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2009 at Stone SC Stone SC

2009 Nationals report Nationals 2009

Unicorn Nationals

Stone Sailing Club

4 August to 8 August 2008

A fleet of ten Unicorns met for their Nationals as part of the superb Stone SC Regatta on the Blackwater River. Conditions during the week varied from a stormy F6 to barely a breath. Racing was both around the club cans and from a committee boat.

Race 1; club marks - Monday 4 August, F4 gusting 5 Westerly veering WSW, Sunny

Bob Dorks crept up on port and got off in the lead followed by Richard Taylor and Peter Toft. At the windward mark, Gary Piper had hit the front followed by David Wood, Dorks, Toft and Taylor. Wood tacked early at the A mark and shortly after had to retire with rudder failure. Piper maintained a good lead in front of Dorks, Toft and Taylor. John Wade finally decided to clear the weed off his boat and powered past Taylor on the downwind leg on the 2^nd lap. Taylor fought back but ran aground and did well to avoid a catastrophe. Piper took a clear win with Dorks suffering a gear failure and yielding 2^nd place to Toft. Geoff Moss capsized just prior to the start and kept the rescue boat busy for quite a while.

Race 2; club marks – Monday 4 August, F5 gusting 6 SW, overcast

At the 10 minute gun 28 Knot winds forced the entire fleet to hove too with 5 boats trapped on the course side of the start line. Geoff Moss had a close encounter with the outfall marker.  Dorks, Wood and Conway missed the start and decided this was a good ‘discard’, while Toft started late after a very interesting gybe in a short 6 foot chop due to wind against a strong tide.

Piper powered off the start and held a commanding lead to the finish. He was followed by Taylor and Wade throughout the race with Toft gradually making up ground from his late start on the leading three boats. Julius Mach suffered a fractured centre beam from a severe nosedive and retired.

A committee boat start sailing an olympic course for races 3 to 6.

Race 3 – Tuesday 5 August, F3 gusting 4, SW

Weed proved to be the biggest problem in the starting area, stalling the boats out within seconds of clearing the boards. So it was a tricky start but Piper made it first to the windward mark followed by Wade and Dorks. Dorks passed Wade on the downwind reach and the order stayed that way to the finish, the gaps varying from 50 to 150m between boats.

Race 4 – Tuesday 5 August, F4, SSW

Dorks led the fleet off the line followed by Toft, Taylor and Piper. At the windward mark, it was a tight group of Dorks, Piper, Taylor, Toft. On the downwind reach Piper and Taylor forged ahead to create a 100m gap. Piper’s starboard rudder snapped off at the stock at the leeward mark but he continued to lead to the finish followed by Taylor. Dorks and Toft traded places many times with Toft faster up the beat and Dorks faster downwind. Dorks finally took the 3^rd place from Toft. Mach and Wade also traded places many times with Mach taking 5^th from Wade.

Race 5 – Thursday 7 August, F2~F0, SW

Half of the fleet started on starboard, but Dorks got a flyer on port. However, Toft was first to the windward mark with Wade and Taylor right on his tail followed by Piper and Dorks. Wade chased Toft for the next lap, but was overhauled by Dorks and Piper on the 3^rd lap downwind leg while Toft opened a significant lead. The wind then died, and the fleet bunched up, with Dorks managing to get the best position ‘uptide’ while Toft and Piper used the fickle wind to cross the tide towards the Leeward mark. When the wind eventually filled Dorks was the last to get it and Toft took the win followed by Piper and Dorks.

Race 6 – Thursday 7 August,  F2 SW

Half the fleet started on port to save one tack but Wade crossed ahead on starboard and was first to the windward mark by a clear margin. Wade went inshore to avoid the tide and was followed by Toft, Mach and Wood while Piper stayed out in the tide. Piper got better wind and overtook the pack to take the lead at the wing mark by over 200m. Piper stretched his lead on the second round and Wade maintained a clear second place. On the 3^rd lap, Wade made the mistake of going inshore again and ending up losing 2^nd place, being passed by Dorks, Toft, Wood Taylor and Mach. Piper took a convincing win and the mid pack swapped places many times on the last round. Dorks worked some of his magic and gybed early to the north shore. He gained over 400m on the boats that stayed on the south shore and finished a clear 2nd. Toft took 3^rd followed closely by Wade.

Race 7 – Friday 8 August, F4~5 NW

A race a round the club cans, the start was led by Piper followed by Dorks, Wade and Toft. It was a simple windward/leeward course with no real opportunity for tactics. However, Piper lost his big lead when he rounded the leeward mark the wrong way and had to go back and re-round. Wade was right on Dorks transoms and had to take avoiding action at the leeward mark when Dorks gybe went out of control. The order stayed Piper, Dorks, Wade to the finish, with Taylor gradually closing the gap and overtaking Toft for 4^th place.

Race 8 – Friday 8 August, F5~6 NNW

The wind had freshened to a F6 and backed slightly for the 2^nd race. Dorks had retired due to the bolts pulling through the rear beam at the end of the previous race. Piper did not sail as such was his dominance that he would have had to discard a 1^st place. That left Wade, Taylor, Toft and Mach to do battle in the strong winds. Wade led off the start line and was 1^st to the windward mark, followed by Taylor, Toft and Mach. Wade made an error rounding the mark and almost pitch poled when he gybed. Taylor made a perfect rounding and got ahead, followed by Wade and Toft. The three screamed down towards the leeward mark, Wade and Taylor making full advantage of their extra weight to extend a good lead over Toft. It was then a fast reach back to the start line and a beat to the windward mark for a second lap of thrills and spills. Wade could not make any impression of Taylor’s lead which he held to the finish with Toft 3^rd.

Congratulations to Gary Piper on his 9^th National Championship title, a truly dominant performance with 6 1^st places in a wide variety of sailing conditions. Gary is getting ever closer to John Wright’s record 13 titles.

We would like to say a particular thank you to all the folk in Stone SC who laid on such an excellent event, we had some great races, wild weather and we all enjoyed the brilliant apres sailing events. This Regatta is highly recommended to anyone who wants a week away combining sailing and social events (and great entertainment for children as well).

See you there next year.

John Wade

1092 Silent Wings

Sail No	Helm	Club	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	Points	Pos'n
1098	Gary Piper	Stokes Bay	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	DNC	6	1
1073	Bob Dorks	Stone SC	3	OCS	2	3	3	2	2	DNC	15	2
1074	Peter Toft	Stone SC	2	4	4	4	1	3	5	3	17	3
1088	Richard Taylor	Stokes Bay	5	2	5	2	5	7	4	1	19	4
1092	John Wade	Weston SC	4	3	3	6	4	4	3	2	19	5
1091	Julius Mach	Weston SC	6	DNF	6	5	8	6	6	DNF	34	6
1083	David Wood	Stone SC	DNF	OCS	7	DNC	7	5	DNC	DNC	50	7
1075	Geoff Moss	Stone SC	DNF	DNF	9	8	OCS	10	DNC	DNC	55	8
1	Paul Conway	Stone SC	DNC	DNC	8	7	6	9	DNC	DNC	56	9
1067	David Taylor	Stone SC	DNC	DNC	DNC	DNC	DNC	8	DNC	DNC	73	10
		Discard