Foxer Intergalactic Champs at Hamble River Sailing Club

Foxer 'Intergalactic' Championships 2009 © Malcolm Donald / www.malcolmdonald.com

Foxer 'Intergalactic' Championships 2009 © Malcolm Donald / www.malcolmdonald.com

Foxer 'Intergalactic' Championships 2009 © Malcolm Donald / www.malcolmdonald.com

Proudly supported by Marlin RIBs, Musto, Ullman Sails and Wilsons of Kinver

The weekend of 6th-7th June was an incredibly competitive one for many sailors on the South Coast with testing conditions from both ends of the Beaufort scale.

For the 2009 Foxer Championships, known affectionately as the Intergalactic Championships, the 31 helms awoke to find strong easterly breezes to challenge their boat handling skills. Principal Race Officer Claudia Schaefer and her team on board the small fleet of support boats kindly supplied for the event by Marlin RIBs looked at setting the fleet a race course outside the confines of the Hamble River near Cat Head but with strong pulses of wind of up to 22 knots and a fair chop for these little ‘tubs’ sense prevailed and racing was organised near the Eastern shore of the Hamble River to the north of Warsash. Four helms had already decided that the conditions were such that they were too likely to be taking a swim so headed for shore. The remainder of the competitors were given 6 races with the ability to keep the boat underneath its sail being the main tactic and challenge for many.

With the wind backing a little more as the day went on it became impossible to set a fair course for such a large fleet within the confines of the river so it became a test of who had the biggest kahunas at the start line to find the right gap between the other boats as they sailed down the line at speed (a relative term for these boats) towards the pin end. Those that came out at speed and the ability to tack on to port early were rewarded with a direct drag race to the top mark and then once round the spreader mark it was important to balance these very tippy boats as the wind piped up and they headed to the leeward gate.

First blood in race one went to relative newcomer to the fleet, Shaun Barber (multiple B14 World Champion) in a closely fought race with Tom Bernstein (a former German 470 sailor and in his first ever Foxer race) coming second. The final podium spot in that race was taken by Simon Russell (double Etchells World Champion). The fleet were eager to get off the start line in subsequent races and the black flag rule came in to play for many of the remaining races on this first day.

Some newcomers to the fleet for the weekend’s racing found their egos take a good denting as they rapidly found themselves capsized and at the mercy of the infamous Hamble River Flip-Flop Monster. It has become a rite of passage to capsize a Foxer and much joyful banter was aimed at most of the accomplished big boat sailors as they took their turn to dampen their pride!

Amongst those to loose their Foxer virginity on day one was Tim Spalding (a highly regarded knee surgeon who also advises on medical matters to the Volvo Ocean Race), owner and helm of Love shack, a Bénéteau 40.7 that has had plenty of success in the Solent over the past 5 years or so. As the remainder of the fleet sailed past, ‘Doctor Splash’ was seen to have an infectious smile on his face, maybe knowing that the same fate was to befall a number of more experienced Foxer sailors as the day went on. However, one of the most interesting capsizes occurred in between races. Darren Baker (previously an owner of a series of yachts bearing the name ‘Mad Cow’) was relaxing after a punishing race by lighting a cigarette. A gust of wind flowed down the course and caught poor Darren unawares. Shaun Barber offered the helpful advice of ‘Save the fag’ (which I presume was to mean the cigarette packet) as Darren took a dip. Fortunately Darren took the subsequent banter in great spirits and all to great laughter!

By around 13:30 the scheduled 6 races had been completed and the fleet retired to the clubhouse of the Hamble River Sailing Club for ‘fizz & chips’ and to tell tales of their experiences of the racing. Those who had been in for a swim dried themselves off and took the opportunity to wear their new Musto polo shirts and enjoy the ample supply of champagne and home cooked fish & chips (from our ‘Foxer Vixens’) which had been generously supplied by Ullman Sails.

Sunday dawned bright and with lighter winds from the south. Racing was again held on the Warsash side of the river and the course setters had a much easier job setting a fair course and line. Racing quickly got underway with the full 31 boats fighting for best position on the line, so much so that all of the four race starts were held with the black flag rule enforced. The two lap windward leeward races were closely fought with clear air and the ability to change gear being imperative in these quirky boats as the wind fluctuated from under 5 knots to a few 17 knot gusts.

Tom Bernstein who was regularly at the front end of the fleet came a cropper in race 8 with a fantastic capsize whilst trying to heel the boat a bit too far to weather on a downwind leg. After righting his boat he began the task of bailing her out and then retired, tying up to the committee vessel to be berated by Race Officer Claudia, his girlfriend, for embarrassing her so much. She did eventually lend him a dry jacket to wear for the remainder of the racing.

The close racing continued with all bar one sailor fall outside the top ten in one or more races. The consistency of Ian Southworth’s 8 first place finishes allowed him to drop an 8th and 2nd from his score to win the championship from recent addition to the Hamble fleet, Shaun Barber and Tony Kilby in 3rd.

The prize giving was held along with a barbeque with a range of fantastic prizes for competitors donated by all the sponsors. The Ladies Trophy, significantly larger than the overall trophy, was won by a ‘vixen’ in her first Foxer outing, Sarah Norbury. There were even some light-hearted prizes to contend for such as Musto towels for certain spectacular capsizes and Musto knee pads for some tired, aching sailors.

Overall Results: