From Thursday until Saturday, the fleet continued to congregate at the Durban Naval Shipyard. In total, 34 boats arrived from locations all over the country and from overseas. Weighing, measuring and launching took place on Friday and Saturday, with the fleet safely moored together outside Point Yacht Club by the evening of Saturday. Sunday would see us finally out on the water.
Despite expectations of summer in Durban, Sunday was grey and drizzly, more in keeping with Birmingham than South Africa. Spirits remained high however, regardless of any (or many and varied) excesses from the night before. The fleet did a sail past in the morning with spinnakers flying. Almost all had new 'chutes and there were "interesting" choices of colours from a lot of the competitors, with Tony Money on Jabberwock going for a kind of snot green and Jessica Lenz on Pottz Soft Play sporting a particularly luminous puke-yellow example. We were reserved and stylish (as always) with a muted grey and red.
After this we were out of the harbour for a tune-up race. As the competitors lined up, it was clear that competition was going to be fierce. Many of the crews were conducting mysterious drills and practice exercises (at least, they were mysterious to us) before the start as they got their first taste of sailing offshore.
The first start had to be aborted following starts varying from the amibitious to the the frankly ridiculous. Everyone was innocent, of course, but all sailors are. The second start was cleaner and we were able to pound our way up the course through the rising swell. At the front, gauntlets were being thrown as the defending champions from Holland, Het Branche Bureau (HBB)/SLAM skippered by Jeroen van den Boer and Orion Express skippered by Mark Sadler duked it out. Mark was first around the windward mark and held his lead until the bottom of the course.
At the gate, the two leaders split with HBB/SLAM heading along the beach and out to sea. Jeroen had spotted a change in the tide as he rounded the mark and ended up leading by a significant margin at the start of the second lap. So much for local knowledge. They held their position until the end of the race showing that relieving them of their title was going to be an uphill battle.
For the rest of the fleet, this was very much a learning process. Jumping Jive, skippered by Dale Kushner was eventually third, followed by First Ascent/Greenlight (David Hudson) and, fresh from the Americas Cup on Schozaloza, Ian Ainslie on Eikos. The remainder came through in dribs and drabs as the extent of the challenge before them became apparent.
Sunday evening saw the now traditional welcome from the hosting club commmodore and the J22 SA Chairman, Graham Baker. The latter was on his usual belligerent form as he stoked up the noise in the dining room. He also decided that each crew had to introduce themselves with some sort of amusing anecdote. These varied from the touching to the vaguely obscene, the variance appearing to be down to the amount of "refreshments" the crews had consumed.
Next: The Storms.....
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
The Story So Far....
Tuesday 18th December
After six days here in Durban, we are still waiting for the first official race to take place!! Over the past couple of days, the wind has been regularly gusting up to 45 knots and this, along with the destruction of the moorings, mean that we are unlikely to race until tomorrow.
Crews are amusing themselves in any way that they can. Boats have been fettled, beer has been drunk and rubbish has been spoken - pretty much an average regatta then! Four races in total need to be sailed in order for the regatta to be classed as official and it is hoped that we will definitely get that.
The event started for Windgat last Thursday morning at 0400. Being a fine and upstanding member of society, I was unaware that there was actually a 4am as well as a pm. Paraphrasing Robin Williams in "Good Morning Vietnam", what does the "0" stand for? 0 my God, it's early. As expected, on arrival at TYC, neither Steve nor BJ were ready. However, after much chuntering on the part of the small, hairy fella, we got the boat hitched up and were on our way.
Those of you that know us from previous regattas will be unsurprised to hear that the journey did not pass without incident. After a fuel stop, the Land Rover started to judder and swerve rather unpredictably. Fearing that this was a recurrence of the famed Solihull "reliability", we pulled over as soon as we could. It turned out that a wheel bearing on the trailer had failed. Cue colourful profanities from our skipper. With three wheels on our wagon, we continued on our way.
We actually made it to Durban ahead of schedule and, after picking up an indecipherable map from Point Yacht Club, we made our way to the Naval yard where measuring and weighing were to take place the following day. After touring most of Durban trying to find the place, we were eventually spotted by Dom Provoyeur and Penny Alison from MACS. Despite (or maybe because of) being German, they had rather efficiently discovered the yard already and guided us in.
To be continued......
After six days here in Durban, we are still waiting for the first official race to take place!! Over the past couple of days, the wind has been regularly gusting up to 45 knots and this, along with the destruction of the moorings, mean that we are unlikely to race until tomorrow.
Crews are amusing themselves in any way that they can. Boats have been fettled, beer has been drunk and rubbish has been spoken - pretty much an average regatta then! Four races in total need to be sailed in order for the regatta to be classed as official and it is hoped that we will definitely get that.
The event started for Windgat last Thursday morning at 0400. Being a fine and upstanding member of society, I was unaware that there was actually a 4am as well as a pm. Paraphrasing Robin Williams in "Good Morning Vietnam", what does the "0" stand for? 0 my God, it's early. As expected, on arrival at TYC, neither Steve nor BJ were ready. However, after much chuntering on the part of the small, hairy fella, we got the boat hitched up and were on our way.
Those of you that know us from previous regattas will be unsurprised to hear that the journey did not pass without incident. After a fuel stop, the Land Rover started to judder and swerve rather unpredictably. Fearing that this was a recurrence of the famed Solihull "reliability", we pulled over as soon as we could. It turned out that a wheel bearing on the trailer had failed. Cue colourful profanities from our skipper. With three wheels on our wagon, we continued on our way.
We actually made it to Durban ahead of schedule and, after picking up an indecipherable map from Point Yacht Club, we made our way to the Naval yard where measuring and weighing were to take place the following day. After touring most of Durban trying to find the place, we were eventually spotted by Dom Provoyeur and Penny Alison from MACS. Despite (or maybe because of) being German, they had rather efficiently discovered the yard already and guided us in.
To be continued......
Friday, November 23, 2007
Blue Jay - J22 170
Boat Name: Blue Jay
Often seen in various forms of undress, Nevan has the unenviable task of trying to remain on the foredeck when his skipper takes a sudden leave of absence and Blue Jay spirals out of control. It takes Russian gymnasts years to achieve Nevan's levels of balance but they don't have to cope with a surface that is constantly moving while having buckets of water chucked at them. Or some argumentative old geezer chuntering constantly.
Sail Number: 170
Sponsors: TBC
Recognisable by: Numerous and Varied Skipper Recoveries, Celestial Visions, Rowdy Partying and Highly Vocal Drunkeness
Crew Members:
Graham Baker, Skipper:
Graham is one of the leading J22 sailors in South Africa and the local Chairman of the J22 Association. Despite this, he is rapidly gaining a reputation for falling off his boat at inopportune moments. An example of this can be seen on the right. Having established the fact that walking on water is rather more difficult than he thought, Graham is now looking at doing the fishes and loaves thing to cover catering for the World Championships. Other competitors are more interested in the water to wine trick that is in the preliminary stages of development.
Ronnie Gurnell
, Midships:
Ronnie is the elder statesman of the South African J22 fleet but still seems able to keep up with the "youngsters" (those of us under 70). Despite his advancing years, Ronnie regularly holds court in various yacht club bars across the country. Inevitably, this often means he's not always in mint condition when the racing starts but with his skipper's habit of going over the side, the team often have a weight advantage that negates his hangover. That and the fact that laughter is a guaranteed cure for any form of ailment.
, Midships:Ronnie is the elder statesman of the South African J22 fleet but still seems able to keep up with the "youngsters" (those of us under 70). Despite his advancing years, Ronnie regularly holds court in various yacht club bars across the country. Inevitably, this often means he's not always in mint condition when the racing starts but with his skipper's habit of going over the side, the team often have a weight advantage that negates his hangover. That and the fact that laughter is a guaranteed cure for any form of ailment.
Nevan Lucas, Foredeck:
Often seen in various forms of undress, Nevan has the unenviable task of trying to remain on the foredeck when his skipper takes a sudden leave of absence and Blue Jay spirals out of control. It takes Russian gymnasts years to achieve Nevan's levels of balance but they don't have to cope with a surface that is constantly moving while having buckets of water chucked at them. Or some argumentative old geezer chuntering constantly. Davidoff Cool Water - J22 772
Boat Name: Davidoff Cool Water
Sail Number: 772
Bow Number: 29
Sponsors: Davidoff Cool Water
Recognisable by: Loud Arguments at the Start, Dubious Protesting, Occassional Forgetfulness
Crew Members:
Sir David Scorey, KCB, DSO and Bar, Skipper:
Sir David started sailing in South Africa shortly after the First World War. With his accumulated 90 plus years of experience, he is recognised as one of the trickiest sailors in the fleet. Pictured right in his younger days, Sir David is constantly baffled by the emergence of new technology, stating that a sextant and a good sense of smell is all a chap needs for successful navigation. He's also deeply suspicious of anything new-fangled he sees on the visiotube (television) or anyone that uses such things. "It's just not cricket," is a constant refrain, despite being on a boat and making that fact blindingly obvious.
Vanessa Henry, Midships:
In complete
contrast to her frankly barking mad skipper, Vanessa is a veritable haven of tranquility on board Davidoff. Not afraid to give Sir David a verbal kicking when needed, boats sailing in close formation with are well advised to bring ear plugs should the conditions get tetchy. On shore, Vanessa is well known for doing anything (within reason) for a large glass of Chardonnay.
Sharin Richmond, Foredeck:
If you look up the definition of "nice" in the dictionary, there is very likely to be a picture of Sharin. Often seen hugging anyone that will let her, Sharin does however occassionally get punchy. This is normally as a result of Sir David's blunderbuss humour and sledgehammer wit but order can usually be resumed with the liberal administration of white wine.
Sail Number: 772
Bow Number: 29
Sponsors: Davidoff Cool Water
Recognisable by: Loud Arguments at the Start, Dubious Protesting, Occassional Forgetfulness
Crew Members:
Sir David Scorey, KCB, DSO and Bar, Skipper:
Sir David started sailing in South Africa shortly after the First World War. With his accumulated 90 plus years of experience, he is recognised as one of the trickiest sailors in the fleet. Pictured right in his younger days, Sir David is constantly baffled by the emergence of new technology, stating that a sextant and a good sense of smell is all a chap needs for successful navigation. He's also deeply suspicious of anything new-fangled he sees on the visiotube (television) or anyone that uses such things. "It's just not cricket," is a constant refrain, despite being on a boat and making that fact blindingly obvious.
Vanessa Henry, Midships:
In complete
contrast to her frankly barking mad skipper, Vanessa is a veritable haven of tranquility on board Davidoff. Not afraid to give Sir David a verbal kicking when needed, boats sailing in close formation with are well advised to bring ear plugs should the conditions get tetchy. On shore, Vanessa is well known for doing anything (within reason) for a large glass of Chardonnay.Sharin Richmond, Foredeck:
If you look up the definition of "nice" in the dictionary, there is very likely to be a picture of Sharin. Often seen hugging anyone that will let her, Sharin does however occassionally get punchy. This is normally as a result of Sir David's blunderbuss humour and sledgehammer wit but order can usually be resumed with the liberal administration of white wine.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Windgat - J22 185
Boat Name: Windgat
Rob is the token Brit on Windgat. Recognisable but the constantly dazzling reflection from his unprotected, follicly-challenged head, Rob is usually the target of Steve's choicer comments during a regatta. Rob is also known for his complete lack of balance, meaning that midships is the logical place for him. As the only non-Afrikaans speaking member of the crew, Rob gets paranoid when conversations on board are conducted without him understanding what's being said. This is probably with good reason.
BJ Smit, Foredeck:
BJ is the baby of the crew at 17. Known for his passion for hair gel, staying up late and rapidly increasing height, BJ only started sailing in February. Targeted by Steve as something of a protege, BJ is led astray on a regular basis by the skipper, normally in the pursuit of female sailors and various other forms of trouble. BJ is neither Steve nor Rob's son. He's also certainly not Steve's younger brother, whatever people are told.
Sail Number: 185
Bow Number: 14
Sponsors: RSA Security, Tipping Point, AdaptiveMobile
Recognisable by: Spectacular Broaching, Colourful Language, Occassional Nakedness
Crew Members:
Steve Thysse, Skipper:
Steve is the oldest, hairest and loudest member of the Windgat crew. Easily recognisable by his lovely flowing locks, constant fug of fag smoke and passion for swearing, Steve is reknowned for his optimistic approach to mark rounding and spinnaker drops. Of indeterminate age, Steve lists his hobbies as ****ing drinking, ****ing fighting, ****ing smoking and ****ing.
Rob Watson, Midships:
Rob is the token Brit on Windgat. Recognisable but the constantly dazzling reflection from his unprotected, follicly-challenged head, Rob is usually the target of Steve's choicer comments during a regatta. Rob is also known for his complete lack of balance, meaning that midships is the logical place for him. As the only non-Afrikaans speaking member of the crew, Rob gets paranoid when conversations on board are conducted without him understanding what's being said. This is probably with good reason.BJ Smit, Foredeck:
BJ is the baby of the crew at 17. Known for his passion for hair gel, staying up late and rapidly increasing height, BJ only started sailing in February. Targeted by Steve as something of a protege, BJ is led astray on a regular basis by the skipper, normally in the pursuit of female sailors and various other forms of trouble. BJ is neither Steve nor Rob's son. He's also certainly not Steve's younger brother, whatever people are told.
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