In this issue

 Feva in the news

In its Youth in Action section of the 17th June, the Brighton Argus writes:

It's plain sailing as Georgi's boat comes in at Lancing

Lancing Sailing Club's burgeoning youth section has a new boat and another on the way.

Their new RS Feva dinghy has been called Georgi after Georgi Ridler who helped win the grant towards buying the training craft.

Club commodore Isabelle Jackson said: "The first boat is called Georgi as she was the driving force behind the grant.

"She's 16 and a very good sailor. We have another boat on the way which will be called Archie after a member who died a few years ago. He was very keen on promoting youth.

"We have had a big influx of youth sailors compared to last year and they have been out on the boats having a whale of a time.

"They are the new generation coming through."

The club hosts a youth regatta on Saturday.

Double Feva

In the spirit of the Youth Opportunity Funds organisation, a group of Lancing SC youths have come together to oversee the use and maintenance of the first RS Feva ("Georgi"). Our real live Georgi is the organiser and Pam & Derek Savidge are the supporting adults. Of course, this is not restricted and everyone is welcome to help!

The second boat "Archie" is coming on 15th July. With two boats to play with, our younger members will be on the water all the time! Great stuff!

 Streakers Nationals soon

Not long to wait before the Streakers Nationals 2009! The class association is organising a training day with Steve Cockerill on Friday 17th July and the Nationals will take place over the 18th and 19th July. More details on the dedicated Streakers Nationals page on this website.

There won't be any club racing that weekend but the club will be open and buzzing! Feel free to come for fun sailing, give a bit of help to visitors who think that pebble beach and shiny bottoms don't mix, or simply enjoy the atmosphere.

On the Saturday evening, Sarah Ringshaw and the social team is organising a barbecue. Sarah has asked for volunteers to make salads and other dishes. To offer your help or buy tickets, please email Sarah socialsec@lancingsc.org.uk or see her at the club. If you don't know Sarah, you can't miss her: find the lovely twin babies and mum isn't far!

 New series this month

With the start of July, we're going back to the Class AM Handicap series that was interrupted for the Midsummer formula. In the afternoon, we're racing the Summer Series on a traditional format too.

Class AM Handicap

• Fast (1077-) / Laser+ (1078-1184) / Topper+ (1185+)
• 1 Race AM
• Portsmouth Yardstick
• Triangle / sausage (inner marks for Topper+ fleet)

Summer Handicap

• Fast (1077-) / Medium (1078-1184) / Slow (1185+)
• 1 Race PM
• Portsmouth Yardstick
• Triangle / sausage (inner marks for slow fleet)

Not average lap time any more, only 2 races a day and triangle-sausage. Got to get used to it again!

 Success for the Midsummer series

Last weekend the Mid-Summer series came to a spectacular finish. It was a glorious day with light winds in the morning building into a invigorating sea breeze for the afternoon. It proved to be an appropriate finish to a fantastic series. The experimental format of four races a day has encouraged 67 different boats on the water. The weather has been kind and the only two lost races were due to lack of wind. While the Race Officers have been busy trying to start all three fleets on the same start line, recording the mass of boats as they round the triangles in tight competitive bundles and lots of handicap calculations for each race, the sailors have had a ball. The races have turned over quickly and competition in the fleets has been intense.

The fast fleet was won by Karen and John in their RS200 but they finished on the same points as Pete and Karen in their RS500. The tie was broken by their respective positions in the last race. The Topper result was also really close and Nick won courtesy of the last race by one point from Katie. The Medium fleet was won Alan in his Streaker with his usual consistency and completing 16 of the 20 races, however the Lasers of David T and Bruce where very close in second and third. There were also many tussles further down the fleet and week after week all came ashore with huge smiles on their faces.

Well done to all the race teams and the rescue boats – another excellent course this Sunday. Lets hope this format is tried again next year.

Chris Foster

 Topper and Laser leagues

Both leagues are regularly updated in the Results page, with a breakdown of points for each helm. Click on the graph to view the details. In the Topper league, helms in blue are competing for the Topper Novice Trophy.

 Laser training, Youth Regatta and start racing

After cancelling the first session of the Laser training in May, David Trout was keeping his fingers crossed for the scheduled training day of the 13th June. It worked, apparently, because the weather that day was perfect training weather: light steady wind and perfect sunshine.
A few keen learners turned up for the day and got to grips with broad reaches, runs, kiting the sail and running by the lee (Lasers love that trick; they also love hearing 'Ruddy Laser sailors' coming from supposedly faster boats when they overtake them in light winds...). After giving precious advice on sail setting, tuning and "'LOOK where you're going", David and his team (Steve and Chris) set up a start line for a bit of practice. Everyone came back on the beach knowing they'd made plenty of progress that day. Thanks David!

The weather was a little more uncertain the following week for the Youth Regatta. Despite the strengthening wind and dark clouds, over 20 younger members got together on the beach and had great fun taking part in silly races. Gavin organised a great day with relay races and plenty of other games on and off the water. At the end of it, everyone walked away with a prize and a big grin on their faces. Perfect results!

Finally, the latest training day happened on Saturday 4th July where the weather was perfect again. A few Toppers came to practice boat handling, settings and looking out for tidal effects. They also enjoyed games and fun racing. The last race was a triangle/sausage format, with a compulsory capsize after the first lap and the obligation to sail through the finish line backwards. The little video on this page shows that Chris sailed the entire leg backwards whereas Nick decided to turn shortly before the line.... and into Chris. After being a bit muddled for some, everyone else got the hang of it. We all finished the day with a swim, plenty of capsize practice and silly games. Days like these really feel like summer.

See more photos of these three events on the June-July 09 photo gallery on this site. Enjoy!

 Coming soon: Have-a-Go Day on 15th August

The Have-a-Go day was a great success last year, with many visitors enjoying a sail, some for the first time in their lives.
This year, you can come and try this exciting sport on Saturday 15th August. Members of Lancing SC will welcome you, get you on a boat and give you a taste of sailing. You can't beat that feeling of freedom when you sail away from the beach and discover the shore from the water.
Even if you're more experienced, you can come and try a different boat, have a go at trapezing if the weather is good or go out in a two-man boat. Just turn up and you'll have a great time!

This event is weather-dependent, of course. Confirmation or cancellation will be published on this site closer to the date. Please bring a towel, shoes that can (and will) get wet and a change of clothes. If you have any sailing equipement (wetsuit, buoyancy aid, neoprene shoes, etc.), please bring it with you, thanks.