2008 Elan Regatta
Premier's Gosport Marina played host to the inaugural Elan regatta.
Regatta report from the skipper of One More Knot. Click on images for full size.
One More Knot wins the 2008 Elan Regatta
2008 Elan Regatta
Class 1 Results
| Rank | Boat Name | Boat | Sail No | Entrant | R1 5 July |
R2 5 July |
R3 5 July |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | One More Knot | Elan 333 | GBR 7563T | Phil Duff | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | Juniper | Elan Impression 434 | GBR 9569T | John Broughton | 3 | 4 | 2 | 9 |
| 3 | White Rose | Elan 40 | GBR 516R | Bob Jackson | 2 | 2 | Rtd - 9 | 13 |
| 4 | Passion | Elan 410 | 7777 | Russel Lake | 6 | 5 | 3 | 14 |
| 5 | Hurricane V | Elan 410 | SWE 410 | John Cervinca | 5 | 3 | Rtd - 9 | 17 |
| 6= | Mad Fish | Elan 295 | GBR 9381T | Russel Hawkins | 4 | Rtd - 9 | Rtd - 9 | 22 |
| 6= | Premier 2 | Elan 340 | 3404C | Steven Broomfiled | Rtd - 9 | Rtd - 9 | 4 | 22 |
| 8 | Premier 1 | Elan 450 | None | Dan Hughes | Rtd - 9 | Rtd - 9 | 5 | 23 |
| Symphony | Elan 340 | GBR 1456L | Roy Pearce | DNC | DNC | DNC | ||
| Hurricane VI | Elan 410 | SWE 450 | DNC | DNC | DNC |
Class 2 Results
| Rank | Boat Name | Boat | Sail No | Entrant | R1 5 July |
R2 5 July |
R3 5 July |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Corsair | Elan 36 | GBR 1229R | Barry Simmonds | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | Mighty Craic | Elan Impression 344 | IRL 3440 | Nigel Northbridge | Rtd - 4 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | Nyleptha | Elan Impression 434 | Michael Talbot | 2 | Rtd - 4 | Rtd - 4 | 10 | |
| Kiwi 1 | DNC | DNC | DNC |
Results courtesy of Premier Marinas
Elan Regatta Report
Crew: Phil, Darrell, Glenn, Rick, Emma, Les
The first Elan Regatta was held the weekend following the Round the Island race. The boat was already light as we hadn't put much stuff back on board. The base camp for the regatta was Premier's Gosport Marina.
On Friday, Phil and Roy (formerly of Rhapsody fame, but now the proud owner of Symphony, a brand new Elan 340) teamed up and moved both boats half a mile from their home marina around the corner. Premier had allocated berths near to the main drag for regatta participants. All the Elans's were in close proximity to each other, but at this stage none of the crews knew each other.
A 6:30 in the evening, the crews were rounded up for the 'drivers briefing'. The crews were welcomed too. We weren't sure of the format, but it became clear that the boats that had claimed to be using spinnakers, but without an IRC rating would be included with the IRC boats in class 1. Class 2 was for the family boats without spinnakers. The forecast was for high winds, and we were nervous about being mixed in with the IRC boats, particularly when we thought that we wouldn't be using the spinnakers.
The crew of One More Knot and Symphony enjoyed a few beers on Friday night, we were not too late to bed so that we were ready for Saturday, but also because Roy who had developed a bit of a back problem that was getting more severe rapidly.
On Saturday morning, bacon butties were welcomed. On One More Knot we optimistically prepared our spinnaker guys and sheets. Meanwhile, we saw an Elan 340 dump their spinnaker pole as they had already made the decision that they wouldn't be using it. Sadly Roy, Symphony and their crew withdrew as Roy's back had become unbearable.
At 9:00 we left the pontoon, one of the earlier boats to do so. In the briefing we had been told that we would probably have been able to use the inner Swashway passage upto the start at Gilkicker, however, there was about 0.5m less tide than we were comfortable with, so we went the longer route via Swashway. The rest of the fleet followed. As a consequence, Bat Fish, an Elan 295 with Mum, Dad and the kids, 2 boys 6 and 4 were the only boat at the start line before us. We were only just in time for the scheduled start, however realising that the fleet was late the committee postponed appropriately.
Race 1
This race was essentially a triangle. The start was the shore based transit for the measured mile at Gilkicker. We were then to fetch a short distance against the strong tide to Gilkicker On Deck. From here, we would turn to port for a biased beat to Bob Kemp, followed by a reach to Browndown before concluding the triangle by crossing the line in the opposite direction to the start, while leaving Gilkicker On Deck to starboard.
In the prestart, we assessed the tide and our ability to lay the mark. The shortest distance from the line would have been a beat, so we elected a slight longer path that allowed us to lay the line on a fetch. A waypoint was entered on the GPS. In the count down sequence, we were aware of the very strong adverse tide and wind and made sure that we didn't get too far away from the line. The other competitors seemed to get caught out.
At the gun we hit our way point and were away. An excellent start! We concentrated on the business in hand. We were at the head of the fleet but we didn't worry about it too much. As we rounded the first mark we realised the magnitude of our lead. Half the fleet hadn't even crossed the line. The rest were some considerable way back. As we were concentrated on getting to the next mark, Bob Kemp, as quickly as possibly, we could see the rest of the fleet making mistakes in their navigation. We made the most of the opportunity and kept slugging into the solid F6 with our #3 and 1 reef in the main.
We rounded the second mark in first place too, but we had only pipped White Rose, an Elan 40, because they took a longer route by seriously over standing the mark. On the reach to Browndown, White Rose accelerated past us and we couldn't match the larger boat's speed. At Browndown we were 2nd to round before the broad reach back to the line. Meanwhile the remainder of the larger boats had managed to close the gap. As we approached Gilkicker we were demoted to about 4th on the water, but we had given the larger boats a good run for their money.
We weren't sure of the result but we knew we had done well. The results showed that we won by a mere 18 seconds (from White Rose) on corrected time after 42 minutes of racing in a force 6.
Race 2
In the second race, the start format was the same. Once again the start was the transit, then Gilkicker on Deck, Bob Kemp and Browndown, but this time we were cross back across the deep water channel to Crew Insure before running back to the finish, leaving Gilkicker on Deck to starboard just before the line.
Again One More Knot got a cracking start. The rest of the fleet were again well behind but not by as much this time. We rounded Gilkicker Ondeck first but were soon overhauled on the beat to Bob Kemp by White Rose. OMK managed to play the tide to close the gap. This was setting the trend, with OMK being effective to windward by working the tide better than the competitors.
We noticed White Rose had her #3 and full main. Upwind, she allowed her main to flog, but her Kevlar jib was working well. As soon as White Rose was off the wind their full main paid dividends. OMK couldn't match her speed. White Rose increased her lead across to Browndown but then appeared to have trouble identifying Crew Insure. Meanwhile OMK had hardened up at Browndown to make some headway into the adverse tide before tacking back across the deep water. We observed the Commodores Cup fleet coming down from Cowes. It looked like we would be able to cross just in front of them without picking up any dirty air or getting in the way. The later boats in our fleet would get into a mix with with the other fleet. Fortunately we crossed in front and the passed behind the the leading pack on the Commodores cup boats. Some of the later Elan's weren't so lucky! White Rose had rounded Crew Insure first and One More Knot had closed the gap a bit, but some of the other boats were catching OMK. White Rose led the fleet back towards Gilkicker for the finish.
It was a drag race and OMK was demoted to third on the water by the line. However, the first two yachts were much bigger, so we hoped our handicap would help on the corrected times. Once again the corrected time gave us another win, this time the margin was only 9 seconds, from White Rose again.
Race 3
For the third race, a long race zig zagging upwind, nearly all the way to Cowes was planned. The course looked quite long. With the wind now frequently gusting above 30 knots, Rick had a chat with the OOD and suggested that they ran a shorter course. After a short delay, the course was set with a start, up to Gilkicker Ondeck and then two laps of an upwind downwind sausage between Motherbank and Gilkicker. Motherbank was to be left to Starboard on the first lap and port on the second lap.
Yet again, OMK had a cracking start, but the rest of the fleet had got the hang of it! On the first, short leg to Gilkicker Ondeck, OMK initially led but was soon overhauled by the larger boats. We were suffering in their dirty air. Fortunately for us, at the first mark the leader just hardened up and was followed by the others. We elected to tack away as soon as possible, which meant that we needed to drop away to make room to tack. This gave us clear air and allowed us to immediately get into the deeper water for the tide that had now turned and was assisting us. We hadn't realised it, but White Rose had retired with equipment failure (sails). This time the fleet was led by two 410's that got drawn into match racing each other. They overstood the windward mark and ended up broad reaching back. Surprisingly, One More Knot was 2nd around the windward mark on the first lap.
We managed to hang in there but the bigger boats once again managed to sneak in front. After rounding the windward mark for the second time,, the leaders sailed north of the rhumb line before gybing and coming to the finish. OMK had been demoted to 4th, but we managed to sail a bit deeper than the others, closer to the rhumb line. We just about managed to keep our #3 pulling all the way downwind. Eventually we gybed too and converged with the others in 3rd place. It was a drag race to the line in 18 to 32 knots of breeze. We eventually crossed the line 4th and were later complemented by other crews for our downwind speed. This time, the corrected results, in the absence of White Rose, gave us the win by a margin of 1 minute 5 seconds over Juniper.
It was pretty windy out there. Check the on the water gallery for more pics, courtesy of Premier Marinas.
Post Race Antics, Pimms, Party and Prizes
Once ashore, it seemed that all the boats had things to do. One More Knot's crew set about dismantling the main traveler and bending some of the components back into shape! Some of the other boats had more significant failures, including damaged sails. However the spirit of competition was still alive, most of the other boats made a real effort for the best dressed boat competition. This was to be judged in the morning. OMK hoisted an Elan flag! We'll have to do much better next year.
The crews took a short breather to demolish some jugs of Pimms on the patio, before retiring to get dressed for the Caribbean themed evening.
Cocktails, food, booze and music followed. There were various presentations and thankyous. Phil was overwhelmed when he was presented a magnificent trophy by Lucy Thompson of Premier Marinas. The trophy was a stunning stainless steel yacht under full spinnaker, crafted by Azure Dragon. The evening concluded quite late, as the drunken crews staggered back to their yachts, mindful of an early start the next day.
However, at breakfast, there was deliberation over the weather forecast. With gales being imminent, and given the breakages on Saturday, it was a very tearful Lucy who stood up to announce that the days racing (a pursuit race) was cancelled. Instead, the focus changed to judging the best dressed boat. OMK's knew that our 'considerable' efforts were outclassed so we looked for an upside! Another bacon roll. Eventually, the judges and lots on people dressed in very dramatic costumes appeared. There was another round of presentations. The best dressed boat was awarded to Nyleptha (Elan Impression 434) with their crew dressed in full evenings dress and captains uniform, fit for a night aboard the QE2, they had pipped the Palm trees aboard Juniper (Impression 434) and Al Capone's bullet hole ridden Impression 514.
Finally, there was an overall trophy for the regatta. Given that there had been no further, racing Phil was up again to collect an even more impressive trophy, plus prizes.
The list of thanks is seemingly endless because of the magnitude of the event, it includes the staff at Gosport Marina, the catering staff and various other Premier Marinas staff. Throughout the weekend, the catering was great. It wasn't fancy, just good food and loads of it ..... just what was needed after a hard day on the water. I would like to offer particular thanks to the Royal Naval Sailing Association (RNSA), who performed race organisational duties, and those brave enough to be out in the safety boats; all of whom were necessary to make racing possible in very testing conditions. Finally, a mega thank you to Lucy at Premier for taking on the challenge of organising the whole thing.
In this weekend, we had doubled our lifetime tally of wins and claimed 2 magnificent trophies, a Raymarine handheld VHF and a pair of the latest Elan skis and bindings. Phil and the crew had a major grin .... it probably won't stop until we need to give the trophies back next year. It wasn't until Phil was nearly home, late on Sunday evening that he even thought about the other fantastic prizes. Wow ... what a weekend. We'll be living on this for ages ..... sorry!
Premier Marinas also have a report on the 2008 Elan Regatta. So check it out for a less biased view!
As for Roy's back, he was in severe pain and was dispatched rapidly to the quack. He ended up with an Op in short order and recovered to get some back on board for the Porstmouth Autumn series.