6 Metre National Championships at the Royal Yacht Squadron

28th – 30th June 2001

I arrived on the dock at Cowes Yacht Haven at 09.45 on Thursday morning to see 13 6-Metre yachts all moored up ready for action. 6 classics and 7 moderns had made their way here most having being towed from Hamble or Lymington by their respective support boats to race for the ‘Mulberry’ sponsored National Championships, held by the Royal Yacht Squadron. I was to be racing onboard John Prentice’s ‘Battlecry’.

Race 1

After a cautious start by the race committee, we were all allowed to leave the dock as the breeze had moderated to 18knots. The racecourse was to be on the North side of the Brambles Bank so we headed that way. We were unsure as to which headsail to hoist but opted for the #2 (3DL), as it was generally felt that the breeze was to build. A series of mishaps on the committee boat resulted it a postponement once again, but as the gun went we found ourselves OCS (on course side), and had to return to the line to exonerate ourselves. We opted for the right side of the beat and soon found ourselves mixing with the leaders, Lion and Georgia. A good rounding and set saw us sitting inside the two leaders, a position we managed to hold to the leeward mark where we dropped and rounded inside. With continuous bailing out and pumping we kept ‘Battlecry’ not only afloat but in the lead until the finish(01:15:55). Lion came home 2nd(01:17:28) and Georgia 3rd(01:22:38)

Race 2

The RYS committee decided to move the racecourse to the relative shelter of Osborne Bay for the 2nd race, however with the breeze still up at around 18knots and a short steep Solent sea some people decided to call it a day and sailed home under much reduced sail. With only 6 boats on the start line we were able to get a clear start and set off up wind, for this two lap windward leeward. For those of you who have never sailed a 6, I recommend a full dry suit in anything above a zephyr, as water was continuously coming in over the coaming. We followed Lion and Georgia into the windward mark and gybe set inside Georgia. Lion was now clear ahead and we concentrated on passing Georgia. Suddenly a ‘large’ gust hit us and we took of surfing past her at 11knots, with all crew hiking aft to try and reduce the intake of water. A good rounding at the leeward mark saw us catch Lion and leave Georgia a little. A Good beat and run saw us finish in 2nd and Georgia third.

With the breeze still up and damage occurring on all boats, the committee decided to call it a day.

Race 3

The breeze was down on Friday so we started race 3 with our #1 Med/Hvy 3DL, a good start and beat saw us in first place at the windward mark. A good set saw us accelerate from the mark downhill, only to realise that we were sailing the ‘triangle sausage’ course!!!! Now with pole well forward we headed up to the gybe mark and only just managed to get there before Lion. Lion attacked and kept inside us on the run, making ground all the time. A poor gybe by us saw her through, but all was not lost as Battlecry is a demon upwind. Good sense and tactics saw Lion keep herself between us and the finish. Lion 1st (1:14:35), Battlecry 2nd(1:15:35) and Thisbe 3rd(1:16:12).

Race 4

It was neck and neck at the windward mark, but we still managed to cross Lion, however we bore off around the mark a small collision forced us to perform a penalty turn!

The reach saw us in 5th position but good positioning and gybe saw us move back up to third place. Having to sail outside the line on all runs made us harden up to get to the leeward mark. An early drop by us, and a poor one onboard Thisbe gave us second. We couldn’t believe it and were resolved to get 2nd. However, Lion tacked across us and then back to cover. A small header made the choice for us, tacking onto to starboard we crossed a boat length behind. Lion tacked to cover. We tacked back and dipped their transom and accelerated away. Lion tacked again but didn’t have the pace to generate the height we had onboard Battlecry. We both tacked for the line and a poor tack by us made me think we’d blown it. Battlecry crossed the line a bare 6 seconds ahead of Lion, with Thisbe a further minute and a half behind.

Race 5

With the breeze moderating slightly we were unsure as to which headsail to use, the Lt/Med (3DL) or the race winning Med/Hvy (3DL), unfortunately for us we went for the Med/Hvy and as the breeze dropped further we found that although we could still point we couldn’t reach targets. A poor start below both Lion and Thisbe held us all the way out to the left; exactly where we didn’t want to be. We rounded the top mark mid fleet and had to start clawing our way back up again. Some conservative sailing proved both good and bad, a poor gybe, but a good drop brought us up to 3rd. Lion and Thisbe were to far ahead or so we thought! With both of the lead boats concentrating on each other, playing boat on boat, they didn’t see the wind shifts which we were tacking on. Fortunate for them and not for us the beat was over all too soon. Lion 1st (1:14:01), Thisbe 2nd (1:14:09) and Battlecry 3rd(1:14:37).

Race 6

With a few of us waiting around for the promised 10:30 start, others made good use of the ‘extra’ time. Tom onboard Georgia had been checking out the windward shoreline before the start, tacking up close under Osborne House, something that paid him dividends in this race. Starting with Georgia on our hip and Lion further to weather we were in good shape, or so we thought. We went left and managed to force Georgia off who dug of to the right following Thisbe, Conch Fritters and Bear. Both Battlecry and Lion stood on, to our error and on tacking back saw that most of the fleet would cross us! Rounding the top mark first was Georgia followed by Thisbe. Lion and Bear almost got tangled up on the mark due to the tide, which allowed us to get around with them. Setting the spinnaker, the chase was on! Unfortunately for us both Tom on Georgia and Don Wood onboard Thisbe whose canard works really well in the flat water, sailed near perfect races, finished 1st and 2nd, with Lion 3rd and Battlecry 4th.

Race 7

Both Georgia and ourselves made a good start with some of the others caught eating sandwiches. Digging deep and playing safe we rounded the top mark first with Georgia and Thisbe a few boat lengths behind. A good reach and run saw us extend our lead to 5 boat lengths at the leeward mark. Playing a loose cover on both Georgia and Thisbe we kept our lead to the top mark. At this point we were unaware that Lion had retired due to gear failure. A good set and clear air resulted in a safe run down to the leeward mark. We extended from the leeward mark and as Georgia, who had now made good separation from Thisbe, tacked around we tacked back to cover. What followed was a loose cover exercise, which took us out to the port layline for the finish. What happened next was a crewmembers worst nightmare. Two loud bangs echoed around the boat and with everyone looking up it was obvious what had happened. The mast had failed in compression and was in danger of falling down. We had to finish the race however so we nursed her home with greatly reduced runner and sheet tension. As each gust hit us we feathered the boat up to reduce the loading in the rig. Thankful to be on the port layline we managed to creep over the line in first place. There were no cheers on board this time as we knew the regatta was over and our chances of winning the Nationals with it. Battlecry 1st (1:42:23), Georgia 2nd(1:43:50) and Thisbe 3rd(1:45:28)

Race 8

Not having been there and with only three boats starting, it’s difficult to say what exactly happened. Georgia came home 1st(1:02:18) followed by Lion in 2nd(1:02:33) and Bear 3rd(1:06:53). Lion had done enough, and only had to finish this race with us being towed home, to clinch the title.

Congratulations to Tony Canning and his crew onboard Lion to a well-deserved victory. There is always next year!

Overall Results - Modern:

Overall Results - Classic:

More Information:

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