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Model Boats 530 Yachting Jottings from our M.LY.A. Correspondent — RIENDS who have not heard will be sorry to learn that Fritz Jacobsen, President of the IMYRU, has spent some time in hospital and is more or less forced to give up his model yachting activities, including his Presidency. Let us hope that given a spell for recovery, there will at least be a couple of RA’s sailing on the Alster? The IMYRU will have held its bi-annual General Meeting by the time this issue is published, and it may well be that there will be other changes besides a new President. Holding general meetings only every second year is not really sufficient with the greatly increased incidence of international racing which radio has brought; one particular aspect is that rule changes may take 23 years to implement, and when rules are being hammered out for something as important and universal as radio sailing, this is far too long. Things are bound to take a bit of time when an international body has to work by correspondence and a member country receiving proposals has to canvas its national membership before being able to give a firm reply. The suggestion has been that the Executive Board be given greater power to decide matters without quite so much consultation, but a difficulty here is that all but one of the Board are British, which from long experience works best simply on the grounds of communication, and perhaps not all member nations would be fully happy at decisions being made for them by virtually one country. One of the biggest snags is, of course, finance. The officers of the Union work very hard — the amount of correspondence is quite staggering when a member nation is staging an international race — and it is unreasonable to expect them also to subsidise their fellow yachtsmen by paying their own fares etc. when a meeting is called. Thus a Board meeting involving only the British officers ae currently costs about £40, including hire of a conveniently situated meeting room — not, one might think, an excessive sum. However, the 16 member nations (Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, England, France, West Germany, Holland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa, Sweden, and the United States) plus a 17th, Norway, which hopefully is again becoming active, pay only £5 p.a. each, so that two meetings in a year would effectively exhaust the income. Add postages, stationery, occasional telephone calls, insurance for trophies, and other incidental administrative expenses, and the small bank balance would disappear in a couple of years. And with it, almost certainly, the IMYRU as an active body. The IMYRU was constituted in 1936, springing indirectly from the IMYRA of the 1920’s. Its influence has been wholly good in that it has resulted in internationallyaccepted common rules for yachts and sailing procedures, the latter at least insofar as vane racing is concerned. Radio racing is not quite so settled, but it makes sense, surely, for the MYA rules being tried this year and based virtually word for word on the full-size RYA (ITYRU) rules, ultimately to be the standard in all countries? Under the existing Constitution, however, the MYA’s decision on these rules, to be taken at this year’s AGM, cannot be put forward as a proposition until 1980, and therefore could not come into use (if agreed) until 1981. Dialogue continues with Naviga, the 20 year old organisation representing two dozen European countries, but progress is slow. There is goodwill on the part of many of their officials, and thev are happy to use IMYRU rules, except, at the moment, radio racing rules. Unfortunately national politics are providing one snag (it would be nice to be able to be like the LYRU, which refuses to consider political bias) and there has been the odd opinion expressed that Naviga could not affiliate to an organisation smaller than itself; this last from an official who does not sail yachts and who has not perhaps thought of counting the number of sailing members in Naviga compared with the IMYRU. In the USA, moves are afoot to try to end the schism between the old-established MYRAA and the AMYA. Here, too, the IMYRU rules are generally followed, with the exception again of radio racing procedural rules, and IMYRU officers have been consulted, in great detail, by both associations on a number of occasions. Heading picture shows a nice start in second-suit and light drizzle at the Metropolitan and Southern District RIOR Champs at Hove on 9th July. Norman Hatfield’s Crackerjack is back. Washing-up bowl buoys are very visible – spots indicate rotations on a touch. Left, intriguing super-slim original, 70in. deck beam, 20in. draught I9lb. displacement 60in. w.|. and 1250 sq. ins. top suit. Seemed to sail very nicely. Regret we didn’t get owner’s name. 531 As far as the average model yachtsman is concerned, nothing would be nicer than for everyone to be working together and competing freely together under common rules all over the world. It will eventually happen, no doubt, and the only things stopping it now appear to be the attitudes of a small number of individuals in various countries, all, no doubt, believing sincerely that they are acting in the best interests of the modellers for whom they speak. Member countries of the IMYRU should consider what they expect from it, especially in view of the obvious necessity for subscriptions to be increased, and they may also reflect on the position which might arise if it should cease to function in two or three year’s time, an unlikely but not impossible eventuality. It can reasonably be claimed that it has more than justified its existence in the past; it is extremely active, though not overtly, at present, and an experienced world authority is clearly an essential part of the future. Its object is to promote model yachting, in all forms, internationally, and its record indicates that it does this rather well, within the limits imposed by a very tight budget. Any comment, suggestion, or constructive criticism would be welcomed; the Hon. Secretary is K. E. Roberts, 51 Edinburgh Drive, Birkenhead, Merseyside L43 ORJ, or matters for wider discussion could be sent to the MYA Correspondent, c/o Model Boats. Guildford MYC held their third annual race for juniors on July 9th, and although entries were a little down and wind conditions left a lot to be desired, it again proved a very worthwhile undertaking. Any child under 15 can participate with any model under 36in., scores being adjusted on the basis of waterline length, and although many of the youngsters haven’t the foggiest idea of the mechanics of the thing, they all enjoy the sailing immensely and they all get a small prize in the form of small kits presented by the local model shop down to a packet of sweets. This year boats included Choppas, Windriders, scaled-down Ms (yachting fathers!) and the usual toy yachts, up to a venerable 36R (once registered, no. 291) recently discovered in a loft, and ages ranged from about 3 up to 12, with non-sailing parents getting in on the act and thoroughly enjoying it. With a display of club models, hand-out leaflets, and a write-up in the local press, it all adds up to first-class publicity which other clubs could well copy. The MYA Radio Control League positions as at July 10th show 27 clubs with scores, though with results of 11 races between January and July 2nd not yet received by Brian Bull, who is compiling the table. Just to jog sec’s. memories, these are Danson (Jan), Newton Abbott (9/4 and 4/6), Bristol (30/4), Plymouth (21/5 and 2/7), S.E. Essex (25/6), Broads (4/6), Basildon (18/6), Fleetwood (25/6) and Ashton (2/7). Positions on results received up to July 10th were 1. Basildon 449, 2. Leicester 250, 3. Ashton 208, 4. Clapham 196, 5. New Forest 174, 6. Leeds 165, 7. Danson 163, 8. Cleveland 105, 9. Fleetwood 90, 10. Birkenhead 80, 11. Birmingham 74, 12. Woodley 63, 13. Poole 46, 14. Bolton 44, 15. Guildford 41, 16. Killingworth 24, 17. Tameside 23, 18. Gosport 18, 19. Cleethorpes 12, 20. Andover 8, 21. Lincoln 7, Bournville 7, 23. Woodspring 3, 24. Broads 3, 25. S. E. Essex 2, 26. Medway 1, S. London 1. R/C races still to come (after publication of this issue) include the RIOR Champs. at Fleetwood on Aug. 26-28, N.D. RA Champs. at Leeds on Oct. Ist., and the following RM races — Sept. 3 Newton Abbott, 10 Leicester, 17 New Forest (Wellworthy Trophy), 30 Birmingham. Oct. 8 Basildon, Bristol, Tameside, and New Forest Close milling just before the start line at the RIOR Champs, with, foreground, MYA Chairman Norman Hatfield, who had to miss the heat due to a sticking limit switch on his sheeting. Right, new Suresail winch from Nylet, fully proportional, i.e., no servo required, retailing at £49.90. September 1978 (Team District), 15 Clapham, 22 Lincoln, 29 Bournville, Ashton, and S. E. Essex. Nov. 5 Guildford. Plus the Race of Champions at Hove, Oct. 14/15, also RM. * * * * Experience with the 1978 R/C Sailing Rules seems to have produced remarkably little controversy. It is probably true to say that the 720° turn to exonerate a penalty is not too popular, and that on the whole a points deduction is preferred, though here some skippers feel that there are occasions when a six-point penalty is harsher than the offence deserves. Well, the opportunity of expressing your point of view exists, as R/C Sec. Ted Gearey is anxious to have comments, and the more people who raise points the more certain we are to have a fully acceptable set of rules for the future. E. W. Gearey, O.B.E., 34 Burnet Avenue, Burpham, Guildford, Surrey GU1 1YD is the address. Things seem to be humming down at Fordingbridge, where Nylet Ltd. has a few new things being developed, including a new short and light weight RIOR and some intriguing fittings. Newest product available is the Suresail sail winch, a quick and powerful proportional unit for working direct off modern 3 or 4 wire digital radios. Seven turn output shaft, double drum for two-way sheets, 4.8v operation. Price inc. VAT is £49.90 (plus U.K. p&p 90p) which if you deduct the cost of the servo that need not be bought, represents very little more than the first winch marketed by this firm four or five years ago. The RIOR class certainly seems to be progressing memberwise — who only a couple of years ago would have believed 16 entries for the Met. & S. District Champs. at Hove on July 9th? Quite a bit of variety in design, too. Once extremely popular (for free-sailing), the 10s had taken rather a back seat for ten or twelve years, but sail numbers are now well over 2000 and there is no doubt that radio is bringing them a new lease of life. This year is the centenary of the original rule; wonder if Dixon Kemp would recognise ’em? Fairford Open Radio Marblehead, South Cerney, 25th June The South Cerney Water Sports Centre was again the venue and the first sight that most competitors had was of water whipped up by gale force winds which hardly abated all day. In spite of this 27 of the original 28 entries were eager to do battle. After a couple of heats however it became obvious that those with a choice of suits were going to prosper. Radio troubles hit one competitor who retired, making a total of four retirements in the day — not many considering the weather. The wind caused one boat to lose its mast on the water, but undaunted the skipper delved into the box and set it up again to complete the day. Close racing, especially at the start, was the order of the day but no incidents of great note occurred. In fact the weather seemed to breed an ‘esprit de corps’ and OOD Chris Bowler was impressed with the friendly rivalry. When penalties were awarded, even those which unfortunately happen because of conditions, no one became irate. Perhaps it was too cold. The ladies did their best to combat that with constant coffee and tea etc. At the end of the 28 heats, three boats were level, Jeff Hoer from Honiton with his Challenger, Tony Abel from Salisbury with Moonracer and K. Brown with a Moonraker. A Nylet day out perhaps? At the sail-off Tony Abel collected penalties right at the start by not avoiding a starboard tack boat, Jeff sailed into a commanding lead and Mr Brown finished out of time. Jeff won each of his heats, one with penalties. Placings (1) J. Hoer 78; (2) A. Abel 70; (3) K. Brown (66); (4) D. Skelton 64; (5) D. Land 62; (6 equal) T. Brown and J. Mountain 60. Ray Hutchings won the Rundle trophy for best points by a Fairford member, 34. * * * Chris Bowler South Yorkshire 50 Multi Race, Sheffield, 18th June 1978 For several years the Sheffield Ship Model Society (SSMS) has held a multi race regatta with 50 min races under the name ‘Sheffield 50’. This year the South Yorkshire County Council generously donated a large trophy (to be returned each year) plus medals for first, second and third places. The event was accordingly renamed the ‘South Yorkshire 50° with these trophies going to the three highest lap scorers irrespective of engine size. We also presented the usual trophies for the first three positions in each engine class; thus, in effect, we had two events in one. Due to excellent co-operation with the Sheffield City Recreation Department the SSMS can hold multi race events in Crooks Valley Park. For those unfamiliar with this venue the park is close to the city centre and ideal for competitors and spectators alike. Only one prob- lem though, in that there is no suitable landing stage. This results in a fair amount of effort by club members in erecting a temporary landing stage with scaffolding and planks. Fortunately a local firm, Mill’s Scaffolding, allows us the free use of sufficient scaffolding. This year the control position was placed immediately behind the landing stage but elevated some 10ft above to allow access. This afforded an excellent view of both pits and course and made the organisers’ tasks far easier. This regatta was also the first one at which we used our new inflatable buoys, an idea filched from the Cleethorpes Club. They are bright red marine buoys, about the same size as those ‘space hopper’ toys, and proved most successful, as collisions resulted in no damage to either buoy or boat. A fortnight prior to the event we had a total of 54 entries which could be conveniently accommodated in six races keeping each engine class separate. However, late entries (ie, a week before the event)! brought the total up to 78. In order to keep the event in reasonable bounds we decided to lay on one extra race and accept that some mixing of engine classes would occur. The weather in the week before the event was cold, wet and windy, causing several people to include oilskins and sou’westers in their equipment. But came the day, and the weather was glorious, bright and sunny with little wind. This and a little PRO work with the local press and radio resulted in the regatta attracting and holding a crowd of some 200-400 spectators throughout the day. Before the racing began, our society’s multi racing rules were read Above, one of the moments when the OOD hopes that the wind wardboats will keep clear. Tightly packed group during Fair- ford MC open RM on 25th June. Right, Tony Abel’s short rigged Moonracer cuts through the chop at Fairford. Only penalties collected were in the sail-off. However, he still came 2nd overall with a new boat. Pictures by Chris Bowler. eee out over the PA system to avoid misunderst andings later. The most commonly occurring fault was with regard to the models’ MPBA numbers, ie, either too small or not black on white (MPBA Rule 6 (14)). Also, some people did not seem to know what a frequency flag was! It is quite impossible to provide full details of all the races so I will perp to limit comments. Taking each race in order: ‘ace The regatta started with an A class (O—3-Sec) race. The usual mini Jaguars and Alphas predominated, together with the almost standard OPS and K &B engines. The 12 entries in this race set a good standard in respect of noise and driving for the rest of the regatta. As often happens, several people appeared to have radio or engine problems, and soon it was clear that only five people, D. Lightly, B. Stott, S. Halliday and I. Duckinfield, could keep their models circulating. Incidentally, Dave North was using a Reftec UHF radio outfit, the first seen at a Sheffield regatta. It seemed to work well but it was initially disconcerting to see Dave sailing with his tx aerial apparently retracted! Race 2 This was the first B class (3-5—6-5cc), and Jaguar and Cougar hulls accounted for most of the entries. Again some people had problems and only four managed to exceed 90 laps: R. Brown, J. Barraclough and two Sheffield members, John Goodyear and Bernard Pitts. Bernard is to be especially commended in view of his age (12). All you experts had better watch out for him over the next few years! Race 3 Again a B class race, and included the only representative of the fair sex at this regatta, Mrs L. Barraclough. Only a few people had the consistency necessary to record respectable results. They were John Blackwell, B. Warburton, J. Benson and John Tyree. The latter had the quietest boat entered. Apart from the slapping of water on the hull, only a mechanical whirring note could be heard as the boat passed by. Race 4 This was nominated for the petrol (SI) event, but with only four petrol boats entered it also included A, B & C class boats to make the numbers up. Firstly, regarding the petrol boats, only A. Lowe returned a good lap score. In fact, it was comparable with the best in any class. Jess Faux petrol boat was the only fatality of the regatta by first stopping awash by the top right hand buoy, and before recovery could be effected, the wash from a passing boat sent it to the bottom. With the other boats, only the two A class entries of M. McHugh and J. Pearson gave good performances over 50 mins. Race 5 The first wholly C class (6:-5—10cc) event in the regatta saw Mrs Barraclough, from the start, showing the men how to drive a multi boat! Masculine pride was saved by A. Pearson who managed to top her lap score. R. Brown also had a good result. Above, general shot of the pits with the raised control position at the South Yorkshire 50 Multi Race, Sheffield, on 18th June. Look at the crowd! Reporter Glynn Guest’s only disappointment was that he was not allowed to charge 50p a head! Left, start of a ‘B’ race, viewed from the judges’ control area. No chance of getting away before the countdown is completed. Race 6 The second C class race, again with several people appearing to have motor trouble. J. Barraclough, no doubt determined to beat his wife’s score in the previous race, put up a good performance. J. Brown, D. hey and B. Warburton also drove well to make an exciting race. Race This was a mix of both B and C class boats and ended the regatta on an exciting note. While the A and petrol class winners were known, the B and C classes plus the South Yorkshire trophies were still ‘up in the air’. It quickly became clear that only three people were consistent enough to challenge the leaders, D. Speding, D. Forster and Ken Hole. But despite their efforts, at the end of 50 mins none could better the established class leaders. Now the racing was over and after checking the lap scores, the class winners were announced and trophies presented. These results are shown in the following table, and as you can see, the competition was quite close. It was literally ‘one false move and you were out of the running’. Notice how close the B and C class results were, even the much smaller A class boats were not far behind. As already mentioned, A. Lowe’s excellent performance in the petrol (SI) class won him Ist place with a score that was close to the winners in the other classes. Perhaps this is a sign that petrol boats will shake off their slow lumbering image and start to seriously challenge those screaming glow motors ? Awarding the South Yorkshire 50 trophies for highest lap scores, irrespective of engine size, really made it a red letter day for Sheffield, as our own John Tyree won Ist place with 118-5 laps. As John’s very fast and very, very quiet boat attracted a lot of attention some people have even been known to accuse him of using an electric motor! We are trying to persuade him to put pen to paper if you are interested Mr Editor? (Yes please, Ed). Closely following John with 112-7 laps was A. Pexton and J. Benson came 3rd with 105°8 laps. Also worth mentioning is the fact that we held two raffles throughout this regatta. The second raffle contained modelling items and was generally limited to competitors. The money thus raised went a long way to minimising our financial loss on the regatta. I wonder if a lot of clubs are not losing out on a means of financing regattas. Local business, including model shops of course, can often be persuaded to donate items. If you cannot win the race you may win a raffle prize. Well, we enjoyed hosting this regatta and hope that those who came will return to next year’s South Yorkshire 50 Multi Race Regatta, and for those who didn’t come this year, try and make it next year and have an enjoyable day’s racing, but please get your entries in early. PS. On the Wednesday after the regatta the local Sub Aqua Club managed to recover Jess Faux petrol boat from the bottom of the lake. I hope Jess has got plenty of buoyancy foam in the boat now. RESULTS A class (0-3-5cc) 14 entries No of laps Av lap time (secs) Ist A. McHugh 103-5 29:0 2nd S. Halliday 98°8 30°4 3rd J. N. Pearson 92:3 32°5 B class (3-51-6-5cc) 30 entries Ist 2nd 3rd J. Tyree J. Benson R. Brown C class (6:°51-15-00cc) 30 entries Ist A. Pexton 2nd Mrs L. Barraclough 3rd J. Barraclough Spark Ignition (0-35-0cc) 4 entries Ist A. Lowe 2nd J. Barraclough 118-5 105°8 105-2 25:3 28-4 28:5 112-7 105-2 102-5 26°6 28-5 29-3 99-0 12-0 30:3 25:0 South Yorkshire 50 Trophy Ist 2nd 3rd Laps 118-5 J. Tyree A, Pexton J. Benson Class B Cc B 112-7 105-8 * * Glynn Guest * Broadland Trophy for Radio Marbleheads, Ormesby Broad, 4th June The second BroadlandjTrophy event was held at ‘Eels Foot’, Norfolk, home water of the Broads R/C Model Yacht Club. The OOD was W. Grint. The event is an open meeting and it was somewhat disappointing in that the anticipated support from several clubs in the eastern area did not materialise apart from that exciting club — Basildon. Therefore, in effect, the event became a team race. The weather was a perfect summer’s day with a fresh easterly breeze promising a grand day’s sailing. From the start racing was closely contested, noticeably between the Basildon skippers, but with the home club challenging for places and getting them; a better performance than last year. However, the greater experience in tactics and a thorough knowledge of the rules, together with first class boats won for Basildon the first three places. Norman Hatfield was sailing superbly and looked set to take the trophy only to forfeit six penalty points for an infringement of the rules at the far buoy on his last race, letting through Oliver Lee who, incidentally, had been at his heels all day to become the clear winner, winning for Basildon the trophy for the second time. The trophy is for annual competition in the RM class and is open to all members of the MYA in the Eastern District. In presenting the trophy to Oliver Lee the OOD commented on the sporting spirit in which all competitors had sailed. Norman Hatfield responded by congratulating the home club for its organisation of the event. The Broads Club would like to take this opportunity to express its appreciation to the Basildon Club (unsolicited) and for the benefit of all clubs and those associated with our sport, for their support in keeping this event alive. Without their devotion to the sport, their keenness, experience and willingness to travel and thereby by example encouraging others to achieve the same standards at least, makes them truly, exemplary ambassadors of the sport. We learned a lot from them last year (our first year as a club). As a result we were certainly more competitive this year and we are looking forward to an interesting meeting in 1979. Results Name Points C. Eagle 64°4 O. Lee N. Hatfield D. Skipper A. Ott R. Batch B. Badoe S. Pepper P. Badoe M. Wilkinson —. Coleman J. Porter T. Drury M. Hammond 76 73:2 55:2 52:2 52 46 43-2 40 36 20 19-2 10 Retired Pos 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 oo Club Basildon Basildon Basildon Broads Basildon Broads Basildon Broads Basildon Broads Basildon Broads Broads Broads N. A. Wortley
