RS Vision Open at Burghfield Sailing Club

The first event of the 2009 season got underway last weekend with the Burghfield Vision Open. Out of the 14 boats that pre-entered, 11 came along on the day and entered. This is the most for any Vision event so far and shows promise for the shape of things to come.

The day began with the now obligatory round of 'whos got what latest mod' and for the first time there was little to see with the only new addition to the boats being the extending arm to the fitting on the jib halyard top furler. This is designed to hold the forestay clear of the jib in order not to foul the sail as you reef / furl. This seemed to go down well with the group, some of which promptly ordered.

Both Matt and Myself had rigged nice and early and were on hand to tweek and adjust everyone elses boats to make sure thay they were in top racing form. The most recurring theme was that of the spinnaker pole retrieval system. If you are planning on replacing bits of string it is worth remembering that the knot positions are crucial in getting the pole to retract all the way and the kite to go into the chute properly.

With the first race at 11:45 and the weather absolutely glorious, the team met under the balcony for the race briefing from the OOD at BSC. The course set around a number of club marks dotted all across the lake and seperated by many islands. This proved a challenge to remember for a number in the group and frantic searching for bits of paper and anything to write on ensued. A roll of gaffa tape and a permanent marker seemed to be passed around from an annonimous source and proved a godsend.

Race 1 saw Team RS start last, having gone the wrong side of the committee boat, proving that even the so called pros get it wrong sometimes. Wind 8kts and beautiful sunshine. A short beat to the windward mark, where 50 degree windshifts tested the assembled Visions was followed by a well deserved kite run to a rounding mark in the middle of the lake. The group fairly well spread by this point and with 3 boats having retired through a mixture of gear failure and for one boat, crew failure, the rest of us battled on. The race ended after 2 laps (1hr5mins) racing and it was in to the galley for home cooked food. Team RS Breathing a sigh of relief at having fought back to get the first bullet of 2009.

Onshore:

Coaching session on race starts and leg tactics. Use of asymetric kites in light winds was discussed and the myth of Aparent wind clarified for many. The 2 broken boats were promptly fixed by the RS Boys and the happy owners were back in the event.

Race 2 saw a cracking start from everybody after the mid day coaching session. The last Vision to cross the line only started 5 seconds after the others. Good skills. By the windward mark it was clear that the superior upwind speed of the lightweight Butterfield boat and the sheer tactical lightwind genius of the Barker Helming was proving to be somewhat of a battle for first. Team RS and one of the Burghfields own sailors were battling for 3rd. 7 of the following pack came into the first mark nose to tail, led by the RS Vision Club co founders Hogben and Hogben in number 400. The proximity of these boats is a sign of how much more improved everyone is since last year where minutes seperated the boats and not seconds as was the case on sunday.

2 laps later and the battle for 1st, 2nd and 3rd was over. The recently repaired boat of Barker coming a good 200 yrds ahead of the Team RS and Butterfield boats. The palying field was set for the final race.

Race 3: All to play for. Back to back with race 2, the final showdown was started in cloudy and slightly more blustery conditions with gusts veering 100 degrees. The word on the street was that there had even been a couple of capsizes in the previous race. Rumours were rife as to who had gone over but we couldn't tell as the visions come up empty and enable the sailors to continue as though nothing had happened.

5,4,1,GO... they were off. Good solid starts from all.

The battle at the back of the pack was just a stough as the one at the front, with the Stannett and Millington boats pulling in some pretty inmpressive results in earlier races the die hard Vision faithful were starting to battle with each other at every level. For crews that had never before experienced the feeling of racing identical boats with people of similar levels of experience, a real atmosphere of competition was developing. Newcomers to the scene, Lygoe and Engel got stuck right in with some fairly bold moves to try and secure their mid fleet standing.

With the gun falling once more to the Oxford boat of Barker and new crew Sam Jenkins, the standings were in.

The beach hummed to the sound of crews and helms relaying their stories from front to back of the fleet and everywhere one turned the sailors were smiling.

A quick de-rig and then it was time for the prize giving and a quick meeting of those that were keen to plan for the next event.

Thanks to all those who made it such a fun event and came with the spirit of the Class in mind. The Vision Owners Club relies on people that want to join in racing but not feel intimidated by shouting and stress usually associated with large fleet racing. If this kind of relaxed atmosphere and attitude is for you, then please get in touch.

Special thanks to Sam Jenkins and Esther Butterfield for representing the Youth. The class is not just for adults and if you fancy coming racing as a family, you can sail with 3 or 4 people in a boat. There is no handicap difference but it's all about the fun.

See you soon.

Overall Results: