Twenty Six Competitors in Double Dan Race

On Sunday afternoon 3 July Gunfleet Sailing Club played host to the race for the Double Dan Trophy.  This unique Open event, first held on 28 June 1958, is based on a passage race from Brightlingsea to Clacton and always attracts a lot of interest, and this year was no exception.  Under bright blue skies and unbroken sunshine twenty six boats took part and it proved to be a spectacular sight as the fleet left the Brightlingsea Sailing Club start line in a force three south-easterly wind.  Just a few minutes later the craft turned to port, so heading out to sea, beating hard as they made their way past Point Clear in the mouth of the River Colne.  Unfortunately on this leg Matt Burrell of Clacton Sailing Club capsized in his Dart 18 and, following the help of one of the Rescue Boats to right the catamaran, Burrell was forced to retire.  In a freshly ebbing tide, conditions at the Colne Bar proved quite lively with a confused sea for competitors to contend with.  By this time the Tornado catamaran from Brightlingsea Sailing Club, sailed by John Payne, had pulled away and was soon passing St Osyth beach; followed by Josh Hunt in a Spitfire catamaran, also from Brightlingsea Sailing Club.  In the dinghies it was Ken Potts from Gunfleet Sailing Club that lead in his RS600 with fellow Gunfleet sailor Kelvin Morton in his RS600 hot on his heels.  The wind was now at the top of a force three and, at times, just touching a four and the sailors were simply loving it.  Unfortunately disaster struck off Jaywick for Matthew Gough of Gunfleet when the boom on his Laser snapped but a Rescue Boat was soon on the scene and towed him home.  As the competitors came round Clacton Pier Payne lead over the water with Hunt second, followed by Tim Dye of Clacton Sailing Club and Ben Chandler, also of Clacton Sailing Club, both sailing Dart 18’s.  Special mention must however go to the younger sailors that took part in the race and especially Eleanor Margetts and Oli Withams in their Topaz, and brothers Conor and Finlay Williams, also in a Topaz and all from Gunfleet who finished seventeenth and sixteenth respectively.
After handicaps had been calculated it was the Tornado of Payne that took victory and the Trophy for 2011.

Results: Double Dan
1. Tornado – John Payne; Brightlingsea Sailing Club
2. RS600 – Ken Potts; Gunfleet Sailing Club
3. Dart 18 – Tim Dye; Clacton Sailing Club

The previous Wednesday evening the Club held its fifth and final race in the Summer Series.  A light offshore wind veered round to the north-east as the race started and the boats, led by Paul Davis in his Solution, beat up to the Kingscliff buoy.  Whilst there was a certain amount of predictability about the positions of the fast handicap boats as they headed out to sea it was interesting to see the battle that was going on in the slow handicap fleet.  Cadets Ben Richardson and Robert Gutteridge in their Toppers, and Aaron Baker in his Topaz were busily challenging each other as they made their way to the Seaward mark.  It wasn’t long though before the breeze started to fall away and change back to a north-westerly direction; causing progress to be quite slow against a strengthening flood tide.  For Barry Peters in his Comet Duo and Eddie White in a Solution the lack of any real movement became painful and they both retired back to the shore.
 
Results: Summer Series 5
1. Solution – Paul Davis
2. Blaze – John Tappenden
3. RS600 – Ken Potts

Summer Series Overall
1. RS600 – Ken Potts
2. Blaze – John Tappenden
3. Solution – Mark Venables