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Over the bank holiday weekend, the British
FD fleet, with the addition of the multinational visiting team Ronald
Stalman (NED) helming for Bill Bernard (USA), enjoyed a classic
championships in their classic boats at a classic venue, Felixstowe
Ferry Sailing Club. In perfect conditions of sunshine and warm winds
between force two and four, the class enjoyed eight very close races,
convincingly won by Jon (Strangler) Williams and Alex (Daddy) Rogers.
First blood on Saturday went to Peter
Doran and Richard Phillips, in a race shortened as the sea breeze
swung the gradient wind. This was followed by the first of a
succession of victories for Strang ‘n’ Alex, with Julian Bridges and
Peter Hadfield robbed of a second as Julian had to retrieve Pete from
the North Sea after he came off the trapeze. In the third race of the
day, Tony Lyall was leading when he had to recover Colin Burns who
went out on the continuous trapeze elastic while covering Stang and
Alex, thus ensuring two new members for the exclusive waterwings club.
Sunday morning saw revenge for Tony and
Colin who led all the way, with Neil Pye and Jamie Whitaker taking
third behind Alex and Strang, as the race was shortened for the
incoming sea breeze. In race five the fleet was again tightly bunched
with no quarter given for the slightest miscalculation of the strong
tide, while in the final race of the day, after the startline
misdemeanours of the Javelin fleet, the black flag was displayed for
the FDs and did for Tony and Colin, leaving the dynamic duo of Strang
and Alex unassailable.
Monday saw one of the best FD races in
GBR for some years with the top five boats almost overlapped at the
top of not only the first but also the second beat in the seventh
race, with the first bottom reach being a complete valediction of FD
sailing, the leading group all within a couple of boat lengths, poles
against the forestay, riding on the edges of control in the sunshine
and the waves. By the second bottom reach the swing to the right meant
that only the foolish tried to carry, and Peter and Richards’
miscalculated macho took them from first to fourth. The last race of
the event was again a victory for Strang and Alex, as the breeze faded
towards the top of one of the beats, spreading the fleet out over what
appeared to be most of the North Sea, especially those parts of it
occupied by inshore trawlers.
The championships was
fantastically well run by FFSC, and the British FD class would like to
extend our thanks to all those involved with providing such a great
event, from the commodore and PRO, to the 505 world champion who
skippered one of the mark boats.
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