707 Nationals at Burnham Week 2018

707 Nationals at Burnham Week © Roger Mant Photography

Fourteen well matched boats competed in the Nationals at Burnham on Crouch, helping to bump up the numbers on the river for the latter part of Burnham Week after the busier Burnham Week Bank Holiday weekend. Exciting racing at the weekend had shown the merits of this class, with 707s screeching past Class 1 boats in the breeze despite a 5 minute head start.

Unfortunately that weather had threatened to disappear by the Wednesday, and the Crouch's nature meant cross tide races in the mouth of the river had to be set. Despite these difficulties 3 good races were achieved with enough variability on the upwind and downwind legs to keep boats fighting for position. SeaWord, the event favourites, showed initial fallibility only getting a 3rd with Baby Beluga 1st and Turbulence 2nd. The Class 1's got their revenge for the weekend by deciding to use one of our leeward gate marks as part of their round the cans course instead of their own mark – correctly positioned but unlabelled. Seaward started to exert their dominance, with the first of their 8 bullets, and Turbulence securing the second of her eventual 5 seconds. Day 1 closed after race 3 with Seaward again 1st and Racehorse sharing 2nd with Baby Beluga after a photo finish.

On Wednesday evening the 707 Class Association AGM also took place at RCYC. This was well attended by representatives from all boats at the event, and exciting discussions of class development continued long into the night. Thanks must go to the outgoing committee members, who have put in a huge amount of time and effort over the years.

707 Nationals at Burnham Week - photo © Roger Mant Photography

There was no racing on Day 2 as there strength of the tide far exceeded the stregth (or lack of) of the wind. It did however provide lots more time for further discussions about class development and other such issues. The main beneficiary of the lack of sailing was the bar at Royal Corinthian, as well as a local Disc Golf course which was highly recommended by several crews. The Class again demonstrated one of its strengths off the water too with as much fun socially as afloat. Burnham rose to the challenge too but a partial part of Partial Pressure fell at the final fence and it is not something she is looking to chew over.

Day 3 brought awkward winds and tide, meaning that racing was near the mouth of the Roach when racing resumed. The beats appeared to be one sided with the local boats certain the north shore would pay with short tacking and Seaward followed suit and continued onto the front again. SeaWord showed some interesting manoeuvres at one start and would have got away with it but Andy "opened his legs and showed his class"....and the distance mark...and that he was beyond it. The short tacking seemed to be the order of the day although the locals were surprised when later the south shore paid more than once which is rather like the sun rising in the West on the Crouch. The trend was initially set by Partial Pressure in the first lap of race 7, but More T and Valhalla really capitalised on the second lap as Partial Pressure chose to bank the advantage and follow the fleet. More T Vicar then continued that form and became only the second boat to beat SeaWord. At the end of the day SeaWord remained firmly at the top of the standings with Turbulence firmly in 2nd. Feeling Touchy, Tallulah, and Racehorse all showed well in the places and despite injuries so did Partial Pressure.

The final day was back towards the mouth of the Crouch. There was added intrigue as only 3 races were needed to get the 2nd discard, but unfortunately for some and happily for other only two were completed. SeaWord dominated again, but still had to fight hard to get there as she had in every race previously. The 3rd race was abandoned, and with Partial Pressure leading would have really affected 3rd place as of the 6 boats OCS only Sharky returned.

707 Nationals at Burnham Week - photo © Roger Mant Photography

Special mention must also go to Murray McDonald of Autism on the Water. Although results on the water were not as he might have hoped, its great to have him out there raising Autism awareness. In his own words – "(We) came ashore with a smile on our faces and had a great time because we knew we were... sending out the important message of how sailing can benefit autistic people."

Paul the Race Officer had battled with difficult conditions all week but set good courses, and did not kept us waiting even after over eager starts. He was brave enough to abandon races after large and consistent shifts and cope with inflatable Sharks and Unicorns. The Burnham clubs were are welcoming as ever and the class really enjoyed the hospitality. Debbie as ever was magnificent at keeping the event running smoothly.

Onward to nationals in Hartlepool next year, but not before the infamous Port Edgar Watersports Sprints on 15th and 16th September, followed by Scotish Nationals 20th and 21st October.

Overall Results: