Marblehead Nationals at Birkenhead Model Yacht Club

Andrea Roberts 55 powers to windward with Colin Smith 164 at the Marblehead Nationals © Roger Stollery

Birkenhead Model Yacht Club celebrated their 75th anniversary by hosting the Championship for this high-performance ISAF class on 19-21 April 2003. A total of 29 races were sailed in two heats in very flukey and variable wind conditions.

On Saturday an easterly wind blew diagonally across the lake over a belt of trees on the windward side causing many eddies and holes in the wind. There was no logic to the variability, which made sailing consistently very difficult and as a result there were 7 different winners of the 9 races completed. PRO Tommy Mills set a triangle and sausage course ¾ kilometre long diagonally across the lake, which was used throughout the weekend.

Race 1 heat A was sailed in 5-15 mph winds with lower full areas rigs and was won by Graham Bantock from Chelmsford sailing his ‘Prime Number’ design. Heat B was won by Peter Stollery from Guildford sailing a ‘Crazy Tube Too’ and these two would be fighting for the lead within a few points of each other throughout the latter part of the event. Race 2 was won by Dave Potter from Birkenhead sailing a new David Creed design, ‘Starkers Cubed’ and after two seconds, his team-mate Martin Roberts came good in Race 3 sailing a ‘Starkers Squared’. The next three races belonged to Chelmsford with Bantock, Mark Dennis, sailing a ‘Paradox’ and Phil Playle sailing a ‘Prime Number’, winning Races 4, 5 and 6 respectively. The latter would have made it a hat trick of wins if Chris Harris from Bournville sailing a ‘Starkers Squared’ had not interrupted his run by taking Race 7. In the last race Bantock came back to chalk up his third win of the day to give him a 6 point lead over Roberts with Playle 3 points behind.

On Sunday the wind was lighter, but blowing slightly more across the lake, increasing the frustration, but also the excitement as places changed continuously depending how the gusts struck the water. Some skippers became more skilled at ignoring the dramatic headers on the beat and carrying their way through to the next reachy puff! 10 races produced 8 different winners!

Roberts’ potential run of 3 wins was interrupted by David Coode from Guildford sailing an American ‘Tiranha’ design, a light airs special, which got away to a whole leg lead. Race 13 was won by Bantock, whilst 14 was won by Roger Stollery from Guildford sailing his ‘Crazy Tube Too’ design. Harris won Race 15, whilst rising star John Arundell from new club Yateley sailing a ‘Starkers Squared’ won Race 16. John Cleave from Ryde sailing a German ‘Skalpel’ design won Race 17, whilst Peter Stollery won Race 18, before allowing Harris back on the pedestal to win the final race of the day. Roberts' very consistent performance with two seconds and three thirds put him into the lead overall with 50 points, five ahead of Peter Stollery who was one point ahead of Bantock.

Monday’s wind was again light, but more straight down the lake, giving a beat whose variation in direction was more predictable. Andrea Roberts from Birkenhead sailing a ‘Starkers Squared’ won Race 20 and this was followed by seven races shared between Bantock and Peter Stollery. This run was broken by Harris winning Race 28 and Roger Stollery winning the final race in a virtual flat calm. The course was shortened in view of the light conditions, finishing within the event time limit, the lightning and thunderstorm with torrential rain, which brought the racing to a swift conclusion.

Overall Results: