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Affiliated to the

May 2015

The BurgeePort solent yacht club magazine

www.psyc.uk.com

Send contributions to the editor:

tony.firth@talk21.com

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Social ReportJaye Isherwood (RearCommodore House)Winter MeetsWe had two successful winter meets inJanuary and February. These were heldupstairs in the Mermaid Bar of the PortSolent Harvester that gave a nicechange of venue overlooking themarina. On both occasions a group often of us stayed after the meeting to beserved a pleasant Sunday lunch alongwith great company.The January meet covered the plannedSummer Months Cruising Planpresented by Tony Firth. This wasfollowed by myself presenting aproposed summer trip to see the MetPolice Marine Support Unit in Wapping(now scheduled for the 27th June)The February meet had a mostinteresting talk by Lewmar hatches andwinches – see Hugh’s report in thisissue.Monthly Social GatheringsFrom March I have established amonthly social get-together in PortSolent on the first Friday of everymonth. For the first few months thiswas held at the Mermaid Bar in theHarvester but I now plan to switchvenues from May where we will meet atthe refurbished Port House (was PHYC)starting on Friday 1st May.Based on the success of these meetingsI am proposing that rallies start withinformal Friday night gatherings at thePort House in addition to the monthlymeets.Round Portsmouth Walk – 17th MayPortsmouth has some hidden gems ofexperiences and sights for those whoare willing to walk around lesser knownparts of the coastal paths around thetown. This fourteen mile walk takes insome stunning views, interestinghistoric sights, and the serenity of the

coastline. It will be a full day of walkingat a gentle pace with two main stops forbreakfast and lunch plus many more totake in the sights while enjoying theviews and a regular rest. On a test walkwe took five hours plus two hours ofstopping for breaks.The walk starts in the car park just offLondon Road (East Side) just off thePortsbridge Roundabout (oppositeHilsea Lido) meeting at 08:30. Fromhere we experience the beauty, historyand serenity of the Hilsea lines walkingWest. These are wooded areas betweenthe defensive lakes and ramparts thatmake a pleasant walk. We then crossEastern Road and head south along theLangstone Lake coastal footpathtowards our breakfast stop at theHarvester in Great Salterns Mansion.Those wishing for a lie-in can meet ushere at 11:00 am (or earlier if you wantbreakfast).We then continue down the coastal pathpast the tranquil naval memorial gardendown to Lock Lake where we take ashort cut south from the ThatchedHouse pub over to Southsea Esplanade.We continue along the sea front with alunch stop near Southsea Pier.Following lunch we head over to OldPortsmouth and cut through GunwharfQuays to the hard. This is where anyonewho is feeling weary can take the busback to Hilsea Lido. The remainingwalkers will pass around the outskirtsof the Naval Dockyard up to WhaleIsland where we follow the West Coastalfootpath up to Tipner. From Tipner wejoin the Pilgrims Walk past theMountbatten Sports centre throughAlexandra Park back towards HilseaLido.So if you want to burn off over 2000calories while enjoying the rarely seensights of Portsmouth, just drop me aline. I am happy to coordinate any ofyou who just want to walk part way ofthis interesting excursion.

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Visit to London to meet the Met’sMarine Police – Friday 26th JuneI have been able to wangle a very rareand one-off opportunity to visit theMarine Police Base and Museum inWapping, East London. This facility, oneof London’s oldest police stations, isnot normally open to the public and hassome fascinating history and greatstories from the earliest policing in theUK. The visit will include a viewing ofthe Marine Police Museum and a chanceto see the Met’s high speed Targalaunches and their Delta RIBs.The excursion will be followed by ameal at St Katherine’s Wharf beforeheading home. There is limited space(fifteen maximum) on this trip so youneed to book a place ASAP. Can youplease let me know if you requiretransport from Portsmouth to London,or if you will be making your own wayto the locations? If sufficient numberswant to travel from Portsmouth (withpotential pickup stops along the A3)then I will look into the costs of hiringa minibus. Water-Based Treasure hunt followedby Posh Frocks – Saturday 19th

SeptemberThis is set to be a fun day of boatingfollowed by a formal dress dinner at theRoyal Albert and Royal Naval Yacht Clubin Old Portsmouth. I have reservedberths at Premier Marina Gosport forthose who wish to berth for the nightand use the ferry to and fromPortsmouth Hard.The day will be a sail following treasurehunt clues and questions that will takeyou around the harbour and out intothe Solent. Clues will be a mix ofcoordinates plus cryptic clues whereparticipating boats will answer a set ofquestions. The quiz sheets will all betaken back after the sail and a prize willbe awarded at the evening dinner to thetop scoring boat.

The dinner will be formal dress startingfrom 7:30 for drinks at the club bar onthe first floor followed by a meal in thebeautiful drawing room around 8pm.Depending on options, meals will costaround £30 per head. I need £10 perhead deposits as soon as possible tosecure your place at the dinner. Thiscan either be via Bank Transfer or viacheque to PSYC. Our details at Lloydsbank are: 01020845 bank accountnumber, 309611 bank sort code. Pleaseemail me (jaye@hotmail.co.uk) once youhave made a paymentCan you please let me know if you areparticipating in the treasure hunt and ifyou need a berth for the night? PS – seeyou on Meetup!

Best Photograph at a Rally2015

Category 1: Scenic (about the location)Category 2: Rally boats (at sea or atlocation)

Each boat selects one picture for bothor either category from its submittedrally shots throughout the season as acolour or black and white, A4 print,portrait or landscape.Submission (print and .jpg or similar)to Burgee Editor Tony Firth and .jpg orsimilar to Jacqui Howe. Prints are to besubmitted to Tony Firth for eachcategory NO later thanFriday 11th September 2015.

A selection of pictures (not all) will bepublished in Burgee with the Rallyreports and ALL pictures will be placedon the ‘picture gallery’ of the PSYCwebsite.

Winners’ presentation at PSYC PoshFrocks 26/27th September 2015The submitted prints will be displayedat the AGM in November 2015.

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Cruiser Mark Challenge CupThe Cruiser Mark Challenge Cup will befor the sailing boat that completes threedesignated Rally passage routes in thebest aggregated time.The passage route will be a number ofbuoys at which you must pass to portor starboard as defined by the rule/s(TBA) with times noted at each buoy.(We may have powerboat observers!)The overall passage times will beadjusted by a correction factor basedon the ISC ratings.The aggregated best corrected timesover three passage routes will be thewinner.

Current events being considered; maybe subject to change based on weather.

1. Bembridge to Hamble Pt (Legof Easter Rally) April 3/4th

2. Solent Circuit (East CowesRally) 13 -14th June

3. Hamble to Portsmouth(Swanwick Rally) 5/6thSeptember

Winners’ presentation at PSYC PoshFrocks 26/27th September 2015

Winter Meeting 2: LewmarWinches and HatchesHugh Nightingale (Shiraz)

Our Commodore Ian introduced BobJarvis from Lewmar to give apresentation on the firm’s products.

Bob started by offering deep apologiesfor the fact that the battery to be usedfor the powered demonstrations wasalmost dead! He began with a visualpresentation. Lewmar is a BritishCompany which was in at the start ofthe leisure boating boom. In 1946 they

started making Tufnol fittings inEmsworth, then expanded to twofactories in Havant. They have aseparate company dealing with superyachts. When the recession hit in 2008the bank supplied a trouble shooter andhalf the workforce was sacked. Headmitted that they had been arrogantand made what they wanted. Now theyare recruiting young graduates and area more “listening” company.

Products include hatches. They had asmall hatch with a vent but this cut outtoo much light so they had to design asmaller version. Hatches now seem tobe flush and have to be thoroughlytested and have CE approval. Lewmarprovided Oyster Yachts with a hatchthat fitted a curved deck. More powerboats seem to being built (3:1) and themajor new product is toughened glassfor the power boats offering full colourprinting onto the glass.

They make the Delta anchor in stainlesssteel or galvanised; new 316 SS is 40%cheaper but is not guaranteed for life.Remember, a windlass is only designedfor winching and you must use a chainstopper with an inbuilt chain tensionerto hold the anchor. They make the CPXwindlass complete with all fittings andnow thrusters. They have a smallthruster for small boats and the RMCswing thruster. These have new controlsfrom simple joysticks to fully integratedsystems.

Lewmar have generally dropped out ofrace boats as racers are very demandingand break everything. However, theyhave new products for Spirit Yachts andthe new J class yachts.

Bob then talked about winches. What isa winch? It is a power multiplier. With a10” handle you can generate a force ofsay 15kg. Using the same handle on a

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30 winch can give 450kg of output.They presently make the Standard,Ocean and Evo range of winches. Hethen gave demonstration of strippingdown and servicing a winch mentioningthat it is most important not to usegrease on the pawls but a light oil (I usesewing machine oil). Later winches canbe converted to power. Evo and REvooffer a back winding capability. Talkingagain about hatches he said they hadbeen making hatches since 1980 andare still making the old Ocean hatch.Newer hatches still fit the old cut outs.Acrylic is bonded in but if scratched thewhole lid must be replaced. Newhatches have a replaceable acrylic withdemountable frame and have alow/medium profile.

Summing up, everything has not beencovered and he apologised for rushing.Catalogues were available. Ian thankedBob and he himself apologised for thepoor attendance today. There is apossibility we may be able to organisea visit to the factory later in the year.Several members then jumped on thesample winches for a quick practice atstripping down and reassembly. Thiswas a really enjoyable presentation.

After the meeting several members andfriends stayed for lunch.

Another Summer Cruise2014 Part 2 – The ReturnRoger Leaman (High Time)

The best laid plans . . . . etc!

As Hugh related in the first instalment,my plan for the outward trip to Lorientwent pretty much to the script – alwaysgoing with the flow, no desperatelyearly starts, no arrivals in the dark, nopassages in poor weather . . . so no

complaints. The return trip, however,didn’t quite follow the script towardsthe end and resulted in one less thanperfect passage.

It started well enough. After 5 nights inthe UK, catching up with everything –mail, garden, friends etc – it was timeto start The Return. Hugh and Marianspent the night with us in Portsmouthso that we could leave the cars in PortSolent and have an early taxi to the ferryport for the 0845 fast cat on Wednesday25 June. It was another good on-timecrossing to Cherbourg and, after a shortdelay releasing the hire car from thesecure pound, we were on our waysouth back to Lorient. We arrived lateafternoon after an easy run and it wasgood to see the boats again, safe andsound in Kernevel marina, exactly as wehad left them.

After a day off to restock etc, our firstport of call was a change from the plan.It was somewhere I wanted to try aswe’d not been there before – Port Tudy,on Ile de Groix, 5 miles west of Loriententrance. The pilot book does not fillone with confidence, and gives littleuseful information about berths ordepths (and nothing about marriages!).The only solution was to go and have alook. After a short but squally passagefrom Kernevel, we wished we hadn’tbothered. There were some emptyfingers in the inner harbour, but theywere very short for our 12m boats andthere was no indication of depth – it wasSprings and High Time draws 2.1m.Also there were no boats visible longerthan about 10m. After a brief discussionwe decided that discretion shouldprevail so headed back to Port Louis(which was on the plan), just insideLorient harbour. Sue and I had stayedthere a few years earlier and had beenimpressed with the friendly staff. Themarina is small and basic but

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convenient for the delightful old townwith its picturesque cobbled streets andinteresting old fort at the harbourentrance that is now a museum. Wespent an enjoyable three hoursexploring the museum the followingafternoon.

After three nights, it was time to startheading north. Port la Foret, a few milesNW of Concarneau, was the next stopafter a good sail all the way. This is alarge, modern marina and home toseveral serious French racing boats.Hugh and I spent an interesting hourwatching the riggers launch PRB, the 60ft Bruce Farr designed racer.

We only stayed two nights here as it wasbusy and rather ‘soulless’.

As we drifted across the bay to Loctudy,our last stop in southern Brittany, invery light air, we were surprised to hearCliff Laxton (Somerled) on the VHF. Hewas on his way south with Flick for thesummer so we had a brief chat as heheaded towards the Glenans. In themarina we found a couple of emptyfinger berths; ‘normal service’ hadobviously been restored while we werefurther south. We stayed three nightsand made full use of the free bikesagain. Apart from the local supermarket(twice!), we visited Manoir de Kerazanand spent a pleasant afternoon

wandering around the house andgrounds in the sunshine.

At this point, I think I should mentionthe dining arrangements. Both Sue andMarian like cooking on board and Hughand I are frequently disappointed byrestaurant food so we agreed early onthe outward cruise that we wouldmostly dine on board and occasionallytake it in turns to cook for each other,usually after the longer passages.Marian and Sue did us proud and wehad some splendid three-coursedinners, especially when it was warmenough to eat in the cockpit, muchbetter than your average restaurant. Itdid mean more frequent trips to theshops/supermarket (and more washingup!) but when you have time this is nota problem.

On Thursday 3 July we set off on the60+ mile run up through the Raz andon to the new(ish) Marina du Chateauin Brest. Timing for the Raz was spoton, using the Route/ETA facility on the

chartplotter, and the wind was light so it was an easy passage, arriving in themarina after ten hours at sea. We chosethis marina, as opposed to Camaretwhich was 5 miles closer, because somebad weather was forecast and we didn’twant to get holed up there again. Someyears earlier, in my previous boat, we

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had been broadside on to a SW 9 inCamaret and were not keen to repeatthe experience. It is a bit exposed tostrong south westerlies. The newfacilities block has recently opened inMarina du Chateau and very smart it istoo. The only problem is the 10-minutewalk from the visitors’ berths, but theold portacabin facilities are much closerif you are desperate. A visit tothe Musée de la Marine in the old castleabove the marina was well worth theclimb up the steps.

As forecast a couple of very wet andwindy days ensured that we stayed snugin the marina for four nights so it wasMonday 7 July before we motored andthen sailed up the Chenal du Four withthe tide to L’Aberwrac’h. This time wewere allocated (small) fingers in themarina but L’Aberwrac’h is still not onmy favourite Brittany ports list. We leftthe next day with the tide, via the shortcut to starboard from the Petit Pot duBeurre (worthwhile when heading to orarriving from the east), for the 20-milepassage to the new marina in Roscoff.

After much preparation and routeplotting we decided that the ‘canal’between Ile de Batz and the mainlandwould be quite safe at HW. However,since Shiraz draws over half a metre lessthan High Time I suggested it would begood for Hugh to lead this one!Needless to say, although it looks quitetricky on the chart, it was actuallystraightforward, provided you carefullycheck each mark and don’t deviate fromthe chosen route. I found it very easy –just follow the boat in front, but Hughdid report once that he was sailing oversolid ground, according to hischartplotter. Good job it was high water!The new marina is excellent and thetown of Roscoff, only a 15-minute walkfrom the marina, was a pleasantsurprise too. We were thinking ‘ferry

port’, like le Havre or Cherbourg, but itwas more like an old Brittany fishingport, with an excellent general marketon the quay on Wednesday. Hugh and Iboth bought seriously thick sailingfleeces for just €20 each. We got toknow the town quite well as Sue had aneye infection that necessitated findinga local doctor who was prepared to seeus. The first doctor, after seeing fourEnglish speakers in his waiting room,disappeared for fifteen minutes andthen announced he had an emergencyto attend and couldn’t spare us fiveminutes. The second doctor was moredifficult to find but once we tracked herdown she was happy to see us. We hada very entertaining consultation withlots of smiling and sign language onboth sides but we had to pay €25 cash(“EHIC - non!”) before we could leave.We did get a prescription, though, forsome over the counter eye drops(fluorescent orange) which cleared upthe problem after a few days. We alsoclaimed the €25 on our EHIC when wereturned to the UK and received £13some months later. The following daywe jumped on a local bus from themarina for the interesting old town ofSt Pol de Leon, where there alsohappened to be a large supermarket.We were sorry to leave Roscoff(particularly as they shut the outerharbour while they repositioned 2 crosschannel ferries and we had to gillaround for 30 minutes) but we werealready several days behind ‘The Plan’.

Another 30 miles of mixed motoringand sailing saw us safely berthed on theslightly re-arranged pontoons inTreguier at HW. Because of the seriousproblems caused by the tide sluicingthrough the berths for 10 hours out ofevery 12, the separation between themain walkways has been increased bysome 6 feet to give more turning room.

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However, you are still strongly advisedto arrive and depart at slack water.

Due to more bad weather we wereforced to remain in Treguier longer thanthe two nights planned which movedthe tides even further from the ideal.We had originally planned to return tothe UK via St Peter Port where we wouldpick up Andrew (Hugh and Marian’sson). He would then spend a week onShiraz, before we all returned to the UKin time for the PSYC Swanwick BBQ.However, the delays coupled withfurther gales forecast for the 55nm runto St Peter Port meant that a hastyre-plan was required. It was decidedthat Hugh and Marian would collectAndrew from the St Malo ferry by hirecar from Treguier and we would spendanother week in France. We also had toadvise Ian (Reed) that we would not beable to make the Swanwick rally thefollowing weekend (it was subsequentlycancelled because of the poor forecast).

The next passage was my one (only?)planning mistake of the whole cruiseand was a direct result of not checkingthe detail. We decided to make the mostof the extra week in France by visitingSt Quai Portrieux and St Cast beforefinally heading for home. I realised thepassage from Treguier to St Quai wouldbe partly against the tide. What I didn’trealise, and neither did Hugh until wewere there, was that the (Spring!) tidewould be running at over 5 knotsagainst us. We set off from Treguier atHW (0900) and used the Passe de laGaine, south of Les Heaux de Brehat, tosave a few miles. We were making goodtime and enjoying the ride until weturned south towards Paimpol and intothe ebbing tide. Three hours later wewere still off Paimpol motoring hardagainst the current and making lessthan 2 knots SOG. Fortunately it wassunny with light winds and eventually

the tide slackened so we could sail forthe last couple of hours into St Quai.Nevertheless I was still disappointedthat I’d seriously underestimated thetide. With hindsight, and given themanoeuvring restrictions in Treguier, Ithink the best way to do this passagewould be to leave the berth just beforeLW. However, for the tides we had thiswould have meant either leaving orarriving in the dark, something I try toavoid in unfamiliar ports.

We spent 2 nights in St Quai, with a longbike ride in the sunshine on the secondday, before a gentle sail east to St Cast,one of my favourite Brittany ports. Thepromenade from the new marina roundthe base of the (small) cliff to the town,with the beach stretching out in front,is lovely, well worth the effort to getthere.

The passage north to St Peter Port fromnorthern Brittany always seems to be‘lumpy’ even when the weather is calm.With the prevailing wind abaft the beamthis usually requires some motoring tobe sure of arriving in St Peter Port at asensible time (it’s a 60 mile run from StCast) which means there is no weightin the sails to stabilise the boat andmake the ride more comfortable. Onarrival in St Peter Port we were delightedto find that the long awaited connectionof the outside pontoons to the shorehad finally happened while we were inFrance. This meant that parking outsideno longer necessitated using the dinghyor the (expensive) harbour taxi. Thedownside, for some, is that you can’tdrive out the far end of the trots; youeither have to reverse in or reverse out.We both chose to reverse in, makingleaving much easier. Andrew wasbooked to catch the ferry back to theUK on the Sunday so we were allconcerned when the ferry was cancelledwithout reason. Was this the one that

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ran aground? Some further hasty re-planning for a ferry from Cherbourgsolved the problem.

We had invited some sailing friends wespotted in the marina for drinks on theSunday eve. While we were waiting forthem to arrive, sat in the cockpit in thesunny but fresh conditions, we were hitby an incoming boat. He misjudged thecross wind, mounted the toe-rail of the(new) Malo 45 behind us and then wipedout my aerial pole on the pushpit withhis davits. I could only watch it happenand was not amused but next day weagreed a suitable cash settlement, toavoid insurance, and all endedamicably.

Monday morning (21 July) saw usheading north to Cherbourg after fillingup with cheap (duty free) diesel. The logsays “great sail, cloudless and warm upthrough the Alderney Race” and Iremember it well. Hugh also remembersit, particularly the overfalls as herounded the corner close in to Cap dela Hague. He said he might go a bitfurther out next time! Unfortunately wehad to motor for the last 3 hours as thewind died behind us after we turnedeast.

Andrew caught the ferry home inCherbourg. Two nights in the marinawas more than enough for us so we leftat 0700 with a moderate NNE wind.Initially we were sailing well, close-hauled and lee-bowing the tide, justholding the planned heading for theNeedles. Half way across, though, whenthe tide turned down Channel we couldno longer hold anything like therequired course over the ground so theengine came on. We motor sailed untilwe reached Bridge and turned onto abeam reach for Lymington. It was apleasant surprise to find Blue Hoolieberthed on the same trot when we

arrived in the Yacht Haven so an end-of-cruise dinner was quickly arranged inthe marina restaurant.

The final passage home to Port Solentlate Thursday afternoon was noted as a“great sail all the way, sunny and warm”;a fitting end to an excellent summercruise.

Shakedown Rally – IslandHarbourIan Reed (Reflections)

The first PSYC on-the-water event forthe year, the Shakedown, went well. Wehad fresh winds (mainly F5) which madefor a fast and good testing sail for thegear at the start of the season. The windmade the chill factor a bit higher on thewater and was a good test for the layersand wet gear. However, the interestingpart was the entry to the Island Harbourlock. It is a smaller lock (say 4 boats)than Port Solent so the dock mastersthought that, in view of the fresh SW, itwould be prudent to let one boatthrough at a time making sure we wereon the windward side of the lock to holdthe lines. One early arrival boat(Brilliant) got through on free flow – theonly one. Of course, we didn’t all arriveat the same time so there was no longwait in the river to enter the dredgedchannel. Access is now about threehours either side of HW for draughts of1.5m and 2hrs either side for 2m.

There were 8 boats (Reflections;Somerled; Juno; Brilliant; Manana;Shiraz; Blue Hoolie and Meridian) with19 people. The pre-evening mealpontoon nibbles was held on Juno bykind invitation of Rob and Cath - theirnew boat – a Princess 42 – just collectedthat day. The nibbles and champagnecelebration were great too!

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We then went for our meal in the BreezeBistro which all agreed was excellentwith great service. A really impressivechef installed there. The breakfast wasvery good too. They are investing in newclient facilities (building in progress)and a new bistro on the river front bythe lock ready for next year. Reflectionsis booked in there and at the bistro forthe RTI Race in June so we will see if thestandard is maintained.

We hope is its new look doesn’t spoilthe serenity of the place - it is reallypeaceful there.

Oi, mate what’s yer beam?John Crooks (Entropy)

No, Split 2 is not trying to enter themarina.  She is taking on fuel from aroad tanker.(See also this issue’s cover picture)

Easter rally 3-6th AprilJudith Hunter (Mañana) & IanReed (Reflections)

Good Friday: The lead-up to this yearsEaster rally was typically a mix of anunpredictable forecast ( cold and wetfor the first couple of days then warmand sunny ) and rally participantsdropping in & out for various reasons.Good Friday was indeed cold & overcastbut six of us made a fairly uneventfulpassage over to Bembridge where wewere warmly greeted by the harbourstaff & guided to moorings. The newDuver marina manager is called Gordon;he couldn’t have been morewelcoming…it’s also now possible tobuy basic provisions and newspapersfrom the marina kiosk/office which ishandier than hiking into Bembridge orSt Helen’s.

Although only four boats were‘officially’ on the rally for this leg,Shiraz, High Time, Brilliant andMañana, we were joined by Paw Buoyand Blue Hoolie for the usual pre-dinnerdrinks and nibbles on Mañana – whichwas very cosy with fifteen adultscrowded into the saloon and I think afirst for PSYC ..a baby! Alex (10months) was on board Brilliant with hismum and dad Kate and Bobby and wasrather overwhelmed at first to be thrustinto the midst of a PSYC drinks party,especially when the first face he sawwas Hugh’s, but he soon settled downand took it all in his stride for the restof the night.

The meal had been arranged at BradingHaven YC, using the current caterersTara & Greg; we were very well lookedafter by them. Although we had chosenthree mains from the menu in advanceat a set price of £8 as they requested,we were in fact given the opportunity

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to choose anything from the varied fullmenu on the night. A short hop back onthe water taxi got us all speedily backon board in the drizzling rain to end anenjoyable night.

Next morning the weather was brighterbut a strong wind (force 6) was blowingacross the pontoon from the NE so wedecided to have a day in Bembridgerather than head off to the Hamble. Therest of the boats went their various wayswith Shiraz going on to join Ian andSandra who were organising the nextleg at Port Hamble.

Easter Saturday: Hamble Point Marinawas Saturday’s destination in theforecast F5 to F6 northerlies. A cold andless crowded day on the water allowedus to reach all the way from GilkickerPoint up the North Channel to HamblePoint. We only had to make one tackinside Southampton water to avoid a bigcar carrier (not listing!). Hamble Pointis a well-equipped MDL Marina, witheasy access, good berthing space andindividual en-suite facilities. On site isthe Ketch and Rigger restaurant andvarious boat services and sales outlets.Only three boats (7 people) arrived:Reflections, Shiraz and Up to Speed.Warming soup on Shiraz then, late inthe afternoon, in the spirit of Easter, theMarina provided us with a bottle ofwine, a case of lager, hot cross bunsand for each boat a bunch of daffodils.Gimballed vases required? This non-toprefreshment continued with drink andnibbles on Reflections, a short rest thenoff to our evening meal in the Ketch andRigger. This onsite restaurant was verygood and very reasonable with attentiveservice in a comfortable, homely venue.

On Easter Sunday we all went up theKetch & Rigger for breakfast and drinks,and then the Marina offered us a Sundaypaper and croissants! An Easter egg

hunt had started for local families whowere around the place with the childrenwell wrapped up on a bright but chillyday. We all failed to find any eggsbefore they children arrived! On site isa Force 4 chandlery where Mike (Up toSpeed) and I purchased their last twosplitters at a very good price - an Easterbargain. We all noted how friendly thestaff had been at Hamble Point – a goodplace to consider for future rallies.

Easter Sunday: Sunshine at last, or atleast for a time when we left Bembridgearound midday to poodle our way roundto the Folly Inn for the next leg of therally. We arrived early afternoon andexpected that we would have to wait toget on to the Folly pontoon until afterthe lunch-timers had gone. However, aswe approached and radioed FollyLaunch we heard Shiraz being givenberthing instructions to raft ontoBrilliant so we took the pontoon spacein front of them. Reflections arrivedshortly after to raft onto us and Ianquickly put his new splitter to work. UpTo Speed and High Time duly arrived tocomplete the numbers.

The Folly is under new management,although the menu doesn’t appear tohave drastically changed. Afterchecking our arrangements for thenight, we tucked into warm hot crossbuns and croissants generously offeredby Ian and Sandra. Once again we hada crowded gathering squeezed intoMañana’s saloon for drinks and nibbles.Marian and Jacqui distributed menus forus to choose our meals in advance totry to bypass the usual long queuing toorder that is so typical at the Folly. Withmeticulous precision Marian tookcharge of compiling the menu choicesand phoned the order ahead – and it allactually worked! We were all able to takeour places at the PSYC designated table,the correct courses were brought out

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and all we had to do was order drinks& pay individually at the end…well doneMarian!

Easter Monday: Most boats set off toreturn to Port Solent on Mondaymorning but Roger and Hugh hadmentioned that Premier were having ahog roast to officially open some newbuildings at Swanwick Marina as part ofthe refurbishment there. As the sun wasnow shining, we decided to join themso called Swanwick for a berth (freenight as well) and were allocated thefirst outer pontoon as you approachcoming up-river where they park thebrand new, very large Princess boatswhich are for sale. Despite some trickycross-currents we got ourselves safelysecured on the end of a long pontoonalongside one of these brand spankingnew boats ‘still with the wrapping on’which towered so far above us that Irealised that raising the fenders on thatside was a pretty futile action.

The hog roast was a reasonable £2.50per ticket with free coffee and cake(mooring fees due soon so maybe notso free?) provided by Premier togetherwith a live band and a raffle to whileaway the afternoon. We also caught upwith some old friends from PS who havemoved their boats to Swanwick. Rogerand Sue invited us all over to High Timefor drinks and nibbles to end a veryenjoyable long weekend. On Tuesdaywe all headed back to PS in time for aneasy entrance at free flow…only to findthat the channel was being dredged sowe had to lock in as usual …oh well!

Beaulieu RallyRoger Leaman (High Time)

I was concerned when only three otherboats signed up for the Beaulieu rally.

Maybe my rally details offering“something completely different” put afew people off or perhaps folk prefer toeat in restaurants and pubs and nothave to share their saloon and food withstrangers. Whatever, for those whobraved the unknown, it turned out tobe a great weekend, both for sailing andsocialising.

Tight Lines, Shiraz and High Timelocked out from Port Solent at 1015 onSaturday, while Mañana waited for freeflow and then overtook us all by midSolent. The wind was a fresh northerlyF5 with gusts topping 25 knots.However, with everyone well reefed weenjoyed a fast reach due west down theSolent, with all reporting SOGsexceeding 10.5 kt as we passed Coweswith the exceptionally strong tide underus.

The Assistant Harbourmaster (Dave) atBucklers Hard delayed his lunch whenhe saw us entering the river on his AIS,so he could meet and greet us andsupervise berthing. We were all placedon the long pontoon downstream fromthe fuel berth. Mañana and Tight Lineswere berthed alongside and, by priorarrangement, we berthed outsideShiraz where there was deeper water.Despite Dave’s assurance that therewould be 8 feet at LW my depth gaugeregistered 2.1m (my exact draft) forrather longer than expected!

The evening proceedings started at1800, but with the outside temperatureat 5˚C and the wind still whistling, thepontoon party was moved to HighTime’s saloon, where the temperaturewas more like 25˚C. With four boatsand nine diners the only ‘fair’permutation I could see for courses,hosts and diners was to have everyoneon one boat (Mañana) for starters,mains hosted on 2 boats (Tight Lines

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and Shiraz) and all together again onHigh Time for desserts and coffee etc.

Conversation and laughter, as well aswine, flowed throughout the evening –it’s so much easier (for me at least, withonly one good ear!) to chat on boardthan in a noisy restaurant or pub!Things flowed so well in fact, frommany different bottles, that we were allstill chatting past midnight.

To get any help from the tide for thesail back to Port Solent on Sunday wewould need an early(ish) start. In fact,the three sailing boats departed around9am, slightly later than ideal but inwarm sunshine, and enjoyed anothergood sail, reefed and close hauled intoan ENE 4 gusting 5, until to just pastCowes. Then the true wind dropped, thetide turned against (we should have leftearlier!) and our SOG fell back to 3knots, despite raising full sail. Notsurprisingly, as soon as we were passedby Tight Lines (under engine!), we alsoput our engine on for the last hourround Gilkicker and up to Port Solent.Everyone managed to get back into PortSolent on the afternoon free flow,despite the lock keeper threatening toshut the gates as we approachedbecause the water level might be toohigh.

It’s difficult to be totally objective aboutyour own event but the feedback

received from participants has beenencouraging. Maybe we’ll get a fewmore takers if we try this format again.

Aground!John Crooks (Entropy)The photo shows a small yacht agroundat the entrance to Port Solent marina at

1800, low tide, on March 7. The heightof the tide at this time was 0.8 m, so itwould appear that the depth of water inthe channel is less than one metrebelow CD. The cause of the silting upcan be seen on the right hand side ofthe photo. A creek drains water fromthe far end of the harbour, bringing siltwith it which forms a bar where thecreek debouches into the main channel.The annual dredging of the channeleach spring will clear this, but it willre-form. At low tide, keep to the Southside of the channel, especially if yourboat has a deep draught.

Cowes Eastern Entrance: TidalUpdateIan Reed (Reflections)

I am not sure how many have used thenewer Eastern approach Channel intoCowes. With the advent of the newbreakwater, the resultant tidal streamshave been measured. Approachingnorth of Castle Point, leaving the Shrapebeacon to port, the East cardinal is at

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the start of the ‘inner' fairway east ofthe breakwater. A consequence of thischange is that the tidal stream can flowat 1.5kt towards the Island Sailing Cluband Red Jet terminal from HW -2.5h toHW-1h. This cross current splits intotwo separate flows on the western sideof the main fairway with a current of upto 1.5kt running along that foreshorein either direction.

To see more go to Local Notice toMariners No.8 of 2015: Cowes harbour.

Yarmouth RallyAndy Wigley (Blue Hoolie)

The weekend of the 18th and 19th Aprilsaw a slightly different rally in which wewent to Yarmouth via the south of theIsland. Ten boats signed up to a friendlytimed competition – well, nine boatsand a stinkpot. Only one dropped out -the Commodore! (It was above a F2 andhe had a good excuse too!)

It was interesting to see howintroducing a small competitive elementbrought the worst out in certainmembers who were a little too zealouswith trying to unsettle the apple cartbefore we had even left Port Solent - nay- before we had even arrived at PortSolent to prepare the boats! I thoughtit only fair to ask our inimitableCommodore to research a basic andfriendly handicap system as there wereboats of differing designs, sailconfigurations and ages, and boats withCliff on. Strict instructions were givento the members that we didn't want anysquealing if they didn't agree with theirhandicaps as it was “JUST A BIT OF FUN”!

OMG - how competition brings out theworst in people.

Here is the email traffic that flowedshortly after the handicaps wereawarded.

Wed 0633 - Andy W

Right - all set for a bit of fun at the w/e.Forecast looks like a F4 from the NE, soget those chutes up at Bembridge!Ian Reed has kindly put together a’social’ handicap scheme for us (at myrequest). IT’S JUST A BIT OF FUN, so nosquealing if you don’t agree with yourrating.

Wed 0726 - Rob W (stinkpot - but quitea posh one)What about mine???

Wed 0730 - Andy WYou get to hold a ribbon across the lineand kiss the winner, whilst wearing abikini! (you, not the winner!)

Wed 1951 - Cliff L (sore loser)To the not-a-Race Commandant andRally leader, I would like to point out (Ifeel it is my duty as a past Officer of thePSYC) that a certain yacht belonging tothe PSYC Commodore( name withheld )may well be trying to pull a fast one!I observed the said Yacht ashore under-going its annual refit and could nothelp but notice that the keel had a lotof play from port to starboard! Also Iknow that Ian keeps his gin on thestarboard side, and tonic on the portside, however Sandra said she was nothappy with this situation and would bemoving it from one side to the other.Now, if this is not canting keels andwater ballasting I don’t know what is!On these grounds I feel it only rightthat a handicap  review board be con-vened, or perhaps Ian should be fined!(Not signed in fear of reprisal)

Wed 2206 - Andy WDear ex-Commodore Cliffster.

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I fear taking wide swipes at the muchmaligned current Commodore is tanta-mount to taking a shotgun to a barrelof goldfish and would ask you to re-frain from such immature behavior.Besides, Ian can fake Reflections’ hand-icap as much as he likes but will still betail-end Charlie in both line honoursand handicap ............with Somerledsomewhere in that general area (asusual!). Anyway - glad to see there's nobitterness with a spot of friendly com-petition and that you are not taking ittoo seriously.

Wed 2208 - Wendy W....Did someone say "gin"?

Wed 2257 - Rob WI thought the Commodores wife drankvodka, or is that the ex-Commodoreswife and my wife and Wendy and Sueand........where does it end? We all havea lot of vodka ballast. However, wehave champers for you all when youcross the line....have a fantastic sail.

Thu 0940 - Sue H... and can I just point out zat vee arenot ein Hanse mais une belle Beneteau?(which sadly doesn't go quite as quicklyso that's our excuse lined up!)

Thu 1036 - Hon Secretary.…seem to remember from bitter pastexperience that the said ex-Commo-dore is not averse to a little handicapfixing and rule bending of his own tomake sure all other boats appear last.(Of course this was with a previous oldboat and he needed all the help hecould get then let alone now!) Myexcuses are already lined up, new sailshave not arrived, well one has, so oneold, one new, nothing borrowed butsomething blue.

Thu 1253 – Commodore

Dear Sporting Mariners:  While I haveconfidence in the Handicap (based onISC) ratings  I must support Sue’s peti-tion, nay plea, of not being a Hanse buta Beneteau. In which case, if Blue Hooliewins, then the corrected elapsed timefactor for the Beneteau may be subjectto imminent review!  I have no doubtthat a Handicap Committee/s (legiti-mate or otherwise) will review the posi-tion ongoing and I will adjudicate orreferee with the powerboat crews (Rob,you did say Cathy has champagne?) asthe case may demand. With regardReflection’s ballast control it may takea glass or two to review! CorruptibleCommodore wishing all well.

Thu 2328 - Andy WWhat do you mean - “if” Blue Hooliewins? Don’t forget it’s just for fun (tee-heeheehee). Long suffering PSYC gofer.

Fri 1206 - Tony FChutes up at Bembridge may be onlyfor the bold - have a look at the inshoreweather forecast.

Fri 1308 - Nick HIt’s that Wendy Wigley, you all knowthat Andy is a wuss and only wants toput up the chute in a F3 or less. Everytime it’s a F4 or above she has to forcehim on the pain of a beating with awinch handle to get it out.☺ ☺ ☺

Fri 1410 - Wendy WHandy Billy time me thinks... ☺

Fri 1421 - Tony FIn polite company, beating someoneabout the head with a winch handle isreferred to as "awarding them the Starof Lewmar"

In the event, we had a lovely boisteroussail in F6-F8 ENE. Blue Hoolie, Amoret,Paw Buoy, Somerled, Bathia and MoonShadow all braved south of the island

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while Nick Nak and Shiraz went directlyto Yarmouth.

Blue Hoolie needed to slow down so asnot to embarrass the rest of the fleet sointentionally made her boom shear offthe mast. She was still too quick, evenwith damage, so we decided to dropsails and turn the iron sail on so thatwe would be disqualified and give an-other boat a chance! We had a greatdrinks party and nibbles on Juno (stinkpot) where the awards were handedout.

Unfortunately Somerled won both linehonours and handicap which was very

painful to cope with.

Seriously, Cliff and his team did verywell in quite testing conditions. MoonShadow came in second on handicapand Amoret third. Everybody was awinner as we had a great day-sail.

We found a new eatery called Off theRails just off the River Yar walk 5 min-utes from the marina.

Very nice restaurant with a quirky feel,mid-range food and sensible prices. Weshall definitely eat there again.

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Skippers Midweek RalliesRoger Leaman (High Time)

I am currently a member of a group of skippers who meet once a monthfor a day sail, each taking it in turns to host the group on their boat. Thescheme runs throughout the year and gives skippers the chance tosail/crew on a variety of boats and to visit local ports and anchoragesmidweek when they are less busy. It also extends the sailing season forthose skippers whose partners are less keen to sail through the winterand provides a ‘competent crew’ for each outing.

I am wondering if there would be any interest in forming a similar groupwithin the PSYC.

The guidelines under which the current group operate are as follows –

1. A group of 6 skippers is required who have a suitable boat(sail or power) and are available midweek throughout the year(although not necessarily every month).

2. A fixed set of dates is agreed for the outings, one per monththroughout the year (say first Wednesday of each month).

3. Each skipper takes it in turn to host the group on their boatand is responsible for organising their outing (destination, timing,eating arrangements etc) and for cancelling if the forecast is pooror there are insufficient members available that month.

4. Expenses for the outing (berthing, pub costs etc) are sharedamongst the participants; costs for running the boat (diesel etc.)are borne by the skipper.

Although the above sounds a bit formal the group actually operates veryinformally. Skippers volunteer for each month. In an ideal world eachskipper would host twice in a year, but there is no pressure; skippersgenerally seem keen to act as host.

Two PSYC (Committee) members have already expressed interest in sucha group. If there are another two or three members who are prepared tocommit then I would be happy to co-ordinate the group initially.

Please email me at roger@leaman.me.uk if you would be interested injoining.

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PSYC on–the-water events - an update

At the original time of issue of the 2015sailing programme, a number of events stilllacked organisers. The current status ofevents for the rest of the season is:

30-31 May Mercury Marina - organiser needed

13-14 June East Cowes - Jaye Isherwood

20-21 June Chichester - organiser needed

07-10 Aug Dorset Anchorages - Tony Firth

05-06 Sep Swanwick & Curbridge - Ian Reed

19-20 Sep Posh Frocks - Jaye Isherwood

17-18 Oct Lymington - Cliff Laxton

Any member who would like to help byleading one of the two non-covered events isinvited to contact the Commodore or theHonorary Secretary. Event venues are booked- it is just a matter of finalising numbers andproviding a social base for participants onarrival.

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