MYA Footy National Championship at Frensham Pond Sailing Club
by Roger Stollery 19 Sep 2018 05:53 NZST
MYA Footy National Championship at Frensham Pond © Roger Stollery
John Burgoine became the new national Footy champion on the 16th September at this open championship, which attracted seventeen entries from seven clubs. Thanks to the efforts of the host club and the class captain, Peter Shepherd, it was a very successful event, despite light and very variable south-westerly winds.
In addition to this event, Frensham Pond Sailing Club were also organising a Laser dinghy open meeting and there was no problem with sharing the water as the Footys sailed in only a small area close to a grassy bank between the launching jetties.
At registration, all competitors were pleased to receive an MYA championship cap, each with their sail number on the peak, thanks to the Footy class captain and the MYA. Included in the 17 entries, which is the best for many years, five children between 5 and 8 years old took part in the Junior Championship, which was sailed within the Open Championship until lunchtime, when the Colts Foot Trophy and prizes were presented. Young competitors continued to have fun in the afternoon sailing in the 16 races that determined the Open Championship.
Race Officer, Roger Stollery, set a windward leeward course, with a windward and spreader mark and a leeward gate. The start and finish lines were adjusted by poles on the bank to suit the wind variations. Despite dramatic wind changes caused by the wind blowing over the trees and causing big eddies and blowing in the opposite direction through the trees, the course worked well and was enjoyed by competitors.
The morning's racing
There was a surprise winner of Race 1 as eight year old Oliver Stollery, who had arrived only just in time, started on port near the bank and sailed away from the fleet to create a lead, which he never lost. Top Footy sailor, Peter Shepherd won the next one with his beautiful varnished wooden Fat Boy Slim, but only finished second in Race 3 to John Burgoine sailing an ICE. However, Peter won three of the next four races, only beaten by John in Race 6. At the lunch break competitors enjoyed cooked food in the clubhouse. The lunchtime leaderboard was headed by Peter with 8 points, ahead of John with 12 and Keith Bell with 23 points.
The afternoon's racing
After lunch the Junior Championship trophy and the prizes were presented and all but the 2 girls continued to race in the main event. The winds were a bit more tricky, as more vicious eddies were caused by the strengthening breeze. However John was the master of these shifts and had 7 straight wins, keeping Peter in 2nd place most of those races.
There was a new winner in Race 15, as Peter Jackson sailed his IBEX into the lead. There was another new winner in the final Race 16 when local sailor, Graham Whitehead finally got on top of the podium!
All retired to the clubhouse for tea and cakes and the presentation of the trophies and prizes by the Frensham Pond Sailing Club commodore, Jeremy Hudson. Prizewinners thanked Roger and the club members for putting on another good event. Jeremy was impressed by the radio sailing and hoped that competitors would return again next year.
The boats
The jury is still out on whether the axial measured boats are superior to the boats measured diagonally within the one foot long measurement box, even though in this event the former design type won. Most interesting was the multi-chine HAWK design, built by 7-year-old Edward Lee and his dad William. Not only is this a fantastic effort by a young builder, but Cherub dinghy sailor William's input was to add a horizontal foil to the rudder, which from his dinghy experience has the effect of damping the motion of these rather light bob-about hulls. Although this team had a problem with leaking, it certainly made the designers in the fleet think about its potential for new designs.
Results of the Open Championship:
1st John Burgoine Birmingham MYC ICE 18pts
2nd Peter Shepherd Abington Park MYC FAT BOY 26pts
3rd Keith Bell Abington Park MYC IBEX 42pts
4th Peter Jackson Abington Park MYC IBEX 46pts
5th Keith Parrott Frensham Pond MYG ICE 62pts
6th Graham Whitehead Frensham Pond MYG ICE 68pts
7th David Wilkinson Cotswold MYC ICE 89pts
8th Sidney Sims Birmingham MYC ICE 93pts
9th Oliver Stollery (jr) Guildford MYC ICE 105pts
10th Colin Robertson Cheddar Steam Club ICE 123pts
11th John Haine Frensham Pond MYG ICE 140pts
12th Charles Smith Frensham Pond MYG ICE 152pts
13th Edward Lee (jr) Guildford MYC HAWK 169pts
14th Tony Butler Birmingham MYC ICE 171pts
15th Eden Vice (jr) Guildford MYC ICE 182pts
16th Nathan Stollery (jr) Guildford MYC ICE 189pts
17th Alice Lee Guildford (jr) MYC ICE 205pts
Junior Championship results:
1st Oliver Stollery 9pts
2nd Edward Lee 19pts
3rd Nathan Stollery 21pts
4th Eden Vice 24pts
5th Alice Lee 27pts