Ben and Jenny Vines were crowned champions at the Craftinsure Firefly Nationals at Tenby on Friday after a close battle with another longstanding racing partnership, Rob and Mel Sherrington. Sailing F2144 Featherlite and representing Imperial Poona YC (the most successful sailing club represented at the champs after Wesk Kirby, Restronguet and West Oxfordshire), the husband and wife team won the title in a nail-biting fashion after racing was cancelled in a force 7 on the last day of the champs.
The Vines and the Sherringtons, the latter sailing F3617 Iris, a more modern Rondar boat, battled it out throughout the week. After leading the championships midweek after a win on Tuesday and a second in the epic Gore Challenge cup Rob and Mel Sherrington were caught up in points by the Vines who scored a pair of wins on Thursday, a 2-race day using Trapezoid courses. Although the Sherringtons, from Ringwood in Hampshire, discarded a 10th place, one place better than the Vines (also from Hampshire) the racing rules stipulate that a tie is broken on ‘countback’ i.e. the result from the last race where both boats met.
The two race wins on Thursday sealed the championships for Featherlite, although the result could not be confirmed until racing had been cancelled on Friday. Firefly chairman Chris Guy took out a rib with the Tenby SC rescue team to check out the conditions for himself and admitted that with a squally force 5-7, frequent showers dropping visibility to less than a mile and 4-5 foot seas, safe and fair racing would be impossible. In a fine example of why this is a great town to hold a nationals, even the harbour master had volunteered the use of his bigger boat as a gate launch.
It is the first win for the Vines team who have been chasing the title for many years and sailing Fireflies since infancy. Both the top 2 helms team raced Fireflies at university and Rob and Mel have also sailed the boat in World Team racing championships. John Greenland and Ruth Verrier Jones finished third after a steady string of results in a series that was more hotly contested than any recent series. Race wins were seen all the way down to seventeenth in the overall standings and the Vines were the only boat to score a first place more than once. Tenby Sailing club put on an excellent championship, starting with a short practice race in sunshine and a force 4. Throughout the week the wind was offshore which gave rise to shifty conditions though only one race had light winds. On Monday the race committee were forced to abandon plans for a line start as a strong crosswind tide piled boats down to the port end. Firefly nationals traditionally rely on gate starts, with a line set for the shorter races. Only one trophy wasn’t awarded, the Tomato Boats trophy due to be sailed for on Friday when racing was cancelled.
Among the other top crews, Stuart and Jane Hudson walked away with a plethora of goodies courtesy of Craftinsure in the many special category prizes that are awarded at the Firefly Nationals. As well as a finishing over four minutes ahead of the fleet in the Gore Trophy, they also took the Veterans and the Geriatric trophy. Andy Cornah and Katie Fairclough scooped both silver fleet trophies, they and four other boats won new mainsheets from Marlow Ropes. Henri Lloyd, Musto and Rooster Sailing all kindly assisted with prizes.
Jo McEwen, helming with her husband Jamie, won the Deben trophy for female helms, beating Amy Morris and Tash Hughes. Dan Vincent, sailing with his daughter Ella, were awarded a new jib by Hyde Sails for winning best improver – he came 18 places higher than last year, and will have to win in 2011 to repeat the feat! There were strong performances from the younger teams, with Matt and Sophie Shepherd coming 17th, winning a race and winning the under-21 trhophy. From Itchenor Sailing club and sailing the famous ‘Bloodhound’, newcomers George Yeoman and Claire Laskor came a creditable 12th overall.
The fleet who is known for its hard work off the water didn’t disappoint either, with Commodore Terry announcing to cheers on Friday night that the bar takings for the week had exceeded other recent Championship classes, including of course arch-rivals the Lark class!
There was a good crop of Duckhams awards for gross under and overachievements on and off the water this year too, with the dress (complete with wig, spectacles and a set of comedy false teeth) worn for a variety of misdemeanours, including the more traditional students decorating their tent (and boat the next day) after a particularly busy night out, a longstanding and experienced helm succeeding in ignoring the Buddies system. To find out who won the alternative competition, a full range of photos, a full report and an interview with the winning team, Firefly Association members will be eagerly awaiting their next Bulletin Magazine.
Check the website www.fireflyclass.co.uk for more news on the up and coming events, which kick off with an open at Chipstead on the 5th September. Many of the competitors here have already booked their slot at the 2011 Championships, in Felixtowe Ferry Sailing Club during the last week of July next year.