing point of view it was neither. Minima’s annual regatta unfurled itself in slightly more glory than usual, thanks to the smart TWM banners festooned around the clubhouse at Kingston-upon- Thames. This year the racing was hard and close, with the Solo and Rater classes decided on the last leg of the last race. Almost a dead calm drift on Saturday afternoon, when the home sailors hope to score; it was a bit better on the Sunday when the visitors arrived, but the breeze was westerly through the trees on the Middlesex bank, which is always a pain, full of holes and occasional puffs dying just as you hike out. Then there were the vertical spiralling downdrafts, impossible to read for those not psychically gifted. The gifted included Minima’s new commodore Denis Lockwood, who won his Merlin class. The wind was at the precise strength in both races on Sunday that the mighty Thames Raters came back over the start line at exactly the moment the Enterprises were starting, which produced some exciting moments, as did the Dragon boat race which launched itself across the line as the Raters began their start sequence. All kinds of people want to join the fun when you go dinghy racing on the Thames. Two classes, the Solos and the Thames Raters, were decided in the last few hundred yards of the final races. ‘Despite the usual difficult conditions, it is always entertaining at Minima,’ said winning Rater skipper Kevin Pearson. Results (all Minima except Raters). Enterprise : 1 Alan Jales, Lukas Cameron; 2 Richard Shillito, Eric Warner. Topper: 1 Alistair Banks; 2 Giles Hobart. Merlin: 1 Dennis Lockwood, Karan Lockwood; 2 Paul Seamen, Eileen Barry; 3 Ben Marshall, John Wilkey. Solo: 1 John Kemp, 2 Rob Brooks. Thames A Rater (all Thames SC): 1 Kevin Pearson, Bill McLaren, Melanie Hardman, Nick Fribbins; 2 Martin Hunter, Chris Martin, Guy Wood. John Forbes, MYC Press officer.

Minima YC Enterprise and Solo Open 2007 There was a good turnout of Ents, but fewer Solos for the Minima Enterprise and Solo 2007 joint Open meeting, held on a day with an occasional south-westerly breeze, and sunny spells. A cunningly contrived course led competitors up a long beat away from the claustrophobic bank-hugging reach by the clubhouse to do short laps under the open skies towards Thames SC to the south, with fewer trees and buildings and better exposure to what wind there was, and the occasional drop of sunshine. The long sheltered run back to the finish line was only occasionally soporific. The 16-strong Enterprise competition was dominated by the top three helms. Unluckiest was probably Hampton’s Phil Chambers, who led both the second and third races only to lose out after a mistake at a mark in the second, and a strong finish from David Hodgson in the third, however Steve and Kathy Collins were never headed in the first race and were in a position to take advantage of Phil’s error in the second to win overall honours. Best of the rest, with a fourth and a third was Minima’s Alan Jales and new crew Lukas Cameron. For the eight Solos it was a similar story, with Ian Hurst, John Metzner and John Kemp finishing first, second and third in the first two races and the same result overall. On the previous day Minima took the annual Firkin Trophy team racing contest with Twickenham Yacht Club, with tactics which can only be described as close to the wind with respect to the interaction of the Enterprises and Solos involved. Results: Enterprise Open (Thames Valley Bowl Series): 1 Steve and Kathy Collins (Minima), 2 David Hodgson and Sue Whitcliff (Papercourt SC), 3 Phil Chambers and Ewan Gittins (Hampton SC). Solo Open: 1 Ian Hurst (Twickenham YC), 2 John Metzner (Minima), 3 John Kemp (Minima). John Forbes, MYC Press officer.

MYC May Merrie 2007 (7th May 2007) Minima’s sailors finally overcame Thames Sailing Club’s mighty ‘A’ Raters in the May Merrie Open handicap on Bank Holiday Monday, thanks to a slight shift of the goal posts. Former commodore Paul Seamen brought his vintage Merlin in nearly a lap behind Martin Hunter’s Rater, but won by six minutes on corrected time, the first victory in living memory over his upstream rivals. Competitors offered various colourful descriptions of the far from Merrie conditions, the only printable one of which was ‘challenging’, with sections of the course beset by turbulent downdrafts as a blustery westerly swept over the tall poplars and plane trees on the Middlesex bank to swirl off the flats and office blocks on the eastern, Surrey, side. The strongest gusts were heralded by a hissing roar in the tree tops, which added a sinister sound track to a bright sunny afternoon, following torrential rain just before the start. At first conditions were relatively benign as the rain died away and the sun came out, but the wind gradually strengthened, and as the race went on dinghies were upended sometimes several at a time when the squalls hit the danger areas. Several finishers prudently downed mainsails the moment they crossed the line. Five of the fifteen starters retired in various states of disarray. A dog was also rescued. Apart from their sailing – and survival – skills Paul, and third-placed Kevin Harris, in an Enterprise, owed their success to a radical shift in the Raters’ handicap, placed for Minima races at a Portsmouth Yardstick equivalent of 650 by Minima Sailing Secretary Steve Collins, when it had formerly been at 900. The new ruling promises for the first time to produce genuine competition at Minima for the 40-foot mast Raters, which still rule the Thames exactly as they were designed to do over 100 years ago. 1 Paul Seamen, Eileen Barry (Vintage Merlin), 2 Martin Hunter, Sue Williams, Mark Staite (Thames A Rater), 3 Kevin Harris, Suzy Harris ( Enterprise), 4 Kevin Pearson, Melanie Hardman, Patrick Rayner (A Rater). John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer

MYC Regatta Report 2006 (2nd - 3rd September 2006) They say the hurricane season starts when the water reaches the right temperature, and as many, possibly even most, of the competitors at the Minima regatta discovered, the Thames is certainly pretty warm at this time of year. Well it didn't cause a hurricane, but the strength at the weekend varied from fair to unfair, particularly on Saturday, when a Force 8 gust was recorded at Hampton, a couple of miles upstream. That afternoon less than half the 24 starters at Minima finished the first race of the meeting, with three Thames A Raters upended for the entertainment of riverside promenaders, along with numbers of the other classes. It was basically a westerly, which makes for fairly straightforward sailing on the North-South reach at Kingston-upon-Thames, but throughout the weekend there were prolonged spells of slamming gusts, and crews who survived one of these got used to looking round for upturned hulls. The trees and buildings which make river sailing challenging in normal conditions then conspired to generate virtual no-sail zones of bewildering turbulence. These were conditions in which experience, and effective capsize drills were at a premium, particularly in the Ents. Shamingly one of the Minima Enterprises sank due to inadequate buoyancy. Happily, however, neither boats nor personnel were seriously damaged, the thrills and spills on the water did no more than add to the general jollity and the event was a credit to the Minima, with competitors from six other clubs attending. Home crews dominated the Solo and Merlin Rocket entries, but the large and well-equipped contingent from Hampton, notably Phil Chambers in Esperer, were superior, despite creditable thirds from Chris Rowsell of Lensbury and Minima veteran Les Rowlandson in Frolic (ages of helm and boat adding up to well over the century). A couple of Minima's other top helms gave up the chance to race in order to help out in various capacities, which being said, there were definitely moments out on the river when either the race box or the bar looked by far the best option. RESULTS (Minima unless stated) Enterprise: 1 Philip Chambers, Peter Skingly, Ewan Gittings (Hampton SC). 2 Matt Harley, Ben Harley (Hampton). 3 Ellen Cooper, Matt Harley (Hampton). 4 Les Rowlandson, Nick John. Handicap: Alistair Banks. Merlin Rocket: 1 Ben Marshall, John Wilkey. 2 Erica Bishop, Phil Chase. 3 Paul Seamen, Eileen Barry. Solo: 1 John Kemp. 2 John Metzner. 3 Nick Titley (Twickenham SC). Thames 'A' Rater: 1 Kevin Pearson, Bill McCracken, Nick Fribbins (Thames SC). 2 Stuart Gurney, Justin Dunn, Tim Carpenter (Thames). 3 Elizabeth Rhodes, Jim Crank, Ken Rhodes (Upper Thames SC). John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer

MYC Vintage Merlin Race (10th June 2006) The Vintage Merlin circus stormed into Minima YC on for the first time on Saturday (June 10) in sparkling conditions and a testing force 3-4 breeze. The gusting south-easterly caused half a dozen capsizes on a Thames buzzing with every kind of craft, from pleasure steamers to kayaks, making for a highly entertaining day’s sail, particularly for the spectators. The event, jointly organised with neighbouring Thames SC was held at Minima and home Commodore Paul Seamen, crewed by his wife Eileen, took all the honours, winning the MYC's Chindit trophy together with a trophy presented by Thames. As local pubs resounded to the cheers for England's first World Cup clash, Paul commented : ‘It was a special pleasure for us as Warrior was built in 1966, the year England won the World Cup.’ He also won a special award for the most desperate effort yet to link sailing with football. Merlin Number One, Kate, from Ranelagh SC gave her younger competition a run for their money. With Mervyn Allen at the helm, and crew Charlie Morgan, she was leading the first race until a tragic attack of colour-blindness at the second mark, and she was pipped for the two-race Chindit trophy when she lost the first round by just 2 seconds. Results: Thames SC trophy: 1.Warrior (P & E Seamen,Minima YC) ; 2. Bow Belle (Denis Lockwood,Christine Broadley,Minima); 3. Adastra VI ( Erica Bishop, Andrew Cowan, Minima) ; 4. Water Nymph ( Ian Pratt, Susie Scotcher,Thames SC). Chindit Trophy: 1.Warrior; 2. Kate (M.Allen,C.Morgan, Ranelagh SC); 3. Adastra VI; 4. Half Cut ( Sandy Lavelle, Pat Jones, Sheerwater SC). Please note: All pictures by John Forbes, Minima. More available if required. Captions: 1) Bow Belle, Warrior (the eventual winner) and Fat Marce, Minima 10-6-06 2) The start, vintage Merlins at Minima 10-6-06 3) Red Admiral gets a swan moving (but not her crew) at Minima 10-6-06 4) Close quarters in force 3-4 (look at the poplar trees bending), Minima 10-6-06. Warrior is nearest the camera, Fat Marce (right) heading into the pack going fast on starboard. 5) Kate leads eventual winner Warrior at Minima, 10-6-06. At right in background capsize victim Water Nymph (Thames SC) pulled into the bank to empty water before continuing to take a damp 4th place in the first race 6) Kingston-upon-Thames, 10-6-06, the usual river traffic, and a bunch of Merlins breaking the speed limit... John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer

MYC May Merrie (1St May 2006) The tall A-Raters of Thames Yacht Club sailed rings (well laps anyway) round the lowly Merlins, Enterprises and Solos of Minima YC on Bank Holiday Monday. A swirling westerly made the long course challenging at every stage, but it was set well down into the town in order to be part of Kingston-upon-Thames’s May Merrie festivities, and the turbulence and back-eddies from the blocks of flats made the downstream section extremely difficult for the stumpier classes of dinghy. There were really two races, with Tim Carpenter’s Carina and last year’s winner Paul Browning’s Osprey half an hour ahead of Paul Armitage in Vagabond. The also-rans were two laps behind, headed by the Merlins of Paul Seamen and Dennis Lockwood, who were given a run for their money by Les Rowlandson’s veteran Enterprise, Frolic. Results of the May Merrie Cup: 1 Carina: Tim Carpenter, Tod Wells, Tom Hamilton (A-Rater, Thames YC), 2 Osprey: Paul Browning, Graham Bartholomew, Justin Dunn (A-Rater, Thames YC). 3 Vagabond Paul Armitage Karen Evans, Sue Williams (A-Rater, Thames YC) 4 Warrior: Paul Seamen, Hazel Williams (Merlin, Minima). John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer

MYC Spring Long Distance Race (2nd April 2006) The Minima Spring Long Distance race, Thames sailing’s answer to the Grand National, was held on Sunday in what was predicted to be force 5, and felt like that at times. About half the starters failed to finish, some retired scared, some capsizing and unable to continue, one with a badly damaged mast, and one washed up into the bar of neighbouring Thames Yacht Club. Overall winner on handicap was probably Peter Halligan’s Solo, who didn’t sign off on the grounds that the top mark was not properly set. Steve and Kathy Collins (Enterprise) and Paul and Eileen Seamen (Merlin) were not so inhibited. The Merlin race was extraordinarily close: after swapping the lead several times Paul and Eileen were less than a length ahead of Ben Marshall and John Wilkey at the end of the four-mile slog from Kingston-upon-Thames to Hampton Court and back — an hour and a half non-stop tacking upwind into a four knot stream and 20 minutes hair-raising run back. The autumn version of this race is an invitation event to Minima's neighbours, who are more than welcome, if they think they are hard enough. Thames YC and the London River YC helped out when Minima’s safety arrangements were overwhelmed after a launch broke down, for which much thanks. John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer

MYC Merlin Open Report (2nd October 2005) Merlins from Cookham Reach to Brightlingsea converged on Kingston Bridge for Minima's Merlin open meeting, part of the Thames valley series. They found a steady north wind, the most straightforward experienced by visitors to the club for some time, but the racing was pretty sedate with the gleaming carbon craft of Tamesis consistently leading pretty evenly-spaced processions. It was the first time the Minima's new Merlin cup, the Eric Archer Memorial Trophy, had been awarded, and Eric's son Ben generously launched it with a case of champagne for the winners, which unfortunately did not include himself. But then again Jonathan Reuben brought his Chindit all the way from Essex not to win the Chindit trophy, for veterans over 30 years old. Results: 1 Rob Wilder, Tom McLaughlin (Wild Card, Tamesis), 2 Mike Stephens, Andy Douglas (Aloha, Tamesis), 3 Ken Duffell, Brian Corking (Sorcerer's Apprentice, Tamesis). Chindit Trophy: Ben Marshall (Minima). John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer

MYC Regatta Report 2005 Dinghies of all shapes and sizes, from the common Topper to the rare Thames 'A' Rater, with its 40-foot mast (mostly carbon fibre and fabulously expensive), gathered for Minima's annual regatta at Kingston-upon-Thames. In wonderful weather and difficult winds, 36 boats from 5 clubs, Thames, Tamesis, Twickenham, Hampton and the hosts enjoyed two days of the most challenging sailing the Thames can offer. 'Consistency was the name of the game here,' said Thames's Stuart Gurney, in his gracious speech of thanks to Minima's exhausted volunteer stalwarts: 'Every time we tacked the wind went round with us.' There were also Fireflies and Solos, Enterprises, Merlins ancient and modern, a couple of National 12s, and helms and crews aged from 8 to at least 85, cursing the endless wind shifts and going home with prizes. These were races which rewarded agility and stamina, with the thermometer nudging 30 degrees, and a variable north-easterly-easterly-southerly driving helms over to the shady west bank, where they had to dodge overhanging branches and the lines of irate fishermen, as well as each other. In short, the river at its best and worst. It was a very successful weekend, essentially due to the large number of visiting boats, generated by the tireless diplomacy of Minima sailing secretary Steve Collins, who is currently canvassing a suggestion that the five clubs actively support each other by canceling regular club sailing on each other's open days. Minima crews are now certainly aware they owe their neighbours some return visits. Results (Minima unless stated). Enterprise Plate: 1 Les Rowlandson and Mike King, 2 Alan Jales and Ben Nairn, 3 Andy Banks and Karine Nairn. Solo Hand: 1 John Kemp, 2 John Metzner, 3 Steve Thomas. Hilde Cup (Merlin), also Tamesis Merlin Challenge Cup: 1 Ollie Houseman and Catherine Ashley (Tamesis), 2 Ken Duffell and Brian Corking (Tamesis), 3 Mike Stephens and Suzannah Bell (Tamesis). Turketine Cup (Handicap): 1 Rob Cage and Georgina Cage (Firefly, Thames), 2 Chris Deverson and Jessica Martin (National 12, Twickenham), 3 Erica Bishop (Topper, also won Minima's Admiral Beatty trophy), 4 Daisy Thomas (Thames). Rater Salver: 1 Stuart Gurney, Graham Bartholomew and Patrick Rayner, 2 Elizabeth Rhodes and various crew. John Forbes - Minima YC Press officer