RORC Coutts Quarter Ton Cup 2015

Cowes, Wednesday 8 to Friday 10 July - Übersicht www.rorc.org

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8 July 2015
No Racing On Opening Day Of Coutts Quarter Ton Cup 2015

Sadly strong winds and big seas stopped racing on the opening day of the Coutts Quarter Ton Cup hosted by the Royal Ocean Racing Club, incorporating the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club, in Cowes. The event, which runs from 8 to 11 July, has attracted an entry of 21 boats from across the UK, Ireland and France. At the opening skipper's briefing Race Officer Rob Lamb warned the competitors of the impending strong winds, but declared his intention to run racing if at all possible with a first planned start time of 11.00.

The race committee went afloat at 09.00 and headed straight to the planned race area off Hill Head. Sadly conditions there were extremely rough with strong gusty winds making sailing for the historic and relatively fragile Quarter Tonners impossible. The committee then moved in towards Osborne Bay in the hope of achieving some shelter from the Island, but even there conditions were already marginal. Rob Lamb initially announced a postponement, but after an hour's wait, with gusts well up into the high 30s and the forecasting promising even more wind, the decision was made to hoist AP over A and call off racing for the day.

Whilst disappointed not the sail, the fleet were in agreement with the decision and made the most of the unexpected free day ashore. Whilst some took the opportunity to catch up on work, others created impromptu adventures including the crew of Alice II, whose owner Rickard Melander celebrated his birthday today with a delicious seafood lunch with his team at legendary Island eatery The Hut.

Four teams who perhaps were not disappointed to stay ashore were the four newest crews in the fleet, who had all be presented with a welcome bottle of Mount Gay Rum at last night's welcome reception. Julian Wetherell, new owner of Espada, Ben and Mike Daley who now own Cobh Pirate (the former Illes Pitiuses, winner of last year's Corinthian Quarter Ton Cup), Rob Mclean of Spider Pig and Paul Gibbons, new owner of Anchor Challenge, were all warmly welcomed by the assembled fleet who explained that tradition demand they drink their bottle of Mount Gay there and then.
One team that sadly cannot be here this year is Ian Southworth's Whiskers. The Whiskers crew is as famed for their sailing talent as they are notorious for their lack of organisational and planning skills. Typically they enter the event at the eleventh hour and finish preparing the boat on their way to the first start. So disappointed are they not to be here this year that Whiskers' navigator Lincoln Reading has been in contact to announce they are donating a very special prize for presentation at the final dinner. The prize will be presented to the team who in the opinion of the race committee is the most organised and prepared for the regatta - in other words a boat that is the complete antithesis of Whiskers!

This evening the crews are enjoying a BBQ at the RORC/RCYC's waterside clubhouse where the sailors remain enthusiastic to get racing underway tomorrow. "There's a very nice camaraderie around the event, but equally it's a very competitive fleet. There are probably more than half a dozen boats capable of winning this year." Noted Quarter Ton Class Secretary and past Coutts Quarter Ton Cup champion Louise Morton, who this year is racing FRA7891 Bullit, in which her husband Peter won last year's event.
Race Officer Rob Lamb has confirmed that he intends to run up to four races tomorrow and with lighter winds expected this should be achievable. The forecast anticipates a light North Westerly in the morning,which will swing South West later in the day with the promise of an afternoon sea breeze. A total of nine races are scheduled, three races are required to constitute a series and if six races or more are sailed there will be a single discard. The fleet will race together as one, but prizes will be awarded for three divisions - Open Division (for all yachts), Corinthian Division (open to all amateur crews) and Low Rating Division (for boats with an IRC rating of 0.899 and below. The regatta concludes on Friday.

You can follow the latest news from the event at the Quarter Ton Class Blog and on the RORC Facebook Page. Further information about the event can be found at www.rcyc.co.uk or by contacting Sailing Secretary Jo Chugg on jc@rorc.org Tel 01983 293581.

Revived Coutts Quarter Ton Cup Winners
2005 - Purple Haze (1977 David Thomas design) - Tony Dodd 2006 - Enigma - (1977 Ed Dubois design) - Ed Dubois 2007 - Espada - (1980 Bruce Farr design) - Peter Morton 2008 - Tom Bombadil (1982 Doug Peterson design) - Chris Frost & Kevin George 2009 - Anchor Challenge (1978 Bruce Farr design) - Peter Morton 2010 - Cote (1990 Gonzalez design) - Darren Marston & Olly Ophaus 2011 - Overall - Espada (1980 Bruce Farr design) - Louise Morton Corinthian - Tiger (1989 Fauroux design) - George Kenefick 2012 - Overall - Bullit - (1978 Fauroux design) - Peter Morton Corinthian - Tiger (1989 Fauroux design) - George Kenefick 2013 - Overall - Espada - (1980 Bruce Farr design) - Louise Morton Corinthian - Pinguin Playboy (1979 Fauroux design) - Pierre Paris 2014 - Overall - Bullit (1978 Fauroux design) - Peter Morton Corinthain - Illes Pitiuses (1983 Fauroux) - Dominic and Jason Losty

About The Coutts Quarter Ton Cup
The revival Quarter Ton Cup was the brainchild of well-known sailors Peter Morton and Tony Dodd. In 2004 Peter was toying with the idea of buying back his old Bruce Farr designed Quarter Tonner Super Q and Tony, the owner of Purple Haze, we keen to increase the number of boats he could race against.
A few phone calls to friends later and the idea of a revival Quarter Ton Cup was rolling. The inaugural event took place in 2005 with 14 boats attending and Purple Haze claiming victory. Each year the number and quality of the entrants has increased with the tenth anniversary event in 2014 attracting a record entry of 33 boats.
The standard of racing in the fleet is truly extraordinary with many of the best-known sailors in the world joining the racing for the sheer fun of it. Certainly the Quarter Tonners are widely acknowledged as offering some of the most competitive racing in the Solent.
Although the revival started in the Solent, the enthusiasm for Quarter Tonners is universal and there are now active Quarter Ton fleets across Europe and Australasia with more boats being rediscovered and given a new lease of life each year.
The boats are quirky, fun, incredibly challenging to sail well, but very versatile in that they are competitive in general IRC fleets. It's also a class that appeals to youngsters and those on a limited budget who can purchase a boat and refurbish her themselves at very reasonable cost. The fleet is always very supportive of new owners offering endless advice and frequently donating parts, sails and even complete rigs to deserving newcomers.
In 2006 the event partnered for the first time with title sponsor Coutts to become the Coutts Quarter Ton Cup, a partnership that has endured ever since. Coutts most generous support has been vital in making the Coutts Quarter Ton Cup the vibrant and successful regatta it is today.
For the first eleven years the event was hosted by the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club Cowes. The club's delightful waterside premises and outstanding reputation for race management were the perfect combination to ensure events of the highest caliber. From 2015 the event will be run by the Royal Ocean Racing Club, which now incorporates the RCYC and has taken over its Cowes clubhouse.
Further information about the Quarter Ton Class can be found at www.quartertonclass.org or by contacting Class Secretary Louise Morton on Email louisemorton@me.com
About The Royal Ocean Racing Club
Established in 1925, The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) became famous for the biennial Fastnet Race and the international team event, the Admiral's Cup. It organises an annual series of domestic offshore races from its base in Cowes as well as inshore regattas including the RORC Easter Challenge, IRC National Championship and Vice Admirals Cup in the Solent.
The club is based in St James' Place, London, but after the recent merger with The Royal Corinthian Yacht Club Cowes, now boasts a superb clubhouse facility at the entrance to Cowes Harbour and a membership of over 4000.
The RORC has also been a leader in yacht handicap systems and in co-operation with the French offshore racing club, UNCL, created IRC; the principal yacht measurement system for the rating of racing yachts worldwide.
The Spinlock IRC rating rule is administered jointly by the RORC Rating Office in Lymington, UK and UNCL Centre de Calcul in Paris, France. The RORC Rating Office is the technical hub of the Royal Ocean Racing Club and recognised globally as a centre of excellence for measurement. For Spinlock IRC rating information in the UK please see: www.rorcrating.com