Budworth Sailing Club

The Queen Mary system is a means of scoring where helms can quickly get into the top set but then still have to work hard to get into the top 3 and stay there! Basically points are awarded for beating other boats that are ahead of you or are close behind in the overall league. How close behind is determined by the average turnout so far plus an arbitrary factor - the latter being decided at the start of the season or series.

In the late 80’s points were calculated and score sheets filled out by hand. Later a program was written, by David Alexander, to  automate this to some extent. It is now desired that the scores are placed on the Internet to make them more accessible to club members and to promote the QM system in general.

I took on this challenge and late in 2010 produced an Excel version of the QM system based on formulas only. However talking to various people it became clear that there were different interpretations of the ’system’. To this end I have put what I now know down in good old black and white for your perusal and to promote discussion or eventually come to a consensus.

I believe that Phil is also involved in developing a new system for all fleets. that would make the Excel version obsolete but the system described below, once ratified, would still apply!

regards,

Miles

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Average Turnout
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The average number of boats per race can be calculated in one of several ways including:
- at the end of the previous days racing.
- after an individual race
- before an individual race
- on completion of today’s racing
=Boats Turned Out So Far / Total Races So Far.

Rounding can be applied here to give a whole number or can be applied later after calculating the Handicap.

Handicap Factor
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A low factor (under 1) favours lesser sailors but who sale frequently to build up points. A factor above 1 favours sailors who often win but who sail less often. BSC has, I believe, used a Handicap factor of 0.8 for a number of years. Although a HF of 1.0 was used in 1988 when Stan Hackney typed up his notes and examples.

Handicap
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Handicap = Average Turnout x Handicap Factor

In practice how Average Turnout is calculated and when & where Rounding is applied does not affect scoring greatly. Someone has to win and as long as we all play by the same rules it matters little.

Scoring Points
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A - Each boat starting the race is awarded 1 point for turning out.

B - Each boat disqualified loses its starting point (i.e. scores zero).

C - A boat retiring scores an additional 1 point off each disqualified boat that at the start of the race…….H.

D - A boat that finishes the race scores 1 point off every boat that it beats (including Retired and Disqualified) that at the start of the race has a total points score equal to or greater than (the boats score minus the Handicap).

E - DNS a helm/crew that Did Not Sign is effectively disqualified from the race. See club rules in the handbook.

F - There is no minimum number of boats to form a quorum. One boat finishing the course and not being disqualified will be awarded the one starting point only - there being no other boats to beat!

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“It blew hard on the first day, and the fleet got thrashed by Taxi. Blew harder on the second day so we played rounders, football and flew kites. On the third day it blew anything from Beaufort four to one and so we got thrashed by Taxi. His discard was the first race, which he won. “James Prestwich

The Budworth Sailing Club GP14 Northern Bell Open Meeting will be held on Sunday 5th June 2011 with the first race starting at 11.00 am.

 Last year, Budworth Sailing Club enjoyed one of the best attended GP14 inland meetings in the UK. Hopefully with your support we will have another well attended meeting this year.

Three races will be sailed during the day. Assuming all three races are completed, one discard will be allowed in determining the final results. As in previous years Gold, Silver and Bronze fleet prizes will be awarded in order to stimulate competition throughout the fleet.

Entry forms and Notice of Race are available from your Fleet Captain: Craig Hewett

Here is a short video clip where Bill and Ben show how to sail a Geep in 20 Knot winds at Budworth

At midday on 12th September, Bill Kenyon and Ben Ditchburn, representing the Budworth SC “A” team, crossed the line at Southport to claim a best ever 4th place in the prestigious West Lancashire YC 24 hour race. The team, selected from the club’s leading sailors, started as 13th seeds based on last year’s finishing position but this year exhibited a greatly improved performance in the medium to strong winds. The “B” team, with an emphasis on participation as much as talent, gained 26th place starting from last year’s 46th, another excellent result. Budworth have participated in all but 4 races since the event started 44 years ago, so this year’s top result is a source of considerable pride for the teams.

The “A” team comprised Bill Kenyon (team manager), Ben Ditchburn, Russell and Ali Cormack, Andrew Brown, Geoff Edwards, Graham Tinsley and Becky Partridge. Start team Bill and Ben quickly stormed through the high class field to claim 2nd place ahead of last year’s winners South Staffs SC and behind an invited team made up from members of the 470 Olympic squad. SSSC reclaimed that 2nd place after around 6 hours and retained it to the finish. Meanwhile Budworth dropped to 4th behind the Sail 4 Cancer team for a spell but clawed their way back to gain 3rd place in the early hours of Sunday morning. That was something of an epic struggle as S4C had an earlier start position and penalties so the boats were a leg apart, only the interim results posted every 5 minutes told the true story. As the race progressed the wind increased and the changing conditions began to favour the Lark of South Staffs B team. Again start differences and handicaps meant the relative positions were hard to judge and many nails were bitten down, especially when the results postings stopped for the final couple of hours. It transpired that the Lark claimed 3rd with just 90 minutes to go. Meanwhile Becky and Ali put in a superb lap in challenging conditions at 10am to win the Ladies Race, one of only three eligible prizes the 470s didn’t win. The team also won prizes for 3rd GP14 and first finisher from flight 1.

The “B” team, open to all acceptably competent club members, included Hugh Devereux (team manager and boat provider) with children Ellie and Nick, Tom Hubbard, Tom Ditchburn, Mark Antonelli, Pauline Penny, Steve Hubbard, Ross Crook, Ian and Nicky Elkington and Ian and Dawn Savell. Tom and Tom led off and reached as high as 14th place in the early laps. As the wind shifted towards the north and strengthened a block of Enterprises pulled through and the team thence forward held position in the mid 20s, several times reaching 23rd. However, the testing conditions were exposing weaknesses on the boat and minor gear issues cost time towards the end, allowing a couple of fast boats recovering from early disasters to squeeze through leaving us in 26th at the end. The “youngsters” particularly impressed: Tom and Tom were clearly the fastest pairing and gamely jumped in at short notice when the appearance of a major rainsquall demanded substitution of a fit and agile crew. Ellie Devereux crewed for several hours in testing conditions maintaining a high standard of sailing and unflagging good humour. Nick, just 11, crewed calmly through the majority of the 8pm squall which flattened many experienced teams. The remaining members’ performance belied their average age of around 50.

Both team managers put in a huge amount of effort throughout the year to set up the teams, the boats and on the day the shore facilities, earning the thanks of the whole team. Vanessa Devereux ably managed the shore support with help from off-duty sailors and some family members, providing both teams with endless hot food and drinks. Vanessa worked tirelessly until the early hours, returning after just a couple of hours rest to deliver breakfast.

The 24 hour race is an expensive event. The A team have a GP14 dedicated to the race and both teams have dedicated sails. Entry fees are high as is insurance, and there’s always a need for replacement parts as things wear out. The club pays some of the entry and insurance and team members contribute a substantial amount to running costs, but a key part is played by our sponsors: Preston Audi, AD Network Video and Remguard Visual monitoring. Their generous contribution was rewarded by prominent logos on sails, boats and team clothing, which given the teams’ high places were clearly seen by everyone present. An excellent result also highlights Budworth throughout the country as one of the best dinghy racing clubs around.

The GP14 is a popular, modern dinghy class that belies the date of the original wooden design.

The modern range of FRP or Epoxy Impregnated ply GP14s being built today incorporate the basic dimensions of the original design, but are built with state-of-the-art fittings and materials, offering considerable performance advantages over the original design.

The GP14 has a very active Class Association. For more information click the logo.

For more about the development of the GP14 into a modern racing design, see the next article

With one of the largest fleet of GP14s in the UK, Budworth SC has always been a strong supporter of the WLYC 24 Hour Race, held over the second weekend in September each year. Since its conception in 1967 Budworth has entered every year bar three.Often known as the Southport 24 hour race, this is the UK’s No.1 dinghy endurance race, hosted by West Lancs Yacht Club. The 24 Hour Race is the premiere opportunity for Sailing Club teams to compete for serious trophies and national status in 2-person dinghy sailing.

The event is only open to GP14, Enterprise and Lark Dinghies as these are evenly matched across the range of wind and weather conditions that prevail at Southport over a 24-hour period. The event regularly attracts entries of 70-80 teams from sailing clubs across the UK, and with at least 10 - 12 members per team, this event is a showcase for sailing clubs to circa 900 sailors.

With the desire to attract new members and to gain national prestige for Budworth SC, in the late 1980’s a consortium of Budworth SC members from across all fleets purchased a GP14 specifically for use at the 24 Hour Race. The objective was to have a dedicated, well-maintained boat that could stand the rigours of racing for 24-hours, through the night, in the hands of demanding sailors, and hopefully win the race. Over the years in excess of 100 Budworth SC members have currently contributed towards this goal.

Read more… »

Two teams from Budworth SC entered this year, to join 74 other teams in a demanding but enjoyable 24 hours. With light winds all weekend, the sailing was often more a test of calm patience rather than boat wrestling skills.The A-Team, made up of Budworth’s best from across all fleets had a good start and were lying in the top 5 in the early stages. But with light winds the observers and judges were being overly zealous and unfortunately the A-Team picked up a penalty. However they finished a creditable 13th overall.

In the all-comers B-Team 12 members, new and old, had the opportunity to participate in the event, many for the first time. After an enjoyable if tiring 24 hours they finished 46th out of 76, the same position as last year. Obviously consistent.