Blaze Open at Burghfield Sailing Club

Blazes at Burghfield © Alex Irwin / www.sportography.tv

Blazes at Burghfield © Alex Irwin / www.sportography.tv

The successful start of the season combined a 2 day Burghfield Open and training meeting for Blazes being resurrected after a gap of a couple few years. 26 Blazes from 9 clubs raced joined in the revival demonstrating that winter had truly ended... at last.

Saturday began with a double act of Steve Townsend and Mike Lyons in the classroom talking about something called SPIRE and boat lengths and how to successfully gybe without getting wet. This was quite well illustrated by Mike between races on day 2 when he 'decided to check his slot gasket'!

Out onto the water to practice gybes and tacks followed by a short training race.

After lunch the racing began in earnest, well we all set off at a fast drift for the start line. Even before the first gun went two main halyards broke and were duly fixed... it was the first outing for some time for a few. There was also a most bizarre capsize which saw 2 Blazes become entangled 'head to head'. Each then capsized in perfect harmony, the sails arching away from each other like the petals of a flower opening.

Race one saw the fleet split up the first beat with the majority going up the 'safe' (!) left hand side. A smaller group lead by Rob Jones and Simon Beddows ambitiously headed up the right side to meet a great looking patch of wind coming down the lake... you have to take the 'odd' risk after all. This of course turned out to be a huge header so game over. At least it should have been until half of the fleet decided to add an extra mark into the race later on. The race was won by Mike Lyons closely followed by Dave Smith, a local Laser sailor, who had borrowed a boat for the event. The second race followed without many incidents in the dying breeze and was again won by Mike Lyons this time with Simon Beddows being the chaser.

The sailors retired to the shore to repair boats, discuss enormous wind shifts, and more importantly drink beer. The Warsash boys decided to emulate the missing Welsh contingent by attempting to drink their weight in beer, possibly to prepare themselves for a night in freezing temperatures in a tent. Well someone has to maintain the fleet reputation.

The second day started with sun, warmth and a good atmosphere. Everything required except for a bit of breeze. Boat bimbling and coffee fuelling commenced as RO decided to delay... on this occasion to universal support.

An hour or so later a doubtful fleet were sent afloat as the breeze struggled to establish. 15 minutes more and the missing ingredient did finally arrive, just sufficient for most tastes anyway. The sequence started, the fleet bunched, the wind swung, the fleet decided to 'push' on a bit too enthusiastically. The result – another general recall and the Committee boat shuffled off to the other end of the lake to this time offer a real 'proper beat'.

R3 finally got away with Myles Mence showing the locals how to reach the windward mark first in some style and by some way. The pack slowly got their acts together and reduced the deficit on the downwind legs. Eventually Lyons got reasonably close but looked unlikely to overhaul lightweight Mence.... that is until a club racing Solo managed to pin Mence to the leeward mark in what looked like a very improbable manoeuvre that involved a bit of gelcoat and the acquisition of number '1' racing mark under a wing. Lyons went through and as the wind perked up pulled away to win by 200m. Martin Preston and Stuart Brown of the home club followed Mence.

R4 A port flyer would have been impressive... in the last 30 seconds of the countdown a sudden wind swing meant not a single boat could beat to the pin end..... as many had planned. Much gnashing of teeth but again Mence was perhaps the least disadvantaged as virtually every boat tacked onto port for a drag race to the 'windward' mark. Fickle luck helped some and punished others.... seemingly without motive around the mark 8 – many places being won and lost in a fast dropping wind. The majority elected to 'follow the leader' in close formation. Way back Rob Jones of Warsash followed by Lyons decided a bit of an alternative route was the only game still available. Their longer route looped around one of the larger Burghfield islands to the leeward mark - but they had a little bit more of that vital ingredient denied the pack. They managed to 'undercut' the pack completely and get back in the game. A wind shift on the next beat again helped them and somehow they got through the leaders - from 'zero' to 'whatever' in half a lap ! Lightweight Beddows managed to catch 'heavier' Jones on the last run and very nearly took the lead from Lyons. R5 result was Lyons / Beddows / Jones / Mence / Barbrook.

Final race... a nice breeze to start, and another late shift to tease all. The race was a mix of drifting and planning in successive swinging gusts as they came down the course. Mence with a few of the locals pulled away and were then looked unlikely to be caught for the remainder of the race. In the end it was Lyons and Beddows who led the last legs of the race with Lyons just holding on over the line. Mence followed by Brown and guest helm Dave Smith followed.

The Blaze fleet seems in remarkably good health after a long and tough winter of freezing conditions. A return to a 2 day Open at Burghfield proved popular and the class looks forward to returning again in even greater numbers next year. It is now looking forward to its next travellers series event at in Paignton in May.

Overall Results: