R Class Leander Trophy – Foilers lift the game 75yrs on
by Doug Gale - Canterbury R-class Squadron 13 Mar 01:43 GMT
The fleet approaches the top mark during the SuperCup Sprint Series © R-Class
This year’s 75th anniversary of the R Class National Championship for the Leander trophy continued a long tradition of striving for success against all odds, first established by those who bravely served on HMNZS Leander during WWII.
Despite only being sailed in New Zealand, the R Class has enjoyed international recognition as a doublehanded developmental fleet with only a few rules – mostly restricting length, width and sail area – and sailors who are hungry for every opportunity to find more speed.
The latest developments are led by Paul Roe, Malcolm Snowden and Dave Pairman, who have created a new generation of hydrofoils that show a marked increase in speed over previous versions.
And therein was the seemingly impossible challenge: how non-foiling boats could remain competitive against the superior speed of the foilers.
While Roe and Snowden took home the top prize at the 2025 Leander Trophy, hosted by Naval Point Club 13-16 February on Lyttelton Harbour, it wasn’t just their new foils that did the trick. They are an experienced crew who sailed conservatively within the limits of their craft. Only a major malfunction was going to knock them from top spot. But all the other placings were up for grabs, with skill and experience being as important as a fast boat.
Befitting the 75th anniversary of this venerable fleet, 2025 had a strong historic and familial theme. Respected and longtime Auckland sailor Tim Bartlett (Te Guru) sailed with Christchurch-based 12ft Skiff teammate Matt Hix in James Maynard’s boat Rampant. Also participating were the Macintosh brothers – Mark (from Whakatane) sailing with brother Steve (who travelled from Germany) – in the foiling Macintosh designed GreyR, while brother Paul (from Waiheke Island) sailed with Vaughan Snowdon (brother of Malcolm) in the L3 that Sean Milner first launched nearly 20 years ago.
Also making an appearance was veteran sailor and sailmaker extraordinaire Ken Fyfe, who along with his partner Michelle brought their indomitable sense of fun, adding to the off water hi-jinks Leander’s are traditionally known for.
Sailors of this calibre had been missing from the contest for a number of years and lifted the intensity of the contest– something that hopefully can be capitalised on for future championships.
Essentially the contest split into three tribes competing for the top spot – the foiling boats lead by the Roe-Snowdon pairing who hit upwind speeds in excess of 19 knots at times, the Dan Leech-designed L3s with their narrow hulls and wide wings, and the older style Rs which – while a little slower – were the tortoises against the hares.
Race 1 had a fairly tame 12-15 knots with things becoming more interesting that afternoon when Races 2 and 3 were held back to back in a solid 22-kt easterly and relatively flat water (for Lyttelton) created some great racing. Vaughan Snowdon and Paul MacIntosh in the L3 put in consistently good performances, while Bartlett and Hix battled to get ex-12 ft skiff Rampant into race trim. Their efforts paid eventual dividends with a steady climb in the placings. Only a premature end to the contest prevented them from a well-deserved higher placing.
Day 2 saw 3 back-to-back races in winds steadily rising from 20 to 25 kts again in water considered to be fairly flat for Lyttelton. The most dramatic steal of the day was when siblings James Collett and Loren Vincent on Chemical Weapon capsized a couple of boat lengths above the finish line with Steve and Mark MacIntosh bearing down on them on foils. The Colletts managed a quick retrieval (not easy in those winds) to bear away in a gust and take the placing ahead of the Macintosh boat – a feat even more impressive considering Loren had never sailed an R Class before.
Day 3 brought winds in the high 20s combined with an aggressive sea state and – based on a recommendation from Race Officer Ross May that it would be unsafe to put a large fleet on the harbour in such conditions – led to a combined decision to cut short the contest. The required number of races to constitute a series had been met and, in the words of Kenny Rogers, sometimes “you’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ’em, know when to walk away…” The day wasn’t a total loss for everyone however, and heavy weather specialists Bartlett and Hix headed out for a great blast up the harbour with a rescue boat in tow.
With the Leander officially over, Saturday evening saw a great sit-down dinner and prize-giving with top honours going to Roe and Malcolm Snowdon for yet another foiling masterclass. Second place went to brother Vaughan Snowdon and Paul MacIntosh who sailed incredibly well in the non-foiling L3 and were recipients of the re-purposed Ruddiman Trophy for the highest placed non-foiling boat. Third place for the Hayman Cup went to Dave Pairman and Peter Holder in a foiling Woof.
The final day saw fast action in the Sprint Super Cup Series, now in its 31st year. This form of high-speed chaos had five races conducted over a short 500-metre course. Brisk conditions forced a change of venue to the area between Naval Point and the adjacent reef, and the clubhouse provided a great place to watch the many tangles and swims that ensued. As with the Leander, the superior speed of the foils and the skill to exploit them to full advantage saw the Roe-Snowdon combo dominate and take out the trophy.
A big thank you to Naval Point Club Lyttelton and volunteers for a successful contest, race officer Ross May who yet again pulled off a well-executed contest, and Pub Charity for sponsorship. Without Pub Charity’s financial help, many small sporting clubs in this country would cease to exist.
For more details please see the R-Class Website www.rclass.org
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