M-O-A
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Rally Reports

Rallies 2002

Published 21st April 2010 | By chris

Yarmouth September 28th 2002

I received a phone call early in the morning of the 28th to say that Yarmouth was heaving with seven rallies. A little disappointing as I had called the Harbour master one month earlier and had been told that there were no events booked and that I couldn’t book. I now know that the harbour will take bookings, so the mistake will not be repeated. I must however thank the Harbour master for finding 6 berths for us at short notice.

The weekend was beautifully sunny with a SE force 3-4, the weather could not have been better!

Five boats, Taranaki, Cascade, Tumbler, Leda of Hamble and Jovi managed to moor between a pair of piles and Ospray squeezed on to the harbour wall. Unfortunately Maxima could not get into the harbour and Morfran had to moor on one of the outside buoys. Apologies to Maxima, Morfran & Ospray for the disorganisation and missing out on the Glasses of wine and chat.

The rest of us enjoyed some sunshine whilst sipping a glass of wine before rushing off to the Kings head to meet the 1830 hours food ordering deadline.

Pictures from the day –

     

 

  

 

Weymouth Saturday August 3rd 2002

Eight boats met on the east side of the Weymouth’s old harbour on Saturday night. Those from Taranaki, Caorann, Cascade, Tumbler, Maxima, Leda of Hamble, Jovi and local boat Aitch attended. We all managed to perch on/in Taranaki’s cockpit for a glass of wine and a chat. Ospray joined us on the Sunday on her way to the west country.

Thank you all for coming.

Mick & Rose

Pictures from the day –

   

    

 

 

 

 

East Coast 2002 Round-Up

2002 has been the first year for Eastern England M-O-A and our boats have met each other all around the South East as well as much further afield.  The meetings have been informal, and often just by chance.
The season started with a somewhat fragmented (and stormy) weekend in April when Morpheus and Sgian Dubh met as planned in Titchmarsh while Moonshine, Ziggy and Vouvray visited a pub near Woolverstone on the Saturday!  On the Sunday, Morpheus, Vouvray and Moonshine’s crew met up for lunch at Levington.
Vouvray happened to meet Sapphire and Orville in Chatham on a very colourful Jubilee weekend and then later, while on summer cruise, met Madrigal in Honfleur (a very attractive historic port) and Ziggy in St Vaast.
 
…and Maxi’s go fast too!
 
 Moonshine took part in the Haven Race to Ostend, managing an astounding average of 7.7 knots for the 78 mile trip.  Wind conditions were good, starting at F4 and building to F5/6, with spinnaker runs for the first 12 and last 6 miles.  Moonshine then followed this with a delightful day with Bacchus in Nieuwpoort before turning for home.
 
 
Champions Bell at Burnham Week 2002
 
 
After a disastrous excursion under spinnaker onto the Foulness Sands (or concrete) on Monday, the rest of Eclipse’s week went much better…

–          Tuesday: class winners for the up river race;
–          Wednesday: won the first off-shore regatta and took line honours too;
–          Thursday: runners up in the second offshore race;
–          Friday: won the last offshore race and as a consequence the Midweek Points and Offshore regatta cups;
–          Saturday: class line honours

Overall, Eclipse were the Class 3 winners for the week and to cap it all, she was the Best Boat in Regatta in terms of points scored after discards (one retirement and a second place) and so won this year’s Champions Bell – quite an achievement!
 
It shows the benefit of a very well oiled crew and ….. a great yacht!
by Daryl M  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 August Bank holiday weekend saw                     
 
Neroli and Vouvray cruising from the Orwell to Burnham to meet Eclipse.  An excellent evening was spent on “SB Adwina” (Daryl’s other boat is a Thames Sailing Barge!)  with her crew and friends.  Eclipse excelled by winning the Champions Bell for the best points overall for Burnham Week.
Vouvray hasn’t been too happy with her sails and trimming so Chris was sent to crew on Moonshine for a Haven Series race weekend.  It was certainly a worthwhile experience with exciting sailing, good company and good food – what more can a Maxi owner wish?
No doubt, many are already thinking in terms of laying up for the season but Vouvray plans to stay in the water until the New Year, weather depending, so keep an eye out for us!
 
Planning the future…
Would a winter dinner appeal for Eastern Region members?  Perhaps in the dark days of February when we could meet up by car – perhaps booking The Harbour Lights Restaurant at Titchmarsh, The Duke of Wellington at Hatfield Peverel (no sea to be seen) or alternative venue for good food at an easily reached point?
Next season it has been suggested Eastern Region try to focus on just one main weekend “meet” which everyone would make a special effort to get to (even if some came by car), perhaps with some social land and water events.  Burnham may be just the place for this!
Also, some members on the South Coast have suggested a joint event but this would probably require more than just a long weekend.  Boulogne could be a choice but has anyone sampled it on land and sea recently?  South Coast members may also be tempted to venture around North Foreland to go up the Thames to St Katherines, next to the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.

 

Posted in Rallies 2005 and before

Rallies 2004

Published 21st April 2010 | By chris

Folly Inn 2004

Before departure down to two boats. Weather forecast 5 – 7 gale 8 later. Wind against tide and on the nose. Second boat proposing to send bulk of crew by car and ferry, just two of them would sail. Poked nose out of Portsmouth entrance and due to crew threatening divorce papers decided to abandon trip.

Colin.

We were that boat!!

 

In the end we decided to sail with the full crew, including 4 children under the age of 11! We stayed under the lee of the island where possible, to avoid the wind over tide chop. Beating up the Solent, with over 30 knots of apparent wind, my business partner (a sailing novice) said, “This is really good fun. Why are there so few boats out here?” !! The kids seemed to think it was a fairground ride.

 

We also had a great run home on Sunday afternoon, surfing at up to 10 knots under just the jib.

 

Many thanks to Colin for excellent organisation – we had a spot reserved on the pontoon, a table reserved for dinner, and had a great time. Sorry nobody else could make it!

 

John (Magewind, 1050)

 

Weymouth – Saturday 21 August 2004

The rally kindly organised by David Brown was cancelled due to a poor weather forecast and interest from only two other members. The bad weather passed by the weekend which was Sunny with 15kts of wind. Weymouth harbour was not very busy, one members boat, 1100 Iona of Cowes was seen in Weymouth but the owner was not on board so she was probably chartered.

 

Scotland – Loch na Droma Buidhe (Drumbuie)    July 24th 2004

An update on the Grand Rally for Scottish and N. Ireland Members held on July 24th and Loch Drumbuie by Tobermory. It was a filthy day, blowing a gale and pelting down with rain. Apart from us, nobody turned up except Tony and Alison Shaw with "Lyrebird". We were not surprised because we are very thin on the ground out here and unfortunately, meetings like this will never be well attended. We had a good time together with "Lyrebird" and will try to arrange a get together of local members on the Clyde later in the season, probably in September.

Laurie Prescott

 

 Hamble Point – SD Marine Summer Event,  22nd May 2004.

The event attracted 31 boats on Saturday these were moored to the Cougar pontoon. The event was hosted and paid for by SD Marine. Berthing, drinks and a barbeque were all provided by Roger and his staff and we must all thank them for the most enjoyable weekend. A ‘Sail away’ treasure hunt was completed by 27 boats on Saturday afternoon. The Course took them out of the Hamble past ‘HE BAD LAD’ (Bold Head) buoy and SE to ‘I HAD HELL  finding this RED one’ (Hill Head buoy). Then on towards where the TWO COWS once stood (Henry VIII’s Forts {COWS) at East and West Cowes; past the Prince of St.Croon (Prince Consort Buoy) and up the Beaulieu river to Exbury point where the flags spelling MAXI were flying at the Royal Southampton Yacht club at Ginns farm. Treasure Hunt was made up by Mick & Rose, we hope you all enjoyed it!

Posted in Rallies 2005 and before

Rallies 2003

Published 21st April 2010 | By chris

Weymouth Saturday August 9th 2003

We provisionally booked 10 berths in Weymouth harbour. We sailed from Yarmouth on Thursday and met with two other early-birds in Weymouth harbour.  Eventually five Maxis turned up and were moored on the East side of the Harbour. The weather was gloriously sunny all weekend with a light and variable breeze. As usual we gathered for drinks at 1800 before walking to Hamiltons for supper. Hamiltons is near the old pier head and the food was very good, they only just managed to squeeze all 14 of us in.

 

Cherbourg

Perhaps the invitation was too late or members just too busy because Taranaki was on her own in Cherbourg. The weather was perfect for sailing and sunbathing!

 

 Folly Inn Medina River Cowes Sat June 7th HW Portsmouth 1726 BST 4.1m

We reserved spaces for 8 boats on council mid-river pontoons at the Folly Inn, 7 boats attended. Thank you all for coming and making it a success.

Saturday was a good sunny one with light and variable winds, the weather stayed dry ’till midnight.

We started with a glass of wine or two, all 15 in Taranaki’s cockpit. This was followed by a very enjoyable evening at the Folly Inn. Fiona was celebrating her birthday so she ensured that we  took full advantage of the Folly’s table top dancing facilities!

Sunday was not as expected and we all had a rather boisterous sail home. Lee on Solent recorded over 40Kts that morning.

 

Lymington Sat May 17th HW Portsmouth 1300 BST 4.9m

Bad weather hindered the Lymington rally but those that didn’t go by boat went by road and  Taranaki, Leda of Hamble, Caorann, Les Alizes attended. The food in the Mayflower pub was excellent and is recommended.

Posted in Rallies 2005 and before

The Brixham Rally 13/14 September 2005

Published 21st April 2010 | By chris

 

The Brixham Rally 13/14 September 2005 was attended by four Maxi owners. 

 
We had three boats: Peter and Sue Stonestreet with their Maxi 1000 Blue Rider; Lindsey and Viv Thomas-Keeping with their Maxi 1100 Iona; and David Naughton on his own with Balloo, his Maxi 1000.
Then Marion and Neil Cornwell (Maxi 1100 Aurora) joined us by car rather than boat together with Petra, their black Labrador guide dog puppy, because of inclement weather and time constraints.  Unfortunately Peter Siddall – Maxi 1000 Gemini from Fowey – rang to say he would not be able to join in because of business commitments. 
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Peter and Sue entertained us all initially on Blue Rider (and very nobly including Petra).  We then all adjourned to the Yacht Club for an excellent meal. 
Conversation flowed freely and much useful information was exchanged about such captivating subjects such as seacocks, autohelms and navigational equipment. 
 We all agreed that Maxi Rallies are an excellent way of keeping in touch and swapping ideas and information and that the Maxi Owners Association should endeavour to plan and advertise the regional rallies well in advance to allow members time to plan their summer itineraries around them when possible.  David, although not a M-O-A member, happened by chance and we were happy to include him as a guest for the occasion.
Our group photo above is on Peter and Sue’s boat.  Below, you may just be able to make out a seal between the boat and the harbour wall, as well as us enjoying ourselves in the Yacht Club!        

  

Posted in Rallies 2005 and before

Alderney Cruise, 27th – 31st May 2005

Published 21st April 2010 | By chris

New M-O-A Pennants Fly In Alderney

Alderney Cruise, 27th – 31st May 2005
 The late May bank holiday was due to be a busy weekend on the island of Alderney, with events varying from the Miss Alderney pageant and procession to a round-the-island race led by the Jubilee Trust tall ships. And, of course, not to forget the M-O-A Alderney cruise! With somewhat varied weather forecasts, the one thing that the forecasters seemed able to agree on was the risk of strong westerlies in the Irish Sea moving down into the channel on Saturday. When we finally arrived on board Magewind after fighting through the Friday traffic, my intrepid mate, Nick, and I had a hurried discussion and decided to set out on the evening tide around Bembridge. “That way, we will be in Alderney before it blows up”, we assured each other. 
I know what you are thinking – we should have known better! After motorsailing into a light south-easterly for several hours, a fresh south-westerly set in around 1am, and began to build steadily. By 3am, it was dead on the nose, and we were seeing gusts up to 30 knots. With the change of tide, steep, breaking seas started to form and life was starting to get very wet and uncomfortable. Time for Plan B! As we bore away towards Cherbourg, we picked up speed to over 8 knots, and settled into a more comfortable motion, surfing down the waves rather than smashing into them. Much more fun! 
Meanwhile, Nick’s wife, Kath, my wife Alison and our two girls, Jenny and Ellen, had got up at 5:30am and were flying out to Alderney on a tiny plane with only 16 seats, in the full expectation that their “floating hotel” would be there, waiting for them. No such luck! The floating hotel was tied up in Cherbourg, with half a gale whistling through the rigging. By mid-afternoon, at least the sun had come out, and the French forecast (so much more reliable than ours) was predicting that the wind would drop through the evening, so we set out for an exciting trip across the Race on the west-going tide. 
All was going well until we were well in sight of Alderney, when a particularly vicious tidal swirl caught us, and: “Seat Overboard!” We had lost the seat across the transom, and it was now heading down the Race for Guernsey at about 6 knots.
                           
With no handles and floating just below the surface in 4 foot waves, this was not an easy M-O-B drill. After the first near miss, I gybed for another go, and the vang parted company with the mast fitting. “You’ve got to get it this go, or we will be down the Race”, I shouted at Nick, who was leaning out over the transom, restrained only by his harness. Amazingly, he grabbed and held it, and we clawed our way past the Alderney lighthouse just in time. 
By the time we got in to Braye, the French weatherman had been proved right, and it was turning into a lovely, quiet evening. We had barely got our foulies off when the first M-O-A visitors came aboard to claim the promised glass of Pimms. Soon we were catching up with everyone else’s adventures.  
Lindsay and Viv on Iona had set out from Yarmouth on Friday, and got a bit further than us before the wind hit them. They arrived in Alderney to find waves breaking right over the breakwater. This had to be worth a closer look, so they went for a walk (what were they on???). Unsurprisingly, a large wave came over, and dumped half a ton of water down their necks. Luckily, there is room for plenty of spare clothes on an 1100. 
Peter and Sue on Blue Rider had been cruising around Guernsey, and had an exhilarating, but slightly scary, run up to Alderney before Saturday morning’s gale. They didn’t know their 1000 would go that fast! Even so, Peter was a bit disappointed that he had not had a chance to use his new spinnaker. 
Simon and Terri on Brent Goose had planned to leave Yarmouth late Friday night. One look down the Needles channel was enough to convince them that discretion was the better part of valour, so they were present only in spirit (and by mobile phone). They had a much more pleasant crossing on Sunday, and were able to join us for a cup of tea on Monday morning. 
Graham and Nikki on Jolly Roger were planning to join us on Monday, but we did not see them. Hope they had a good weekend, wherever they ended up. Roger and Val on Seabiskit also deserve an honourable mention – their crew were unable to make it, so they decided to stay closer to home. Matt and Jean on Superted were last heard of heading towards St Vaast. And finally, Pell Mell was one of very few boats in the JST Route des Moules regatta to actually make it to Alderney – even the tall ships had given up crossing the channel on Friday night! Even Miss Alderney stayed firmly indoors, although she was on the radio next morning. 
On Sunday, the Magewind crew set off to explore the beautiful Longy Bay and Raz Island by sea, while the others explored the island overland. It proved a bit cold for sand-castles, and nobody was brave enough to swim, despite the lovely sandy beach. We all met up for a pre-dinner drink in the yacht club, and a great dinner in the First and Last – a haven for hungry yachtsmen for the last 30 years to my personal knowledge.

On Monday, it was our turn to explore by land, on rather creaky rental bikes. We discovered that, for such a small island, Alderney has some quite impressive hills. By Tuesday, the others had left, and we decided to circumnavigate the tiny island of Burhou. This little, rocky island is inhabited only by birds, and presents quite a challenge, due to numerous rocks and the very strong local tides. Its wild beauty was well worth the effort, though, and we found a very cosy anchorage for next time we visit. 
                  
As we set out on the crossing home on Tuesday afternoon, the little plane carrying Alison, Kath and the girls flew over us. Soon we had the spinnaker set, and were watching a beautiful sunset in perfect conditions. After a quick snooze in Yarmouth, we woke to a miserable grey drizzle for our final leg back to Gosport, matching our mood at the thought of going back to work. We had had a very relaxing and enjoyable long weekend in Alderney, with excellent company from the other Maxi owners. It is such a lovely island – I must try not to leave it 10 years before I go back this time.
John Skipper
Posted in Rallies 2005 and before
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