Champagne Charlie Platinum Jubilee Regatta at the Royal Southern Yacht Club
by Louay Habib 6 Jun 2022 08:11 PDT
4-5 June 2022
The Royal Southern YC Champagne Charlie Platinum Jubilee Regatta attracted sailors from far and wide to enjoy two days of racing in the Solent. Supported by Charles Heidsieck Champagne, well over 250 sailors appreciated the splendid hospitality of the Royal Southern with its unique facilities on the banks of the River Hamble.
Saturday night featured the Platinum Jubilee Dinner with live music by The Deloreans. On Sunday the final prize-giving was held at the Clubhouse with Charles Heidsieck Champagne for every team that made the class podium. Royal Southern Rear Commodore Sailing Paul Ward, congratulated Principal Race Officer Tanya Robinson and Course Race Officers, Ian Bullock and Dan Gifford, who had organised seven classes on two courses with 43 class starts. Competing teams raced in a variety of weather; from strong winds and a significant sea state to light and shifty conditions.
Class Winners for the Champagne Charlie Platinum Jubilee Regatta: Mike Bridges' JPK 1010 Elaine Again, Jerry Hill's Farr 280 Moral Compass, Ian Handley & Tim James' Mustang 30 Banter, Russell Peters' Cape 31 Squirt, Cornel Riklin's J/111 Jitterbug, Graham Clapp's Jeepster, Liam Pardy's SB20 SportsBoat World Racing.
Full Results at yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=14997
Black Group (RO Dan Gibbons)
Mike Bridges' JPK 1010 Elaine Again won four races to win IRC Two. Kevin Taylor's J/99 Jump 2 it finished the regatta in style winning the last race by under a minute after time correction to place second in class, three points ahead of Derrick Evans' J/109 Jengu.
In IRC Three, Ian Handley & Tim James racing Mustang 30 Banter won a very competitive class. Banter only managed one race win but podiumed in every race to take the class by five points from Becky Walford's J/92s Brenda's J. Oliver & Sam Love's SJ320 Frank 3 was third, but only on countback, after a tie on points with John Allen's X-302 Antix. Mark Jephcott's Catch 22 was just a point off a podium finish for the regatta.
Ten HP30s were in action, with five different teams making the podium over the five-race series. Jerry Hill's Farr 280 Moral Compass scored four race wins after IRC time correction, to win the HP30 Class, three HP30s had a close battle for the podium. Andrew Peake's Far East 288 Resolute put in a great performance on the first day, scoring all podium finishes including a bullet for Race Three, to hold on to second place. Alain Waha's Far East 28 GoWest - COGITAL and Jamie Rankin's Farr 280 Pandemonium had a close battle for third. GoWest - COGITAL finished the regatta in third by just a single point from Pandemonium.
"We are really enjoying racing in the HP30 Class," smiled winning helm on Moral Compass, Jerry Hill. "The racing is extremely close on the water and even if you get ahead, you still have to push all the way, as there is time correction under the IRC rule. Ratings are very similar but even small disparities can make the difference. In Race 5 we won by just two seconds on corrected time and by just six seconds in the final race. The beauty of racing in the HP30 Class is that the winner is decided by who sails the best, it is as simple as that."
12 Cape 31s had a battle royale in the Solent with seven teams making the podium in five hotly contested races. Russell Peters' Squirt came out on top with Michael & David Bartholomew's Tokoloshe IV taking second place just a point ahead of Niall and Olivia Dowling's Gallivanter. There were podium race scores for Tony Dickin's Jubilee, John Cooper's Fanatic, Anthony O'Leary's Antix, and Bertie Bickett's Harlequin.
"The Cape 31 Class is what the Solent has needed for a long time, in my opinion," explained Squirt's helm Russell Peters. "The boat is not too expensive, a fast 31-footer which is one-design, and it just so happens that I have some kids who are the right age to come sailing with me. It is really good racing, we had to dig ourselves out of a few tricky positions, and it's going to get tougher and tougher. Everyone on Squirt is a good sailor regardless of whether they are professionals or not. We have a pretty much consistent crew which makes a difference, especially with manoeuvres and gear changes. We also have good dinghy sailors coming out of 49er and Merlin Rocket racing - it is fantastic, really good fun."
The J/111 Class enjoyed close one design racing with the eventual class win going to Cornel Riklin's Jitterbug, by a single point from Chris Jones & Louise Makin's JourneyMaker II. Dirk & Dianne van Beek's Sabriel was third just a point ahead of Paul Griffiths' Jagerbomb.
White Group (RO Ian Bullock)
The J/70 UK Class were competing in Round 2 of the 2022 Sprint Series with short sharp windward leeward races. 2021 Open National Champion, Jeepster with Graham Clapp on the stick was the winner with an outstanding performance pulling off nine consecutive bullets. Andrew Barraclough's team of silver foxes on Jenga 8 was second and the young Royal Southern team skippered by Annabelle Body was third. Phil Taylor's EV Expert's put in an electric performance but failed to make the podium by just four points.
Josie Gliddon, the 2021 Women's Moth World Champion, was calling tactics on Jeepster. Josie runs through the big changes over the two days. "On the first day we started with good breeze and really flat water. You could sail really Fast Upwind with a bladed top sail. There was a big gear change later on when the breeze dropped to about 12 knots, where you had to change gear; sheet really hard in and feather the boat upwind. The final day was all about the tide from a tactician's perspective, getting in as close as you could with the course almost parallel to the shore line. It was quite interesting because it was meant to be a divergent breeze on the North Shore, but it didn't really feel like that. You just had to look for the puffs and the big shifts. The race team did a really good job moving the course as we had 20 degree shifts in the wind on the final day."
SB20 Class
Liam Pardy's SportsBoat World Racing, with a guest appearance from SB20 legend John Pollard, won seven of the nine-race series to win the SB20 Class. Charles Whelan & Richard McAdam's Breaking Bod came closest to challenging the winners with all podium finishes including two bullets. Julia Freespirit's Ukrainian entry #GameChanger held off a strong challenge from Simon Berry's Betty to take third.
Many thanks to Charles Heidsieck Champagne for laying on a tasting on Saturday and prizes for all of the top three teams in every class.
The Royal Southern Summer Series continues with the Salcombe Gin July Regatta 09 -10 July 2022. Racing will be organised by the Royal Southern Yacht Club for one-designs and IRC keelboat racing. For on-line entry and more information about the Royal Southern Yacht Club, visit www.royal-southern.co.uk