April - May

October - December 2004

The RNLI Boxing day race at the Downs Sailing Club attracted an entry of nineteen boats, with rescue boat cover provided by the Walmer Lifeboat crew. Entry fees and the proceeds of the post-race raffle were in aid of the RNLI. A moderate North-Westerly breeze of Force 2-3 provided gentle conditions helped by the bright winter sunlight. The race officer set a triangular course with the first leg being a reach towards Dover against the tide.

At the start the RS800s of Chris Catt and Rory Sharvill quickly went ahead, chased by a group of Buzzes led by Steve and Katie Restall and overall winners of the Winter series, Ed and Sarah Styles. The RS200 of Clare Stubbs and Amy Sleep was going well and kept the faster boats in their sights throughout the race as did father, Chris Stubbs in his Laser 2000. Simon Cory and Penny Jordan managed to pull ahead of Ed and Sarah Styles, but the RS800s pulled far enough ahead to take the race and lapped all the fleet except for the Buzzes, the Hornet of Eric Styles and RS300 of Frank Catt.

Results 1st Chris Catt and Phil (RS800) 2nd Rory Sharvill and James Cooke (RS800) 3rd Steve and Katie Restall (Buzz) 4th Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 5th Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 6th Chris and Helen Stubbs (Laser 2000).

12/12/04

Ed and Sarah Styles pulled ahead of their closest rivals, Richard White and Martyn Styles in the Winter Series at Downs Sailing Club after winning Sunday's race. The low air temperature and moderate Easterly breeze led to a slightly reduced fleet of thirteen boats. However, once out on the water, the conditions proved to be ideal with a steady breeze and small swell. The first leg was a short reach towards Ramsgate with the tide. At the mark there was a pile up as the boats converged on the mark. Ed and Sarah Styles pulled ahead along with Richard White and Martyn Styles in an RS400. The next leg took the fleet out to sea on a beat, followed by a long reach against the tide towards Dover. Those boats that were able to catch the waves and surf made big gains on this leg and the fleet began to separate. The Restalls had a close battle with Simon Cory and Annie Smith but eventually passed them. Chris and Helen Stubbs looked the quickest of the slow handicap boats until they were passed by Dave and Phil Spicer .

Results 1st Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 2nd Richard White and Martyn Styles (RS400) 3rd Steve and Katie Restall (Buzz) 4th Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 5th Frank Catt (RS300) 6th John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz)

A light South-Westerly breeze of Force 2-3 provided gentle conditions for the first race of December. The race officer set a triangular course with the first leg being a reach towards Dover with the tide. At the start the RS400 of Richard White and Martyn Styles pulled ahead of a group of Buzzes led by Steve and Katie Restall. The second leg was a reach out to sea and as the fleet began to spread out several individual contests began; Ed and Sarah Styles were chasing the Restalls and behind them Simon Cory and Annie Smith were attempting to pass Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman which they achieved on the penultimate lap. The Buzz of Jeremy Blackman and Julia Brazil was also going well and kept in touch with the leading pack. In the slow handicap boats, Chris and Helen Stubbs pulled out a good lead over the others. Overall in the Winter series, Richard White and Martyn Styles have pulled ahead of Ed and Sarah Styles with just two more races to go.

Results 1st Steve and Katie Restall (Buzz) 2nd Richard White and Martyn Styles (RS400) 3rd Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 4th Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 5th Chris and Helen Stubbs (Laser 2000) 6th Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz)

A North Westerly breeze greeted the 14 boats in this Sundays winter points series at Downs SC. With a strong North flowing tide the race officers set a running start to the south. Conditions favoures boats able to stay slightly offshore and the RS800 of Stuart Bishop and James Cooke were around the mark first. In the slow handicap fleet Roger Phillips crewed by Amy Sleep led the fleet out to sea but a tactical error on the beat allowed Chris Stubbbs crewed by Cadet prize winner Mitch Webb to get past, a lead they were to keep to the finish. In the fast handicap the normal Buzz dominance did not materialise within only one Buzz in the top 5 of the fleet.

Results .Fast 1st. Frank Catt (RS300) 2nd Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 3rd Eric Styles and Thomas Salvio (Hornet) 4th Stuart Bishop and James Cooke (RS 800) Slow 1st Chris Stubbs Mitch Webb, 2nd Roger Phillips Amy Sleep, 3rd Phil Spicer Dave Spicer, 4th Tim Waite John Sharvill (all Laser 2000)

Saturday evening saw a packed club house for the annual prize giving dinner at the Club, hosted by Commodore Chris Shelton, and with prizes presnted by sailing secretary Rick Clemence and Sandra Shelton. In terms of prizes the Buzzes of Styles and Restall dominated but there were several outstanding individual achievement awards including best newcomer Penny Jordan. Entertainment was provided by Ed Styles who presented a special award to Thomas Salvio for his perseverance as a new member and Dave Webb with anecdotes of 'who would believe it' stories relieving his frustrations at being behind a fleet of Buzzes all year.

A strong Southerly breeze of Force 4 gusting 5 provided testing conditions for the sailors on Sunday. The surf was smaller than last week but still provided excellent conditions for the two offwind legs. At the start the RS400 of Richard White and Martyn Styles pulled ahead of a group of Buzzes and the Hornet of Eric Styles. The Laser 2000 of Chris and Helen Stubbs was going well and kept up with the faster boats right up to the gybe mark. As the tide strengthened the waves built up and provided an exciting roller-coaster ride down the two reaches. Both Richard White and Simon Cory lost ground to Ed and Sarah Styles after making errors and John Cass took a dip at the final gybe mark. Overall in the Winter series, Ed Styles and Richard White are neck and neck with Simon Cory and Chris Stubbs close behind so with four more races to go the trophy is still up for grabs. Next Saturday is the Prize-giving dinner at Downs SC where all the season's trophies except for the Winter series will be presented.

Results 1st Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 2nd Chris and Helen Stubbs (Laser 2000) 3rd Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 4th John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz) 5th Eric and Richard Styles (Hornet) 6th Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz)

14/11/04

A moderate North-Westerly breeze and sunshine once again attracted a good fleet of seventeen boats on Remembrance Sunday. However, the gales further North had left a legacy of a large swell which made launching tricky. Nevertheless all the boats made it off the beach safely. Prior to this, at 11am, the sailors observed a two minutes silence. The first leg was a short beat towards Ramsgate with the tide. At the mark there was a pile up as the boats converged on the mark. Steve and Katie Restall, making a return to the Buzz fleet after competing at events elsewhere, pulled ahead along with Richard White and Martyn Styles in an RS400. The next leg took the fleet out to sea, followed by a gybe and a long run against the tide towards Dover. Those boats that were able to catch the waves and surf made big gains on this leg and the fleet began to separate. Chris Shelton and Dave Webb were going well until their main halyard broke and they were forced to retire. Ed and Sarah Styles kept the Restalls in their sights but were unable to pass them and were followed by Simon Cory and Penny Jordan. Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman were chasing John Cass but were unable to catch him despite picking up a large gust on the final run. Chris and Helen Stubbs were the quickest of the slow handicap boats and finished in fifth place on corrected time.

Results 1st Steve and Katie Restall (Buzz) 2nd Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 3rd Richard White and Martyn Styles (RS400) 4th Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 5th Chris and Helen Stubbs (Laser 2000) 6th John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz)

For the first race of the Winter series at Downs SC, a light Northerly breeze and a slight swell contrasted to last weeks fierce conditions. The morning sunshine helped attract an entry of seventeen boats. The first leg was a run towards Dover, since the tide was slack the main advantage to be had was clear air. Simon Cory crossed the line on starboard, much to the consternation of the other boats who were on port gybe and had to keep clear. In the end it was the RS400 of Richard White and the RS800 of Stuart Bishop, both of which had found clear air further inshore, who were first to the leeward mark. On the beat, the boats which went out to sea found more breeze, and John Cass and Simon Cory led the Buzz fleet around the windward mark. This pattern was repeated for the second lap, and although the tide was now running to Dover, the best breeze was to be found slightly further out to sea. On the third lap, as the faster boats began the final beat, the breeze began to die away. The race officer shortened the course and finished Jeremy Blackman, crewed by Annie Smith who was making a welcome return to Deal, and Tim Waite crewed by John Sharvil as they completed their second lap. The latter was the only slow handicap boat to finish, since as the breeze died away, the others were unable to make headway against the tide. At the front, the order remained the same, with Stuart Bishop and James Cook first over the line in their RS80. Richard White and Chris Shelton sailing RS400s were next and John Cass and Julia Brazil were first of the Buzzes. The only other boat to finish within the time limit was the Buzz of Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman which had stayed inshore, out of the tide.

Results 1st Richard White and Martyn Styles (RS400) 2nd Chris Shelton and Dave Webb (RS400) 3rd Tim Waite and John Sharvil (Laser 2000) 4th Stuart Bishop and James Cook (RS80) 5th John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz) 6th Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz)

A brisk Northerly breeze and building waves provided exciting racing at Downs SC on Sunday. The Race Officer set a triangular course with a beat up the shore towards Ramsgate and a gybe mark out to sea. Initially the tide was running to Dover, which gave a very quick run with the tide, the boats reaching some spectacular speeds as they surfed down the waves. In the Pursuit race, the earlier starting Laser 2000s coped well with the conditions and were only passed at the end by John Cass and Julia Brazil in a Buzz. Ed and Sarah Styles passed Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman but were unable to reach the Laser 2000s. By the start of the Autumn Points race, the tide had turned and wind against tide produced some steeper waves. The start line was crowded as the boats aimed for pole position at the starboard end. Richard White and Martyn Styles in their RS400 were quickly away, and despite some gear problems, maintained their lead to the end. Ed and Sarah Styles did best out of the Buzzes, with both Simon Cory and John Cass having to recover from capsizes. Towards the end of the race, a large storm cloud appeared and threatened to bring proceedings to a close, but the wind swung to a more North-easterly direction and the storm passed by inland. The three Laser 2000s of Chris Stubbs, John Sharvil and Phil Spicer were the only finishers in the Slow Handicap race, the single-handers having to retire.

Results: Pursuit Race 1st Phil and David Spicer (Laser 2000) 2nd John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz) 3rd Chris and Helen Stubbs (RS200) 4th John Sharvil and Tim Waite (Laser 2000). 5th Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 6th Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz)

Points Race: Fast Handicap 1st Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 2nd Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 3rd Richard White and Martyn Styles (RS400) 4th John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz) 5th Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz) Slow Handicap 1st Chris and Helen Stubbs (RS200) 2nd John Sharvil and Tim Waite (Laser 2000) 3rd Phil and David Spicer (Laser 2000).

Ten boats took to the water on Sunday to compete in the Late Pursuit and Autumn Points races at the Downs Sailing Club. The early morning rain had cleared and there was sunshine and a gentle Westerly breeze for the Pursuit race. The early starting boats set off against the tide towards Ramsgate on a close reach and then turned out to sea onto a run. The RS400 of Dave Webb and Rick Clemence began to overtake the slower boats and pull out a comfortable lead. Chris Stubbs and Phil Spicer had a close battle in their Laser 2000s along with Ben Hill in the single-handed Laser. Further back, Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman managed to hold off the challenge of John Cass in his Buzz along with Mark and Eric Styles in an RS400. The latter briefly pulled ahead until they dragged their spinnaker.

Results: Pursuit Race 1st Dave Webb and Rick Clemence (RS400) 2nd Ben Hill (Laser) 3rd Chris and Helen Stubbs (RS200) 4th Phil and David Spicer (Laser 2000) 5th Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz) 6th Tim Waite and Dave Cooke (Laser 2000).

The wind had strengthened slightly for the start of the Points Race and began to move to a more Northerly direction. For the Fast Handicap fleet, the start was crowded and getting clean air was at a premium. Ed and Sarah Styles quickly pulled out an early lead. Simon Cory managed to pull ahead of the other Buzzes whilst John Cass and Chris Dutton had a close contest until Chris pulled away on the penultimate lap.

Points Race: Fast Handicap 1st Simon Cory and Penny Jordan (Buzz) 2nd Ed and Sarah Styles (Buzz) 3rd Chris Dutton and Martin Wyman (Buzz) 4th John Cass and Julia Brazil (Buzz) 5th Dave Webb and Rick Clemence (RS400)

In the slow handicap, the Laser of Ben Hills held off the doublehanded boats to take first place with Roger Phillips in second ahead of Phil Spicer and Tim Waite in the other Laser 2000s.

Slow Handicap 1st Ben Hills (Laser) 2nd Roger Phillips (Laser 2000) 3rd Phil and David Spicer (Laser 2000) 4th Claire and Helen Stubbs (RS200) 5th Tim Waite and Dave Cooke (Laser 2000) 6th Rosie Lord (Topper).

Racing at Deal on the previous Sunday was cancelled due to an Easterly gale, however Simon Cory and Penny Jordan travelled to the Buzz Inland Championships at Datchet Water near Heathrow Airport. The wind was slightly more subdued inland but there were large and unpredictable gusts coming over the reservoir walls which led to some exciting racing. Simon and Penny had a close battle with Stuart Bailey and Hannah Packman from Medway YC, but in the end their score of two firsts and two seconds was enough for them to be crowned Buzz Inland Champions and to bring the trophy back to Deal.