Cariad
Cariad

British Classic Week and Gaffer Racing

Ivy Green is just back from a great week racing at British Classic Week. Having found the beautiful Bojar in our expected berth, we tied up behind a Spirit 52 that was unpacking new, black, laminated sails. Big racing yachts, old and new, continued to arrive around us, their professional crews immediately unloading anchors and even spare beer. Clearly they weren’t in our class, but there were plenty of smaller boats as well, including a Folkboat and a Stella. Were we in the right place? Should we be getting rid of excess weight? Unloading the main anchor would mean finding the kedge, which is (probably) under the life raft, dinghy, spare tiller, old propeller, chimney… We compromised by processing some of our own beer, to be left ashore later.

British Classic Week (BCW) has a reputation for being exclusive. This dates back to its years of big sponsorship and RYS connections. With the sponsorship long gone and now under the direction of Giovanni Belgrano, of Whooper, things are changing. Giovanni had encouraged us to come and join in, despite our lack of long overhangs. Maybe the bowsprit provides a similar effect.

A succession of social events and racing followed that all became a bit of a blur. The goal is that the organised time is split evenly between racing and socialising. The social side ranged from BBQ at Cowes Corinthian Yacht Club, to pontoon parties and drinks on the RYS lawn, with everyone being made welcome. It was surprising how many people could recognise an Ed Burnett hull.

The racing is serious. Giovanni is clear that this is a racing regatta, not a festival. The courses are ‘classics friendly’, which accommodates ‘gaffer friendly’ well enough. They’re designed to provide a range of different types of racing and to keep everyone together as much as possible, with the occasional spectacle of 50 classics finishing downwind on the RYS line.

The big difference for us was the absence of a gaffer class. All racing was under IRC rating, with the gaffers mixed in with everyone else. Putting Cariad to one side (not easily done!), the 4 other gaffers were part of class 5, albeit with a trophy for the top gaffer. Various thoughts follow from this:

  1. It was great to feel we were part of the main event, rather than being separated off to our own corner of the Solent.
  2. The courses worked for us. The race organisation was exceptional.
  3. Starts are interesting, with a big fleet that point higher than you, but you just have to be sensible. That’s true anyway when you’re starting down-tide on a strong ebb tide.
  4. Racing against different boats, who are serious about their racing encourages improvement. We were sailing better at the end of the event than at the beginning.
  5. Racing against Bermudan boats shows the upwind differences, but also encouraged us to work to minimise those differences. Why do we not point as high? Interestingly they really got away from us downwind.
  6. Getting an IRC rating is straightforward and affordable. (As long as you don’t win!)
  7. Racing other types of boats always creates bias. Sometimes one way, sometimes the other. The way to minimise this is to race in a one-design class, but that’s not an option for most of our boats.
  8. The gaffers enjoyed themselves, but didn’t feature in the trophies. Top gaffer was Dorothy (4th), then Peggy Bawn (7th), Ivy Green (8th) and Charm (10th) out of 11 in class.

 

Charm and Leopard 3 by Mike Atherton
Charm and Leopard 3 by Mike Atherton
Peggy Bawn, Ivy Green, Charm by Chris Brown Photography
Peggy Bawn, Ivy Green, Charm by Chris Brown Photography

So does the last point above suggest that IRC is unfair to gaffers? I ran the race times through the Solent Gaffers ratings… and got the same results in every race! Of course that doesn’t answer the question of the comparison to other boats and the sample is small. I have no evidence that IRC is less fair than our Solent Gaffers system. Its widespread use and continuous refinement make it plausible that it is better. At least the comparison is possible, if we’re in with them.

The real difference is about how hard the boats are prepared and raced. Remember those professional crews and black sails? Alright they’re not in class 5 (mostly!), but it is still true that we were racing against people that try harder than we’re used to, both on and off the course.

Do we sail Ivy Green to the limit of her handicap? Of course not. She’s set up for cruising. She can clearly go faster and be more competitive with work on both the boat setup and the crew, particularly the skipper! Will we do that? There are plenty of other IRC races we (and other gaffers) could join in… It’s something to think about.

The question came up of how to encourage more gaffers to participate next year. This is a question we’re constantly asking for all Solent Gaffer and other classic sailing events.

The fundamental factor is that most gaffer sailors aren’t particularly interested in racing, which is fine. There are plenty of other things to do in gaffers, but for those that are interested, whether you have raced before or not, there are plenty of opportunities around the Solent and throughout the year. Talk to others and join in. 

It’s not as intimidating as beginners think, with plenty of opportunities for those that want to push harder.

Short-tacking up the beach at Lee-on-Solent may not be for everyone, but I can’t remember more entertaining sailing. I still think we could have stepped off the bowsprit onto the beach on a few occasions… Luckily we didn’t see an ice cream van.