FINAL UPDATE ON IOM EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS 02.10.2010.
Well today was a case of to be or not to be. First there was no wind and then after a wait of some two hours a ripple appeared and was enough to provide a race. The light airs did not suit Andrew or John. Andrew lost two places in the ranking and John remained in the same place.
With the late start due to the lack of wind and a long protest things were moving very close to the time limit for finishing racing. However, the wind again obliged and there was another round of racing and the event ended with a resounding victory to Mark Matic of Croatia after a huge battle with Bradley Gibson of the UK.
Well done to Andrew Crosbie IRL 132 who finished 25th and John Morehead IRL 77 who finished 58th. These were very demanding races at the highest level and I hope that a lot of people here who would not have been too familiar with these lovely craft and the skills that go into operating them got some enjoyment from reading about them.
Many thanks to our reporter Gilbert Louis and to Gordon Davies who acted as an Umpire for the event and I am sure neither of these were small tasks in any way.
Don’t forget full results can be seen on www.iomireland.org and Afloat.ie also has several videos which are very interesting to watch.
October 1st, 2010
Today Andrew Crosbie managed to keep his 23rd place with a few races in an A fleet. Climbing further would be the trick but not an impossibility. However, he needed to have over 20 points on the following boats and the threat from behind was very real.
John Morehead was still struggling to move up in the fleeets. It is difficult to know why but this level of competition is very high and as they were all struggling to get to the top and using every trick in the book it was extremely difficult.
At close of racing today Andrew was in 24th place overall on equal points with a competitor lying in 23rd place. John was in 56th position.
Full results and update may be found on www.iomireland.org. Racing continues tomorrow.
Detailed reporting and seveal videos of the event may be seen on the Afloat.ie forum under IOM European Championships 2010.
September 30th, 2010
It was a mixed day yesterday for the two RCYC members. John Morehead ran out of luck with a sheered main sheet and a bad choice in sail tuning and when he had got it all together again and got to lead his fleet with a promotion up to the next fleet, another competitor T-boned him, sinking his hope of progression.
Andrew Crosbie also had a mixed day but more positive than negative overall clilmbing from 30th place to 23rd with a few races in the A fleet. Both skippers seem to have an equal pace on the other skippers but having a good start and anticipating the shifts seem to be crucial in finishing well. Also, there are no mistakes allowed. Each race lasts around seven minutes so make one mistake and they find themselves at the back of the pack and relegated to the next fleet down.
Today is a lay day.
The racing can be seen live on www.rodeoprodfr/direct-iom-championship from 8am tomorrow.
Report 28th September, 2010
Two Royal Cork Yacht Club members are competing in the IOM Class European Championships in France currently underway, having started on September 25th and finishing October 2nd. John Morehead and Andrew Crosbie are both competing against an entry of 70 skippers representing many EU countries.
After four races Andrew is placed 30th with John 53rd. The level of competition is extremely high with five skippers from Croatia, four from the UK and one Spaniard in the top ten. Ireland did have an invitation for three skippers but for personal reasons Gilbert Louis was unable to take up his place. He is kindly providing the reports on the event. Just heard Andrew IRL132 finished second in last race which promotes him to the top A fleet. This will do wonders for his overall ranking.
The 70 skippers are competing in very tricky conditions. They had a windy first day but the wind died as the last race was completed in a very light breeze. This of course will suit the various designs and skippers. The current World Champion is not having things all his own way as he dropped into the B fleet for two races without being able to get back up to the A fleet.
This tough competition has been a trend of the past European and World Championships. This is partially due to the class attracting more top big boat sailors from TP52 fleets, various America’s cup and VOR teams and Olympic classes to mention a few.
The IOM Class has been demonstrated in the club on several occasions and evoked great interest from the members.
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