Silverware at Last

I firmly believe that the conditions at Wivenhoe are inclined to favour the smaller boats in oppose the Xenon. They are able to cut the corners of the river over the shallow mud and, in the case of Mirrors, benefit from enormously generous handicaps; controversy!!. Additionally the Lasers appear to tack a lot faster - I reckon they are able to get up speed faster in light winds and I need to work on the rolling tack more.

Although we thought we had the Up the River Race sewn-up, whilst in the lead on the return leg, we found ourselves going backwards opposite the pub at Rowhedge. This allowed the Lasers to catch-up and overtake. There is also an element of luck around here as well with the fluky winds.

All that said the last race I entered we won.

At last I have some silverware to display in the lounge and remind all sailors who visit just how good I am - it couldn't possibly be luck could it.

Pic - Ready to Launch

Blow Over

Has the weather been as unpredictable for me as it has been for everyone else this season? It was one of the worse winters on record so perhaps it is the hangover? On a training outing earlier this season all was going well until this little squall appeared on the horizon.

Fortunately, being a responsible captain, I was heading back up the river to the club house; concerned about the weather you see! However, a 1000 yards before we got there the squall hit us and we went from a F2-3 to a F6+ in no time at all; over we went.

Pic 1 - Squall in background while we wash off mud

The good thing was at this point we weren't too far from the club house and we were able to stand in oppose to swim or cling. Had we been further out, there would have been no chance of righting her and getting back underway. The bad thing was I had decided it was a good day not to wear a wet suit and after 20 minutes in the river, rain and mud was getting hacked off.

Pic 2 - Nearly done - thanks Crew

Xenon Rigging Tip

This is a top tip which when I last checked wasn't in the Xenon Rigging Guide.....

I have found when sailing the Topper Xenon the slug at the bottom of the main-sail has a tendancy to pop out of the runner in the mast - the result is flappy, vibrating foot on the main sail (see http://wivenhoe-sailing.blogspot.com/2009/07/parts-of-sail.html). Whether this makes any difference or not is hard to know, but it is very annoying when you're bombing along. Maybe it's me but I tend to have the Cunningham right off when sailing round Wivenhoe to get as much curve in the luff as possible. With recent light winds it has been essential - this hasjust made the popping out slug worse.

The solution I have come up with is best described in the picture below. The Cunningham once threaded back through the boom and locked off, is lead-up to the bottom tack. When doing this it is important not to prevent the cunningham working or you will not win races....

How to Plane

So I have been going on about planing recently and have found the following top tips which we'll be putting into effect in the next race..... planing can happen in a suitably designed boat in moderate to strong winds if the crew do some or all of the following:

• Sail on a reach or broad reach to begin
• Slacken the jib
• Raise the centreboard
• Increase the speed
• Keep the hull level, trapeze if necessary
• Observe the wake until it is smooth and fast.
• Move the crew weight increasingly towards the rear to begin and to sustain planing
• Sheet in as speed increases, and apparent wind correspondingly moves forward.
• Keep the boat flat and level
• Bear away to maintain speed as necessary
• Flick or pump the sails (although there are restrictions on doing this in a race)

While planing, it is important to steer through the waves, avoiding any collision with the wave in front. Also, in dinghies, keep good control of the sail power. A small change in wind direction can easily cause a capsize or gybes. Boat control becomes easier as planing begins, but fast reactions are often needed to get there, to keep the speed up and to keep the boat level. Crew balance and trim are vital, as are sail trimming and minimal centreboard.

Video of Topper Xenon

At last a Topper Xenon video! You would have thought Topper would have promoted a few more of these. Anyhow here are some chaps in New Zealand sailing a Topper Xenon. They don’t know how lucky they are not having to negotiate mud banks and deal with tidal flows. It looks like they have awesome conditions down there - my only comment is – keep the boat flat! (but hey I’m in my study with a glass of wine…)

Topper Topaz and Safety Boat

This weekend I was doing my bit for the Sailing Club and was helping out with the safety boat and the Club’s cadets.

We had 2 of the safety boats out, a Rib with a 50hp motor on and something called a Viking which looks to me like it was once a fishing boat or a very large tender; it gives us that stable base and a platform we can anchor on the river (Colne).

I probably found the cadets more amusing than any sailing I did on the day. There is a real mix of girls, boys, those that can, can’t sail, will continue to progress and will become, given the chance, very good sailors. Half way through the afternoon, I transferred from the safety boat to sailing one of the cadets on a Topper Topaz ; an 11 year old who informed me about his previous 6 girlfriends, his current 2 year old relationship and how he is one of the strongest in his class – all completely and very innocent!

Topper Topazs are great fun to sail and incredibly easy compared to the Xenon. It is light and goes into irons very quickly when pointing into the wind. They are extremely manoeuvrable and great fun when learning to sail.

Xenon real Handicap

So just what is the handicap of a Topper Xenon??

Being a good citizen I registered it at the club when I arrived as PY1070 – just like the booklet tells me.

The Lasers which I race against are ‘officially’ PY1078 and there has been some comment in the club that the handicap PY1070 is perhaps a little low ….(or we have very good Laser sailors, or I am particularly rubbish). It has even been suggested that Topper might promote low handicaps to make their boats faster!! <gasp!>

So officially at Wivenhoe Sailing Club, Topper Xenons are now rated as PY1075. This by co-incidence is the same handicap as Brightlingsea Sailing Club uses.

In my quest for the truth, I looked at a couple of other club websites and had a laugh at Erith Yacht Club who has gone totally the opposite way and has given their Topper Xenon class a local handicap of 1035!!

I suspect that a major issue is that when we race, the Barman and I are both quite heavy fella’s and this might cause some of the apparent slowness. Read here for the weight guide lines!

That said, last Sundays race went extremely well for the Barman and I. Despite the spinnaker detaching itself from the bow sprit and the forestay accidentally not been undone when the jib was rigged, we crossed the finish line a credible 2nd just behind the lead Laser. Lessons described in the blog posts below are working.

Close Haul Tips

In my previous post I gave some hints about how best to using the cunningham to adjust tension in the luff to help point the boat - especially in light winds; it's also critical to beating the Laser sailors. On the Topper Xenon this is controlled by the helmsman so naturally I would take most interest in it.

Just to complicate things there is another rope called the outhaul and this is controlled by the crew as it is cleated off under the boom by the mast. Todate when sailing we have not touched it - just made sure it was tight - well it is my first year learning to sail after all. Guidance from Topper is as follows.....

When sailing upwind you will nearly always have the outhaul pulled quite tight but you may wish to loosen it for the downwind legs. You can pre-set the "off" position by tying a large knot (or use a ball) about an inch from the cleat when the foot is pulled tight. This means you simply have to uncleat at the windward mark and it will be in about the right place for downwind sailing. Remember to pull it back on before rounding the leeward mark!

 So next time we go out I will put 2 knots in it and report back how it works.

Xenon Rudder

A comment I have about dinghy boats is that often are not the manuals available to show you how to fix minor problems. The only knowledge source is in the collective mind of the sailing club. For example, when I snapped all the lines in my rudder (see Man Sailing ) I was left guessing as to exactly which bolt the two lines should be threaded. Well if you have this problem, look at the two pics below and this will give you a clue.

Before you get too far in re-threading your stock and tiller assembly, you need to make a decision as to which type of cord you are going to use. Yes! There are 2 types of cord; that which 'gives' a bit and that which doesn't. The cord which doesn't 'give' or stretch is generally used for halyards and the like - nothing worse than sails coming down in a race and apparently the other type is more useful for sheets.

Before the man sailing day my rudder was pulled down on a 2:1 pulley with non-stretch cord. I have made a decision that since I am likely to hit mud again that it will be a better idea to use the stretchy stuff; it's cheaper as well. It's the white cord in the image above.

Speaking of cost, I was gobsmacked by the price of a stock and tiller assembly + rudder blade. At the time of writting it is in the region of £500 - see here. To all Topper Xenon owners, look after your rudder.