Slipper Sailings Autumn 2013
Our Commodore leads from the front
IN THIS ISSUE
Commodore’s Corner
Fixation’s Summer Cruise
Sailing Blind
Emsworth Goes To Cherbourg
Picture Gallery
Dinghies’ Good Summer
In Memorium
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COMMODORE’S CORNER
After the poor weather last summer it has been nice to have better conditions this year and we have certainly
made the most of it at Slipper. I am pleased to say all our Junior & Youth groups have been full and busy as
ever with well organised and structured sessions. Unfortunately we again had problems with the Mill Pond
level this time due to a swan nesting in the North corner so the pond could not be fully re-filled on high tides
affecting these groups and the very keen Radio Sailors. I am pleased to say the new electrical supply to the
gate has now been connected and appears to be more reliable, the old tide flap hinge broke causing the flap
to stay open but the EA carried out a temporary repair and the hinge will be replaced soon. I will continue to
work with the team to try and improve on the problems we have experienced over the past few years.
The weather was perfect for Oppie camp , new organiser Simon Cave did a great job along with the many
helpers. I really enjoy being part of this event and it’s good to work with younger families who will
hopefully progress through the club as many have before. Mark Riddington stood in to organise the Joint
Junior Regatta with 95 Juniors taking part including 25 who had never raced before. Pirate Noel was a
particular favourite with the younger Juniors on the Mill Pond and although he was expecting to scare them
the opposite happened and they all tried boarding and capsizing his boat !
The Topper Open and training also went well although the wind shifting 180 degrees during the racing kept
the race team on their toes ! The tea after was the high light for many sailors and is always well reported in
the Topper news so thanks for all those cakes.
Our ex Junior Pete McCoy continues his campaign in the Finn Olympic Development Squad and has just
secured the next level of funding. Pete has had a successful season this year including winning the Finn
Junior Europeans at Warnemande as well as a great performance at the worlds on Lake Garda. At a recent
Olympic build up event he was 8th overall with a very creditable 2nd in the medal race just in front of current
top brit Giles Scott. We hope Pete will be sharing his experiences with us at Slipper with a talk soon and I
sure you will join me in wishing him well for the winter training and next season.
Sarah kindly led on the Summer Ball and with the Arabian Nights theme inspired some great costumes with
reports of Camels racing around the pond early evening before retiring to the bar for a well-earned drink,
what will they do next year ? The marquee looked stunning and Maria did a great job of the bar.
Training has continued its important role led by Training Principle John Brook with our usual courses being
very popular. This year we also concentrated on getting more members on the water and John Excel
organised two adult beginner courses with 16 members taking part followed by some improver sailing
sessions at the end of both courses where it was great to see so many, some with their families on the water.
We will continue to encourage them next year as well as another beginner course.
Our Cruisers have made the most of the weather and you will see some reports below. As well as the normal
racing which always ends in a good social, Cruiser members also kindly organised the Youth Cruise and a
Social Sailing Cruise giving many who don’t normally get out on bigger boats the chance to sail in the
Solent. Many thanks to all the cruiser owners for organising and getting involved in these popular events.
Both Dinghy and Cruiser Regattas had good turn outs with light winds for the Cruisers and getting higher
for the Dinghies on the Sunday especially towards the end. The Hog roast was very popular on the Saturday
night and the Regatta tea was again superb. Any club that claims theirs is the best in the harbour needs to
come to Slipper. The Great Slipper bake off worked well again !
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You will see Claire’s report on Dinghy sailing this year with a good team from Slipper at Fed Week,
including our excellent Patrol boat cover. As I am now part of the Fed Week committee I am keen on
encouraging more Slipper sailors to attend, especially Junior/Youths who sail on a set course in a safe area
hopefully helping us to win the club trophy again. The racing is excellent with mixed abilities and we
always have a Slipper social on the east balcony before and after sailing so please come and join in if you
can. The dates for next year are August 11th to 15th it would be great to win the club team trophy again.
It’s not all on the water activities that have been busy during the summer. The Bosun and his team have
again done a great job ensuring our boats and equipment are in top condition. The Tuesday painting team led
by Mike Clark never appear to run out of work (apparently it’s like the Forth Bridge!). The Premises team
have been dealing with club maintenance issues, work in the Malthouse and what started as securing/tidying
up the start hut but has turned into almost a rebuild.
You will have seen my email regarding club member and junior instructor Chris Gordon’s Physiotherapy
practice / gym moving into the top floor of the Malthouse. Work to the area is being carried out at the
moment and once complete Chris will be holding an open evening or two for members to visit and see
what’s on offer. I wish Chris well with his venture and hope members will benefit from this excellent
opportunity.
I am now nearly at the end of my second year as Commodore and I can’t thank enough all the members who
actively get involved to make Slipper such a special club. We are always looking for new people to help
either on committees or other areas so please contact me or any other officers, especially if you have a
particular field of expertise from which we may benefit.
Well that’s it from me. Unfortunately I don’t have any adventures to report on from this summer as I have
been busy building at home but I did manage to take time out to support our American friends with Old
Yeller 11 at Goodwood Revival.
I look forward to seeing you all at the AGM on Wednesday 4th December.
Mike Lillywhite
Commodore ESSC
Mike in Old Yeller
Start Hut
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Family Social Sail
After The Race
Oppie Camp
Leaving Cobnor
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Fixation’s Summer Cruise 2013
This year I felt unusually compelled to write a blog about our summer cruise exploits. This is the result:
Day 1 & 2 - We set off!
We had a pleasant uneventful Channel Crossing. Fuel could have been an issue - I think we just made it!
In Cherbourg we had enjoyable moules and frites, stocked up on essential supplies (wine) and headed on.
We are now in Guernsey. It was an interesting sail. A pleasant fetch in a NE F3-4 to Cap de la Hague, the
wind then died, so the motor went on as we headed for an ominous storm cloud that looked like a huge
bridge spanning the Alderney Race. Under the cloud the wind briefly increased to W 7 to 8 and then the
heavens opened and the wind rapidly decreased to a more manageable W4-5 all the way to the Little
Russell. A good sail but very wet. Supper on the waiting pontoon before entering Victoria Harbour was
very welcome!
Hope to set off for St Cast tomorrow - if the crew protests too much we may have to divert to Jersey.
Day 3 & 4 – The voyage to holiday land!
On our trips to the facilities in Guernsey marina we inevitably studied the rolling weather forecast on the
screen in the foyer, looking for our next window of opportunity. ‘Well dear we either go tomorrow; it will
be a bit bumpy to start with but should ease off as we approach the French coast’. The forecast was SW 5
easing to a W 4 later. ‘Otherwise it looks like we are stuck here until Thursday at the earliest’. ‘We can
always divert to Jersey if it gets too uncomfortable’. The plan was to head for St Cast.
Following our trip to the facilities we bumped into Malcolm & Eileen from Ultima on the quay. They
were resting in St Peter Port waiting for their granddaughter to arrive. An enjoyable evening in the
restaurant La Perla resulted!
Well, all went to plan to start with except instead of veering the wind backed a couple of hours into the
trip. We did manage to prevent a J109 who left St Peter Port just after us from sailing above us - following
the tussle he even got his camera out to take pictures of us! But after this we had to tack to avoid the
Minquiers. The wind died and the motor went on. Progress was steady and uneventful until the first of the
(un-forecast) thunderstorms hit us. The clouds were not as dramatic as in the Alderney Race episode but
the rain was much heavier and I can not tell you what wind strength the gusts increased to because the
windometer stopped during the storm! Penny was OK after she realised she was still alive! Once past the
weather calmed and the wind veered allowing us to continue under sail. It was not long before further
storm clouds continued to affect us in a similar but less dramatic way. The final blip in our passage was
the GPS going offline as we approached St Cast - 'What now skipper?' - I was just switching uneasily to
manual mode when thankfully the GPS went back on line.
Once in St Cast all was calm, the sun came out and all was good! We were both pleased to have got to
Brittany in 4 days - we are now in holiday land!
Day 5, 6 & 7 – This is why we cruise!
St Cast was as lovely as ever with great beaches, good facilities, friendly marina staff, an impressive walk
along a purpose built level cliff side path (lit by solar powered LEDs at night) to a very pleasant town and
because of all the lovely food our diet has had to go on hold until we get back. The best meal was a
seafood paella cooked on board. We swam on a small beach accessed only by a steep stepped footpath, the
water took some getting used too but was lovely and refreshing once in. On our final night in St Cast we
walked into town after eating on board and watched a great band in the town square - only guitar, bass and
drums but boy could they play. They had that lovely jazzy, proggy sound I particularly like. No CDs (we
did ask) but they did have a Facebook site - I might need Rick's (my son) help with that one!
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August 1st we sailed/motored from St Cast to Dahouet, via the inner passage, to take in all the lovely
views. It was a baking hot trip in very little wind. We caught a couple of mackerel for lunch and were
treated to a display from a very large pod of dolphins just before passing Cap D'Erquy. Dahouet is a lovely
sleepy port with a rather intimidating entrance which dries out at low water (like quite a few Brittany
ports). Once in we were met by a very friendly harbour master who allocated us a berth. We then enjoyed
a late mackerel lunch (caught earlier) and then went to cool off; another swim at another lovely beach half
way to Val Andre. Supper was 'al fresco' in a very popular up-market seafood shack/bar - best meal so far!
In fact so good we are going back tonight!
Day 8, 9 10 & 11 – The Bay of St Brieuc
The return visit to our 'al fresco' restaurant in Dahouet was every bit as good as anticipated. The barbecued
spare ribs were huge! We also enjoyed our days in Dahouet catching the free Val bus to the market in Val
Andre and further swims on our favourite beach. Saturday afternoon we caught the tide out of Dahouet,
scraping over the cill at 1.8m (it seems to be a local custom!) and had a very enjoyable fetch across to St
Quay Portrieux, sailing almost into the harbour entrance. The marina staff were as friendly as ever (the
main man is English!), I think he quite enjoyed some English banter and it gave Penny a break from her
French. In the evening we pottered up to the older part of town where we enjoyed an 'al fresco' pizza and
were treated to some more excellent music from a very laid back jazz/blues trio. In the marian we met up
with a French X302 and there owner who live near Le Mans but keep their boat in St Quay: The Golden
Dragon of St Tropez. On the Sunday we walked to the next town/village which was beach resort, watched
a bit of volley ball then returned to St Quay for a cooler swim on the local beach. Supper was a pasta
evening, 'chilling' on board. On the Monday we planned to depart for Paimpol but the wind picked up to a
SW6-7 so we decided to stay put, had another mooch around St Quay and enjoyed a moules followed by
the best puds of the holiday - fresh raspberry tart, raspberry ice cream & creme anglaise!
Day 12 & 13 – To the Paimpol
Tuesday was a better sailing day, a little overcast at first but a nice light northerly wind. We went to pick
up fuel first - 'out of order' - so we set off early to maximise the use of sails. The trip to Paimpol was only
14nm but very tidally constrained. The first lock was 1735 so we took a lunch stop anchoring in Brehec
Bay, a delightful small beach/harbour village. After lunch we continued our journey beating against an
increasing tide, in the end 'giving in' and motoring for a couple of miles to get out of the worst of the tide
before continuing our journey under sail.
We crept up with the tide to the lock (first yacht!) and all went smoothly (to Penny's relief!). Once through
the gate we were directed to a prime berth in the main basin - boats were crammed everywhere for the
festival. On paying we were warned that we were likely to be moved to enable the classic yachts (it was
their ‘Festival of the Sea’ in a couple of days) to park in the main basin.
Marie France joined us once parked and we 'enjoyed' an indifferent meal at Tonton Guy's.
Day 14 &15 – The Festival of the sea
After enjoying 2 days in our prime spot in the main basin in Paimpol we were inevitably moved in with all
the other modern boats into the second basin. It is difficult to see how they could cram in any more boats!
Our new position was next to the lock, rafted out from the wall which turned out to be an ideal vantage
point to watch the procession of classic yachts and ships work their way into the main basin we had
vacated for the festival. Marie France, Veronique, Bernard, Martine & Juliette (our French friends from
Brest) joined us on board to watch this spectacle. Paimpol is now very much in festival mode, with whole
harbour surrounded by all sorts of food, clothing & trinket stalls. As well as the boats the festival is a
nautical music festival with at least 6 stages for various bands, musicians etc to perform on, with music
starting at 1400 & going on to 0100 in the morning! I think one night of partying will be enough for us!
Well, the festival was a spectacular event with lots of boats, lots of colourful flags, lots of music, lots of
excellent food stalls and lots and lots of people! It was all in good humour, with everyone in goods spirits
and minimal mess - not to be missed - but one day was certainly enough for us! In the evening we shared a
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whisky aperitif with our neighbours Philipe & Gerrard. This was good PR because we had to squeeze out
of our raft at 0800 (French time) the next day.
Day 16 – You can only festival for so long!
We slipped out of Paimpol fairly easily and without upsetting too many French neighbours at 0800, as
planned. With preparation the lock was again fairly easy to negotiate. Although we enjoyed our stay in
Paimpol it was good to be free from the hustle and bustle of the festival & crowds.
It was a straight forward motor sail to Jersey with sails set for a fetch in the light NW breeze, the sun was
very hot and apart from an encounter with some plastic netting (that was relatively easily freed) and one of
the lazy jack fastenings tearing, all went as planned, arriving at St Helier at about 1530 UK time. We
refuelled and tied up on the waiting pontoons until there was enough water over the cill to enter the marina
(approx 1800). Once in the marina we were both pretty tired so had a shower, quick pasta/pizza and an
early night.
Fixation,
not in Brittany!
Day 16, 17, 18 – Jersey break.
Sunday was largely a chilling day. We
bought some food, did some washing,
wandered out to Elizabeth Castle,
waded in the rock pools and enjoyed the
oyster catchers defending their roosts.
On returning to Fixation Penny manned
the winch to enable me to ascend the
mast to recover the lazy jack that had
slipped up to the second set of
spreaders. I got up to the first set of
spreaders, hauling myself up and Penny
winching up the slack when Penny
exclaimed that she had a riding turn on
the winch! I was stranded! I was OK, I
was standing on he first set of spreaders but Penny could not clear the turns - I told her to seek help!
Luckily a boat from Beaulieu had a willing person on board able to assist and my mission was completed
without further mishap. We then set about sewing the damaged stack-a-pack sail bag - well Penny did the
sewing! We were then invited for drinks on the yacht from Beaulieu (and of course accepted!) followed by
a simple supper on board.
Monday we wandered in to St Helier and got a few provisions and then caught the bus to Devil's Hole and
enjoyed a lovely walk to l' Etacq (about 7 miles) along the cliffs with spectacular views to the French coast
and other Channel Islands, impressive rock formations, falcons and crystal clear water. We punctuated our
walk with a crab sandwich stop at a very nice hotel overlooking at La Greve de Lacq. The bus trip back
was very crowded but we were entertained by a French walking group and their commentary. Our friends
from Beaulieu then joined us for drinks before we enjoyed another supper on board.
Day 19 & 20 – On the way home!
We departed for Cherbourg as soon as we could scrape over the cill at St Helier. Our course was round the
right hand side of the Island via the Violet Passage buoy and past Les Ecrehou. Unfortunately the wind
was light and on the nose so we motored all the way. I knew it was going to touch and go whether we
made the tide gate rounding the Cap de La Hague and alas by being an hour adrift we probably added 2 to
3 hours to our journey punching a very strong tide - we were down to SOG of 2 - 3 knots motoring flat out
for a couple of hours! We arrived in Cherbourg at 1900 BST. It was not an unpleasant trip, the sun shone
and we grazed on various snacks all the way round, and views were as spectacular as ever.
Wednesday was spent topping up wine supplies and chilling out before our planned return to the UK on
Thursday via Yarmouth.
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Day 21 & 22 - We are back!
The return trip across the Channel was largely uneventful and went pretty much to plan.
To ensure we got the favourable tide into the Western Solent we left Cherbourg at a rather early 0400. It was
dark and the wind was a light south-westerly, so the early part of our journey was under motor and sail. The
wind increased as dawn broke and we got further from Cherbourg. We celebrated with a bacon sandwich
and then raised the cruising chute. We enjoyed a broad reach averaging about 7 knots through the water until
we were about 2.5 hours from the Needles when the wind swung south making our sailing position an
uncomfortable run. After struggling with the chute for a while we decided to drop it and motor sail the
remaining part under main only - this was a lot more comfortable and faster! We arrived at the Needles at
1400 and Yarmouth just before 1500. To our disappointment On the Rocks was full, so we had to make do
with an OK meal in the Bugle.
Friday morning was spent tidying & cleaning the boat in readiness for our return to our mooring later in the
day. We departed from Yarmouth at 1100 and enjoyed (well I enjoyed!) a screaming reach all the way to
Chichester harbour with the asymmetric flying - speeds ranged between 7 to 8 knots through the water. We
were on the mooring by 1500 and dry land at TISC by1600, having partially unloaded the booty.
We both rated this trip as one of our favourites. This was certainly helped by a proper summer!
Next blog 2014!
Hugh & Penny
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sailing Blind
Nicola Haden Ford
Beverley had lost the plot!
Clearly, I thought she was mad when she invited me to join her for Blind Week.
Beverley had offered herself and her boat Phoenix for a week’s cruising for blind people. There would be
two blind people, or VIs as they were affectionately known, and two sited sailors to make up the total crew
of five.
Not only were my sailing skills basic, I am disabled and following a couple of frightening experiences, I had
lost my nerve. But Beverley regarded me as a challenge. Surely you might say – having two blind crew
members was enough of a challenge. But I am talking of a girl who relishes sailing round the Needles in
Force 8 winds.
Beverley’s task was to ensure that each VI had the best sailing experience possible. They were a demanding
bunch. We had a programme of places to sail to and dinners to attend whilst fitting in pontoon parties where
copious amounts of liquor were consumed. There were four fleets in total, each fleet comprising five or six
boats. Each fleet had its own Commodore. Our Commodore was Lucy Hodges, world champion Paralympic
sailor.
Clive was our first mate, the only male on board an otherwise all female boat. He was fabulous –
experienced, skilful, amusing and he could make tea and sandwiches for us all with the boat at a 450angle
whilst doing 7 knots. I had to share the main salon with Clive, so at bed time we would pile the cushions up
on the centre table to form a barrier. Beverley took the fore cabin and the VIs shared the aft cabin. Living on
board a 32 foot cruiser for a week can be challenging enough. Even more so with two blind people, Sheila
and Fiona. I should say at this point that Fiona was not only totally blind but also disabled by a dodgy hip.
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We had two floods. The VIs couldn’t get the hang of the heads. Flushing a loo on a boat takes some getting
used to. Poor Clive had to come to the rescue on both occasions.
Over the week both Sheila and Fiona learned how to put out and take in fenders, line handling and stowing,
how to tie knots, hauling and easing the lines to the sails and they even spent some time at the helm. There
were a number of highlights. Such as the time we went mackerel fishing. I was at the helm and carried out a
manoeuvre known as heaving-to, which is a way of bringing the boat to a standstill. Then Beverley and
Fiona put out the lines and within 10 minutes we felt a tug and in came two mackerel. Beverley and Fiona
quickly hauled in the catch whilst Sheila rummaged around in the locker for a suitable container. Clive
sought out a tool to deal with the squirming fish. Eventually he settled on the winch. I was hopping up and
down with excitement, whilst still maintaining hove to and we went on to catch a further eight fish. Two
were tiddlers so we returned them to the sea, and one jumped out of the bucket in through the hatch and
ended up in Fiona’s sleeping bag. We all howled with laughter as we fought to retrieve the jumping fish and
return it to the bucket. We then decided it was a good time to have lunch, so Clive was despatched to the
galley to make tea and sandwiches for the hungry crew.
The excitement of the day didn’t finish there. That night we rafted up alongside another boat in our fleet
called Star Fish when we downed anchor in Poole harbour near Brownsea Island. It was great fun, we
hopped over to Star Fish at 6 for drinks and nibbles and later drunkenly made our way back to Phoenix for
fresh mackerel and my strawberry and rhubard crumble.
The next morning, Beverley and Fiona made their way to the bow and sat down rowing style to haul in the
anchor, which was attached to a long chain and weighed some 20 lbs. Clive skilfully steered the helm whilst
Sheila and I ran up and down the starboard side of the boat with roving fenders to make sure the boats
weren’t damaged. All this made much more difficult because the wind and tide which were pulling us
towards Star Fish. The winds were much stronger that day, Force 5 - 6, and Beverley decided it was a good
opportunity for the VIs to get some real helming experience. Most of the time Beverley would talk with the
VIs about what needed to be done. The sea state was moderate to rough with waves of about 1 ½ metres.
Yet it was one of the best sails we had. The boat surfed the waves creating a lovely smooth feeling and
eventually the sun put on his hat and shone our way to Cowes on the Isle of Wight.
Then there was the time we carried out the Man Overboard Drill when we spied a floating fender that didn’t
appear to belong to anyone. Beverley called “sheet in the mainsail” and brought the boat downwind of the
fender and then into the wind so that the mainsail was depowered and the fender could be retrieved. On the
leeward side, Clive tried to grab the fender. This procedure was more difficult than it seemed and the
manoeuvre had to be repeated several times before Clive managed to pick up the fender. As we all cheered
we discovered that the jacket of the fender had a large Fairline logo on it. Not wanting to advertise our ill
gotten gains, we ripped off the jacket only to find the fender itself sported the same logo. We laughed our
heads off and decided it was fair game because there wasn’t a Fairline boat in sight.
We sailed everyday from morning to night. Every night we socialised and partied into the early hours. We
laughed a lot, drank a lot and sailed a lot and above all the sun shone on us almost continuously. At the end
of the week all 130 of us returned to the Royal Southampton Yacht Club in Ocean Village for a magnificent
party. Each flotilla selected a VI to provide us with an account of the highlights of their week. Awards were
given and once again much alcohol was consumed. I sought out the main organiser of the week Grant
Morris and asked to put my name down for next year. He asked me if I wanted to go on Phoenix again. I
said yes but was not sure that Beverley would want me. As it turned out Beverley does want me again and I
am thrilled. She is a skilled and experienced sailor and a good friend.
So did Beverley meet her challenges? Yes she did. Both VIs thanked her for a wonderful week and as for
me, well, I am a better and more confident sailor and am looking forward to sailing blind again.
Nicola
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Emsworth Goes To Cherbourg 2013
From our special correspondent aboard Toccata
The traditional May bank holiday cruiser rally across the Channel is organised alternate years by ESSC and
ESC. This year Chris and Jean Morrin of ESC had organised the event, with the rally dinner at a good restaurant
in Cherbourg, local to the marina, and favourable berthing rates.
The number of boats signed up this year was a little down on some years, perhaps a reflection of the yet again
unpromising looking weather. However, it was all optimism at the informal rally briefing in the club bar on
Friday 17th May. A nice moderate northwesterly was going to arrive and blow us all comfortably and in the
right direction (said Hugh).
Over the years an increasing number of boats have used the event as part of a cruising holiday over one or
several weeks, so the former cruising in company en masse just before the rally had become a staggered start
over the prior week. Chris and Jean were the first to set out, on the Tuesday, heading for St.Vaast, on the east
side of the Cherbourg peninsular, with the intention of going round to Cherbourg the next day and give the
rally dinner venue a further visit.
After a quiet overnight stop off Hayling, Baldur and Toccata crossed to St.Vaast on Wednesday, which proved
to be the best day of the week for it. In spite of improved weather, the channel seemed devoid of cruising
craft. We on Toccata only saw one other yacht, apart from Baldur. We had a brief radio exchange with a
container ship which was picked up by Ultima, who put in a DSC call to us. They had also set out that day
but heading for Cherbourg with plans to go south for several weeks. They too had little sailing company and
were rather pleased to find that there was actually someone else out there.
We arrived at St.Vaast at 1830. The visiting berths were fairly empty. Hardly had we tied up when Chris and
Jean on Trelise appeared. They had turned round en route to Cherbourg because a pipe had fractured on the
engine water system and seawater was being pumped into the bilges, in other words they were slowly sinking.
They were surprised (and relieved) to see friendly faces greet them. Neil Cowell, crewing on Baldur, was
promoted to Chief Engineer as he diagnosed the problem and fixed it on Thursday, after Chris and Jean went
to Cherbourg by bus to get the parts.
Meanwhile, the weather was getting worse; strong winds, rain and persistently cold. Of the boats getting ready
to join us, Haven Lady decided to take the ferry and three others dropped out. Phoenix made the crossing and
experienced squalls with 37 knot winds before landing safely at Cherbourg Thursday evening. We in St.Vaast
had Friday or Saturday in which to make our date in Cherbourg. It was not looking good! The forecast was 5
to 7 north-west but it seemed better to go sooner rather than later. The principle was that we would catch the
tide north from St.Vaast to Barfleur, meet slack water at Barfleur around midday and then be swept west to
Cherbourg by a healthy west running tide. Yes, it would be wind over tide, but the local forecast had predicted
waves of very modest height. That forecast proved to be wrong by a factor of ten! Our little convoy of three
boats moved swiftly up to Barfleur, but it was clear this was not going to be comfortable. Your scribe was
heard to mutter “is this really a good idea? – how much time is there to catch the lock before it shuts at
St.Vaast?”. But stoically, we carried on and as we turned west, conditions worsened. The wind annoyingly
moved to west, rather than north-west, and the waves just kept getting higher. The extra ballast afforded by
shopping in the caves of M.Gosselin in St.Vaast were no match for this! At least it was not raining but it might
just as well have been as drenchings from the waves went down inside oilskins. One wave broke over the top
of Baldur sending gallons of water down their dorado vents into their saloon. More seriously, when Trelise
went to tack north because the wind was pushing them too far inshore, their tiller snapped, leaving them with
a short stump with which to control the boat. There were pontoon places aplenty in Cherbourg (I wonder why!)
and we were all very pleased to tie up, dry out and relax! A re-crafted tiller for Trelise was swiftly
commissioned.
Also out on the water that Friday was Shearwater with Steve and Mary. They had turned round twice after
clearing the Solent, but soldiered on in the end. They had hoped to avoid the strongest of the winds forecast
for later that day. We had no news of them for most of the day and wondered if they had in fact set out.
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Seventeen of us went out that evening for a very pleasant meal at the Café de Paris. Our numbers were boosted
by Dick and Shelia Scales (Gemma Fay) and Frank and Sue Hillebrand (En Saga) who some time previously
had decided to make the rally part of a week’s holiday using ferry, car and shore accommodation (prize for
the best decision?) Joining us were Clive Joyce and Dave Bullman (Haven Lady) who after arriving by ferry
the previous day had gone out for a meal. Dave visited the restaurant toilets upstairs, but the staircase was
very close to the toilet doors and on exit Dave missed his footing and tumbled down the stairs. He badly
injured his head and was sent to hospital where he had four stitches and a very large dressing applied. They
returned to the restaurant later to settle the bill, but the restaurant would not take payment. A very decent
decision, but as we say, there is no such thing as a ‘free lunch’.
As we left the Café de Paris Friday evening, a text arrived from Mary to say that they were safely in port but
‘I AM NEVER CROSSING THE CHANNEL AGAIN’. They had had a torrid time and had to cope with the
devastation of all their instruments failing three hours away from Cherbourg. Good visibility saved the day.
It was great to have them ‘ticked off the list’ so to speak, but we were now left with Fixation and Toucan Too
to worry about. The calm inside the Café de Paris had been quickly dashed outside as it became clear that the
winds were building. As we walked back onto pontoon P, the boats were doing a ‘Mexican wave’ down both
sides and masts were waving around in erratic fashion, barely missing collision.
We knew that Hugh (Fixation) had delayed leaving until overnight into Saturday, but was it a good idea to
come at all? Hugh had brother-in-law Gary as crew. His sister, Alison, went with Penny to Cherbourg on the
Friday evening ferry. Hugh and Penny were supposed to be having a week of cruising holiday following the
rally. Hugh and Gary set out at 2am after the worst of the weather had gone through but the residual turbulence
in the sea was nasty and proved enough to make even Hugh sick. Fixation arrived in Cherbourg mid-afternoon
on Saturday with two extremely shattered crew. We could tell that Hugh wasn’t entirely himself because he
wasn’t wearing shorts! By late afternoon Nick Pomfret was also safely in, having brought his new boat Toucan
Too (with all its ‘cool’ bells and whistles) over single-handed (how does he do that?) At the dinner in the
evening there was a lot of self-congratulation that we were there at all. The meal was excellent, but the partying
was not extended to more typical cruiser rallying late hours, most of us being too tired to get too inebbriated!
Sunday dawned peacefully with lighter winds and even some sun! Folk were stirring and some hardier types
were rooting out shorts and sandals. Suddenly we spied a figure moving shakily on the pontoon. It was Richard
Lewis (Phoenix) and he was clutching his left arm and clearly unwell. He was alone because Beverly had
gone with a group of Slipper folk to a local church service. Richard was helped aboard Toucan Too where he
was laid down and made as comfortable as possible and looked after by Alison, who had some nursing
experience. It seemed that Richard had managed to dislocate his shoulder, which is a known problem awaiting
corrective surgery. Hugh scoured the pontoon for a doctor, but could only come up with a vet, who wisely
advised specialist attention. Russ and Nick got the pompiers summoned, who made the shoulder secure and
took Richard to hospital. Drugged but re-fixed, Richard was back on Phoenix in the afternoon.
By now, minds were turning to scuttling home before any more ‘incidents’. We did now have blue sky,
something approaching warmth and tiny fragments of optimism were beginning to surface. We could also hear
Hugh’s infectious laugh punctuating the air. It was good to know that he was feeling better. There appeared
to be a weather window coming Monday/Tuesday when the wind would have some south in it before returning
to its persistent northerly direction, and calm seas were predicted. Most of us wanted to grab the opportunity
while we could!
Over the next three days, most boats returned to the Solent. Baldur went to Fecamp, Brighton and then
Bembridge, taking up station to watch the Round The Island race on Saturday 1 June. We wait to see how far
Malcolm and Eileen go with Ultima in their voyage south.
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It has to be said that our club rallies across to France do have a history of being a little testing, but this one
was definitely a challenge. In fact, we should perhaps rename this event the Annual Emsworth Channel
Challenge!
Linda Wolstenholme
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PICTURE GALLERY
ESSC REGATTA, WHICH GOT A BIT WET & WINDY!
Photos by Julian Mandiwall
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Youth Cruise
Youth Cruise
Nab Dash
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A GOOD SUMMER FOR THE DINGHIES
The dinghy sailors have enjoyed the lovely summer with lots of racing and social sailing.
Federation Week was held in August and it was good to see lots of Slipper members out enjoying the
moderate breezes and summer sunshine. Slipper were the third harbour club overall, with the following
individual results:
Fast Assymetric
2nd RS800 Mike Thomson and Adam Cockerill
Medium Assymetric
4th ISO Andy and Vicky Gould
6th ISO Mike Lillywhite and Emma Pethybridge
13th RS500 Jon Holmes and Matt Purdon
17th ISO Dave Copper and Ed Parker-Jervis
26th Esme Cooper and Michael Cooper
RS400
8th Alex Thorsby and Pete McCoy
17th Toby Price and Peter Tierney
Laser
9th Dave Valentine
18th Simon Robinson
RS200
7th Paul and Caroline Fisk
17th Ben Hodges and Lucy Hodges
19th Dave Cockerill and Jackie Cockerill
Laser Radial
22nd James Mant
Laser 4.7
11th Helen Weekes
Topper
8th Jess Valentine (who had to retire injured after day one)
It would be great to see even more Slipper participants next year. It is a really good week of sailing and
socialising.
Earlier on in the summer two Slipper boats made their way to Warsash for the Laser Stratos Nationals,
both competing in their first Stratos Opens. Both did well, with John Excel and Simon Goldfarb picking
up silverware in 3rd place and Sean Curtis and Noel Coussens 8th
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Sean and Noel
Racing at home has also been great this summer. We had over 60 boats compete in our regatta
despite the gusty winds and random downpours, no doubt tempted by the promise of the traditional
delicious tea.
The Short Course series was popular again, providing an alternative to the longer races - in the end
Guy Goodman won the series, with Sarah Parker Jervis and Roger Weekes close behind.
We’ve had several 3 race series as well as the ‘normal’ handicap and down harbour races. As I write we
have one more Browning race left and then we are into the Hare and Hounds series – an interclub
competition between ESSC, ESC and TISC. It would be really good to see lots of Slipper members
racing in this as we would must to retain the trophy!
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John and Simon
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PAUL WATKINS 1957-2013
The sad passing of Paul Watkins, taken prematurely on his 56th birthday in April of this year, was
reported very briefly in our Spring issue, but now we have time to say a little more. Editor.
Paul was born and raised in Emsworth and went to Warblington School and Chichester College.
During this time he sailed with Martin Price at Langstone Sailing Club in a Mirror and a Fireball.
Through the College, he became an instructor on many courses at the West Sussex Sailing Centre at
Cobnor, a place of which he was very fond.
Paul studied Mechanical Engineering at Bristol Polytechnic and graduated in 1979. After a couple of
years working in industry, Paul offered his services to Voluntary Services Overseas and was posted to
Sierra Leone to teach agricultural engineering. He lived there for almost three years and it was here
that he met his future wife Yvonne. Both of them retained a strong connection with the country,
supporting many projects over the years through their “Sierra Leone” charity events at the Slipper
Club.
Paul and Yvonne joined the Slipper Club in 1987 and settled in Emsworth in 1989 . They married in
1988 and had their reception at the Club and both regularly socialised at the club and made many new
friends there.
With the arrival of Steffi their first child, Paul and Yvonne become “Oppie parents”, and Paul threw
himself wholeheartedly into teaching the kids and supporting many Oppie Events whenever he could.
He put his engineering skills to good use and had a good eye for how things could be achieved. He
would then set about doing them with a team of Slipper members.....so helped by other club stalwarts,
his millennium marquee was a combined effort in the true Slipper ethos that Paul revered so much,
and as a result many marquees, along with many BBQs used at Oppie Camp were created, some of
which are still used by the Club today.
Paul always willingly mucked in and enjoyed being a part of the Volunteer ethos of Slipper, whether
through cooking his fair share of burgers and sausages at Oppie Camp, or by running the Club firework
displays for a few years. He gave freely of his time, sitting on the General Committee and Premises
Committee, where his engineering knowledge was invaluable. He regularly manned safety boats, and
enthusiastically supported Sailability events at the club.
Paul was a great supporter of the club and we will miss his great sense of humour and friendly nature.
He leaves behind Yvonne, Steffi, Sarah and Jono, all of whom are still active at the club. Please
support them in any way you can through this difficult time.
Martin Price
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Lynne Cockerill 1952 – 2013
Lynne and Dave moved to Emsworth and joined ESSC in 1986, where they instantly became part of the
sailing and social scene. Adam was very small when they arrived and Hannah was born soon after. Lynne
became a key participant in many activities and over the years was closely involved with things such as
Friday night Oppies, Oppie Camp, club social events and especially the pantos where her musical abilities
were invaluable.
I have a special memory. As Dave was racing a single hander, his Europe, Lynne became my crew in my
National Twelve. She had a natural ability and affinity for sailing in such a very sensitive and tippy racing
dinghy (aided perhaps by a little training from Dave!). It was only later I found out that Lynne “did not
crew anyone other than Dave”, so I was and still am honoured. One day we were beating down harbour
along the Thorney shore trying to cheat the flood tide. “Let’s tack here” I said. “Are you sure?” said Lynne.
“Yes, there’s enough water there” I replied, probably in an “I know my way around this harbour” tone of
voice. The response from my observant crew was “then why are those gulls standing?” A perfect crew.
Lynne had her own special time frame. Basically it erred on the side of being late, but somehow she also
made it elastic. I have heard how she would arrive home, late, at 5.30, make a pudding from scratch and still
manage to go out again by 6.
Lynne dealt with her health problems in her usual cheery and ultimately brave manner. She was a great
example to us all and we miss her.
The Slipper “family” is a much valued and supportive entity. Dave, Hannah and Adam are keenly conscious
of this and are deeply grateful to all who rallied round with appropriate words and deeds. Their sincerest
thanks to you all.
Ron Rocket
Recently we also lost Ron Rocket, dinghy sailor turned cruiser owner, Ron turned his hand to many tasks at
Slipper, including being Bosun and more recently teaching some of our training courses. He was always a
source of reliable nautical information and good stories.
Viv Whittaker
A few weeks ago we received the news that Viv Whittaker had just passed away at his home in Spain to
which he retired in 1989. An active club member before that, in the 1980s I remember Viv as our Cruiser
Captain.
Thank you Ron and Viv for what you did for us. It is not forgotten.
Roger Pratt
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Jo & Luke Austen in Kenya for Eduction Parnerships Africa
The EPAfrica project in Kenya this summer was by far the most challenging thing either of us have ever
done; despite being hugely interesting and rewarding, we spent a lot of the time being either tired, stressed,
frustrated or all three. Whatever the expectation that we’d come home beaming having found ourselves or
something, it just isn’t like that. Trying to actually make anything happen there involves many completely
different processes, and we were constantly on guard against wrong information (people often wanted to
help whether they had any idea or not) bad deals and general incompetence. In the end we invested the
money well, but it was hard work from start to finish.
Obviously some elements of the project were easier than others. In a school that already had a functioning
library system, I was able to analyse the book to student ratios to inform a decision about which new books
we should buy. Trawling through the school’s paper library inventory was tedious, but effective, and by the
time we left, the projected book to student ratio in all classes was 1:2. The management team at my school
were brilliant, inspiring people and with their help Chris and I made our money go a very long way. We
were also delighted to get extra funding from the central charity to dig a new borehole, as this was clearly
something that held more value for the school and the local community than any educational resources we
could buy. None of our work would have been possible without the head teacher and the PTA chairmen, and
we left wondering how different Kenya might be if its leadership comprised such decent, hard-working,
intelligent people instead of so many corrupt, nepotistic incompetents.
By contrast, Luke arrived at a school that had lost several hundred pounds worth of books the charity had
bought for it last year, and was immediately faced with the question of whether it was sensible to buy any
more this time around. The school’s headmistress was dishonest and manipulative, regularly changing her
story about the missing books and proving unhelpful and obstructive throughout the project. In the end some
of the money was spent on more books, with the rest going into various low-risk investments (Luke
reasoned that “it’s pretty hard to steal a shelf”) but he and his group certainly felt that they could have done
more had the school’s leadership engaged with more than the fact that there was a large sum of money
available.
Fortunately, the other school that Luke worked with were far more receptive to the charity’s involvement.
They had already improved in many areas in the time between the charity’s initial visits and Luke’s arrival,
and were delighted with their new acquisitions, which included a huge number of books and a
printer/photocopier/scanner machine. Such machines were bought for many of this year’s schools, enabling
printing at less than 1% of the cost of printing in cyber cafés - a great example of how a lump sum that these
schools could never afford makes such an immediate difference. In Luke’s second school the charity also
provided extra funding to light the classrooms in that school, meaning that students could benefit from over
an hour of extra study time each morning.
Away from the project, we both really appreciated the experience of being somewhere that was often
surprising, frequently beautiful and always full of life. While obviously hugely humbling, I think we both
left having learned a lot more than “how lucky we are.” We’re massively grateful to everyone at ESSC who
supported us, and if anyone would like to see exactly how the money was invested, pound-by-pound, we’ll
be happy to put that online, to join the various anecdotes, photos and reports that can be found at
www.lukejoepafrica.wordpress.com
Jo Austen
October 2013
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We'd like to thank everyone at Slipper for supporting Jo and Luke's work with EPAfrica
in Kenya this summer. They flew out to Uganda on 30 June and travelled overland to
Kakemega in SW Kenya. After a week's induction at the charity's central house there, they
were off to their own schools. Nine weeks later and having had a week off in the middle
spent on the beach near Mombassa, they were back in Emsworth exhausted and thinner, but
pleased with their efforts.
Mike and Ruth
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NEW HOME WANTED
Fiona and I have a Mirror Dinghy which very sadly needs a new home and lots of tlc. We have had this
boat since the early 1970s. Jemima (as in Puddleduck) is sail number 22600. All the gear is original.
Alastair learnt to sail in Jemima so her new home must be one where she will be loved, and even more
importantly, where she will be able to teach some young person(s) the joys of messing about in boats. Free
to the right home. Roger.
Jemima with Fiona, Alastair and Katherine at Salcombe in June 1976
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Haven’t we had a good summer weatherwise, but of course being hardy Slipper types you all sail
through rain or shine – don’t you! But continental warmth does make it all seem so much better. Fiona and
I explore foreign parts in our motorhome for a couple of months or so each summer, but when we get back
to Emsworth the first thing we say each time is “aren’t we lucky to live in such a lovely place”. I grew up
sailing and rowing on the Thames in London. Coming down to sail on Chichester Harbour in the early
1950s for a week or two was like coming to a different world and we still feel privileged to be here now.
PS: Don’t forget the Hare & Hounds series, starting on 2nd November
Stop Press: What a well-timed lift out, one week ahead of the storm. Phew!
Roger
The End!
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