The UKWA has had a terrific year. A year when very few sailors dared moan about the lack of wind. The UKWA Inland Cup series incorporates the main racing classes which includes the TECHNO and RSX fleets.  One class in particular has fared well with numbers – the RACEBOARD CLASS. 

This year, 52 competitors participated on the circuit.  The series championship covered 5 events. Outside the TECHNO fleet,  it’s now the second largest fleet under the UKWA racing umbrella.  If the RSX is never re-instated as the Olympic board then Raceboarding will ultimately take over as the key course racing discipline for all competitors above the Techno Camp age.  Starboard and Exocet have helped the class by delivering brand new boards.  The new Starboard Phantom 377 – has certainly been dominating the head of fleets on the UKWA tour. 

These high performance racing boards deliver the fairest racing for the widest range of venues, and the broadest spectrum of ages and abilities in windsurfing.  The new kit is comfortable, the boards plane easily, they carve gybe and the sails now have such a wide wind band that there is no need to shop for two or three rigs to win regattas.  One is enough.  In fact, Rob Kent who clocked in 4 first positions on the Inland series (winning on minimum points) with just one sail – The Tushingham XR Race 9.5. 

‘Ken Black introduced a few changes to last years 9.5m XR sail as a result of a sail measurement rule change.  The luff is longer and with a higher aspect ratio it is getting the board planing quicker downwind and pointing slightly higher upwind.  The new shaped Phantom Raceboard is a dream to sail and without question faster downwind than the previous years model.  The only problem is that pretty much everyone at the front of the fleet is now on the new board – so there is no kit advantage against my nearest rivals’ says Rob.

Annette Kent won the Inland Cup Series using the 8.5m XR race sail. 

Winning Ways

Final Results:

UKWA INLAND CUP SERIES

Men

1. 1.       Rob Kent   ( Starboard Phantom / Tushingham XR sail)
2. 2.       Mark Kay  ( Starboard Phantom/ Demon)
3. 3.       Chris Gibson ( Starboard Phantom / Tushingham and Demon)

Women

1. 1.       Annette Kent ( Starboard Phantom/Tushingham XR)
2. 2.       Harriet Elles ( Starboard Phantom/Demon)
3. 3.       Emily Kent ( U20 class board)

For more info on Raceboard Competition check out the UKWA website:

www.ukwindsurfing.com.

On Tushingham’s Racing sails.  Check out www.tushingham,com

On the latest BATWING Phantom check out www.star-board.com

Harriet Ellis on her way to becoming Raceboard World Champion

Harriet Ellis 1st place 2011 Raceboard World Championships. Mark Kay 2011 (and 2010) UK Cup Series Champion. Mark Kay 2011 (and 2010) UK Inland Series Champion. Mark Kay 2nd Master 2011 Raceboard World Championships. Once again in 2011 the UK Raceboard scene has been dominated by Demon Design Sails.

The UKWA Cup series runs over six events in the year, for 2011 Mark Kay achieved   four 1sts and two 3rds to take the series win in emphatic style. The next closest sailor was on more than double the points of Mark showing just how one-sided the 2011 series has been. Mark was using the new VG7 Raceboard sail from Demon Design, a sail specifically developed for out-and-out boardspeed across the range of conditions, indeed according to Matthew Burridge of Demon Design: “The VG7 is the ultimate all-round raceboard sail,  when buying a sail for a season, to use in the full range of conditions,  then nothing else compares. We have proven this 2 years running  in the only place that matters, the racecourse. Well done Mark, well done Harriet!”

Harriet Ellis, the young up-and-coming Raceboard sailor celebrated a hard won victory at the Raceboard Worlds in Spain. Harriet has only recently converted to Raceboard and is still learning how to make the kit go quick… so it was something special to win the Raceboard Worlds at her first attempt. Harriet was using the 8.5 VG7.

More from Demon Design at www.demonsails.co.uk

Mark Kay, 2010 & 2011 UK Raceboard Champion

Rob Kent

Dave Hackford reports on Tushingham taking the honours at last weekend’s British Open Championships…

The 2011 Raceboard season has been dominated by strong winds making it the most exciting for many years. The light winds had to come, and sure enough at the British Open Championships on 1st and 2nd of October at Portland, the high pressure and unseasonable hot temperatures set in. Light wind tactical racing, to the experienced  sailor, is as much a challenge as in the strong stuff – if it is not, it should be, because that is what makes a champion.

Rob Kent sailing on the latest Tushingham  XR Race 9.5m clocked in his most impressive set of results all year.  He won the Raceboard National Open Championships on minimum points, 3 firsts to count.

“The versatility that the new XR racing sail gives is amazing.  Tushingham wanted to design a sail that spanned a wide wind range at the highest level of competition.  This weekend we had winds as low as 3knots on the course.  At the start of the season Dave Hackford showed that this sail is blisteringly quick in planning conditions, and now having had the lowest wind regatta of the year this sail has proven to perform in all wind bands. Well done Ken Black”, reported Rob.

BRITISH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS: Weymouth and Portland Sailing Academy

Men’s:

1. Rob Kent  – Tushingham XR 9.5m/ Starboard Phantom 380

2.  Chris Gibson – Starboard Phantom 380

3.  Mark Kay – Starboard Phantom 380

Women:

1.  Annette Kent – Tushingham XR / Phantom 380

The top of the British Raceboard fleet is now hugely competitive.  Mark Kay finished 4th in the recent World Championships in Spain – and Harriet Ellis returned home with the World title crown.  The Starboard Phantom 380 is the board of choice for pretty much all serious competitors.

If you would like to know more about the racing in 2012 log onto www.ukwindsurfing.com. The UKWA is the association responsible for National racing.

If you would like to know more about the championship winning kit then log onto:

www.tushingham.com to learn more about the XR racing sails

www.star-board.com for more about the Phantom race board. They have a new radical concept for 2012.  Check it out!

Bob Cunnigham's flying Phantom

Stories on speedsailing are predominantly about tiny boards, huge winds and speeds up above 40 knots. But Tushingham speedster Bob Cunningham has thrown down the gauntlet to all Raceboard sailors who use a GPS to measure their speeds.

On 18th June Bob visited his local speed strip St John’s Lake near Plymouth. He put in some impressive runs on his iSonic 87 and X-15 sail but what really drew the attention of the other windsurfers was the speeds he was reaching when he took his Phantom 380 & 8.5m Lightning for a spin! His top speed on the Phantom was 32.6 knots, with an average of 30.6.

You don’t need specialist speed kit to have a great time pushing the limits of you and your equipment. So come on Raceboard sailors – Bob has raised the bar to a high standard… Can YOU beat his speeds?  If you do – then at the end of the year the team at Tushingham will give the leader on the GPS site an Aeron V grip boom of their choice.

Have a look at the data from Bob’s session on the GPS Speedsurfing website: http://www.gps-speedsurfing.com/default.aspx?mnu=user&val=80623&uid=961

For more information on the Phantom Raceboard check out  www.star-board.com

Windsurf Open 9.5s

David Eberlin reports from Notts County Raceboard week…

Raceboards are coming back into use on inland waters, they are ideal for the lighter and more gusty winds and allow performance windsurfing and comptetition in winds from a few miles an hour to 30mph….. if you are good enough!

Notts County almost in the centre of the country has a long tradition in Raceboards, and has a regular fleet up to 8 boards on a Sunday. As a result Dave Hackford makes an annual trip for a Wednesday night of coaching, this year he brought Mark Kay (who borrowed one of the club’s older Raceboards) and Jon White so we had the three top Raceboarders in the Country coaching.

Bob Ingram

David started off with a talk, both on rigging for the night, and railing when going upwind. Then it was out for an exercise to demonstrate sailing on the edge, followed by three short sharp races. The prize was a Starboard T shirt for the first back on the final race, won by one of the older competitors Russ Towns. A T shirt was also awarded to young Jack North, first time back on the water after a serious operation.

The following Saturday was the Windsurfing Open meeting which saw over twenty Raceboards and some great conditions, light to moderate with a shifty wind and sunshine and showers. With five races it was hard work but rewarding and John Parr did an excellent job setting a W type course.

Jon White, not surprisingly won every race in fine style, demonstrating his skill by Duck Gybing his 9.5m sail and raceboard, but further down the fleet competition was fierce

Jon White

Results: 9.5 Raceboard: 1^st Jon White (lt) – Bartley, 2^nd Bob ingram (Heavy), 3^rd Mike Playle (light) – Hollowell

Raceboard 7.5: 1^st Dean Hutchinson (Notts County SC), 2^nd Mick Steer (Carsington), 3^rd Russ Towns  (Notts County SC)

Techno; Zed Spencer-Milnes

Dave Hackford on his Raceboard

David Eberlin reports from Raceboard Wednesday at Notts County Sailing Club…

Notts County Sailing Club is one of the more active Raceboard clubs, with up to eight Raceboards on the start line some Sundays. The Raceboard is ideal for getting out and having some competition in the lighter winds found inland. For the last few years Dave Hackford, one of the leading contenders for the National Title, and the Starboard Tushingham supremo  has come down to give members of the club a training evening. This year he persuaded Mark Kay & John White, his two main rivals to join him so Notts County windsurfers were treated to the best in the fleet, in addition Rich from Dave Nobles brought lots of sails and some boards for club members to play on.

For a change there was some wind, and it was relatively steady (till the rain came through) and over 24 sailors listened to Dave talking about rigs, railing and upwind legs. Then the majority (over 15) got out on the water on their Raceboards, to do a 20 minute exercise, pushing railing to the limit.

This was followed by  three races with good upwind legs . A Starboard T shirt was up for grabs on the final race, won by Russ Towns, and a special prize was awarded to Jack North who chose the event to return to the water after a serious illness.

An excellent meal was provided by Pauline the club caterer and of course the bar opened.

Guy Cribb

Guy Cribb, alias Mr Intuition, joined the Raceboard Fleet on the 5th Round of the UKWA tour at Christchurch last weekend and won. OK, breezy it was, but it only goes to show that a sailor with a former international longboard history can show the youngsters and veterans how it is done. With all due respect to Fanatic and North (who as yet do not manufacture ‘Raceboard’ Class equipment) Guy chose the Tushingham XR Race 9.5 and the Starboard Phantom 380. The last day of racing dawned with 15 knots of wind and it was in these full planing conditions that Guy showed devastating downwind speed. ‘Longer Harness Lines’ he would advise a few of us on the beach between races. Approaching 100 racers competed in the various classes at Christchurch and Raceboard continues to attract more sailors wishing to race in all winds and experience tactical racing at its best. Races take place in anything above 6knots, and by 10knots a racer will be flying upwind on the plane. Congratulations to Guy. If you would like to join the racing drop an email to Tushingham at windsurfing@tushingham.com and they will allocate one of the three complete sets of Phantom/XR race kits for you to compete. Next event is at Weymouth / Portland. For series events please check out the UKWA website.

1st Guy Cribb, 2nd Mark Kay, 3rd Dave Hackford.

Following the UK’s coldest weather for 30 years it’s not only the temperatures that are starting to warm up. Windsurfers nationwide are itching to get back racing and blow away the cobwebs, whether it’s raceboard, Formula, RS-X, Techno or slalom, the 2010 calendar will provide plenty of action in all disciplines.

Slalom

The most accessible form of competition sees an exciting new race series for 2010 with the leading UK brands and retailers working together to bring eight events to some superb locations. BSA Round One begins on Easter Saturday 5th April at Tenby in South Wales, hosted by Tushingham, Starboard and Rat Rigs, who will combine to bring some superb prizes and entertainment. It’s one of the finest slalom locations, positioned to catch good wind yet sheltered from the worst of the Atlantic swell.

In addition to Pro and Amateur fleets, the Master Blaster fleet, with its simple “round the buoy and back” format will cater for freeride sailors and provide the less experienced with the perfect introduction to racing, with the emphasis on fun, without the pressure of high octane ‘full-on’ racing. More great racing will be held later in April at the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy, supported by the OTC.

Course Racing

April 17th & 18th is the start of the popular Inland Series beginning in the Midlands at Pitsford, the first of four events. Then a couple weeks later the first of the national Cup Series takes place, again at the smart WPNSA facilities in Weymouth over May Bank Holiday weekend.

One-Design

British racing caters for younger riders very well, with the Techno 6.8 and 7.8 fleets, which boast the largest fleets of all UK racing. Then there’s the One-Design RS-X class, which provides a challenge for those with golden dreams. As one would expect from the Olympic class, it’s an incredibly competitive fleet that races in a huge range of conditions.

Longboards

Last year saw a real resurgence in raceboard, where tremendous battles took place all through the fleet over the whole season. A few old faces have been tempted back plus a number of newcomers have appeared on the scene too, looking to upstage their experienced rivals in 2010.

Formula

Remains the fastest form of course racing with exceptional equipment that improves year on year. The UKWA sees a solid Formula fleet which is sure to be helped by Keith Atkinson, who is working hard on promoting the Formula Experience class in the UK. It’s also the chosen racing discipline of the Armed Forces and there’s always healthy Formula competition between the RAF, the Royal Navy and the Army.

From racing novice to seasoned pro, the UKWA 2010 calendar brings windsurfers the opportunity to compete in exciting, competitive fleets. Pre-entering events offers significant discounts so check out the pre-entry page http://ukwindsurfing.com/events/entry/

The full racing calendar is available at http://ukwindsurfing.com/events/