Thorpe Bay Yacht Club

Tel: 01702 587 563

Pico Nationals 2008 Thorpe Bay Yacht Club.

By Mike Thomason 23 June 2008

Thorpe Bay Yacht Club hosted the 2008 Laser Pico Nationals over the weekend of 21^st and 22^nd June with varied conditions for the 46 entrants from around the UK with an age range of 7 – 54.

The event attracted sponsors from The Laser Centre, Wet Suit Outlet, Yachts & Yachting and Henry Lloyd.

This is the third year the Pico Nationals have been hosted (2007 Gurnard) and already the fleet turnouts are exceeding all expectations for this amazingly versatile dinghy equally suitable for children and adults. This year the Nationals were sailed as a single fleet with handicapping for different sail and crew arrangements.

Fresh winds and a lumpy sea greeted the starters for this year’s Championships and although the conditions were not idyllic – there was an abundance of enthusiasm and competitiveness from the younger crews.Three races were scheduled for each day in the broad uncluttered expanse of the Thames Estuary overseen by professional race officer Alan Willis and equally supported by Sally, Linda and Lisa.

Race 1 started cleanly in a steady force 4 on the flood tide. James French (Gurnard) made a clean break from the pack and was first round the top mark followed by Dan Henderson with new crew Max Duce (TBYC), then Natalya Eyre and Ben Warrington (TBYC) and Alex Farrell (TBYC). After much jostling with the top four James French pulled back into the lead to take the win by 16 seconds on this traditional triangle sausage course.

Race 2 saw the bulk of the fleet right on the line at the start with 2 crews being OCS and pulled back by the race officers. Racing was tight all the way to the top mark with few rule infringements. James French had a comfortable lead on the top mark from Mark Harrison, Andrew Paterson, Natalya Eyre and Dan Henderson when James capsized on to the mark whilst bearing away. Despite a rapid recovery and taking a penalty turn, James was overhauled by the top pack on the reach to the gybe mark. On the next upwind leg and with a freshening breeze, Dan Henderson changed up a gear, got into his stride and pulled into the lead to take the gun by 14 seconds from Andrew Paterson.

Race 3 with the Thames Spring Ebb in full flow saw some interesting tactical changes on the start. To start at the committee boat end or the pin down tide was the question. The fleet was divided as this is where all up weight became critical on the Pico with the heavier crews opting for the up tide end and tacking straight off onto port. The lighter crews on the pin made excellent progress to reach the top mark in a tight bunch with the opposing group. 10 boats rounded in quick succession led by James, Dan, Andrew and Natalya. Shifting wind saw the top 5 fighting all the way down wind to the leeward mark with Dan inches behind James at the turn. On the final beat to the finish Dan and Max took the win by 2 seconds on corrected time from James.

The overnight positions gave Dan and Max a 2,1,1, with James 1,4,2, so all to play for on Sunday.

Sunday with 3 races scheduled – bright, sunny and a constant 30mph on the TBYC on line weather station gave Alan Willis no choice but to cancel the second day racing much to the relief of the competitors and safety boat crews.

Dan Henderson and Max Duce were crowned as the Pico 2008 National Champions, with James French runner up followed by Natalya Eyre / Ben Warrington in third, Ben Green in fourth and Mark Harrison who scored a consistent 5,5,5 in fifth.

The Wight Cable Cadet Cup (first under 15) was won by James French and the Designers Cup was won by Peter and Rupert Snow.

The Isle of Wight Trophy for first youngest with a combined age of 18 was won by Finlay Cullender and Alex Thomason.

Generous equipment prizes were awarded to the top 8 by Wet Suit Outlet, Henry Lloyd and Laser performance.

Prize giving culminated with Simon Ogden from Laser Performance pulling out the winning raffle ticket and presenting a brand new race sport Pico to an amazed Tom Harrison.

The weekend again proved the Pico to be an exceptional racing boat – great for learning tactics and capable of being raced in varied wind strengths by light and heavy weight crews for competitive racing.

A fantastic time was had by all on and off the water. The Pico class are a very friendly bunch – noted by not a single protest being made for infringements which made the protest committee redundant.

Our thanks to Shaun Christian for his fantastic skills in organising and running the Nationals. Thorpe Bay Yacht Club which excels at hosting these events, the race officers and spotters, Tony Clarke and his support crews, Howard Hawkes for acting as beach master, our sponsors and never forgetting of course the cadet mums for supplying us with home made cakes and hot chocolate.

Top 10 results.

Please click on the image on the right or look in the Photo Gallery situated to the left of this article to see some photos taken by Nigel Campling during Saturdays racing.

Thanks Nigel

PS. If anyone has any more please either get them to me via email or cd.

A big thank you to all involved in the Nationals.

The weekend started on Thursday night with race run throughs,cleaning and painting slipway etc, right through to Sunday packing away boats and prize giving.

Well done this type of event would not be as successfull without all of your help.

Congatulations to Dan Henderson & Max Duce who are now the 2008 Pico National Champions

Regards Spratty

Entry Forms have been coming in all week and the current estimate looks like we will have over 50 Pico’s out racing. We have a number of visitors attending the Nationals so please give them a warm and friendly TBYC welcome.

You can enter on the morning but it would be helpful if TBYC sailors could get theirs in beforehand, this will help with results & speed up registration.

There will be a briefing by the Race Officer at 11.30 a.m. on Saturday morning with the first race scheduled for 12.55 p.m. start. If you would like a packed lunch these will be available from the club chef but need to be ordered in advance of Saturday (£3.50 for a sandwich, chocolate bar, crisps and a bottle of water). Visitors please speak to the chef as soon as you arrive.

After sailing on Saturday your entry price includes a free meal and Karaoke. If you need extra meals please either note this on your entry form or speak to the Chef (extra meals coat £5.50 each).

Any other questions please give me a call. Entry forms can be downloaded from this website. Please click on “Pico’s” down the left hand side on the screen.

I look forward to seeing you on Saturday.

Shaun  – mobile 07881 501 675

TBYC Cadets – At Cadet Night this week on Thursday 19th June Rupert will be giving a talk on what to expect and how to prepare for the Pico Nationals.

Dear Finn Sailor

The J.M.Finn & Co. Finn National Championships is fast approaching and takes place over the 4,5, & 6th of July at Thorpe Bay Yacht Club in Essex.

The club would like to extend a warm invitation to you to enter the event that has been generously sponsored by J.M.Finn & Co. stockbrokers. The entry fee includes a free BBQ on the Friday and the Finn Championship Dinner with live music on the Saturday night. Food will be available during the day and on Thursday evening and the club has a great veranda for supporters to watch the racing from. (Handily placed within a short stagger from the bar!)

The club is looking forward to hosting the Finns and has gone to great lengths, re-furbishing the changing rooms, smoothing the beach and laying astro-turf especially to make launching easy for us all!

North Sails and Yachts & Yachting have kindly donated trophies and prizes and our new class sponsor has also provided shirts for every entrant. There will also be trophies for top Junior and each Master’s category so whatever your age group there will be plenty to race for. The Olympic squad have promised to attend so don’t miss your chance to pit your wits against Britain’s finest Finn sailors.

Car Parking

TBYC has ample free car parking and boat storage facilities in the field to the east of the main dinghy park. On arrival you will be given a TBYC car sticker that must be displayed in you car in order to get free car parking.

Accommodation

TBYC is just a couple of miles along the seafront from Southend-On-Sea so has a good selection of hotels and B&B’s. We have listed details of a few local places that are a short distance from the clubhouse.

www.roslinhotel.com

www.beachesguesthouse.co.uk

www.premierinn.com – search for their Thorpe Bay Hotel

If camping facilities are required please contact us. Depending on numbers we can accommodate camping and camper vans at the clubhouse.

If you have any questions regarding the weekend please contact [email protected] or the Club Secretary Lorraine Stevens. The Club Secretary can be contacted between 10am and 2pm Tuesday to Friday.

Address

115 Thorpe Bay Gardens
Thorpe Bay
Essex
SS1 3NW
Tel: (01702) 587563

Email – [email protected]

Entries.

Notice of Race – Finn National Championship

Sailing Instructions – Finn National Championship

Entry Form – Finn National Championship

To avoid the late entry fee, get your entry form and payment in by June 23^rd to Allen Burrell.

We are really looking forward to welcoming as many Finns as possible to the event and can guarantee you great racing and a fun social time…make sure you don’t miss it!

Best wishes from the Thorpe Bay Finn fleet,

Allen, John, Sander, Mark, Keith & Laurence.

Race Report

Wetsuit Outlet Pico Series

Summer Races1&2

Once again, huge thanks to Peter Thompson for his sponsorship of yet another Pico Series. Peter’s enthusiasm for increasing Cadet and Family membership at TBYC and getting as many people as possible on the water, enjoying sailing, is legendary. The sight on the water at the start of the first race of the Summer Series proved excellent vindication of all his generosity and dedication to the club as 26 Picos and 49 Cadets and adult family members vied for the best position from which to attack the first beat.

The spirit of this series was evident from the crowd that gathered at the top of the slip for the pre-race briefing; experience ranging from National Champions and sailors with 20+ years of competitive sailing behind them (sailing with less experienced sailors to encourage and coach them), to complete novices to racing, some with only a couple of hours in a boat! Particular thanks to Chris Clarke (ex club Sailing Secretary), whom I caught walking through the dinghy park before racing, on his way home having decided not to sail that day. It took hardly any persuading on my part for him to drive home, get his sailing gear and offer to take one of our newest members, Jourdan Swindon, out on the water to coach him through his first experience of sailing at TBYC. The smile on Jourdan’s face at the end of each race was exactly what the club is surely all about and payment indeed for Chris’s generosity (particularly as he had to endure being lapped by Alex Farrall, who often sails with Chris as his crew on the RS200!!).

The first race got off to a clean start with some of the regular leaders finding the sheer numbers on the line a little difficult to cope with and by the first mark, several were still buried in the pack with a lot to do. Laura and Adele did magnificently in their first ever race and despite early setbacks and a couple of swims, persevered (in a tide that turned over an hour before high tide!) to sail unaided back to the slip between races with grins still in place and the desire to get back out and do it again! Well done girls, keep it up and with that attitude, you will soon be sailing up the fleet!

I was delighted that no-one was disqualified for missing the gate on the upwind leg, everyone having taken heed of my briefing where I mentioned the rule on several occasions (so a huge ‘sorry’ to Peter, my helm, who had to shout at me to remind me of my own briefing!). There was a treat in store for our valiant race officers as the final beat played out like an Americas Cup match-race, between Vicky and Tina Little and Thomas and Tracy Metcalf, with helms covering every tack and jostling for line-honours, which were eventually snatched by the Metcalf’s in a nail-biting finish.

The start of the second race was like watching an open meeting (less infringements and no-one OCS, or over the line, though). It was one of the best starts in a Pico Series (or club race) I have ever seen and even Wes, on the rescue boat, was impressed and he knows a thing or two about one-design starts, being a regular contender at Laser open meetings…

Anyway Peter found himself (and his apparently heavy crew) closing on the front-runners and at one point in second place, with the wind becoming more fickle, there were huge gains (and losses) to be made in a race where the tide played a significant role!

The amount of learning that goes on in these conditions is phenomenal and when surrounded by so many other identical boats, good decisions and bad, are shown up immediately as are techniques and concentration! A win for Alex Farrell and Max Duce was thoroughly deserved after they calmly survived a nervy 5 minutes at the windward mark with the rest of the fleet closing on them as they did pirouettes in their own vacuum! Having let us get within touching distance, they re-connected the di-lithium crystal and promptly disappeared over the horizon!

Thanks to Shaun Christian for lending us his family’s Pico. We had ‘bagged’ a club Pico, but when a new member arrived to sail, I knew they should take precedence, so without Shaun’s generosity and trust, we wouldn’t have got on the water. Remember folks…the Club Pico’s are designed for Sail Training and encouraging new members, (who may have ordered a boat, but not yet have it in the dinghy park). As such, please do get down early and ‘bagsy’ a club Pico if you want to use one, but remember that you may be asked to share it with a new member if deemed appropriate by one of the Cadet Team.

Finally, thanks to the Race Officers; Linda, Lisa, Debbie and Jane (and Bev, who had offered her services before the race). Without these volunteers none of us could race so if you are not involved in racing yourself and fancy helping out (it is a great way to watch the racing and learn about how racing actually works), let one of them know on a Thursday night and they will be happy to get you involved – it really isn’t rocket science!!

See you all at the top of the slip on Saturday…

Rupert Snow

Have you got your entry form in yet, if not you still have time.

The entry price of £20.00 for two up and £15.00 for single handed pico’s covers racing on both days, plus an evening meal on Saturday followed by karaoke.

Thanks to our sponsors we have some great prizes which includes a NEW PICO to be raffled amongst those that sail in all races over the weekend.

For Entry Forms, Sailing Instructions and some great deals on new sails and spares click on “Pico’s” down the left-hand side on the screen.

If any visitors are arriving on the Friday and need access to the dinghy park or are camping please give me a call and I will be happy to meet you on arrival.

Kind regards

Shaun – mobile 07881 501 675

Sponsors – LaserPerformance, Henri-Lloyd, Yachts & Yachting, wetsuitoutlet.co.uk

With just two weeks to the Pico Nationals it is not to late to get your entry in. The entry price of £20.00 for two up and £15.00 for single handed pico’s covers racing on both days, plus an evening meal on Saturday followed by karaoke.

Thanks to our sponsors we have some great prizes which includes a NEW PICO to be raffled amongst those that sail in all races over the weekend.

For Entry Forms, Sailing Instructions and some great deals on new sails and spares click on “Pico’s” down the left-hand side on the screen.

Any questions please give me a call.

Kind regards

Shaun – mobile 07881 501 675

Sponsors – LaserPerformance, Henri-Lloyd, Yachts & Yachting, wetsuitoutlet.co.uk

If you are visiting the TBYC website for details on the Laser Pico Nationals please click on the “Nationals” tab on the left had side of the screen for further details, including Sailing Instructions and Entry Forms. Also see the how you could win a new Pico.

If you are visiting the TBYC website for details on the Laser Pico Nationals please click on the “Nationals” tab on the left had side of the screen for further details, including Sailing Instructions and Entry Forms. Also see the how you could win a new Pico.