National Championships!

Starting in a few days time the Nationals takes place in Rhu from 24th to 27th June. Hosts RNCYC have done a tremendous amount of work to make the event possible and there will be daily updates of the racing published on the UKFFA website.
And there's still time if you fancy a last-minute entry!:

** Reminder of Annual General Meeting **

A separate email was sent-out to members a few days ago giving notice of the 2021 UKFFA AGM, which is taking place on Thursday 24th June, with attendance possible either in person or (technical gubbins permitting) by Zoom.

More information, agenda, previous minutes and other documents are now all available on the website.

Please make a particular point of reviewing the "Roles within UKFFA" document which aims to broaden the scope and improve the succession-planning of roles within the Association, the running of which has often fallen too heavily onto too few shoulders. Please consider whether there are areas in which you may be able to assist, and contact a committee member or attend the AGM. Thanks!

** AN URGENT MAINTENANCE ITEM? **

This is a furler toggle and depending upon how your jib furler is attached to the deck there's a good chance that your boat has one. One owner recently discovered quite by chance that his furler toggle had developed a crack which couldn't be seen with the furler in place, and the toggle on the verge of fracturing altogether. You may want to check yours as such a failure would mean loss of the whole rig.

Southern Champions Report

** A splendid return to Association Championships in ideal conditions**

A fleet of 22 boats assembled from across southern England (plus an Irishman over here to collect his new boat) to enjoy a return to open meetings on the sea.

The weather was excellent over the two days with highs of 20c and winds of F3+ on Saturday and F2+ on the Sunday. Given the forecast for the Sunday the Race Officer decided to do 4 races on the first day to ensure a good result if the expected F1 materialised. The courses were set inside the.. More >

Grafham Open & Classic / Silver Inlands

This event took place last weekend and we don't have a full report yet, but by all accounts a great time was had by everyone who attended, although winds were too light to race on the Sunday. Results are shown below, and please check the website for the report & photos in due course.

Burton SC Open Meeting

The weekend of 22nd May saw an exciting return to the open meeting circuit as the Flying Fifteen Northern event landed at Burton Sailing Club on Foremark Reservoir. The host and the fleet were both equally excited in the run up, as this marked the first post-lockdown open event of the season - it was great to see plenty of sailors on the water, both home boats and visitors alike. Somewhat poetically, the event featured fifteen Fifteens on the water, including classic and silver fleet boats as well as opens, and some great racing was had by all.

The Saturday played host to three races, in reasonably light breeze (around Force 3). The shifty and changeable wind conditions made for some.. More >

What goes wrong when racing?

Apart from the helm sailing you to the back of the fleet, then lots of things really, some happen often enough that you can predict them, these tend to be people related and you can avoid them if you try hard enough. Some happen regularly and this tends to be gear related, so you go out and fix them. Some happen so infrequently that you just consider it to be a freak event and deal with it when it happens.

When you stop and think though, these freak things actually happen quite a bit.... More >