Worlds Gear Report

With the highly successful 2008 World Championship over, it is time to review some of the gear used by the top salors. 21 year old Matt Mee was sailing a standard hull from Winder Boats with Pinnell and Bax sails on a Selden Cumulus rig, setup by Richard Wagstaff (the crew) from Winder Boats'. David Wade/Ben McGrane were sailing a very similar setup, put together by David who works for Pinnell & Bax. The other 21 year olds in the top 3, Nathan Stockley and Sam Muirhead, were sailing a 10 year old boat from Young Marine with a standard John Clifton Sails setup on a SuperSpar M7+.

Pinnell & Bax dominated the selection of sails in the top 10, but there were 5 different boat builders from 4 different countries, including Singapore. This shows the strenght of the class's one design rules.

It was also great to see a full range of ages of competitors from 20 to 70 sailing the fireball, and a with a strong mix of women throughout the fleet.

Gear used by the top 10:

Pos	Helm	Crew	Helm Weight (kg)	Crew Weight (kg)	Hull	Mast	Sails	Foils
1	Matt Mee	Richard Wagstaff	64	80	Winder	Selden - Cumulus	Pinnell & Bax	Winder
2	David Wade	Ben McGrane	69	80	Winder	Selden - Cumulus	Pinnell & Bax	Winder
3	Nathan Stockley	Sam Muirhead	67	84	YMS	Superspar - M7+	Clifton Sails	YMS
4	Greg Allison	Richard Watson	65	80	AFM/Kelly Marine	Selden - Cumulus	Clifton/Pinnell & Bax(Mainsail)	YMS
5	Tomas Musil	Jan Stantejsky	68	80	Xtreme Sailing Products	Superspar - M7+	Pinnell & Bax	Xtreme Sailing Products
6	Heather Macfarlane	Chris Payne	57	77	AFM/Kelly Marine	Goldspar	Irwin Sails/North(Spinnaker)	YMS/Kelly Marine(rudder)
7	Richard Estaugh	Rob Gardener	74	80	Winder	Superspar - M7+	Speed Sails	Winder
8	Eric Moser	Ruedi Moser	74	76	Duvoisin	Selden - Cumulus	Pinnell & Bax/Speed Sails(Spinnaker)	Duvoisin/Winder(rudder)
9	Vince Horey	Andrew Thompson	68	82	Winder	Selden - Cumulus	Pinnell & Bax	Winder
10	Richard Mason	Simon Hextall	78	79	Winder	Selden - Cumulus	Pinnell & Bax	Winder

Up coming events for Fireball International include the 2008 European Championship, to be held in Nieuwpoort - Belgium from the 6th to the 11th July 2008 and the 2009 Worlds will be held in August in La Rochelle - France. Check out the details at www.fireball-international.com

Day 5 - 2008 Fireball Worlds - Thailand

Day 5 2008 Fireball International –World Championship – Thailand

Another fantastic day sailing at Royal Varuna Yacht Club at Pattaya in Thailand.

The day started with Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR) having a 4 point lead over Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead(AUS) and 12 points ahead of David Wade/Ben McCrane(GBR).

In the first race Mee/Wagstaff decided to take matters into their own hands and luffed Stockley/Muirhead at the start putting them under pressure. Both boats were back in the pack on the first beat, which allowed Tomas Musil/Jan Stantejsky(CZE), 2006 European Champion to get ahead of Greg Allison/Richard Watson(AUS) and Richard Estaugh/Rob Gardener(GBR), 2007 World Champions. On the second beat, Mee/Wsagstaff caught up to the leaders, but Heather Macfarlane/Chris Payne(AUS) got past Estaugh/Gardener for 3rd. Musil/Stantejsky beat Allison/Watson to the finish, and Mee/Wagstaff pipped Macfarlane/Payne on the line. This gave Mee/Wagstaff the world championship with Stockley/Muirhead back in 17th and Wade/McCrane in 6th.

As per normal the second race was slightly windier than the 1st, but with the championship in the bag, Mee/Wagstaff sat it out. Wade/McCrane led around the first mark with Stockley/Muirhead only just in the top ten. On the last mark rounding Eric Moser/Ruedi Moser(SUI), 2006 World Champions just led from Robin Inns/Joel Coultas(AUS), Wade/McCrane and Richard Mason/Simon Hextall(GBR). At the finish .Inns/Coultas managed to get ahead of Mason/Hextall and Wade/McCrane. Stockley/Muirhead had a disastrous race including a swim which put them back to 3rd overall. Allison/Watson finished a consistent series to finish a strong 4th ahead of Musil/ Stantejsky, who were probably let down by minor gear failure. The final placings between 6th and 9th couldn’t have been closer with 4 boats being separated by 1 point, with Macfarlane/Payne beating Estaugh/Gardener on countback for 6th and Moser/Moser beating Vince Horey/Andrew Thompson(GBR) on countback for 8th.

Congratulations to Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff who won the championship in superb style and class, and showed that they had a little extra when required over the other seventy boats.

Day 4 2008 Fireball International –World Championship – Thailand

Even the locals are saying “its not normally like this” as we have the 4^th day of racing with perfect conditions. The concern is that there is only one day to go and none of us are looking forward to leaving this fantastic spot at Royal Varuna Yacht Club..

The first race of the day started on the first attempt, with the tide pushing the fleet back. The over night leaders Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR) again showed why they are the boat to beat, by getting around the first mark first, closely followed by Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead(AUS) and David Wade/Ben McGrane(GBR). Mee/Wagstaff stayed low on the reaches to get a gap over the others and was able to stay in the lead until the finish. Greg Allison/Richard Watson(AUS) got into third on the second beat, and 2006 World Champions, Eric Moser/Ruedi Moser(SUI) sailed past Wade/McGrane on the beat to the finish.

As per the norm, the second race had a little more wind, and again the fleet got away first start. This time Stockley/Muirhead led around the top mark from Mee/Wagstaff, showing that these two young guns have a little more speed that the rest. Wade/McGrane were third around the mark. The racing was very close between all the front runners, but the placing’s didn’t change to the finish.

Tomas Musil/Jan Stantejsky (CZE) and Heather Macfarlane/Chris Payne(AUS) both had minor gear failure and were unable to finish the race.

With one more day of racing to go, the top three are clear ahead and only 4 points separate the top 2. Mee/Wagstaff are still in the prime position and one more solid race should could seal it.. Some of the Europeans are finally coming to grips with sailing their boats in the conditions and starting to push the Australians out of the top 10. Three of the top 5 are still from the land “down under”.

Check out full results at

www.fireball-international.com

Fireball Worlds - Day 3 - Thailand

Day 3 2008 Fireball International –World Championship – Thailand

An unbelievable third day of beautiful conditions at Royal Varuna Yacht Club. The conditions for a world championship couldn’t be better with wind, warm water, fantastic food, beautiful location and free beer.

The first race of the day started under a black flag on the second attempt with four boats being disqualified for being over the line. Tomis Musil/Jan Stantejsky (CZE) came out of the left hand corner to lead at the first mark, with John Heyward/Brett Littledike(AUS) second and David Wade/Ben McGrane(GBR) third. Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR) was further back but caught up ground on the second reach when the front boats sailed too high for the mark. Musil/Stantejsky had a technical issue with their spinnaker sheets and pulled out of the race. Mee/Wagstaff were able to get to the left side of the course first on the second beat and got around the front runners to lead at the top of the second beat, and went on to win the race. Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead(AUS) also climbed through the front runners to climb into third behind Heywood/Littledike. British national champion Tom Jeffcoate/Mark Hogan were black flagged.

The second race was again a little windier getting up to 15 knots at times, and a lot more from the left hand side, which put the gybe mark close to shore for the spectators to watch the excitement. Frank Miller/Marguerite O’Rouke(IRL) were over the line for the second time in the day and were recorded disqualified for both races.

The left hand side of the course again paid off and the usual suspects were at the front in a tight bunch, this included Mee/Wagstaff, Wade/McGrane, Stockley/Muirhead, Musil/Stantejsky and joined by current world champion ZRichard Estaugh/Rob Gardener(GBR). The sailing was great and Mee/Wagstaff stamped their authority on the regatta with another 1^st, but this time with Stockley/Muirhead 2^nd ahead of Wade/McGrane.

This puts Mee/Wagstaff in a very strong position ahead of Stockley/Muirhead and Wade/McGrane, who all have a substantial lead of the next boats.

Tonight the sailors are enjoying the traditional French night to promote the World Championships in La Rochelle in France and tomorrow is a lay day, so there will be plenty of sleeping and Thai Massage to recover from the hard three days of sailing.

Check out full results at

www.fireball-international.com

and check out

http://www.adelaidesailingclub.com.au/Fireball%20Worlds%202008.html

for Australian news and photos

2008 - Fireball Words Day 2 - Thailand

Day 2 2008 Fireball International –World Championship – Thailand

After the first days perfect conditions, day 2 was even better with slightly more wind for the second race, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the sailing at the Royal Varune Yacht Club.

The first race of the day started under a black flag on the third attempt attempt as there was a following tide. Peter Inns/Chris Went(AUS), rounded the first mark just ahead of Heather Macfarlane/Chris Payne(AUS) with Tom Jeffcote/Mark Hogan (GBR) very close in third. The two Australian boats stretched their lead on the reaches and rounded clear at the leeward mark. The three boats were close in the oscillating breeze, with Macfarlane?Payne just ahead of Inns/Went at the next windward and leeward marks. On the last short beat to the finish Inns/Went got in front to win with Jeffcote/Hogan in third ahead of a fast finishing Robin Inns/Joel Coultas (AUS) and Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR).

The second race was a little bit windier and got away on the second start. A large shift to the left on the first beat caught a few out, and made the first reach very tight. David Wade/Ben McGrane(GBR) and Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead (AUS) rounded the first mark together and had a great tussle all around the course, with Mee/Wagstaff right behind them all the way. Wade/McGrane took the win, just ahead of Stockley/Muirhead.

After two days of racing, Mee/Wagstaff and Stockley/Muirhead are looking consistent and fast in the current conditions, but Wade/McGrane are close behind particularly if they can drop their 16th place.

Full details at www.fireball-international.com

Australian news and information is at
http://www.adelaidesailingclub.com.au/Fireball%20Worlds%202008.html

2008 World Championship - Day 1

Day 1 2008 Fireball International –World Championship – Thailand

Day 1 of the worlds saw perfect conditions for the Fireball Class, with 12-16 knots and beautiful warm water.

The first race started under a black flag on the third attempt as there was a strong following tide. Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR) started well and went left of middle up the first beat to be first to the first mark. Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead (AUS) rounded second just ahead of Peter Inns/Chris Went(AUS). Down the reach, Mee/Wagstaff got out to an unbeatable lead and Richard Estaugh/Rob Gardener(GBR), current World Champions, got to third. The top three held their positions until the finish, but the rest of the fleet had a very close race with positions changing all the time. Robin Inns/Joel Coultas, Australian National Champions, and Tom Jeffcote/Mark Hogan, British national Champions were both over the line on the black flag and were disqualified from the race.

The wind had increased during the first race and the conditions for the second race were even more perfect. This time the tide was fairly slack and the fleet got away on the first start. David Giles/David Mason(GBR) had a good first beat and rounded ahead of Gareth Owen/Robert Thompson(CAN) and David Wade/Ben McGrane(GBR). Giles/Mason headed for the wrong wing mark and let Wade/McGrane get ahead with Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead(AUS) in second and Mee/Wagstaff in third. Mee/Wagstaff got ahead of Stockley/Muirhead on the run and the three boats finished in these places. Again the minor placings were very close with positions changing frequently.



Full details at www.fireball-international.com

Fireball Pre Worlds - Day 4 - Thailand

Day 4 2008 Fireball International Pre-Worlds – Thailand

The fourth day of sailing for the pre worlds was another beautiful day sailed in 13-10 knot for the first race, and down to 7 knots in the second.

Again the tide was running against the wind in the first race, which caused 4 general recalls and eight boats were sent home before the start. Robin Inns/Joel Coultas(AUS) were first to the first mark just ahead of the Tom Jeffcote /Mark Hogan(GBR). These two had a great tussle as the two National Champions of their respective countries, with the Australian getting the win. Richard Estaugh/ Rob Gardener(GBR) hung in behind them to finish third. Overnight leader David Wade/Ben McGrane (GBR) had their worst race of the series and finished in 18^th. This meant the final points were very close between, Wade/McGrane, Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR), R.Inns/Coultas and Tomas Musil/Jan Stantejsky(CZE).

The final race started with a black flag on the first start with the tide turning during the race. Peter Inns/Chris Went(AUS) got around the first mark just ahead of Heather Macfarlane/Chris Payne(AUS) with Greg Allison/Richard Watson (AUS) just behind, showing that the Australians can still perform in the light conditions. The race became a very close between P.Inns/Went, Macfarlane/Payne, Musil/Stantejsky, and John Heywood/Brett LittleDyke (AUS) with the four boats finishing overlapped with Macfarlane/Payne just ahead of Musil/Stantejsky. With Wade/McGrane in 5^th, Mee/Wagstaff in 9^th and R.Inns/Coultas back in sixteenth, Musil/Stantejsky won the regatta.

It was good to see the new boat builder, Xtreme Sailing Products, based in Singapore win their first regatta with the newly launched boat.

Now all the sailors are looking forward to the actual World Championship starting on the 16^th March.

Fireball Pre Worlds - Day 3 - Thailand

Day 3 2008 Fireball International Pre-Worlds – Thailand

The third day of sailing for the pre worlds was sailed in a beautiful 14-15 knots in the lovely warm waters of Pattaya. The tide was running against the wind in the first race, which caused 3 general recalls before the fleet got away on the black flag. Three boats were still over at the start including 2006 World Champions Erich and Ruedi Moser(SUI). Robin Inns/Joel Coultas(AUS) were first to the first mark just ahead of the regatta leaders David Wade/Ben McGrane(GBR), and these two stayed in this position until the end. Current World Champion, Richard Estaugh/ Rob Gardener(GBR) finally ventured out on to the race course and showed they are still competitve and finished third.

The second race was slightly less wind lighter and the tide had turned to hold the fleet back from the start. Finally the Czech Champion Tomas Musil/Jan Stantejsky in the brand new boat built by Xtreme Sailing Products broke clear on the first beat and was first to the first mark ahead of R.Inns/Coultas(AUS) and Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead(AUS). Stockley/Muirhead managed to get ahead of Inns/Coultas on the second beat to get a second.

Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR) broke their mainsheet in the first race and were unable to finish, but climbed to 4^th in the second race. The smaller Swiss crews Kurt Venhoda/Sonja Zaugg and Adrian Huber/Brigitte Mauchle didn’t have the power through the windier conditions and have dropped out of the top ten, leaving it to Team GBR, the lone Czech and the top Australians. The top Thai boat Sutee Poonpatt/Voravit Vorasaen also struggled in the stronger conditions and have slipped to 21^st.

With one day (2 races) and 9 points separating the top 6, it is all to play for.

After the pre worlds there is a lay day with the World Championships starting in earnest on Sunday 16^th March.

See all the details at:

http://www.fireball-international.com/php/thailand_2008.php

Day 2 Results

NCA SAIL No HELM CREW RACE 1 RACE 2 RACE 3 RACE 4 OVERALL
1 GBR 14976 DAVID WADE BEN McGRANE 8 11 6 4 29
2 GBR 14919 MATT MEE RICHARD WAGSTAFF 4 2 1 25 32
3 CZE 14879 TOMAS MUSIL JAN STANTEJSKY 6 9 2 18 35
4 GBR 14950 KEVIN HOPE RUSSELL THORNE 13 13 10 1 37
5 GBR 14920 VINCE HOREY ANDREW THOMPSON 2 15 15 5 37
6 AUS 14812 PETER INNS CHRIS WENT 1 21 8 7 37
7 SUI 14897 KURT VENHODA SONJA ZAUGG 14 5 17 3 39
8 AUS 14971 GREG ALLISON RICHARD WATSON 7 4 22 14 47
9 AUS 14782 ROBIN INNS JOEL COULTAS 23 3 3 24 53
10 AUS 14943 HEATHER McFARLANE CHRIS PAYNE 5 24 7 20 56
11 AUS 14786 JOHN HEYWOOD BRETT LITTLEDIKE 28 17 5 8 58
12 AUS 14936 IAN RAVENSCROFT PAUL GRANT 12 10 19 22 63
13 AUS 14587 NATHAN STOCKLEY SAM MUIRHEAD 29 27 9 2 67
14 JPN 14808 TAICHI IMURA MASARU OGAWA 24 12 25 11 72
15 THA 11 SUTEE POONPAT VORAVIT VORASAEN 15 22 12 23 72
16 GBR 14973 PETER GRAY SIMON FORBES 11 1 20 44 76
17 THA 14519 KITIPONG KHAMBANG PACHARAPHON O-PUN 19 19 32 6 76
18 CAN 14680 JAMES COX SIMON PEARSON 22 23 21 12 78
19 AUS 14603 EMMA PERKINS JASON HERITAGE 3 18 23 34 78
20 AUS 14850 BEN SCHULZ BEN NEAYLON 17 28 11 28 84
21 IRL 14840 CONOR CLANCY FRANCIS ROWAN 9 14 28 35 86
22 GBR 14949 TOM JEFFCOATE MARK HOGAN 26 30 4 30 90
23 SUI 14799 ERICH MOSER RUEDI MOSER 20 7 24 39 90
24 AUS 14571 GREG SCHULZ JEFF SCHULZ 16 38 26 10 90
25 GBR 14887 STEVE GOACHER TIM EDLUND 21 31 16 29 97
26 IRL 14894 NOEL BUTLER SEAMUS MOORE 32 25 14 27 98
27 GBR 14969 RICHARD MASON SIMON HEXTALL 18 8 13 68 107
28 AUS 14414 GLEN PEVERELL SARAH BIGNELL 30 44 37 13 124
29 AUS 14745 JAMES SZPUNAR PHILLIP BOWLEY 45 36 18 26 125
30 AUS 14722 RICHARD McCULLOCH GLENN STUART 41 42 27 16 126
31 CAN 14828 ROBERT THOMPSON GARETH OWEN 27 26 31 43 127
32 JPN 14509 YUSUKE SHIMOTSUMA KOICHI TSURUMOTO 39 37 42 9 127
33 CAN 14968 JOE JOSPIE TOM EGLI 33 16 35 47 131
34 USA 14927 DEBBIE KIRKBY NED GOSS 35 20 29 50 134
35 CAN 7597 NOAH PURVES - SMITH MICHAEL LIETCH 25 29 33 48 135
36 IRL 14854 LOUIS SMYTH SUZIE MULLIGAN 37 35 44 21 137
37 CAN 14813 JOHN HENDERSON MARGOT HENDERSON 40 32 49 17 138
38 CAN 14156 FRANK CRAWFORD SEAN HOLMES SMITH 47 39 45 15 146
39 GBR 14755 CHRIS DANDO MICHELLE RYDER 31 34 34 51 150
40 SUI 14724 ADRIAN HUBER BRIGITTE MAUCHLE 10 6 68 68 152
41 CAN 14727 COLIN HUGGETT GEOFFREY HUGGETT 42 53 39 19 153
42 IRL 14877 FRANK MILLER MARGUERITE O'ROURKE 36 41 36 52 165
43 CAN 14481 MADDY PURVES - SMITH GREGG FURGUSON 55 33 46 31 165
44 THA 470 PREECHA DANGPATUM TODSAPOL JORNJAITRONG 37 51 47 36 171
45 CAN 14835 MIKE McEVOY JEREMY KENNEDY 34 50 43 49 176
46 AUS 14530 TONY SCHNAARS JOHN WEIGAND 44 52 38 46 180
47 CAN 14480 ROY TICHKOWSKY FRANK KORTBEEK 46 40 51 45 182
48 SHE 14636 JOHN MANSON IVAN FRASER 48 54 40 42 184
49 CAN 12934 LAURA TICHKOWSKY KEN TICHKOWSKY 56 45 53 33 187
50 CAN 11800 MARK CUMMINGS EVELYN CHISHOLM 43 55 54 37 189
51 SUI 14921 MAJA SUTER FRANCOIS SCHLUCHTER 51 43 55 41 190
52 AUS 14153 TIM NINNES DANIEL McLAREN 49 46 41 54 190
53 GBR 14872 BARBARA NEWSON GUY NEWSON 53 49 52 40 194
54 GBR 14791 PHILIP POPPLE STEVE CHESNEY 68 68 30 32 198
55 AUS 14814 ANDREW CROSSLEY PETER CROSSLEY 50 48 50 53 201
56 SUI 14961 DOMINIK MUELLER CHRISTINE MEBES 68 68 48 38 222
57 IRL 1489 JOHN CHAMBERS IAN McGONIGLE 52 47 68 68 235
58 IRL 14695 CIARAN HICKEY MARY HICKEY 54 68 68 55 245
59 NED 14069 ALBERT BADOUX ROELAND DE JONG 57 68 68 68 261
60 GBR 14964 DAVID GILES DAVID MASON 68 68 68 68 272
60 GBR 14948 RICHARD ESTAUGH ROB GARDENER 68 68 68 68 272
60 JPN 14947 YASUJI SHIMIZU MINORU KOSAKA 68 68 68 68 272
60 JPN 14902 HIROSHI KATO SADAHIRO KUMAGAI 68 68 68 68 272
60 CAN 14768 ROB LEVY STEPHEN WALDIE 68 68 68 68 272
60 IRL 14765 OWEN LAVERTY ED BUTLER 68 68 68 68 272
60 JPN 14751 YASUHITO TSUKAHARA YUICHI NAKAMURA 68 68 68 68 272
60 THA 14444 KEVIN WHITCRAFT BIRANUBONGSE BHANUBAND 68 68 68 68 272

Fireball Pre Worlds - Day 2 - Thailand

Day 2 2008 Fireball International Pre-Worlds – Thailand

The second day of sailing looked promising, with a light breeze blowing onto the beach. On the way out to the start the wind built to a lovely 14 knots, enabling all crews to be fully stretched. After two general recalls the black flag was flown and the fleet got off to an even start. The majority of the fleet went left with some intrepid sailors hitting the right hand corner. The regatta leader Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR 14919) showed his form by rounding second at the windward mark, just behind Robin Inns/Joel Coultas (AUS 14782). During the race a thunderstorm lurked and swung the breeze by about 50 degrees to the left making for interesting racing amongst the leaders. Mee/Wagstaff slipped back a couple of times, but managed to slip through to win the race. Tomas Musil/ Jan Stantejsky(CZE 14879) snuck through to second.

The second race was much lighter with the thunderstorm moving on and the tide having increased dramatically. The start got away first go as the tide was against the fleet. Boats were sailing hard just to try and get across the line against the tide. This caused the fleet to split into two. The boats going left to get out of the tide, or right to get stronger wind. The local Thai boats got it right on the right hand side, and the boats on the left ended up a long way back. Unfortunately Mee/Wagstaff and Musil/Stantejsky were caught out, letting Yusuke Shimotsuma /Koichi Tsurumotousuke (JPN 14509) get to the first mark first ahead of Kitipong Khambang/Pacharaphon O-Pun (Tha 14519). Kevin Hope/Russell Thorne (GBR 14950) got past them on the second reach and went on to win from Nathan Stockley/Sam Muirhead (AUS 14587).

David Wade/Ben McGrane (GBR 14976) have now taken over the lead from Mee/Wagstaff on total points, but if drops were included then Mee/Wagstaff would be back in front.

Day 1 Results

NCA SAIL No HELM CREW RACE 1 RACE 2 SCORE PLACE
GBR 14919 MATT MEE RICHARD WAGSTAFF 4 2 6 1
AUS 14971 GREG ALLISON RICHARD WATSON 7 4 11 2
GBR 14973 PETER GRAY SIMON FORBES 11 1 12 3
CZE 14879 TOMAS MUSIL JAN STANTEJSKY 6 9 15 4
SUI 14724 ADRIAN HUBER BRIGITTE HUBER 10 6 16 5
GBR 14920 VINCE HOREY ANDREW THOMPSON 2 15 17 6
GBR 14976 DAVID WADE BEN McGRANE 8 11 19 7
SUI 14897 KURT VENHODA SONJA ZAUGG 14 5 19 8
AUS 14603 EMMA PERKINS JASON HERITAGE 3 18 21 9
AUS 14936 IAN RAVENSCROFT PAUL GRANT 12 10 22 10
AUS 14812 PETER INNES CHRIS WENT 1 21 22 11
IRL 14840 CONOR CLANCY FRANCIS ROWAN 9 14 23 12
GBR 14969 RICHARD MASON SIMON HEXTALL 18 8 26 13
GBR 14950 KEVIN HOPE RUSSELL THORNE 13 13 26 14
AUS 14782 ROBIN INNS JOEL COULTAS 23 3 26 15
SUI 14799 ERICH MOSER RUEDI MOSER 20 7 27 16
AUS 14943 HEATHER McFARLANE CHRIS PAYNE 5 24 29 17
JPN 14808 TAICHI IMURA MASARU OGAWA 24 12 36 18
THA 11 SUTEE POONPAT VORAVIT VORASAEN 15 22 37 19
THA 14519 KITIPONG KHAMBANG PACHARAPHON O-PUN 19 19 38 20
AUS 14850 BEN SCHULZ BEN NEAYLON 17 28 45 21
AUS 14786 JOHN HEYWOOD BRETT LITTLEDIKE 28 17 45 22
CAN 14680 JAMES COX SIMON PEARSON 22 23 45 23
CAN 14968 JOE JOSPIE TOM EGLI 33 16 49 24
GBR 14887 STEVE GOACHER TIM EDLUND 21 31 52 25
CAN 14828 ROBERT THOMPSON GARETH OWEN 27 26 53 26
IRL 14695 CIARAN HICKEY MARY HICKEY 54 DNF 54 27
AUS 14571 GREG SCHULZ JEFF SCHULZ 16 38 54 28
CAN 7597 NOAH PURVES - SMITH MICHAEL LIETCH 25 29 54 29
USA 14927 DEBBIE KIRKBY NED GOSS 35 20 55 30
GBR 14949 TOM JEFFCOATE MARK HOGAN 26 30 56 31
AUS 14587 NATHAN STOCKLEY SAM MUIRHEAD 29 27 56 32
IRL 14894 NOEL BUTLER SEAMUS MOORE 32 25 57 33
NED 14069 ALBERT BADOUX ROELAND DE JONG 57 DNF 57 34
GBR 14755 CHRIS DANDO MICHELLE RYDER 31 34 65 35
IRL 14854 LOUIS SMYTH SUZIE MULLIGAN 37 35 72 36
CAN 14813 JOHN HENDERSON MARGOT HENDERSON 40 32 72 37
AUS 14414 GLEN PEVERELL SARAH BIGNELL 30 44 74 38
JPN 14509 YUSUKE SHIMOTSUMA KOICHI TSURUMOTO 39 37 76 39
IRL 14877 FRANK MILLER MARGUERITE O'ROURKE 36 41 77 40
AUS 14745 JAMES SZPUNAR PHILLIP BOWLEY 45 36 81 41
AUS 14722 RICHARD McCULLOCH GLENN STUART 41 42 83 42
CAN 14835 MIKE McEVOY JEREMY KENNEDY 34 50 84 43
CAN 14480 ROY TICHKOWSKY FRANK KORTBEEK 46 40 86 44
CAN 14156 FRANK CRAWFORD SEAN HOLMES SMITH 47 39 86 45
CAN 14481 MADDY PURVES - SMITH GREGG FURGUSON 55 33 88 46
THA 470 PREECHA DANGPATUM TODSAPOL JORNJAITRONG 37 51 88 47
SUI 14921 MAJA SUTER FRANCOIS SCHLUCHTER 51 43 94 48
CAN 14727 COLIN HUGGETT GEOFFREY HUGGETT 42 53 95 49
AUS 14153 TIM NINNES DANIEL McLAREN 49 46 95 50
AUS 14530 TONY SCHNAARS JOHN WEIGAND 44 52 96 51
AUS 14814 ANDREW CROSSLEY PETER CROSSLEY 50 48 98 52
CAN 11800 MARK CUMMINGS EVELYN CHISHOLM 43 55 98 53
IRL 1489 JOHN CHAMBERS IAN McGONIGLE 52 47 99 54
CAN 12934 LAURA TICHKOWSKY KEN TICHKOWSKY 56 45 101 55
GBR 14872 BARBARA NEWSON GUY NEWSON 53 49 102 56
SHE 14636 JOHN MANSON IVAN FRASER 48 54 102 57
GBR 14964 DAVID GILES DAVID MASON 68 68 136 58
SUI 14961 DOMINIK MUELLER CHRISTINE MEBES 68 68 136 58
GBR 14948 RICHARD ESTAUGH ROB GARDENER 68 68 136 58
JPN 14947 YASUJI SHIMIZU MINORU KOSAKA 68 68 136 58
JPN 14902 HIROSHI KATO SADAHIRO KUMAGAI 68 68 136 58
GBR 14791 PHILIP POPPLE STEVE CHESNEY 68 68 136 58
CAN 14768 ROB LEVY STEPHEN WALDIE 68 68 136 58
IRL 14765 OWEN LAVERTY ED BUTLER 68 68 136 58
JPN 14751 YASUHITO TSUKAHARA YUICHI NAKAMURA 68 68 136 58
THA 14444 KEVIN WHITCRAFT BIRANUBONGSE BHANUBAND 68 68 136 58

Day 1 Unofficial report

It was a tough day on the water with bumpy waves and bits of plastic, but it was all worth it for the beer in the swimming pool during the team debrief :) !!

Mike Rogers, Race Officer for the regatta was awarded a "handbag" from the Jury for waiting for the 5th start before putting up the "Black Flag".

Noel Butler/Seamus Moore got a special mention for the crew falling into the spinaker in the water during the take down. Luckily the boat also fell over so he wasnt left stranded by himself.

Peter Inns proved that sailing with a hangover and lack of sleep only works for one race, and struggled in the second race. Maybe he wont go to the girly bars tonight...

The fleet isnt quite tuned up yet, and is struggling to get through the free beer at the yacht club after the race.

Pre Worlds Day 1 - the official story...

Day 1 2008 Fireball International Pre-Worlds – Thailand

After much preparation and hard work finally the first day of racing came with the 70 boats taking to the water in a beautiful 12 knots, ideal conditions for the lively Fireball class.

Even though this was only the pre worlds, and effectively a practise regatta for the worlds themselves, the racing was still intense. The first race took 4 general recalls before the fleet finally started cleanly under a black flag.

Peter Inns/Chris Went (AUS 14812) were first to the first mark, making the most of the shifts. Second around the top mark was Greg and Jeff Schulz (AUS 14571) with Vince Horey/Andy Thompson 3^rd (GBR 14920) quickly got passed the Schulz’s and the two front boats eased out to a good lead. The wind died to about 8 knots and the adverse current built so the race was shortened to the top mark with Emma Perkins/Jason Heritage (AUS 14603) taking 3^rd.

The second race started in about 10 knots with a strong incoming tide, which held the boats back from the start line. Richard Mason/Simon Hextall (GBR 14969) made the most of the tide and port tacked the start crossing the whole fleet.

Peter Gray/Simon Forbes (GBR 14873) led to the first mark from Mason/Hextall and Mee/Wagstaff.

Peter Gray/Simon Forbes (GBR14873) went on to win with Matt Mee/Richard Wagstaff(GBR 14919) climbing to second followed by Robin Inns/Joel Coultas (AUS 14782).

Overall the results are quite mixed, but Matt Mee and Richard Wagstaff are looking very comfortable overall. Team GBR seem to have the upper hand in the conditions with 4 boats in the top ten, but there is plenty of pressure so far from the Swiss, Czechs and Australian teams.

The current World Champion Richard Estaugh/Rob Gardener (GBR 14948) didn’t make it onto the water today, but the 2006 World Champions Erich and Reudi Moser (SUI 14799) struggled to a 20^th in the first race and a 7^th in the second, just one point behind the Australian Champions Inns/Coultas. Current British national champion Tom Jeffcoate/Mark Hogan (GBR 14949) had a bad day in the office today with a 26^th and a 30^th

Day One about to start...

Measurement is all done and a lot of the fleet got out for a sail yesterday. The conditions were perfect from about 10 knots building to 18 knots and everyone enjoyed sailing in the warm water.

Today the first racing session starts at 1PM Thai time, with two races expected. With big fleets from Canada, Australia and GBR and strong competitors from the other countries the interest will be to see who is going fast.

Hopefully we will have results and an update soon after the racing finished today ( well soon after we get out of the swimming pool anyway....)

Measurement

Measurement time is always fun, and it was interesting seeing all the people running around looking for lead for their boats :)

We got our boat measured and then got out for a sail in what was faily light but pleasant conditions. Nothing like sailing in warm water....

Mic Bowley has started uploading some photos of the Ossie team.

Check it out here

http://www.adelaidesailingclub.com.au/Fireball%20Worlds%202008.html

Like a reunion...

Well we have arrived, been to the yacht, got the boat out of the container, and rigged it up. Tomorrow hopefully we will go sailing :). The weather is lovely and warm here and we even had a 10 to 12 knot breeze. Anyone who has been to RoyalVaruna Yacht club, knows what a wonderful setting it is. It was great sitting there today having a beautiful Thai lunch chatting with some of the Canadian Team we had met two years ago on Vancouver Island.

Also chatted to the Czech team, Tomas and Jan, who will chartering a new boat from the new builder in Singapore. Team GBR hasnt arrived yet, and neither have the Australians,but the Japanese were out training hard.

One Sleep to go...

Finally at the airport, and through customs, and now sitting back enjoying a fine Pinot from NZ while we wait for the plane.

So far all I think I have forgotten is a jumper. Oh well shouldn't need that before we land back in Melbourne.

One Stillnox, a couple of reds, and we should be there :)

Less than a week to go...

With less than a week to go before the flight to Bangkok, its time to start worrying about all the things we still have to do:

- are our passports up to date...

- what about all our shots...

- what clothes do we take...

- do I have all the bits and pieces I need for the boat?

- how are we getting to the aiport?

- will the boat be in good shape when we get there?

etc etc etc