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PLYMOUTH ROUND 2, 4 HEATS, 5TH AND 6TH MAY 07
Plymouth has always been a good venue for OCR, the sea conditions always lend to good racing. This year the 9 boats took to a slight to moderate choppy sea. The circuit although slightly shorter, made better viewing for the public.
The 2 heats on Saturday were very entertaining and thrilling for spectators and racers’ alike. Different could be said about the Harbour Master who was quite concerned at the antics of some if not most of the boats, who were taking wide turns on buoy 6 and giving him cause for concern at the boats slalom through the Corinthian visitors buoy’s, as the rocks were only a few meters away. The Officer of the Day (OOD) was asked to move the buoy seaward for heat 2 if racing was to continue.
The start runs were as close to perfection as one could expect. All the boats lined up at headed off to the first turn buoy at the drop of the union flag. I cant say how they lined up as at the time I was aware of A9 and A30 who were over taking us on either side, and I was holding on tight as the dreaded first turn was approaching, no chance to look back. Stuart Williams and Steve Yabsley took the clear water and were off into the horizon, only to be seen again at the end of the heat in the centre of the course celebrating their first win, Bernico Bob McCarthy and Nigel Couch in A9 took the second place and were not easy to get past, Mark and myself in A11 spent the whole of heat 1 caught in the wrath of the Bernicos wake, not a nice experience. It is too hard to overtake the Bernico unless you have the legs on it in a faster boat.
Heat 2 was again A30’s to win, Stuart and Steve are flying this season after Steve having found a blockage in the fuel system which gave them problems at round 1 in Torquay, Steve found the problem too soon I reckon. This heat however we arrived at the turn buoy ahead of Bernico Bob so it was a problem less to contend with. Being stuck in the wake of a phantom, is no comparison to the wake of the Bernico, the ride is smoother. I don’t want to think what it will be like when Jeremy Gibson gets to grips with his new Bernico, double the wrath??
On the Sunday the sea was lumpier, Mark decided to go for a different prop and it paid off. From the start we took the lead, however it was not long lived as A30 shot past us, we managed to see a glimpse of turquoise and heard an engine, so I guess it was A30. Mark and I took second place and Bob and Nigel took third in heat 3.
Heat 4 was the most entertaining for the lead boats. Mark and I took the lead and were in sight of the chequered flag and on the home run when A30 appeared on our starboard side at buoy 4, only 2 more buoys to go and we would be home and dry, or so we thought. We got home behind A30 again and not as dry as we would have liked, A30 crossed our path and sent a wall of water into our boat. 2 seconds separated the 2 boats; I think it is the closest finish in the 3 seasons I have been racing for.
On recovering the boat and getting back to the pits, the spectators only commented on the other boats, how they battled for the minor places and made the race interesting, they clashed with each other collided and scraped buoys and put on a show, contrary to the procession that the lead boats put on. A19 Jeremy Gibson was flung out of his boat on buoy 6 in front of and as close to the public as possible, A13 The Laughton brother’s hit a buoy and were very lucky as on one of the turns the boat was on it’s starboard side and the driver Graham had his torso under water, he managed to put his foot down and take control of his boat and was soon on the race line again competing to take his 4th position. A10 went over between buoy 4 and 5, thankfully Phil and Nicky were unharmed, but I was right when I christened the Concorde, The yellow Submarine, in place of its registered name The Black Pearl. Steve and Alison in A2 and Richard and Jake in A29 seemed to come out unscathed of this battle, but if the case is not so I will let you know on the next report. Credit to James and Mark who crewed Avago Racing A25, a boat that is for hire for first time racers. James drove superbly and did himself proud he finished in a respectable 6th position. I am also told that this must be the first weekend that A25 has actually started and finished a race without any problems.
A30 overall 1st, A11 overall 2nd and A9 overall 3rd, for the rest of the placings and RYA/OCR positions see the point’s table.
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TEIGNMOUTH ROUND 3, 4 HEATS, 26TH AND 28TH MAY 07
Saturday 26th, Flat water on the sea front made the first 2 heats very comfortable to race in. At the drop of the Flag all boats arrived at the first turn buoy at the same time, with the exception of Aquaholic A30 which arrived well before the others. Each time the distance at the start runs between the boats are getting closer and closer. Steve and Ali in Black N Blue A2 gave us a run for our money, during the start lap they managed to stay on our starboard side up to buoy 6. Mark held the inside line and turned tight, Steve went wide fortunately for Mark and myself we were able to cut across him and take the inside line for buoy 7. From this moment on we obtained a decent distance and now felt comfortable. Steve and Ali also had a good distance from the rest of the pack, no way were they going to be caught. Mark and I had our sights set on A30 they had at least 100mtr advantage on us. Mid heat A30 seemed to take buoy 6 too tight and squeeze through the gap between B15 driven by Wayne Parsons and navigated by Mark Shear who at the time were taking the turn with A25 Avago racing on their starboard side. Wayne had nowhere to go other than try and keep a straight line. Stuarts prop picked up the buoy and A30 came to a sudden stop. Now Mark and I were in the lead, with A2 still in second place and A13 in third with a considerable distance between each boat. The only way that any overtaking would happen at that stage was if any of the lead boats would cease to race.
Heat 2 saw the boats take a standing start, Mark and I in A11 The Rock took the lead from the start and maintained it with Steve and Ali hot on our heels. The Lawton brothers in A13 and Bernico Bob and Nigel Couch in A9 battled it out for a while to take the third place with Bernico Bob taking it in this heat.
Due to the weather and sea conditions the racing on Sunday was postponed until Monday, however the plug was pulled too soon and by 3pm the sea was race-able by this time it was too late the crews were out and about doing their own thing. Unfortunately the A2 crew were not able to race on Monday and had to leave. Dare I say that had they remained in Teignmouth they would have certainly put on another good show.
On the Monday the weather was similar to that of Saturday. A30 was now back and ready to race. Again Stuart and Steve arrived at the first turn buoy ahead of every other boat and took a considerable lead. Mark and I followed in second place with A13 in third. We managed to keep our placing and I was now convinced that the final heat would be a photocopy of the one we had just run. How wrong was I !
The Start of heat 4 was identical to heat 3 all the boats in the same positions, however we suffered a set back. Part of the electrics on the boat failed the trim and rev counter failed us, the screen was blank. Mark was hoping to get a feel for the trim without the visual on the counter, to make matters worse the trim was not responding. The boat was doing every thing except what it should have been doing. A30 now obtained a greater lead and the pack was catching up. Eventually A9 and A13 overtook us, as we waved A29 past our electrics came on again and we were off. Apologies to Richard and Jake in A29 who must have thought that we were being cheeky and playing with them. We soon caught up with A9 and A13 we ran the back straight 3 abreast and took buoy 5 in a perfect horizontal line. We then saw A9 slow down he was also suffering a set back. The Lawtons now held the inside line and the boat seemed to be gaining more speed. Slowly but surely they were getting away from us. We would have to be content with a third place. A9 by now was back on track and managed to take a fourth place.
The placing for the weekend for the top 3 boats are as follow;
1ST A11 The Rock = 742 Pts. 2ND A13 Voodoo = 650 Pts. 3RD Bernico Racing = 600Pts.
For the rest of the placings and points please visit the points page on this site.
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Written by Fleur Tytheridge,
ROUND 5 RYA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
14th & 15th July 2007 – Ilfracombe
Saturday 14th…
It was yet another eventful 2 days of racing for the A class powerboat teams in Ilfracombe this weekend. Saturdays racing commenced with good weather conditions which was a well received bonus for both racers and spectators as we saw Ilfracombe’s pier packed with a welcoming crowd.
Heat 1 had Aquaholics and The Rock leading the way for the 9 participating boats, each powerboat battling the waves to gain water. The Lawton brothers (Team Voodoo) decided to go for a swim as they stuffed their boat into a wave at one of the turnbuoys, seeing navigator Craig dunked and driver Graham hanging from the boat by the steering wheel! However, they managed to keep their position in the race and carried on although very wet! Vital Spark retired from the race as his new navigator couldn’t hack the pace but rejoined the second heat with a replacement! The Black Pearl also had to retire from the first heat due to an engine fault but did not rejoin that day. The rest of the heat went smoothly with just the few normal occasions of missed turnbuoys and near-on collisions!
Heat 2 gave the eager crowd yet something else to keep them entertained as we saw Y-Knot’s driver Jeremy and navigator Big Ben roll their boat, leaving them swimming and their boat sinking! Fortunately, the boat was towed to safety and both were fine – except for 2 wounded egos! The heat went just as well as the first after Y-Knot’s stunt, giving spectators an amazing performance.
In both heats Aquaholics won 1st place, The Rock came 2nd and Racing Green got 3rd place.
Sunday 15th…
A late start for Sundays heats due to weather conditions not permitting. We had little rain but it was rough waters that postponed the racing and it now seems to be a regular occurrence to dive for the trailers! However, the weather did not deter our spectators who showed in full force again. The course layout was adjusted, removing the chicane, to ensure a safe race and, in a bid to still compete, the heats were shortened to just 1 lasting 32 minutes plus 1 lap instead of the usual 2 x 25 minutes. Unfortunately, Team Voodoo did not race in this heat due to an engine failure.
All boats had a great start with close competition throughout. The Rock was taking the lead this time but with Aquaholics on their tails. Racing Green, performing very well at this event, were holding 3rd place and were not budging. It was a great race throughout, although very choppy, ensuring all the boats were in the air more than they were in the water! Aquaholics decided to give the spectators something to talk about when following the footsteps of Y-Knot in Saturdays racing. After hitting some rough water they too ended up taking a swim as they flipped their boat which was left bobbing in the sea! Luckily enough both were fine and the boat was recovered. There were some hairy moments throughout the race but the remaining boats successfully completed the heat giving 1st place to The Rock, 2nd place to Racing Green and 3rd place to Bernico Racing..
The Results…
1st – A11 The Rock
2nd – A29 Racing Green
3rd – A9 Bernico Racing
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RACE REPORTS 07
