Cherub Traveller at Whistable Yacht Club

Eleven Cherubs travelled to Whitstable for sun and sailing. This was the first of four events that will decide the 2010 Cherub Champion Traveller. The racing was very successfully shared with Musto Skiffs and B14’s and Whitstable’s race management provided true courses and slick turnarounds. The forecast had been for light winds however the fleet were rewarded with freshening force 3 sea breeze on Saturday for the first 4 of the 8 planned races.

The first race was dominated by Andy and Jill peters in Usagi Yojimbo. They were followed by Chris Lunes and Will Lee in ‘Antidote to Panel Games’. There was a close fight on one of the runs for second - forth between Antidote, Phil Kirk and Simon Jones in E-Numbers and Graham and Eddie Bridle in ‘Riot Van’. This ended in a Windward capsize for E-Numbers after Riot Van gave them a blast of Dirty air. E-Numbers recovered quickly and caught and passed Riot Van on the last lap to finish third.

The following three races were won by Antidote but their lead was rarely comfortable. E-numbers scored a second in the second race but was usually third behind the high pointing Usagi Yojimbo. In the forth race E-Numbers, lying second, suffered another capsize and lost 2 places allowing Usagi Yojimbo to take her usual place and Riot Van to take a third. Simon struggled to right the boat and kept falling of the skinny centreboard. Dave Ching and Nick in Shiny Beast were the only casualty on the slick race management having to start each following race less than a minute after crossing the finish line of the previous 3 lapper.

The aching sailors returned to shore for an excellent Whitstable Yacht Club curry.

Day 2 dawned and the wind gods were late in returning. After a postponement the racing commenced in about 6- 8 knots from the South West. Antidote won all of the races but did not always get the best start. This was left to Stu Tinner and Ross Burkin in Ronin starting in clear air to lead the fleet away from the line on at least two occasions.

The lighter conditions gave rise to a number of holes which allowed some gains to be made. The non T-foiled or 97 rules rigged boats Shiny Beast, Born Slippy and Loco Pero were also a lot closer to the front than before. The second race Saw Usagi Yojimbo lead until near the finish where Antidote caught them to take another win. The final race gave Riot Van the opportunity to prove they can do better than 4th. Graham and Eddie were simply faster than all but Antidote and were not even phased by the 90 degree wind shift that allowed kites to be flown on the last beat. In hot pursuit were E-Numbers, Usagi Yojimbo and Tim Noyce and Alex Cramp in ‘Badgers Nadgers’.

The event also saw the welcome return of Davro in a re-furbed The Pasta Frenzy.

The final results found Chris Lunes and Will Lee first, with Andy and Jill Peters second and Phil Kirk and Simon Jones in third. The cherubs enjoyed an excellent weekend of sailing at the friendly Whitstable Yacht Club and went home to rest their aching bodies.