OK Nationals – Dabchicks SC written by the OK fleet members

 

40 OKs arrived on Saturday for Day 1 of this year’s OK Dinghy nationals at Dabchicks S.C. kindly supported by Synergy Marine, Hiking Bench and English Braids.

They were greeted by a solid westerly F3 and punchy tide. The racing was really high quality with some new faces making a welcome entry into the class.

Race 1 got away cleanly with despite a wind shift induced heavy pin-end bias and biased beat, with the fleet tacking onto port off the line for a drag race to the windward mark. Jon Fish came off the pin to lead from Jim Hunt and Will Turner at the first mark. Andy Couch (of Phantom fame) rounded 4^th with reigning champ Robert Deaves and former champ Terry Curtis just behind.

Unusually, Fish managed to not swim and went on to win from Hunt. Deaves and Curtis had come through to 3^rd and 4^th downhill and kept these two places to the finish, with 2012 champ Lee Child pulling through the fleet to score 5^th just in front of Charlie Cumbley who’s starting to get to grips with the OK (ominous).

Race 2 The second race of the day was a rather short affair with the breeze increasing to a F4 and the strong flood tide helping the tired legs up the beat. Rich Burton led from the pin end and tacked early enough to gain whilst Lee and Jim over stood the windward mark by some distance. Burt dropped down the placings on the first reach, with Fish getting through to 3^rd, but with shifts and tidal variation ensuring the positions were never really settled.

Jim held the lead with ease for the rest of the race, with Lee in 2^nd. Deaves came through to take 3^rd up the last beat, with Curtis 4^th again and Burt finishing 5^th

The strong fleet is currently waiting for the breeze to moderate slightly to allow racing on Day 2 and looking forward to some blasting in the Blackwater estuary.

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Race 3      Breeze on   Photos from Hikingbench RIB

Day two of the OK Dinghy Nationals dawned with an average wind speed of 25 and gusting 32 knots which prompted a two hour postponement ashore.

The racing got underway at 14:30 with a more steady 25 knots under an incoming tide. Those who started at the pin came out smiling at the windward mark due to increased tide at the left side of the course. Will Turner led the charge with an impressive lead followed by Charlie Cumbley and Jim Hunt. A tight pack behind blasted down the reach and places 4, 5, 6 and 7 were all within two boat lengths come the very choppy gybe mark. The top 10 remained tight for all of the race considering the freshness of the breeze.

The next drama was to be had on the third lap again at the gybe mark of doom with increased pressure just as Cumbley and Turner arrived. The ‘wind over tide’ in the deepest part of the Blackwater had created a steep chop with just 3 feet between each wave making the timing of the gybe extremely difficult. They both managed to delay their gybes long enough for the gust to pass but had lost 100 yards or so over Hunt. Many a capsize were to be had here across the 40 boat fleet; Richard Burton being the highest place swimmer who went from 8^th to 18^th in one acrobatic move.

The lead swapped a couple of times and it ended with a photo finish and neither knowing who had won until ashore, but it was Cumbley from Turner. Jim Hunt was a solid third and Jon Fish found an extra yard of place and just took Andy Couch on the line for fourth.

The 2^nd race of the day was cancelled so the fleet look forward to 3 races tomorrow with an earlier start time which combined with a hard day’s racing today might reduce the beer intake tonight.

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Hunt remains the man to beat, extending his lead today but with three different race winners so far and some still finding their feet, everything is still up for grabs.

Hunt closes in on first OK Dinghy National title Jim Hunt has taken a six point lead at the OK Dinghy National Championships after three more races in a very unstable breeze at Dabchicks Sailing Club, with just two more races to go on Tuesday to complete the series.

The fleet was sent out early in more moderate conditions for 3 races, with 3 different winners.

Race 4 started in a F3 with the bulk of the fleet taking the left route towards the tide which looked good for the first half of the beat, but ultimately a 15 degree shift right meant that side paid, and Andy Couch rounded ahead of Richard Burton and Simon Cox with Robert Deaves and Jim Hunt making the most of the left hand side.

Couch led from start to finish despite the 107 kg Burton chasing him hard. Cox and Hunt overtook Burton up the second beat, but unfortunately Cox was forced to retire injured at the end of the run, allowing Hunt to move into second before a strong finishing Burton took second at the finish. Lee Child fended off Jon Fish to take fourth.

Race 5 had the fleet split in slightly fresher breeze, with the left initially paying, but at the windward mark melee, Neil Goodhead squeezed round first from Child and a close group. Luckily no collisions occurred and the fleet set off at pace downhill.

Child pulled out into the lead which he maintained comfortably to the finish. Hunt rolled past Fish on the second reach with Terry Curtis cruising through into third with Couch in fifth. Fish found some extra pressure and pace on the beat to get back up to second although Hunt and Curtis reversed the trick on the run to finish in that order behind Child, bringing him up the rankings to second overall.

Race 6 was finally started after a general recall followed by a postponement to allow a rainstorm to blow through. The boats at the pin end looked good from the start quickly tacking onto port and crossing the fleet with Hunt leading a clutch of boats in from the left. Hunt rounded first from Child and Tony Woods. The fleet headed off down the reach in dying breeze and strong tide, Woods went high and lost out to Curtis and Charlie Cumbley. Child squeezed round the leeward mark followed by Hunt and Curtis on his transom. Cumbley hacked out right and picked up a shift taking him past Curtis. By the final beat Cumbley was on a charge but couldn’t quite get the better of Hunt who took the race and a tighter grip on the championship. Child took third with Curtis coming in fourth.

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Jim Hunt finally secures elusive British OK Dinghy National title.   Photos from Synergy Marine RIB

Jim Hunt has finally won the British OK Dinghy National Championship after several failed attempts over the past decade. He closed out the 2014 title after two more very close and breezy races sailed in very shifty winds in the mouth of the Blackwater Estuary on Tuesday morning.

Hunt, the 2004 World Champion, had sailed a very consistent series in the 41 boat fleet, never finishing below third in any race. The fleet was also perhaps, the most competitive fleet seen in the UK for over a decade with several new sailors trying their hand at an OK Dinghy along with virtually all the top sailors in the class. During the week there were six different race winners, ensuring that the points remained tight until the very last race.

Hunt took a six point lead into the final day, which again produced more wind than was forecast. Sailed on an ebb tide for the first time, in 14-18 knots, a different set of tactics were required, which along with the big shifts, brought some different faces to the front.

In Race 7 Will Turner bounced off the left hand corner to hold a huge lead at the first mark. Unfortunately he was OCS and pulled out on the second lap. The chasing pack was very tight with Jim Hunt, Terry Curtis and Jonathan Fish emerging at the end of the run in the lead, while Richard Burton inspected the bottom of his boat again after a less than successful gybe. The wind played tricks on the final beat with numerous place changes, but eventually as the fleet approached the shortened finish, Fish led across, closely followed by Andy Couch, while Curtis and Hunt couldn't be separated for third. This left Hunt in an unassailable position going into the final race.

Turner again emerged with a substantial lead from the left on the first upwind in Race 8, and held it until the end of the second upwind when the left side didn't pay so well. Meanwhile Curtis had taken the lead on the right from Hunt. Hunt led round the final downwind mark and headed right. Turner, as expected, banged hard left again and this time it worked, moving him back to the front to win the final race. Hunt led a very close group on the right across the line as the wind started playing games again, almost dropping to nothing at one point before coming back in at 15 knots as dark clouds raced down the course.

But it was all academic as Hunt was already assured the title. The only real interest was between Fish, Lee Child and Curtis over who would take the runner's up trophy. After Race 7, Fish was up to second, but a bad first beat in the final race left him too much to do. Child was always in the leading group and fourth place was enough to comfortably take the trophy. Fish had to settle for third.

Dabchicks Sailing Club had put on a superb event, which with the support of the sponsors Synergy Marine, Hiking Bench and English Braids, enabled it to provide a multitude of prizes and benefits. Vice Commodore Rachel Ramsey and her team left no stone unturned to ensure the sailors had a great time on and off the water. The racing was some of the best the class has had in the UK for a long time and bodes well for the future, and with leading sailors like Charlie Cumbley and Andy Couch joining the fleet, their attendance is sure to attract more top sailors to the OK Dinghy.

While the fleet was very pleased to welcome both Cumbley and Couch to the event in borrowed boats, they were arguably more pleased that they didn't dominate proceedings. But both so enjoyed racing the boat that they have promised to be back for more, with hopefully new boats being ordered soon.

The class is going through a period of growth in many countries, and all the signs are that the UK fleet will soon follow suit. The UK Class Association is developing an action plan to maintain and encourage this growth, with various initiatives being discussed to ensure that OK Dinghy sailing in the UK continues to thrive and remain a serious choice for top sailors who enjoy local as well as international competition.

OK Nationals 2014

Entries: 41      Races Sailed: 8      Discard: 1

Series Place	Sail No	Owner	Club	Series Points	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Race 6	Race 7	Race 8
1	GBR2162	Jim Hunt	Blithfield SC	14	2	1	3	3	2	1	3.5	2
2	GBR2167	Lee Child	Dabchicks SC / WMYC	25	5	2	6	4	1	3	8	4
3	GBR2151	Jonathan Fish	Waldringfield SC	29	1	6	4	5	4	19	1	8
4	GBR2118	Terry Curtis	Weymouth/Upper Thames	29.5	4	4	8	8	3	4	3.5	3
5	GBR211	Charlie Cumbley	Teign Corinthian YC	35	6	9	1	7	5	2	5	9
6	GBR2150	Andy Couch	Rudyard Lake SC	38	7	11	5	1	6	25	2	6
7	GBR2156	Robert Deaves	Waldringfield SC	41	3	3	9	6	7	6	10	7
8	GBR2157	Dave Bourne	Upriver YC	71	15	12	7	10	26	16	6	5
9	GBR2145	Tony Woods	Glossop SC	71	10	7	13	13	11	11	9	10
10	GBR2147	Tom Lonsdale	West Oxford SC	74	11	8	12	17	10	9	7	21
11	GBR2042	Richard Burton	Oxford SC	79	9	5	18	2	9	21	15	42
12	GBR2169	Will Turner	Dabchicks SC	81	8	10	2	42	8	10	42	1
13	GBR2154	Simon Cowood		92	14	14	15	9	12	5	28	23
14	GBR2160	Alex Scoles	Overy Staithe	102	12	17	11	18	21	14	19	11
15	GBR2121	Tony Rich	West Oxford SC	102	16	20	16	16	16	12	11	15
16	GBR2059	David Rose	Deben YC	112	18	19	17	12	19	23	13	14
17	GBR2126	Mike Edwards	Leigh & Lowton SC	113	36	15	21	19	14	7	20	17
18	GBR2084	Keith Byers	Morecombe & Heysham YC	116	19	13	14	42	20	15	17	18
19	GBR2100	Toby Ramsay	Dabchicks SC	121	24	18	25	21	13	8	18	19
20	GBR2159	Norman Byrd	Northampton SC	124	17	26	20	15	18	32	16	12
21	NZL553	Finn Gheury	Dachet Water SC	134	13	16	19	20	22	31	24	20
22	GBR2139	Ken Carroll	Alton Water SC	143	25	21	26	22	25	13	21	16
23	GBR2112	John Paul Williams	West Oxford SC	152	27	25	42	14	24	26	14	22
24	GBR2149	Martin Bower	Blithfield SC	167	26	28	42	11	17	20	23	42
25	GBR2123	Andy Turner	Overy Staithe SC	169	22	27	42	29	23	22	22	24
26	GBR2125	Neil Goodhead	South Staffs	174	29	29	22	26	15	28	42	25
27	GBR2137	Simon Shaw	Deben YC	181	30	30	42	23	29	18	25	26
28	GBR1957	Drummond Sydenham	WMYC	189	31	32	24	31	28	17	29	29
29	GBR2031	Dave Cooper	Overy Staithe SC	198	28	33	23	27	34	42	26	27
30	GBR2093	Ed Critchen	Upper Thames SC	217	38	35	27	33	35	29	30	28
31	GBR2171	Simon Cox	Waldringfield SC	222	21	23	10	42	42	42	42	42
32	GBR2080	Paul Pike	Covenham SC	222	35	34	42	28	30	33	31	31
33	GBR2124	Gareth Caldwell	Blithfield SC	225	33	42	42	30	27	24	27	42
34	GBR2058	Mary Reddyhoff	Parkstone YC	228	37	42	42	25	32	30	32	30
35	GBR2171X	Will Branton		235	42	42	42	42	42	42	12	13
36	GBR2065	Paul Aldridge	Brightlingsea SC	238	34	31	42	24	31	34	42	42
37	GBR2032	Tim Hurst	Dabchicks SC / WMYC	244	32	36	42	32	33	27	42	42
38	GBR2101	Julian Burnham	RYA	254	20	24	42	42	42	42	42	42
39	GBR2158	John Ball	Brightlingsea	255	23	22	42	42	42	42	42	42
40	GBR20	Matthew Cock	Dabchicks SC	266	39	37	42	34	37	35	42	42
41	GBR2062	Simon Greening	West Oxford SC	288	42	42	42	42	36	42	42	42

Other prizewinners:

Junior: Ed Critchen

Lady: Mary Reddyhoff

Classic Boat: Finn Gheury

Mark Williams Memorial: Ed Critchen

Masters: Tony Woods

Veteran: Ken Carroll

Team Trophy: Dabchicks Sailing Club