RS400 - Lymington Regatta - Overall report

by Matt Sheahan on 19 Jul 2017 There are few things more certain on the RS400 tour than Lymington laying on a superb regatta. Built around their popular annual dinghy event that attracts 120 boats, the racing and the organisation this year was excellent once again. Twenty two 400s entered the event and with a forecast of 15-20 knots aligning with a flood tide for most of the day, conditions looked to be spot on.

When it came to it, the breeze turned on a little stronger with gusts peaking at around 25knots kicking up the notorious Solent chop. All of which made life a little trickier than expected.

With tide playing a big part in the tactics it was important to head inshore on the upwind leg to get out of it, before heading offshore on the downwind leg to stay in it. Such asymmetry in the course can frequently make for a less tactical race course, but this time the sea state made life pretty taxing in both directions. Indeed, for some teams, getting around the windward mark and bearing away downhill proved particularly challenging and resulted in multiple capsizes before the spreader mark. Easy to laugh at perhaps, but even easier to do in the heat of the moment.

The testing conditions meant that getting around the course cleanly was the order of the day and for most this meant keeping gybes to a minimum.

But there are always those that manage to find a faster route through anything and for the first race it was Jon Heissig and Nicky Griffin who stole a march on the fleet to take the first win of the day.

While those that had avoided a swim were counting their blessings as they waited for the next race, it became apparent that the punchy conditions had taken their toll throughout the Lymington fleet. And while the rescue facilities were handling the situation well, there was going to be a delay before they could get back to their stations ready for the next race. The pause, along with a slight further increase in the breeze meant that the next race was at risk of seeing the tide change direction against the breeze, which would mean a significant hike in conditions. With this in mind, the race officer pulled the pin and there was no further racing for the day.

Sunday brought more benign conditions with a 10-12 knot breeze and a flood tide for the bulk of the day keeping the sea state mellow.

All three races saw plenty of tactical play with crews balancing more breeze offshore against less tide and breeze inshore. In the first race it was Russell and Emma Hivey who led the fleet around the course with Francisco Lobito and Roger O’Gorman hot on their heels, while Jon and Nicky took third.

Keen to get back to their winning ways the second race went to Jon and Nicky with Francisco and Roger trading places with Russell and Emma. A gang of three was starting to emerge.

A special mention has to go to Nick Martin who demonstrated just how far a 400 will sail before capsizing when the helmsman exits the stern after a gybe - one of the few times perhaps when a helmsman would criticise Dan Martin’s legendary enthusiasm for hiking hard while looking ahead.

The final race of the day saw the breeze taper off a little but the top two boats remained out in front as Francisco and Roger took a win from Jon and Nicky. (Spurred on by frustration no doubt, Nick and Dan scored a third.)

Just one point separated first and second on the final score line with Jon and Nicky winning the event, Francisco and Roger second and Russell and Emma just pipping Nick and Dan on the tie break for third.

Another great event from two clubs (Lymington Town S.C. and Royal Lymington Y.C.) who know how to lay on a flawless regatta both on and off the water.

It was also a perfect reminder of what the water will taste like for the Nationals at Mounts Bay - yummy.

Overall Results

Rank	Fleet	Division	Boat	Class	SailNo	HelmName	CrewName	Crew 2	Cr3	Club	PY	R1	R4	R5	R6	Total	Nett
												15th July 2017	16th July 2017	16th July 2017	16th July 2017
												13:00	10:30	11:30	12:30
1st	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1454	Joh Heissig	Nicki Griffin				942	1.0	(3.0)	1.0	2.0	7.0	4.0
2nd	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1215	Francisco Lobato	Teresa Lobato				942	(5.0)	2.0	2.0	1.0	10.0	5.0
3rd	Class 4	RS 400	Dryice	RS 400	1309	Russell Clark	Emma Hivey				942	6.0	1.0	3.0	(8.0)	18.0	10.0
4th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1444	Nick Martin	Dan Martin			Lee on Solent	942	3.0	4.0	(20.0 DNF)	3.0	30.0	10.0
5th	Class 4	RS 400	Chaos Monkey	RS 400	1418	Howard Fairbrother	Louise Hoskin				942	7.0	(16.0)	4.0	4.0	31.0	15.0
6th	Class 4	RS 400	Lucious Lucy	RS 400	1017	Sean Cleary	Annalise Nixon			Queen Mary Sc	942	4.0	(11.0)	6.0	7.0	28.0	17.0
7th	Class 4	RS 400	Jim	RS 400	1189	Steve Redstall	Chris Stubbs				942	(11.0)	8.0	5.0	5.0	29.0	18.0
8th	Class 4	RS 400	Whiplash	RS 400	741	Mikey Furguson	Philip Adams			Royal Ulster	942	(9.0)	7.0	9.0	6.0	31.0	22.0
9th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1435	Matt Sheahan	Ellie Sheahan				942	8.0	(13.0)	7.0	11.0	39.0	26.0
10th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1429	Niel Bevington	Alan Skeens			Lee on Solent	942	(10.0)	9.0	8.0	9.0	36.0	26.0
11th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1262	J Metcalf	Have you entered				942	2.0	5.0	(23.0 DNC)	23.0 DNC	53.0	30.0
12th	Class 4	RS 400	SMexit	RS 400	1439	Kevin Podger	Heather Chipperfield			LTSC	942	(20.0 DNF)	6.0	12.0	12.0	50.0	30.0
13th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1210	Mike Partridge	Claire Davis				942	(15.0)	10.0	13.0	10.0	48.0	33.0
14th	Class 4	RS 400	Boaty Mc Boatface	RS 400	836	Adam Humphrey	Jo Humphrey			TISC / ESSC	942	12.0	12.0	11.0	(16.0)	51.0	35.0
15th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1392	Chris Stanton	Jules Thorne				942	(20.0 DNF)	17.0	10.0	15.0	62.0	42.0
16th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	963	Rebecca Whitehouse	Mike Whitehouse			Wilsonian Sc	942	(23.0 DNC)	14.0	15.0	14.0	66.0	43.0
17th	Class 4	RS 400	Bagheera 2	RS 400	1422	Thomas Southwell	Jamie Southwell			Netley Sc	942	13.0	18.0	14.0	(19.0)	64.0	45.0
18th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1342	Max Tosetti	Anna Wallin				942	(20.0 DNF)	15.0	20.0 DNF	13.0	68.0	48.0
19th	Class 4	RS 400	Sarenne	RS 400	1060	Pete Pickford	Chris Carpenter			THorney Island	942	14.0	(20.0)	17.0	18.0	69.0	49.0
20th	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1236	Mike Baker	June Baker			LTSC	942	16.0	(19.0)	16.0	17.0	68.0	49.0
21st	Class 4	RS 400	Johnny Bravo	RS 400	1286	Josh Metcalf	Jack Holden				942	(23.0 DNC)	23.0 DNC	23.0 DNC	23.0 DNC	92.0	69.0
21st	Class 4	RS 400		RS 400	1404	Matthew Thomas	Stephen Nicholas				942	(23.0 DNC)	23.0 DNC	23.0 DNC	23.0 DNC	92.0	69.0