2006 Reports

Simply click on the race that you wish to read about - or scroll through the whole lot! Nab Tower WSC Spring Series RSrnYC May Regatta Yarmouth Round the Island Race RTYC Trafalgar Cup (IRC SS2) and RSrnYC Carlsberg Cup (IRC SS3)Ancasta 31.7 Regatta RYS Pre-Cowes Regatta (IRC SS5)Cowes Week and Beneteau Cup Solent / Christchurch Bay Poole ISC Nab Tower (IRC SS6) and RCYC Tiny Mitchell Trophy (IRC SS7)HRSC Autumn Championships Nab Tower

As ever, the JOG season for Team Whistler started with a trip up to Cowes , the crew house and then an evening imbibing the diet specially designed for optimal performance by our nutritional consultants - beer and kebabs.

A mystery ailment (possibly gin-related) laid low one of the team but we hauled another friend from her bed (a restful Saturday vs. a day with Team Whistler - no decision!)

Despite a good early departure we didn't really get our run to the line timed and were still way off at the gun and near the back of the pack. Undeterred we settled down to the task in hand and started to work our way through the fleet, hugging the northern side of the deep water channel and heading for North Sturbridge to get a bit more tide. Electra dropped below us and then Imperator and Alchemist had a tussle, which let us through just before the forts - at the head of the fleet!

As regular readers of our reports will appreciate this put us in something of a strange situation, throwing our carefully planned navigational strategy (follow the leaders) into complete disarray! We surveyed the scene with the same emotion that Columbus must have felt as he set off across uncharted seas and, with a few whoops of joy, pressed on.

We hardened up (yes, it was that exciting) and headed for the Nab, verging on the edge of control but dropping off the desired line whilst Alchemist held up much better. Hard work and with a lot of flogging and near broaches; until suddenly BANG, the ring that the pole clips to on the mast snapped and the pole was flapping around, requiring a lot of shouting until it was reattached... upside down with the guy wrapped round it... more shouting, flapping and banging and it seemed that it was probably time to get the No:3 back up and head for the Tower just behind Alchemist. We went a little early and with the swell heaving us ominously toward the structure we had to tack again to round it, allowing Imperator through.

It was then time to settle down and sail for the forts, and enjoy the sensation of waving at friends in Class 4 as we went past (OK we had started 30 minutes earlier but it was a new experience!). We held our line well and picked through the moored vessels, whilst Manaru and Electra had to drop round the stern of one vessel (we did contemplate calling up the vessel and asking to ease more anchor chain to make life even more difficult for our friends!)

Back through the forts, tacking into to shallower water worked for Alchemist and Electra. For some reason we couldn't get both height and speed and even the unwitting help of a couple of Red Funnel ferries couldn't prevent both Electra and Imperator getting through us... hey ho - back to Cowes for more beer and kebabs!

7th out of 11 in Class 5

2nd in the 31.7 Fleet

WSC Spring Series

Day One - despite the most appalling start - 7 minutes late whilst we made a bodged last minute headsail change, we managed to haul past a couple of other boats to finish 17th.

Day Two - a better start - although a tussle with Imperator held us up (we'll protest next time!) and saw us come in 16th.

Day Three - all smooth (according to another boat looking "slick") but couldn't quite get Electra at the final mark - 15th!

Day Four - by now we thought that we were showing consistent improvement - recording 17th, 16th and 15th places successively - so if only there were another 14 races we could be at the head of the fleet! Sadly a very big and windy day saw us retire (and all the 31.7s) - better than a broken boat or crew!

Day Five - sometimes a sucker can't get a break... a decent start and gradually got the boat moving well in light winds but ran out of time! We called in that we were still racing and so were scored OOT (Out Of Time) and got better points than if we had a DNF. Spent an enjoyable trip home with the crew relaxing in the cockpit whilst a sweaty Slippery practised her foredeck routines...

Day Six - an aggressive start - too aggressive, we were over, so had to return and started near the back of the pack - bollocks! Worked our way past everyone but Electra, with whom we had a luffing match on the final downwind leg until we realised that Tai Pan were trying to sneak through whilst our attention was elsewhere. Alas, the wind died and once again we were all flapping around as the clock ran down. OOT again - but as all the 31.7's were we would be top of the pile!!!

When the results were published we were down as DNC - WHAT!!!! Frantic emailing commenced and the results were eventually updated - PHEW!

First blood (?) - or at least the benefit of turning up each week!!!

Overall - Class 4 - 15th out of 30

1st in the 31.7 Fleet

RSrnYC May Regatta

Last weekend saw us take part in the RSrnYC May Regatta... we were not outstanding by any means, with an inauspicious start as the Skipper deposited yet another pair of Oakleys on the sea bed!

Race One - very poor upwind on leg one - probably with the leech on the main too tight; eventually sorted it and pulled back to 5th.

Race Two - boldly took a port flyer but in a close call with Shadowfax the skipper decided to tack which, after the usual debate, put us rather close to them - shouting, red flags and a decision between two turns and the protest tent (and hence missing the beer tent)... no decision really, took the turns but once again battled back to 4th.

Race Three - after another big night out in Cowes , a very late and bad tempered curry, there was no wind (except on the boat!) After occupying ourselves rescuing a danish pastry (given our success rate it's probably best not to fall overboard!) we eventually started in a fickle breeze. Went west on a dying wind, developing a lead over virtually everyone else who was in a hole. Of course our wind then went, the new breeze came from the east and we watched everyone sail awy from us - BOLLOCKS! To cap it all Electra went wide at the last mark and steamed past us on the way to the line - DOUBLE BOLLOCKS!! 7th and last... TRIPLE BOLLOCKS!!!

Overall - IRC Class 5 - 6th out of 9

4th out of 6 in the 31.7 Fleet

Yarmouth

Without wishing to continue the impression that Team Whistler are a bunch of alcoholics, Friday evening once again found us congregating in the Island Sailing Club, before continuing the evening in the Anchor followed by the obligatory post-pub kebab (for those who had the patience to queue).

The next day gradually blurred into focus over copious tea and an excellent breakfast (a B&B is so much more civilised than sleeping on board), although it was slightly disturbing to have my rejection of the landlord's suggestion that it had been me coming in at one in the morning quietly corrected by the other half!

Senses back sharply in focus, we had not only worked out that we needed the kite, but which one and which side to hoist... sadly we managed to miss both the 10 and 5 minute signals... despite which we made a surprisingly decent start!

After a bit of serious (and unproductive) corner banging the previous weekend, conservatism (with a small "c" - no politics on board, just endless English/Antipodean banter) was the order of the day and we followed Alchemist down the rhumb line, which looked good until the wind went light as we entered the shelter of the headland. We gybed out but watched Electra, who had gone North early, round the mark well ahead. Up toward Burgess Salmon (which we at least knew the location of!) and then we headed along the Northern shore hoping to take the ebb tide up round the Bramble Bank and then down toward Lepe Spit (OK, once again we were following the leaders!)

After the skippers confident assertion that we were finished with any kite work, it was somewhat disconcerting to see the first three boats pop them, however when we got there we could see that they were sagging below the line and opted to reach under whites. The next leg was fine but as we neared The George, the wind was building alarmingly for a small boat with a big number one up! With the skipper doing his bit - not only helpfully offering motivational advice but sitting up on the edge (obviously not hiking, far too much risk off getting damp!) we finished in one piece, 5^th on the water but anticipating the Machiavellian twists of the handicapper's dark arts!

A really enjoyable race, although sadly, Slippery's hat had joined the growing collection of the skipper's sunglasses (see last weeks report on www.teamwhistler.co.uk) at the bottom of the sea. oh well, it was only 2.00PM so plenty of time for the usual intensive post-race debrief... and to see if we could find another tipple to drink the Royal Solent out of!!!

PS We were glad that Tim's parking in Yarmouth was better than his 'danish pastry overboard' attempts last week...

10th out of 24 in Class 5

2nd out of 5 in the 31.7 Fleet

Another day, another hangover, another fry up and yet more tea. ah yes, racing on Team Whistler.

As seems usual for this race, the day dawned with no wind, but loads of easterly going tide. Anticipating a slow race, with a potential 'tidal gate' we were grateful that the race officer decided to get us underway on time despite the lack of breeze.

Not only that but the course was suited to the alcohol-depleted intellectual capabilities of the skipper - "start line West to East then finish line West to East".

Not trusting our GPS and tidal flow calculations we, and the rest of the 31.7's, were wary of being too close to the line with the strong tide but Tai Pan judged it well and got off to the best start with us relatively close behind and then Sonic Boom, Electron and Electra a little further back.

Conditions were tricky as the boats tried to keep moving just off close hauled in 2 - 4 knots of wind. A potential incident with a Sigma and a large anchored ship caused Electra to tack off to the North losing them time. Meanwhile Tai Pan had managed to sneak further away from us, while we likewise pulled away from Electron and Sonic Boom.

Electra then 'banged the corner' going North to seek the stronger tide which they hoped would pay dividends in the fickle conditions. On Whistler however, it was easier for the skipper to alternately doze and sunbathe rather than do the tac/nav it so he opted for the rhumb line!

Back over on the Island shore there was a noticeable band of breeze building from the East, which we and Tai Pan were ideally placed to take early advantage of. Tacking to the North for a few hundred yards soon paid dividends as we suddenly found ourselves in 12 - 15 knots of breeze. An all too brief period of sailing in good conditions ended at the finish line with Tai Pan taking both line honours and first 31.7, followed by us, Sonic Boom, Electra and Electron.

Who'd be a race officer? Fearful of a long slow race the simple straight line course was set and then the wind came in and we all finished much earlier than expected - oh no, not more time drinking in Cowes! For once however common sense prevailed and most of Team Whistler departed for Gosport (and the Castle!) but Tim and Vee, with respective partners, had a wonderful Sunday lunch at the Island Sailing Club.

Fantastic weekend - thanks to JOG, Royal Solent Yacht Club, all the 31.7 crews and anyone else who knows us!

9th out of 21 in Class 5

2nd out of 5 in the 31.7 Fleet

Round the Island Race

It was a typical RTIR - good intentions of moderate drinking and an early night washed away on a rising tide of beer and rum which started in the Island Sailing Club and ended in the Yacht Haven; miraculously the TEAM (even the skipper) were up bright eyed and bushy tailed - although dehydrated and not really in tip-top form for a drift in the sun.

After some shenanigans with the bl**dy computer (which had responded to the skipper's firm talking to the previous weekend by throwing up exactly the same problem) we were off and out to mill around in the hope that if we spotted the other 31.7s they would be near the start line!

We opted for the northern side of the deep water as the wind was in the north which worked OK, although Electra sailed well and by using the mainland shore seemed to get away. Near Hurst we hoisted the kite but dropped too low, which meant we were just out of the really good tide at the castle. Electra had popped out ahead, so we opted to follow them in gybing down the hotter angles which seemed to work (well it was fun nipping across people calling "starboard"!).

So far, so good...

Then came the Needles car park, which resembled a marina on a calm day with everyone drying sails; lots of shouting, going backwards, gybing trying to go round the edge and getting stuck, going north, backwards, it went on!!!

With desperation we watched some people seem to pop through and out into the favourable current and clear air... Kurketrekker did it and then came back round having retired, Tai Pan disappeared, Manaru, Sonic Boom shot through were through whilst we sat with Electra just ahead unable to move... B****CKS!

Eventually after about an hour and a plot which resembled the doodlings of a deranged child with ADHD, we picked up some breeze and set off after the rest of the pack.

It was a nice afternoon for a sail, and despite some stringent water rationing introduced in response to the rate at which the crew were trying to restore their bodies after the previous night, we had a good sail, seemingly one of the last people to pick our way through after the tide had turned foul. All the time we could hear an endless stream of retirements being called in - and a protest of one of the 31.7's for using their engine - something we had suspected as we had seen several boats suddenly shoot through the melee... sadly the protest was withdrawn as the protestor had run out of time... ah well, at least we had have the satisfaction of knowing we sailed the entire course!

Being honest we were off the pace and attention wandered a bit from time to time. We dropped back to whites for a while and then back to the kite (OK, just the skipper keeping the foredeck on their toes!). Round St Catherine's and then on to Bembridge where we went back to whites but probably could have held the kite; however we sensed an opportunity as many boats in front were parked yet again...

Unfortunately, so were we!

A frustrating creep to the forts and then a pretty good leg back up the Solent; we went to the mainland side on a great lift and clawed back a number of places, eventually finishing at 18.51, tired, somewhat frustrated at the various incidents at the Needles and in the case of some of the crew barbecued to perfection!

Not our finest - but zero wind and a building tide make a mockery of even the best laid plans!

26th out of 47 in IRC Class 3A; 98th out of 176 in Black Group; 310th out of 537 Overall

6th out of 12 31.7s

RTYC Trafalgar Cup (IRC SS2) and RSrnYC Carlsberg Cup (IRC SS3)

Another windless weekend was in prospect - and for once, regrettably, the Met office had got it right!

The crew was slightly depleted as Vee had a minor domestic crisis to manage but we roped in Mair to bolster the crew - at least that's why she thought she was with us - in fact we were keeping her away from her secret birthday party preparations.

It was a lovely morning as we gathered for a bacon butty, tea, coffee and of course an Earl Grey for Slippery (yes chaps, she's very fussy!) although the Skipper couldn't help wondering about Tish, the latest addition to the team who had called up with the message "I'm in the marina carpark but think I'm lost"... she wouldn't be doing the nav then...

We started race one with pretty poor boat speed (we eventually sussed out why on Sunday morning (all about trim, old boy!) but picked it up a little until we bumped on the tail of the Bramble Bank - mmm! The skipper realised that it was no good trying to convince the crew that the sand had shifted due to the recent weather and had to admit that it was because he wasn't aware of the difference between West and North West !

This killed us dead and by the time we had got moving again, the wind was gone, the tide changed and the Fleet disappeared. Despite a nagging sense of embarrassment that our tardiness was holding everyone else up and, in the vague (and vain as it turned out) hope that there would be mass retirements in the flat calm, we plugged on - finishing about two and a half years behind everyone else.

The second race was short but we were almost as bad - although we did stay afloat for the entire race - which is more than could be said for Slippery's sunglasses, which had joined the Skipper's in an erotic entwinement at the bottom of the Solent (on separate weekends we hasten to add!)

Hey ho - off to Cowes for a few beers and some fancy dress!!!!

With renewed confidence in our trimming and having escaped from Shepard's Wharf (which resembled an over-crowded sardine tin) we set off across another flat calm in search of a race. In the end we got a good drift, some practice at untangling the anchor warp and eventually a another frustrating drift round the track.

A bit slow upwind, but we had a cunning plan on the first downwind leg - we'd bang the corner! Rather than sailing towards the northern shore we anticipated a better wind and potentially a favourable shift by staying out. It actually worked for half the leg and we clawed back a number of places until once again the s*dding wind gods unleashed their bile on us. the wind went and we went backwards... AAAAHHHH!!!!

Undeterred, we fought on and at the next windward mark did it again (well spotted Giles!) this time it worked a treat and we went past Manaru and Papillon - NICE!

The next race was memorable for some very slick sail handing and some excellent crew work which combined with the skipper's masterful tactical insight saw us once again claw our way from the back of the pack to take Xarifa, Manaru and Papillon.

The sceptical amongst you might ask why we always need to claw our way from the back of the pack.

Royal Thames IRC SS2

Overall - 7th out of 7 in IRC 5 and 33rd out of 41 in Regatta

4th out of 4 31.7s

Royal Southern IRC SS3

Overall - 7th out of 11 in IRC 5 and 36th out of 38 in Regatta

3rd out of 5 31.7s

Ancasta 31.7 Regatta

VICTORY!!!! WHISTLER TAKES FIRST PLACE ON DAY ONE OF THE INAUGURAL 31.7 REGATTA, WITH A 1ST AND 3RD (DESPITE AN APPALLING NAVIGATIONAL COCK-UP BY THE SKIPPER)!

We had a few crew problems with Tim the Helm needing to be up in the wild of the north on business, so we re-jigged things and stuck our no:1 sub, Richard, on the helm. We also had to give up one crew member to help out a boat with less experience (and numbers), so Fish was off-loaded...

The first start was delayed after Puckoon managed to hook themselves up on the ODM; this was something of a bummer as we had been in an excellent spot; the next start was closer with a fair amount of good-natured colliding but we shot through the pack in first place... regular readers will know that this doesn't suit our normal navigation strategy - especially when we are racing in a new area! It was all taking place in a relatively narrow area but our team work was paying dividends, with only one wobbly drop/hoist - and a minor cock-up on the nav which allowed the following pack to take a chunk out of our lead - BUT NOT ENOUGH!!! We were 1st!!!

We realised that Fish had played his part, even though not on board, by successfully hoisting the spinnaker sideways, not once but twice, whilst on Black Jack!

The second race saw another good start and the skipper was confident that we would consolidate this as everyone had tacked off too early... WRONG! We were heading for the wrong mark. This left us last after crossing on port the stream of starboard tackers who had already rounded; it is a testament to our growing confidence that we stuck at it and took out 7 boats to finish 3rd.

Back to Port Hamble for some fine carousing despite the damp squib of the England football teams performance (what a bunch of over-paid, unmotivated, slack tossers!) and the excellent news that we had been declared FIRST OVERALL!!!

The next day was a pursuit race with a time handicap based on day one results; this saw us starting last and we had no chance of catching the pack over a shortened course... but what the heck! All in all an excellent weekend!

Overall - 1st!!!

RYS Pre-Cowes Regatta (IRC SS5)

Lulled into a false sense of security by the continuing heatwave, the crew of Team Whistler arrived for the RYS Pre-Cowes Regatta (IRC SS5) clad in shorts and teeshirts, confident that the strange grey stuff in the sky would soon disappear.

After an unacustomed healthy breakfast of croissants, yogurt and fruit (we left too early for the bacon sandwich man!) we picked up Vee in Cowes and sort of got ready for the start. In a wind that seemed to be southerly at about 5-10 knots we the plan was to come in under the no:1 and pop the kite at the gun... however watching the previous start we could see that it would be white sails - no worries we'd leave the kite on the rail for the first downwind leg.

We were off the pace at the gun but out near the pin end for the tide. Kurketrekker were inside us and going like a train, which didn't bode well. A bit of fiddling with the string and flappy things got us moving better and we knew it would be a longish race.

This regatta was billed as a "pre Cowes regatta", so the course was typical of what we get during the week. Obviously the RYS are very well connected because they also managed to arrange an entire Cowes Week worth of weather in one day!

Half way down the first leg the wind died... typical Cowes Week... this allowed the fleet to bunch and slap around trying to find the breeze that went round and round... it eventually filled in more from the South and Kurketrekker and a few others hoisted kites to head for the mark. With only 3 minutes to run to get there and a port rounding which meant a tack, we kept our powder dry, and the kite in the bag. In the congetsion at the mark Kurketrekker were carried past, whilst we found a slot and banged hard round the can jumping about six boats in the process.

No kite work on this leg, or the next few and we settled down for a series of reaching drag races, somewhere about half way up, or down, the fleet. The cloud was building ominously and with claps of thunder and streaks of lightning, the heavens opened. Even for a well-prepared skipper (and the only one allowed to keep his oilies on board) it was a very wet few hours! The wind built to 28 knots and veered a little which made beating with a No:1 and full main fun - but anticipating the squall would pass we hung on and got pretty good speed with everything twisted off!

Round the next mark we at last got the opportunity to hoist the kite (which was a lot more fun than simply moving it across the foredeck as we tried to anticipate when we would use it!). Then once again the wind went and within what felt like minutes we went from 28 knots of breeze and 7+knots of boatspeed to zero breeze and zero speed.

We sailed high when we could to keep creeping inshore to avoid the tide and, by luck more than judgement, noticed that although we were supposed to be going West on the ebb we were in an eddy and actually going East at half a knot - result!

Even better was the announcement that the course was being shortened at the next mark.

The eddy was taking us past a number of boats and when the wind started to build our newly tuned rig and a bit of gentle cajoling from the skipper saw us pick up speed quickly and move off towards the finish; we skipped past some Class 3 and 4 boats, the wind teased a little and then settled to allow us to fetch the line.

All in all a really good day out there with some interesting conditions - a bit more kite work would have been nice, but then again.

2nd in IRC5 and 3rd out of 28 in Regatta

1st out of 2 31.7s

Cowes Week and Beneteau Cup

After our 3rd place in the RYS Pre-Cowes Regatta, spirits were high running into Cowes Week but alas, as is so often the case, the reality didn't really live up to expectation... things just didn't gel and we performed pretty poorly on the water, which was disappointing... c'est la vie - everyone has a bad regatta!

There were however some highspots - ABN Amro One steaming past us at full chat, before bunging in a (dodgy) gybe alongside; our chinese gybe which saw Slippery keeping out of the water by by standing on the (horizontal) mast; a close shave with Dark and Steamy (Dark and Stinky as we have christened her) - we were on starboard, and to compound the matter after a protestably late tack, one of their crew flicked "the bird" at us for our temerity in forcing them to give way!

The week culminated with The Skipper sharing the limelight with luminaries such as Mike "Moose" Sanderson at the RYS prize giving... to be fair Mike got a selection of large gold and silver trophies for victories during the week, whilst we got a set of placemats for our 2nd in the Pre-Cowes Regatta!

Off the water we were much quieter, although Vee and Pete from Electra put together a massively enjoyable 31.7 BBQ on the Sunday evening, which saw a very pissed Skipper wandering around with a bottle of red abusing all and sundry. Vee , Slippery and Roddy also put in a record breaking performance at the RNLI getting dressed in a lifeboatman's outfit (surprising as Slippery is better known for getting sailors out of their kit!)

Moving on a couple of weeks, it was the Beneteau Cup and a much more coherent performance - despite some fairly extensive drinking, which must have left fellow competitors thinking that they were sailiing downwind of a brewery!

Cowes Week

Overall (6 to count) - 16th out of 30 in IRC Class 6 and 234th out of 410 in Black Group

3rd out of 8 in 31.7

Beneteau Cup

Overall 24th out of 73; 5th out of 9 in 31.7

Solent / Christchurch Bay

It seemed like a long time since Whistler had taken part in a JOG race and, with the forecast deteriorating as the week progressed and a light crew, it looked like it might be even longer! Using his legendary "weather nose" the skipper confidently predicted that the bad stuff wasn't coming in until later in the day by which time we would be safely home (or at least in the pub) - what did the Met Office know about it? (The great thing about the interweb thingy, is that with a bit of patient surfing you can find a forecast that says whatever you want!)

With a busy season wearing on, the crew were resorting to increasingly desperate measures get a weekend at home - engagement, watching Gillingham play football, building works, laser eye surgery - but undeterred the Skipper, Slippery, Fish and new boy Duncan (so new he hasn't yet been given a nickname) prepared the boat and crew with a trip to the Castle, followed by the obligatory "all you can eat banquet" at the Great Wall Chinese Restaurant.

It was obscenely dark as we rose and left on Saturday morning - but also still - was the "nose" right? The wind built as we motored up to Cowes but never above 15 knots so the No:2 was selected as we sat on the ISC pontoon waiting for Vee ...

The skipper's phone rang. "Must be Vee checking where we are waiting for her..."

It was Vee : "where are you?"

"At the ISC"

"I've got a problem, I only got home from France an hour ago and have been travelling all night; I've got loads to do and can't get to the ISC in the next 15 minutes..."

This was no time for sympathy and with his customary disregard for other people, the Skipper was straight onto it "you're not trying to drop out are you? We need you - if I pick you up at Shepard's at 0800 can you do that?"

True to her word, and as ever the team player, Vee jumped onto Whistler at the appointed hour, the throttle was opened and we rattled round to the start...

A few ribald comments greeted us when it was spotted that the Skipper was driving - but we knew the true test was out on the track...

Even with the RSYC Double Fleet milling around it wasn't busy, and the empty line meant that our failure to work out starting tactics wasn't really a problem; we settled for an approach on port, near the shore and although speed wasn't great, position was and no one on starboard was near us.

We set off close to Electra and seemed may a smidge slower, but pointing significantly higher; they dropped down and tacked to pass behind us and we settled down to follow Alchemist with Oxygen and Elandra below us. As ever in these things, as soon as the 10 minute gun had gone, the wind built by 5 knots and then more as we progressed and we had to peel to the no:3, which was slow and allowed Alchemist and the Sigmas to pull away.

The lumps were getting so frequent that we decided it was easier (on our ears at least) for Slippery to call the flat bits not the waves!

Past Yarmouth Electra had pulled back and was just below - if we had over stood Hurst they would be through us; whether by luck or judgement we had it right (perhaps even a bit tight as we had to pinch to round the corner... what is it they say about lee shores...?!) We cracked off for the reach down to North Head.

Now, one problem of having the Skipper driving, is that he normally does the nav stuff... and with Vee 's delayed arrival, there hadn't really been time to delegate this properly... and then the GPS batteries ran out of juice...

None of this was too much of a problem going up or down the Solent - experience shows that as long as you keep in the wet stuff between the green bits it's OK; the Skipper had memorised the bearing of North Head - but once past that mark it was more problematical... however we simply returned to Whistler-style navigational basics: "follow Alchemist, they know what they are doing".

Electra was closing us down but tacked off early, a move which paid off in buckets as they popped out in front before SW Shingles. It was a tough old leg, with 25knots+ of breeze, and our lack of crew was being felt - particularly by the Skipper who was getting damp without enough meat on the rail to shelter him! As the sea built further the whole crew was copping it - particularly Slippery who was drowned every time she managed to light a cigarette (more details of the Team Whistler smoking aversion therapy are available from the author). This was nothing however, because the Skipper patiently waited until she was stranded on the bow preparing the kite, before carefully selecting the biggest, wettest and coldest bit of green stuff to drive into!

Round SW Shingles we opted to keep under whites (or in our case a rather attractive bronze colour) and even this was fun with a big rolling sea and plenty of wind. We avoided Great Scot as they rounded up below us and watched Electra put their kite up and then take it straight down again.

Into the Solent and the sea settled a little, so we hoisted the heavy kite and set off in pursuit of the leaders. Electra were having problems with their kite and dropped it; we stuck with ours and passed them. After a lot a practice we were getting quite good a controlling the broaches and recovering when we couldn't... so we built up a nice lead over our fellow 31.7...

Over halfway home and the sea was developing its typical rolly pattern and there were big gusts funnelling off the island. As the Skipper pondered how best to lose the kite at the finish, his concentration slipped and one of these hit us - with a slow motion roll we broached to leeward and ended up pointing the wrong way with the kite backed against the mast - B*****KS!

"Sod the crew and sod the kite, we are not going to let Electra get back past us" - and in a tirade worthy of Gordon Ramsay, the kite was recovered by the simple expedient of filling it with sea water and then using the entire crew to haul it back on deck, whilst the skipper managed to bang the boat round and point toward the finish. We went back to the no:3 before sorting out the pole and string and managed to get back home without further trouble! We finished 3rd in Class on the water but were pipped on TCF by Elandra...

4th out of 9 in Class 5

1st in 31.7 Fleet

Poole

You know the score - Friday night, pub, beer, Chinese, more beer or wine, early start...

The sound of the wind moaning through halyards and rigging indicated that the windier of the various forecasts that we had heard seemed to be with us, which boded well for a boat with few supplies on board!

We opted to start relatively close to the shore to avoid the anticipated melee at the windward end of the line - and in the mistaken belief that we would be rounding East Lepe - something that a hurried re-reading of the SI's corrected after the start. Once we had established beyond reasonable doubt just where the heck we should be going, we popped the kite and reached away down the Solent .

The tidal strategy was to stick roughly in the middle until just before Yarmouth where we planned to drop toward the Island shore before scooting through Hurst and over to the Shingles. All seemed to be working well and it was great to see the 31.7's drag racing at the head of the Fleet, with Electra and Electron slightly higher and ahead and Tai Pan bearing down on us.

We were slow round the first mark and didn't tack straight away, which allowed Tai Pan to get inside us - and until we sorted ourselves out they seemed to be sailing both higher and faster which was not great! Luckily they tacked out of our dirty air, we settled our trim and concentrated on taking Electron. In an attempt to score a psychological blow we sailed through beneath them and them climbed back above their track...

The rapidly decreasing depth called for a rapid position fix (i.e. running downstairs to look at the computer) but we stood on and made for North Head, with a few nice lifts helping us get there without too many tacks. We rounded several minutes behind Electra and with Tai Pan hard on our heels.

Back to the kite, we seemed to be nibbling away at Electra - but not significantly - and couldn't get far enough away from Tai Pan to be sure of keeping a lead on corrected time. As the wind backed a little first Electra, and then Tai Pan, went back to whites which left us a decision to make. With Sal, the human GPS repeater, reading our track and the bearing, we believed that we could sail only a little low of the rhumb line but with speed, have a better angle for the line and get a bit of a push up from the tide as we neared the finish - always ones to bang the corner we went for it!

We seemed to have significantly better speed than Tai Pan and although our courses were diverging felt that we were in with a chance of catching Electra. About three quarters of the way across the bay (that's 75% for the youngsters), the wind backed further and we went back to the No:1 and started to climb to the finish.

We nervously scanned the horizon for a sight of the CV (it wouldn't be the first time that we had incorrectly entered a waypoint!) and watched as our path converged with Electra - it was touch and go but as the naughty people dropped down and gave us the benefit of their dirty air (something we repaid when Slippery slept on board that night - but that's another story...) - they were a couple of boat lengths ahead and we just couldn't sneak through. A slightly longer course and it might have been a different story - mind you we weren't unhappy with second on the water, we just had to wait and see how it would all pan out when all the low handicappers came in!

The return...

Grey, damp and lifeless - and that was just the crew on Sunday morning! Once again the Skipper had shown his tactical astuteness, steering a true course between those who went to bed too early, with too little to drink and consequently were tormented by a persistent mosquito in the cabin - and those who went to bed too late after too much to drink, who consequently resembled the cast of "Dawn of the Dead"... of course some had not even made it back to the boat...!!

The delayed start allowed a foraging party to be sent out in search of better sustenance than croissants and yogurt, whilst the rest of us settled down to count how many times Fish visited the shore side facilities...

Spirits and fog lifted together and we joined the procession motoring through the harbour in the watery early morning light. On the way out Velcro showed off the softer side to his personality by donning the spare "bow-kini" - luckily for those still feeling unsettled, the top only!

At the start we once again settled for the leeward end and less congestion and were rewarded with plenty of yachts behind us... and not a lot in front except Tai Pan. Having regained control of his GPS, the Skipper sailed straight down the rhumb line with unerring accuracy, whilst the crew concentrated on the trim - except Slippery and Fish who had been sent to sit in the "naughty step" down below in order to better distribute their weight. Having exhausted all possibilities with the heads, Fish settled for his other favourite pastime and slept.

We just couldn't get past Tai Pan and once again Electra was dropping down on us, although this time from behind. North Head neared and we delayed the hoist as long as possible, all the while sailing high to stop Electra rolling us. We held them off round the mark but then had no momentum out of the turn (we now know that we had snagged a pot) and they were through us... we sparred gently up the channel until the wind backed enough to let us set the kite - but would never get above a boat sailing with whites. As we neared Hurst they came up enough for us to squirt through below, cut the corner and get past - yesss!

We kept high and headed for the Island , which seemed right in theory although most other people went to the mainland - only time would tell.

Watching Tai Pan and Electra duelling past Lymington was a minor distraction for those allowed to stay on deck, as were the Skipper's tirades of alternate entreaties and insults to the various local wind deities! We had to keep coming up whenever the wind dropped to keep our speed up and were forced to gybe out a couple of times to keep off the green bits. With the wind fluctuating it was great fun watching Slippery scurry up from below and grab the guy when a gybe was called - only to be told that we had changed our minds and she could go back down!

The Skipper's anxiety increased as the distance to the finish decreased, with both Electra and Tai Pan racing up on better apparents and Electron's distinctive kite clear just behind - would Whistler hang onto their downwind crown? We kept it going to finish ahead of both Tai Pan and Electra, with Electron a tad further back; third on the water in our class but we knew it would be a different story when the maths was done!

Despite the frustration of racing against boats to whom it feels we give not seconds, not minutes, not hours, not days, nots weeks but whole eternities - a great weekend of sailing and fun in the bar!

Cowes to Poole - 3rd out of 23 in Class 5 (2nd 31.7)

Poole to Cowes - 16th out of 21 in Class 5 (3rd 31.7)

ISC Nab Tower (IRC SS6) and RCYC Tiny Mitchell Trophy (IRC SS7)

Another Friday, another night in the Great Wall, this time enlivened by one poor soul who had overdone the "falling down water" and was left propped on a bench outside the disco/pub over the road with occasional visits from his solicitous chums and some grasping drunks.

We were already one down for the weekend due to a last minute drop-out (not something likely to get the person responsible into the Skipper's good books) and on Saturday morning it looked even worse as Anne, the Boat Pet had failed to show and had her phone turned off - cue panic and swearing in roughly equal proportion from the Skipper!!! Having hung on as long as possible we set off under a cloud; luckily however, she phoned and, having explained that she had overslept after a quiet night in, managed to get the Red Jet and was waiting in Cowes when we arrived!

With the Skipper once again on the helm, Tim was promoted to Tac/Nav, given a quick overview of the GPS and entrusted with the tidal charts. The start off the ISC was fun and, with the line extending into the Medina , cue some close quarter manoeuvring. We had one minor disadvantage as, after a lifetime of self-abuse, Tim's eyesight was suspect and he couldn't see the transit for the line - so it was go for it and hope.

For once sticking with our pre-race plan, we stood on towards the mainland side of the channel, which did not work and dropped us down the fleet a fair bit - not good! We settled down and reeled in a few people including Big Doris and Papillion, before exiting the Solent . Here Tim pulled a blinder and we stayed on the Island up past Bembridge Ledge before striking out to the Nab - RESULT! We had a bit of port/starboard fun but rounded in one piece and popped the kite. Back to Bembridge and it was rather "rolly" so we opted to gybe a few times to get better wind angles, which let Drakes Drum and Purple Haze through. Round the cardinal we aimed straight at North Sturbridge , clipped the green bit of the chart off Ryde (luckily well covered by the blue stuff at the time) and powered back past them.

A few more gybes and we were nearing home; one final hurdle to overcome, the kite was inside out so, to aid the race officers, the Skipper called for the main to be pulled in as we crossed the line - MISTAKE! Mind you, a spectacular broach on the line is one way to get noticed!

A gentle night (?!) in Cowes with the crew of Papillon and a good night's sleep set us up for Sunday.

Not such a great day, with the lack of bodies being acutely felt in the "round the cans" environment. A general recall spoiled what would have been a decent start with a number of boats having to go round to avoid the CV. Next time round, after a fairly intimate and confused jostle on the line, we tacked and struck out following Electra (the X99) who led the class. This didn't work and we ended up a long way behind Kurketrekker and Manaru. A decision to stick to whites rather than the kite on a tight reach reeled them in and we actually passed Manaru on the next leg... they then got through again after we made an unnecessary gybe and pulled away upwind... a passing container ship obviously hadn't read the script and passed behind them instead of leaving them in a windless hole as we had hoped! We cocked up the final two marks in a building tide and could never get back at them.

Oh well, at least we won the Ryder Cup!

ISC Nab Tower Race - 26th in IRC Class (4th in IRC Class 5 extract); 2nd 31.7

RCYC Tiny Mitchell - 5th in IRC Class 5; 3rd 31.7

HRSC Autumn ChampionshipsNot a lot to say, we weren't really on the pace and the season ended with something of a whimper...!