J/109 JAHMALI, J/80 J2X, J/92 J'RONIMO Lead Their Classes(Warsash, So'ton, England)- It really was a busy weekend on the Solent for the Warsash Spring Championship and Series. The Warsash Spring Championship offers an intense schedule of four days’ racing for selected classes. This year all IRC1 and IRC2 boats are eligible as well as J/109 one designs. Sportsboats include J/80 classes, too.
The forecast 5 knots on Saturday did not materialize in the morning and everyone waited for the wind until around 1130. When the breeze arrived it was in the 8/10 knot range west/southwesterly to westerly but shifty. Racing for Black Group got underway just before noon near Fastnet Insurance buoy with short windward/leeward courses set. In the afternoon the wind increased and dark clouds formed resulting in gusts to 20 knots in the showers. This enabled longer six mile courses to be set for the second and third races. It was a long day for competitors who were finishing the third race after 1600, so it was sensibly decided not to go for a fourth race. White Group racing under the lee of the northern shore had less stable conditions and there was an interval of two hours between the first and second races. Even so, three races were completed for the J/80s.
Conditions on Sunday morning were bright and sunny with a forecast for increasing wind and squally showers. In Black Group, IRC1, IRC2 and J/109s were scheduled for two races. Even with an adverse tide, the fleet pushed the line and were all recalled. Starting at Fastnet Insurance, the first leg was a long beat to Air Canada buoy by the Brambles Bank. Most tacticians decided to put in a long port tack across the tide towards Calshot shore. The restart of IRC1 was under the ‘Z’ flag penalty system. The J/109s were given a shorter first leg and by the time the leaders were round Flying Fish buoy, they were sailing back downwind in parallel with IRC1.
The remaining Black Group classes enjoyed one longer race using a combination of fixed and laid marks with a windward/leeward loop towards the finish. The J/Sprit class got away cleanly but in others there were several declared OCS, including some of the front runners for overall honours.
With the first races completed for the relevant classes the Black Group committee boat moved north and west for the start of the second and shorter race. The wind had by now swung towards the southwest which allowed the continued use of Air Canada as the first mark followed by a short series of runs and beats before finishing at East Knoll buoy. In the first fleet, the changed tidal conditions meant most boats cleared the start line and kept on their starboard tack all the way to the port layline. Judging that point was crucial. Some in all classes overstood the mark and lost places.
In the second race, the entire J/109 class was OCS and a general recall was signaled. They got away OK at the second attempt under a ‘Z’ flag preparatory signal. The afternoon conditions also suited the sportboat classes racing near the entrance to Southampton Water, although by the final race, conditions were brisk and even the front runners in each class were having difficulty gybing smoothly.
Now joined by the Spring Championship contenders, J/80s had increased in class size to 20 plus. With the J/80 World Championships being held at Dartmouth in June, there has been a steady increase in both quantity and quality. Rob Larke has been the man to beat but this weekend Stewart Hawthorn, returning to the class, has slowly been narrowing the gap. Although Rob holds a substantial lead in the main series, things are much tighter in the Spring Championship with Rob (J2X) and Stewart (J’ai Deux Amours) only a couple of points apart. Ian Atkins (boats.com) had a bad result in the first race of the day and trails slightly but in a 14 race series, with no discard, this could still prove a small setback.
In IRC 1 class, Ivan Trotman's J/122 JOLOU is now lying in 4th overall for the series after a slow weekend. And in 9th is Ken Lowe's new J/111 GHOST.
The J/109 class continues to see Mike & Sarah Wallis' JAHMALI leading the series with a 2-2-1-3-4-1 scoreline for 9 pts, followed in 2nd by David Mcleman's OFFBEAT with a 4-1-3-4-6-4 tally for 16 pts. Lying third is David & Mary McGough's JUST SO with an 11-3-5-2-5-3 record for 18 pts.
In the mixed J/Sprit class, the class leader continues to be the J/92 J'RONIMO (David Greenhalgh & John Taylor) with a 1-1-1-4-5-7 record for 7 pts. Second is Nick and Adam Munday's J/97 INDULJENCE with a 5-2-2-2-2 scoreline for 8 pts. Third is Andy Howe's J/92 BLACKJACK with a 3-3-3-6-6 score for 15 pts. Fourth is Chris Jones' J/105 JOURNEYMAKER 5 and fifth is Charles Ivill's J/97 BLACK MAGIC.
Next weekend has the grand finale on 28th/29th April with a full schedule of racing over the weekend which sees the conclusion of both events in the Warsash Spring Series and Spring Championship Powered by SLAM. Sailing photo credits- Eddie Mays For more Warsash Spring Series sailing information
