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Club News

Why I sail a skiff - Paul Melhuish  

A friend commented to me one day, “You’re an engineer. You’re into engines and machines and such like. How do you come to like sailing?”

The answer was very simple. For me, sailing represents the holy grail of engineering: a sailing boat is a something-for-nothing machine. While most of us have laboured at some time or another to try to make our engine, machine or whatever more efficient, here is one that is totally efficient. The fuel that propels it doesn’t have to be prospected for, drilled for, mined for or even paid for. It is free and there is plenty of it (except when there isn’t, which can be a bit frustrating).

Nevertheless, I have to admit that it once seemed quite unlikely to me too. Throughout most of my life, my leisure time has been consumed by motor sport of one form or another. Until about five years ago I couldn’t have imagined being excited by travelling at 15 mph. But it is genuinely exciting: I get a tremendous buzz from blasting across the water at speeds that are very modest in absolute terms, but which are very much on-the-limit when sailing a small boat.

There are many ways to enjoy sailing: a gentle day out on the water is just the ticket for many people (especially in our privileged climate here). Some just love the simplicity and silence of setting out across the sea, maybe travelling a long distance or maybe just spending an hour or two close to the beach. There are many different boats that will please those people, from inexpensive “Swallows and Amazons” dinghies to floating gin palaces. Others want a bit more speed, but with simplicity and robustness, and for them a beach catamaran is ideal. Others still, I count myself amongst them, want to be challenged by a boat that is both technical to sail, and a little edgy when sailing fast.

The boat we choose to satisfy the approach to sailing that I have described is a modern asymmetric skiff. Four and a half metres of elongated hi-tech fibreglass saucer, topped by sails of somewhat disproportionate size, balanced by a crew who is completely out of the boat suspended from a trapeze wire. Add the spinnaker for a bit of extra downwind oomph, and we’ve got a seriously quick little pocket rocket. The sensation of zipping across the sea in a flurry of spray, helm and crew working in harmony (we hope), playing the controls and using our weight to balance the wind pressure in the sails is fantastically exciting. I recommend it to anyone.

Of course, a boat like this is a bit of a thoroughbred, and is prone to expressing it’s temperament at times. If the boat senses that helm or crew has made a small mistake, it simply takes its revenge by tipping them both into the sea. Then lies on its side and waits to be righted and to carry on. Yes, at the more thrilling end of the sailing spectrum, capsizing is just an integral part of dinghy sailing, not something to be feared.

Someone once likened sailing to standing under a cold shower, ripping up 50 euro notes. A good joke, but not necessarily true. Sailing dinghies are inexpensive to buy and maintain, which puts sailing within the reach of just about anyone, both physically and financially. And the Mediterranean is not cold, not even in winter.

Santa Irene Sailing Club caters for all types of sailors of small boats: sedate dinghies and exciting skiffs, monohulls and catamarans, expert sailors and beginners. The club sails from the slip in Garrucha port every Sunday, just by the Rincón del Puerto restaurant, and newcomers are always welcome. Just come along and have a chat with Commodore John or any of the sailing members.

Annual General Meeting 2007 - Vic Benson

The Clubs annual general meeting was held at the Puntazo Hotel on the 10th December 2007. Members considered a number of proposals the most significant of which were the election of officers as shown below and the decision to sail from two locations

Garrucha harbour slipway		Beach at San Juan de los Terreros

Full minutes of the meeting will be published in the near future

Officers of the Club for 2008

Committee Members

Subscriptions which are due on the 1st January 2008 were approved at €100 for full members €20 for social members

Catamaran Section January 2008 - Vic Benson

The Catamaran section now meets at Playa Serena, San Juan de los Terreros, this attractive beach is located 8km to the south of Aguilas .It has a large bay including a substantial island located 2km offshore this provides an un miss able mark forming part of natural triangular course Access to the beach is very easy and it is possible to drive right down to the waters edge. In summer there is a choice of chiringuitos toilets and showers
There is a large car park on the opposite side of the road for trailers and cars. The gentle sloping beach means that even with a large swell launching is still possible in safety. Members meet between 11am and 12am on most Sundays, however there may be no sailing on the 27th January and 3rd February as the members will be sailing with Frank in the Aguilas Carnival Regatta For more information call Vic Bensen on 950 529 399 or email vicandirene@avired.com

Let’s be honest, Lynne and I do seem to have a slightly higher capsize rate than most other members of Santa Irene. To some extent, it’s something that comes with the territory when you sail a fairly extreme asymmetric, but still we thought there was room for improvement. What better way than to spend a week in Minorca, sailing all day every day, with a qualified instructor, and someone else to rig and de-rig the boat! It looked good on the website; fellow member Nick recommended it wholeheartedly; it had to be done!

So it was that the first week after the English schools go back (and the prices go down) that Lynne and I left our respective spouses behind and headed for Minorca. On arrival on the island, the first impression was of a beautifully scenic place, very green (which maybe tells you a little about the winters there) and pleasingly devoid of construction sites. Reaching Minorca Sailing itself was even better. The Bay of Fornells is a huge shallow teardrop-shaped bay with a narrow opening to the sea, so that it’s really more like an inland lake, except that it still tastes like the sea.

Minorca Sailing occupies nearly all of Ses Salines. The beach is full of their boats, their office is in a front line villa there, many of the apartments and villas are occupied by their clients, so is the hotel, and the local restaurant is the social hub for the sailors. To walk through the dinghy park is enough to make any red-blooded sailor think he’s died and gone to heaven. Row upon row of Picos and Lasers and all sorts of others, but what really catches the eye are the most exciting boats. There are RS800s, RS700s, RS500s, Laser 4000s, Musto Skiffs, 29ers and even a 49er, the only boat that must be sailed with an instructor.

Minorca Sailing don’t believe in over-hyping things; maybe they’re so good they don’t need to. They described the apartments we stayed in as basic and dated. While not the height of luxury, it did the job for us and the honesty is to be applauded.

At the start of the week each client describes what they hope to achieve and joins the most appropriate group with its own senior instructor. Lynne and I intended to spend as much time as possible in a Laser 4000 honing the skills that we could bring home to our own boat, so we went into Intermediate Asymmetrics. There were also Beginner and Advanced Asymmetrics, and for those without an interest in kite-flying there were four groups labelled “Laser” though that was just a convenient term and they sailed various other boats as well. I think the wind-surfers were divided up in a similar manner.

A typical day begins on the beach at 10 o’clock sharp. The boats that are expected to be needed are already rigged, so only a couple more may be required for people who have decided to try something different. A short briefing from the instructor and then it’s out on the water for two hours, following whatever the theme of the day might be (tacking and gybing, race starts, sail controls, racing rules, and so on). After a break for lunch, the afternoon brings more of the same. The advanced groups race in the afternoon, sometimes the intermediates joined them, and certainly anyone was free to join in the racing if they wanted to. After another two hours of sailing, it was good to get back to the beach to find an instructor waiting in the shallows with our trolley. Put the boat on the trolley and leave them to it. Phew!

Four hours of sailing. Finished for the day? No. This is where it gets really good. Here is the chance for an hour of one-to-one sailing with an instructor. Intensive instruction, or try another boat. The choice is yours. We did a bit of each. Although we were easily able to work through our entire repertoire of sailing mistakes during the group sessions, we seemed able to keep the mistakes, if not the consequences, hidden from our instructor. So one afternoon we signed up to take out the 4K, chased by the ever-smiling, ever-patient Tommy in a RIB. Definitely a lot of learning in a short space of time.

On other days, we used the one-to-one sessions to sample something different. Lynne had a couple of goes at the front end of an RS500 learning to trapeze. She enjoyed it greatly though she hasn’t been trying to push me out of my usual space since we got back. I started by playing myself back into the art of driving, with an RS Vision. Safe, easy, but boring. However, that was the lead-up for one of my major ambitions of the week: to try an RS700. If you don’t know the 700, it’s a single-hander with trapeze and asymmetric kite, and it’s quick. Once again my instructor followed me in a RIB, just once dashing ahead to have a word with another boat. Yes, I was on port and they were on starboard, but I had the kite up and was operating on the very limits of my ability (plus a bit!), so would they mind awfully if we just put normal rules aside for the moment and they got out of my way. All this was in a F2 (fortunately), when the RS700 planed easily upwind with me hovering on the trapeze. Downwind I opted to sail low and stay off the trapeze as I was already suffering from not-enough-arms-syndrome while trying to steer, sheet the main and gybe the spinnaker all at once. An absolutely awesome boat: I want one.

On other days, I took the opportunity to crew an RS800 (a very well thought-out boat, it wasn’t much different to the 4K in light winds, but I bet it’s fantastic with a bit more breeze) and helm an RS200 (a sensible boat with big fleets in the UK, but it reminded me again, I don’t like hiking). I wish I’d had more time on the RS700 and could have got the chance to take out the 49er, but that will have to be next time.

Everything about Minorca Sailing is so well conceived. The boats are all in excellent condition and they’re ready and rigged for you. The instructors are personable and knowledgeable and seem to have infinite patience. There is never a minute that is wasted, yet you never feel under pressure. In the lulls between sailing, there is always something happening: an evening trip to Ciudadella, a de-brief for whichever group was being videoed, or for whichever group had been equipped with GPS. The GPS idea was brilliant with all the data downloaded to a PC and then shown on a big screen in the hotel bar. There is definitely no hiding place when the GPS is on.

With such a huge fleet of boats, things will occasionally go wrong, and again the guys at Minorca cope so ably. We had the spinnaker rip the first time we hoisted it on the first day. The instructor radioed back to shore while we headed in, and we were met in the shallows by two girls, one with a spinnaker tucked under her arm. Five minutes, and we were back on the water.

The only downside to Minorca Sailing that I can possibly think of, is that the commitment to sailing is total. Non-sailors will find they have a pretty raw deal, with little to do, other than taking the “easy option” sail. Therein lies my problem. I’d love to go back and spend a week mastering the RS700, but what would my wife do? I can’t leave her behind every time.

Minorca Sailing really does come highly recommended. Take a look at www.minorcasailing.co.uk but do be sure you spell it with an I. Put in an E and you get something else.

The Fireball Worlds was planned to be the big sailing event of my life that I would be able to tell my grandchildren about, "when I did the world championship......etc". It didn't disappoint, with a phenomenal 176 boats making it one of the biggest dinghy regattas in the world, ever. Although a couple of days were lost to light winds, on the days we raced there were mostly Force 4 and 5 winds and enough waves to keep things very interesting.

I had teamed up with Colin Snowdon in GBR 14285. We had never sailed together before but knew each other from my days at Draycote Water. Incidentally, Draycote had the biggest club fleet there with at least 12 boats, plus a couple of “honorary” members.

This was full-on Fireballing at its best, 3 miles offshore and trapezing 1/2 metre off the water (occasionally in it!). The competition was intense, a good mark-rounding or a slick spinnaker hoist could gain several places instantly, and just the slightest mistake was punished with half a dozen places lost. The windward and leeward marks were very busy places with 4-6 boats side-by-side being the norm, everyone screaming for water and invariably a couple of people trying to elbow in on port.

How did we do? Well we thought an overall result down to double figures would be an ambitious target but we weren't too disappointed to be a little way off that, with 127th. When the discard kicked in after 5 races our consistent results did us no favours: we had 104th, 118th, 124th, 123rd, 120th and our discard was 126th. I learnt so much about closely competitive racing, and I just wish I had known as much at the beginning of the week as I knew at the end.

For anyone who is interested, here is our blow-by-blow account, or you could go to www.fireball-worlds.com for a more general report:

Unfortunately the week didn't get off to a very good start, and still I was only in Almería airport. I had a nice little travel plan worked out, that completely fell apart when the hydraulic system of the aeroplane did likewise. So when I should have been driving down to Teignmouth with my helm, discussing the myriad of details still to be worked out, I was actually hanging around the airport not knowing when I would reach the vital destination. Meanwhile Colin and the boat headed off to Teignmouth without me.

The plane finally left Almería almost 12 hours late and I staggered into Birmingham airport bleary-eyed and rather achey at one in the morning. A short and much-disturbed sleep on a row of chairs followed and then it was down to the railway station. From Birmingham I caught the excellent but expensive Virgin train direct to Teignmouth. This was my first train journey in England for about thirty years so it made a bit of an impression: it cost nearly as much as the flight from Southern Spain, England is very green, England is very cold, trains are now quite hi-tech.

Saturday: Measuring at 11.30. The measuring team were brilliant, like a team of ants descended on the boat. Passed. Then got soaked as it poured with rain while rigging the boat. Went for an hours sail in a nice breeze in the afternoon, just to shake everything down and get used to each other. Dangerous Dave and Sarah didn't, and had some finger problems with the boat in the first race.

Sunday: Wild ride out to the start in an offshore F5. Many boats capsized. Huge delay before the first race started due to committee boat dragging its anchor. Finally got away in a lively F4-5. Fantastically hard work. Did OK although a few problems with the spinny, including the pole pinging off twice. Finished 103rd.

Race 2: Wind dropped a bit but still F4 occasionally dropping to 3. Very poor start but we got back plenty of places on the first beat. Then not bad on the reach. Capsized at the gybe mark because we were boxed in and couldn't bear away. Lost lots of places but carried on quite well. Had a good run down the run by going low, although we lost a bit when the people who went right came in on a much higher reach. Finished 118th. Series position: 109th.

Monday: Start delayed by lack of wind. Finally got out and this time it was only 1½ miles to the start as the wind was onshore . Had another bad start and got stuffed in everyone's dirty air. Gradually worked our way back though. Hairy moment on the start of the run when we gybed before hoisting the kite. Too high, so the kite went through the fore triangle. While pulling it back through we were forced to tack by a starboard tacker coming down to the mark. Did a tack and gybe with the kite up and then carried on. Didn't lose all that much time, but probably 8 or 10 positions. It was that close! Continued a good race although the boat seemed much better on starboard tack than port, maybe due to tide.Finished 125th. Series position: 118th.

Tuesday: The high had now settled over England so the sun shone but there was not much wind. The start was postponed and finally abandoned. The sea breeze that should have developed in those conditions defiantly stayed away. Did some fiddling on the boat more through boredom than necessity.

Wednesday: Layday. General opinion among the sailors was that lay day should be ditched in order to go racing. However, the weather was no better (ie warm and sunny) so it didn't matter anyway. There was a plan for a Draycote cruise to Torquay but that fizzled out too, due to lack of wind. Did a little more fiddling, and checked out the changes with a bit of dry-land sailing.

Thursday: Finally the high is leaving and a front is forecast for late afternoon with wind in front of it as well as on it. Everyone standing by and itching to go. You could have cut the atmosphere with a cricket stump. The word was that there was wind further up the coast but ours actually dropped at first before gently coming in. The fleet launched about 4.30 in a F4 and we were fifth boat out to the start. (Offshore wind again, so the startline was 3 miles offshore.) Race started first time in a F4 gusting 5. Usual bad start and off we go. Good first beat, a bit overpowered, should have been on 22'4" instead of 22'6". Immediately after the windward mark we were charging along on a 2-sailer and catching several boats that had the spinnakers up. Then we suddenly slowed so decided to hoist. Superfast 3 sail reach, absolutely MEGA but we could't lay the mark. I called "Dransfield Drop", Colin agreed, and we climbed to the mark with the spinny quietly rustling behind the main, zigzagging between capsized boats. Re-hoisted and immediately gybed. Mistake, should have got it flying first. The kite tangled so I dropped it. Thought about 2 sailing due to the carnage but this reach was very broad so went for a Bowers hoist. Got the pole wrong side of the halyard so spinny was a mess. Finally got it up and continued. The tide running right to left on the windward mark kept fooling us so we couldn't lay it and had to bang in 2 extra tacks. The boats that looked overstood did it right. Finished 123rd, but just glad to go sailing again. Went for a curry dinner and chatted with the crew of the boat that won (and leading series) and the boat that was stone cold last (a yucky brown plastic Rondar of dubious pedigree newly renamed "Is It Because I Is Brown?" Respect!).

Friday: Early start in order to get 2 races before the deadline. Now we have real weather, F4 lulling to 3 and SUNSHINE. Arrived at the start area and put in one extra gybe to drop the kite in the right bag: horrendous tangle around the jib. Never seen anything like it, the remaining bit of spinnaker was twirling around the jib and locking itself solid. No choice but to capsize it, swim around and untangle it by hand. Now a bit close to the start, so on the warning we pulled up the spinny for a final check and bore away through the pack. Guessed at the place on the line to start because no time to check the line. Started as bad as ever. Fairly uneventful race but really brilliant sailing. Came in to the finish line (windwark mark) on port. Got in a tangle with a starboard tacker and maybe tacked in his water. Right in front of the jury boat so Colin decided to do a 720 penalty (wish he'd told me first!). Used my head as a boom preventer, capsized on the finish line. If I'd had time to look, that must have given a few people interesting moments. Pulled it up and carried on doing our turns. Given 120th in the results so they must have finished us before the capsize, and probably thought we were complete prats crashing around on the line.

The last race gave us our sixth bad start of the series. Good boat speed upwind but we bottled out of going far left and lost a huge amount to those who stuck at it. This time we were determined to get high on the first reach before popping the kite. It was so tight we ended up going three-quarters of the way down before hoisting, passing numerous spinny-flyers on the way. Gybed and didn´t look so clever on the broad reach (which was virtually a run). Usual chaos at the leeward mark ("Water for six boats!"). Went far left up the beat but it didn't pay as well and got a lot of dirty air off the leaders as they came onto the run and we were still beating. Thought we had overstood the windward mark, then thought we were dead on, then tried to shoot it, then nudged the mark, as the tide carried us down. Quick 360 penalty turn but this time Colin did me the courtesy of telling me first, and played safe by starting with the tack. We sailed a bit higher on the run this time and it seemed better (more distance, but more speed) and we even had a good rounding of the bottom mark and won about 5 places. Once again, good boat speed up the final beat, but boat speed only gains the odd place and every mistake loses 5 or 10. Finished 127th with other Draycote boats just in front and just (1 second!) behind. This race was probably our least mistake-laden race of all, but there was no recovering from the left-favoured first beat so race 6 became our discard.

Our lack of practice together and lack of experience of high-level racing really went against us. With a good start we could have finished any of those races 10 or 20 places higher.

Now I just want to go back and do it all again!

Racing Rules

A simplified version of the ISAF rules, appropriate for racing at Santa Irene Club de Vela.

SPORTSMANSHIP
Competitors are governed by a set of rules that they are expected to follow and enforce When a competitor breaks a rule they will promptly take a penalty.
i.e. Competitors are expected to behave in a gentlemanly manner Most of the rules that have been left out of this simple version are down to common sense and fair play.

RIGHT-OF-WAY ON OPPOSITE TACKS
Port-tack boat keeps clear of starboard-tack boat.
“Port -tack” means the port side is the windward side. if in doubt, it is usual for the starboard-tack boat to call "Starboard"

RIGHT-OF-WAY ON THE SAME TACK, OVERLAPPED
Windward boat keeps clear of leeward boat.
If in doubt, it is usual for the leeward boat to call “Windward boat!”

RIGHT-OF-WAY ON THE SAME TACK, NOT OVERLAPPED
The boat astern, or the overtaking boat, keeps clear of the boat ahead.

GIVING ROOM
A right-of-way boat must always give the other boat room to keep clear.

ROUNDING A MARK
When boats are overlapped within 2 boat lengths of a mark, the outside boat must give the inside boat room to round the mark.
If in doubt, it is usual for the inside boat to call ”Water!”. If there are more than two boats, it may be necessary for a call of “Water for x boats!”

STARTLINE PENALTIES
A boat must remain behind the start line during the minute before its start signal. If it passes over the line, it must go around one end of the start line to return to the correct position.

TOUCHING A MARK
If a boat touches a mark, it must get clear of other boats and complete a 360° penalty turn including one tack and one gybe.

INTERFERING WITH ANOTHER BOAT
The penalty for interfering with another boat (typically, not keeping clear or hitting another boat) is to get clear of other boats and complete a 720° penalty turn including 2 tacks and 2 gybes.

Special Thanks

Club members Paul and Lynne found themselves in need of a new main halyard sheave for the mast on their 470 but couldn’t get one locally. Neither did it seem to feature on any of the on-line chandleries. A quick e-mail to Superspars (makers of the mast) resulted in:

“What’s your address? We’ll send you one.”

“How much?”

“With our compliments.”

The sheave arrived and the main sail now glides up and down as it should. Good service is alive and well and residing at www.superspars.com

We should also mention the service they got from Pinnell & Bax. They ordered a new jib wire from them and gave them details of the wire diameter and length. The technician making it up phoned from England to ask “Do you really want 2.5mm wire? We usually make them out of 3mm.” Needless to say, they took the advice of the expert and quickly changed to 3mm.www.pinbax.com