The 2018 Phantom Inland National Championships @ Northampton Sailing Club

The Championships were held over the weekend of 27^th & 28^th May @ Northampton Sailing Club

The forecast for the weekend was for fair winds, lots of Sunshine with the threat of an odd Thunderstorm

On the Friday a measurement day was held for sails and boats alike, with the newest being 1461 a JJ Sinker design which makes it easier to right and less likely to invert, the boat performed well during the Buoyancy Test, righted easily and drained fast.

With sails measure and Boats weighed the Friday team, with a partial attendance from the Creeksea Massive, set off the local curry house to re-fuel ready for the following days forecast which was gradually building.

Saturday arrived with pliantly of breeze coming straight down the lake, the threat of the wind swinging east didn’t materialize but it did build from the F3 to F4 during the day.

Race 1 ~ The PRO Neil Pitcher had set a Trapezoid course around the large inflatable buoys 1,2,3,4 all to port, a nice long beat, a reach and good true run proceeding to a broad reach to the leeward mark and posted for 4 laps. The first horn of the Championships sounded and the 19 sailors lined up in preparation for the start, with the line set true the start was clean and Andy Couch soon made it clear about his intentions, he was off up the beat like a “scolded cat” or was it the fact the Phantom is so much easier than the Finn?!!, The battle was close for the honor of getting round the top 1^st and Ian Stone just managed to take the privilege along with being officially the tallest Phantom sailor displacing our Chair my Longley…  Once round the top mark Andy eased out a good lead and the battle for the top 5 spot commenced. Ian held onto 2^nd and Will Gulliver fought hard to get into 3^rd, just holding off Alister Morley in 4^th and John Wayling in 5^th.

Race 2 ~ Using the same course the start was quickly turned round and the battel to hunt down Andy commenced again, with the chase on Will managed to scrape through to second  with Ian dropping to 3^rd and Nick Orman climbing upto 4^th once he had remembered he was now pond sailing with very small lumps, John came through in 5^th with the worry of writing the report already looming.

The fleet sailed in for a well-deserved lunch and to discuss when John’s wood wind shift would start working?!

Race 3 ~ Got underway with the breeze building and a slight course adjustment  to give a tighter top reach, longer run and another short blast to the leeward mark. The order changed as Nick must have had some sugar for lunch but the fleet were also closing in on Andy with the finishing order, Andy, Nick, Ian, Will and surprise surprise myself in 5^th..

Race 4 ~ With everyone keen to get away (The bar was open) and a small shift just before the start the gun went but followed by too hoots and we all returned to do it again, Neil held his cool and kept with the blue peter and the 2^nd start was clean. The battle at the front was getting a lot tighter and the distances gained were small, several place changes driven by the wind flicking east made a game of Snakes and Ladders but the finish order was similar, Andy, Will, Nick, John and Jim Hopton gaining a well-earned 5^th.

With 4 hard races completed the fleet retired to the clubhouse and a well-deserved pint and an excellent evening meal provide by Elaine in the Galley.

Sunday morning arrived with a little less wind but not much less, the threat of Thunderstorms had the race team on their toes to get completed but they had the Abandon flags ready to hand.

Race 5 ~ Started clean and with the lighter breeze the thought that the order would change did not materialize, the wind had more shifts, so the gains and losses could be big but the fleet picked their way through them and the finishing order was all too familiar with Andy, Will, Ian, Nick and Myself taking the top five.

Race 6 ~ was smartly away and the pond sailors were coming good, Andy decided to sit out the last lap to be first in the showers, the top five had a shake up and the order changed with the Puddle Sailors finding their way around the shifts and the final race order was, Will, Ian, Jim, Richard Simms and Nick. We came off the water with the sun shining, Wind blowing and no sign of the Thunderstorms which did arrive much later to flood some areas of Northampton town.

The prizing giving was held promptly and the thank you’ s were made.

Top five places ~ Andy, Will, Ian, Nick and Myself in 5^th ~ Hence writing this report!!

Regards,
John

Maud - 1346

Sailwave results for Phantom Inlands - 26th & 27th May 2018 at Northampton Sailing Club 2018.htm

Phantom Inlands - 26th & 27th May 2018

Northampton Sailing Club

Results are provisional as of 11:57 on May 27, 2018

Overall

Sailed: 6, Discards: 1, To count: 5, Entries: 19, Scoring system: NSC Phantom Inlands 2018

Scoring codes used

www.northamptonsailingclub.org

http://http//www.phantomclass.org.uk/

Sailwave Scoring Software 2.24.0
http://www.sailwave.com/

Roger Brown

As some of you will already be aware Roger Brown, long-time Chairman and Treasurer of the Phantom Association, tragically died on Sunday 15th April during an organised snorkelling trip whilst on holiday in Costa Rica with his wife Sue.

The death of a loved one is hard enough to deal with but to be so far from home must have been incredibly hard for Sue. With the support of her daughter and family, Sue had to make the difficult decision to return home and await Roger’s repatriation.  Once home Sue then had to make the heart-breaking decision to agree to Roger being cremated in Costa Rica as they were unable to fully embalm him for the flight home in a coffin.  Roger’s ashes were returned to the UK on Monday 14th May.

I’m not sure how long Roger had been involved with the Association because he was every present guiding us through some interesting times. Roger held both the position of Treasurer and Chairman for many years in the days when all subscriptions, measurement forms and any other correspondence was all hard copy and via the post. I believe there was quite an intricate card system in operation then as well.  Although he tried to give up these posts on many occasions, this was always a half-hearted attempt and he would carry on for the next year after a short silence at the AGM, following the “is there anyone else who wants to volunteer?” question. 

I always had a lot of time and respect for Roger as both a Chairman but mostly a Gentleman. He could be approached about pretty much any subject, and one thing was for sure, you would get a straight answer - maybe not the one you wanted, but always the way he saw it. I like that type of man.

The family have arranged a service to celebrate Roger’s life at 10.30am on Tuesday 29^th May at United Church, Crowborough, East Sussex TN6 1HA, followed by a lunch at Barnsgate Manor, TN22 4DB.

Family flowers only please. Donations to RNLI via Tester and Jones Funeral Service, Crowborough, East Sussex, TN6 2TT

If you would like to attend, or know of other Phantom sailors who may like to attend, please can you contact his daughter, Caroline, via email so they can advise the caterers - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Tyler Harmsworth

Phantom Inlands 2018 - 26-27th May

Notice of Race Here

At Northampton SC you can camp, you can caravan, you can motor home, you can sleep in your car/ van, you can sleep in the changing rooms, you can sleep in the open air.

If you need an electric hook up you can have one (need to be close to the clubhouse)

Optimum Time Watches Southern Phantom Travellers Series Round 4 at POSH

Phantom Open this weekend at Paignton sailing club 12th - 13th May as part of POSH due to Shoreham open being unfortunately cancelled.
3 races back to back both days with Saturday start 12.55 and Sunday 10.25
Sailing will take place in the waters of Tor bay and NOR on Paignton sailing club website. Great event and location !!

Optimum Time Watches Southern Phantom Travellers Series Round 3 at Bowmoor Sailing Club – 14th April

A warm welcome and usual car park banter met visitors and locals to Round 3 at Bowmoor Sailing Club.   The sunshine welcome, the lack of any wind meant discussions of delay abounded.  However as if on demand the 6/8 knots forecast arrived just after completion of the briefing.
The first race started cleanly and Nick Ormam showed his usual speed to win from Alister Morley.  The second start was a little more lively and a number of bangs and bumps resulted in a number of turns and some discussion over lunch.  Nick won again, with local Phil Benn benefitting from the quickening Alister who retired following the start line events.
A very pleasant lunch break was taken and 2 more back to back races held.  Race 3 saw Nick and Alister tangle at the start resulting in the rest of the fleet having a chance.  Ivan Walsh got so far in front the most gave up chasing but he was caught by Alister, Nick and Phil.  The final race saw the whole fleet contesting the final run with Alister staying in front of Nick and Tom Whittington.
Cake, beer and prizes finished a very enjoyable day.
Results
1st Alister Morley     Salcombe Sailing Club
2nd Nick Ormam     Castle Cove Sailing Club
3rd Phil Benn             Bowmoor Sailing Club  

Simon Clark

Eastern Series Fisher Green Open

I would like to congratulate the great people at Fishers Green for their lovely welcome and hospitality.  Fifteen boats took part ranging from a very early woody to the newest Ovington boat.

Bacon rolls on arrival, curry for lunch plus a very nice snacking buffet at the prize giving - the way to any Phantom open event sailor's heart.  All that and some fantastic racing. What a blast!

But it could have all been so different. Not the food and the hospitality, that was a given, but because we arrived to a zephyr of a breeze and a not too promising forecast.

After the bacon rolls and briefing the decision was made to drift out to the course and at least attempt some sort of racing. Then, out of nowhere, wham a good strong southerly which set up a windward leeward course using the full length of the lake.  

Three great races followed.  There were casualties, there was some incidents,  people swam. Most sailors headed out in clothing suitable for a light wind drifter and found the water temperature not to their liking. The sometimes strong and shifting gusts made the beats very interesting with the whole width of the lake opening up for use, islands could be passed on different sides and as I found out by following local Nick Yannakoyoros, there was even a fantastic lifter up the edge of a forest.

Matt House showed that a consistent winter racing regime pays dividends with a convincing double race winning victory.

Bob Portway and Chris Roberts had nothing between them by the end of the day except on count back.

Another great sail was had by the three woodies but unfortunately Ian Simpson lost his forestay so could only complete the first race.

Matt Aldous-Horne was a little too good in his woody 438 and really showed what a well sailed £200 boat could do.  His third race start was textbook stuff and it looked very much as though he would be first round the windward mark.

After the let down of the first round at Island Barn being all but wiped out by the Beast from the East it was great to get going again.  Until the next one at Waveney and Oulton Broad Yacht Club on 9th June thanks to everyone both afloat and ashore that made this a memorable event.  Did I mention I was fifth?

1. Matthew House 1432 Alton Water SC
2. Bob Portway 1334 Alton Water SC
3. Chris Roberts 1395 Creeksea SC
4. Nick Yannakoyoros 1291 Fishers Green SC
5. Eric Howe 1404 Creeksea SC

Optimum Time Watches Southern Phantom Travellers Series Round 3 at Bowmoor Sailing Club

Phantom Open Saturday 14th April. First race approx 11.00am. Entry is on the day from 09h00 with a fee of £15 payable at the registration desk (cash only). The Registration Fee includes tea/coffee and a bacon roll on arrival.

We are expecting fierce competition with some of the fleets top guns entering after this weekends training camp at Castle Cove Weymouth. Great club, huge car park with easy launching into a lake packed with Phantoms !!
See you there

Ivan

Optimum Time Watches Phantom Southern and Eastern Travellers at Island Barn Sailing Club.

Icy roads & snow significantly reduced attendance at this popular joint Southern & Eastern Travellers event. However, three Phantoms  did start without initial mishap in a strong NE wind.

Halfway through race one   Richard Barker's escapade was soon over when his sail shredded in a prolonged heavy gust. After leading throughout John Oldham had to settle for 2nd on Steve's 57th birthday when he chose the wrong finish mark.  Steve who borrowed Ivan Walsh's famous Prawn Star for the event decided to call it a day as his icy mainsheet began slipping through frozen fingers. 

Incredibly, John went on to complete race two & three alone and take the overall win.  A genuine local hero !!  

Sincere thanks to Island Barn for cheerfully putting on this event which was run to their usual high standard in challenging conditions

1st   1351  John Oldham        Island Barn SC

2nd  1300  Steve Popple        Shoreham SC

3rd   1289  Richard Barker     Island Barn SC

2018 Optimum Time Watches Southern Travellers Series

7th March Island Barn ( joint with east region)
17th March Winbleball
14th April Bowmoor
POSH May 12th-13th
23rd 24th June Lee on Solent
7th 8th July Weymouth
14th 15th July Downs
6th 7th October Salcombe
10th November Burghfield


Optimum Time have kindly sponsored the 2018 Southern Phantom Travellers Series and we have a calendar of 8 events with 4 to count. For the start of the season we have a choice of venues at each end of the region...
Some very nice venues to race and socialize at including a first time visit for the Phantom fleet to the exquisite Salcombe in sunny Devon !!

Island Barn Phantom Open 17th March
Entry Fee £18 to include afternoon cream tea
Welcome and briefing 10.30am (club opens at 9.00am)
Start of first race 11.00hrs
Schedule 4 races, best 3 to count
https://www.islandbarn.org.uk/article/1191/Phantom-Open-meeting-17-March.html

Wimbleball Phantom Open 17th March
Entry Fee £15 to include hot meal
Welcome and briefing not later than 30 minutes before the initial start
Start of first race not before 11.30
http://wimbleballsc.org.uk/pages/Phantom%20notice%20of%20race%202018.pdf

Looking forward to another great season and seeing some new faces travelling, it's how you will improve !!!