December 5th 2021 Three pieces of news:-
1. Winner of the November award is Jerry Hannabuss. It took 11 months of very near misses but he got there in the end. Well done Jerry. Photo to follow. If you're desperate to see it try FB.
2. Our Xmas Faith Lunch will be held on Thursday Dec 16th at Winscar. Bring along whatever you have . We'll pile it all up and get troughing at break time.
3. We have 19 members wishing to be in the mYA for next year, a nice and substantial increase. Getting altogether competitive isn't it?
One last thing, I know some of you must be fed up with reading the same news via emails, Facebook and this web site. Fact is I keep getting asked to continue updating all three so that's how it is folks.
November 6th. Our October monthly trophy winner is Stuart Hoare. There's a picture of him being presented with his winnings by September's winner Andy Witham on the images page.Well done (yet again) Stuart!!
November 1st. Well, winter is on it's way and as I type it is tiddling it down, again!! Sailing continues, however and the good news is that the water level at Winscar is rising rapidly.
One other bit of news is that Cheryl has organised a Bonfire Special Open event on Sunday, November 7th for Dragons. Entry on the day for all comers. You don't need to be a member of any club or the MYA so come along and have a go. There may even be prizes !!!
Sept. 13th. Hurrah, someone read my plea for input. I've uploaded a couple of images courtesy of Cheryl in the "Images" section. (Three actually Enjoy.)
Sept 10th 2021 - Hi everyone. Plan was to take this site down and focus on our Facebook page but I have received request to keep things going here. So here we are.
ROFWAC is now completely consolidated at Winscar Reservoir situated between Holmfirth and Stocksbridge (Sheffield) where we have 24/7/365 access with racing on Thursdays and Sundays. Regular site visitors will know we race DF65's on Thursdays starting at noon. Sundays are "sail anything days" but when sufficient Dragons turn up you can guess what happens. (Rather like today) All good fun.
Enough for now. More updates on a roughly weekly basis.
August 1st 2021 :- ROFWAC now operates at Winscar Reservoir above Holmfirth, West Yorks and is the R/C "arm" of Pennine Sailing Club. We elected to migrate here following a dreadful period of zero winds, Covid and ongoing issues with the KMBC who are on record as stating, "if you want to race yachts this is not the club for you." No ambiguity there then !! We sail DF65's and DF95's at Winscar on Thursdays from 1pm and Sundays from 10am. All welcome to visit, sail and try out the superb facilities we now enjoy. (Club House, bar, hot food, drinks, rescue boats, good company and a (very) warm and inclusive atmosphere.) For more info please see the ROFWAC Facebook pages.
This site will soon be modified to reflect our transfer to Winscar and the racing we undertake there.
Some good news for those who still wish to sail at Wilton Park, Batley. A new club independent of the KMBC has been formed and is called the Kirklees Model Yacht Club. They sail all the old ROFWAC classes of yacht and have a growing enthusiastic membership sailing on Wednesday afternoons and Sunday mornings. All welcome to drop by and sail. They are on Facebook so check out what's happening here.
June 2nd 2020 Please would all visitors note that we will be running this site down shortly as we have migrated to Facebook to allow all members to post their information and have it viewable by all other Skippers. You can find us by simply entering "ROFWAC" on Facebook, BUT, unless you are an invited member of the group you will not be able to post anything.
18.3.20 We completed the first of the Winter events last week with John Goodyear winning the Winter Series Trophy by just a couple of points from David Sykes. There's a picture of the presentation elsewhere on the site. The Summer Series will start, Coronavirus permitting, on April 8th.
Just a "Heads Up" concerning Askern. As many of you will know the Askern Club have been offered the use of The Blue Lagoon at Womersley. (DN69BB) This water is a little nearer saving me and no doubt many others 10 miles each way on the trip. The area available for yachting is 200M square so plenty of room. Some Skippers have already sailed there and have reported very enthusiastically. (The use of B-rigs was actually mentioned. Whatever next?) Recommendation must be to visit and view.
3D printed yachts seem to be catching on with at least three members known to have either got one or are in the process of making one on their own equipment. I believe it's the way to go. Imagine; switch on machine, go to bed and half a hull is ready for you next morning. Repeat overnight and there you are. Can't be bad.
26.9.19 Yet another abandoned day yesterday due to the lake being extremely contaminated with blue/green algae despite heavy overnight rain. Today, the 26th, the council have cordoned off the lake as "Dangerous" so who knows when it will next be available? Hint:- Turning on the cascade waterfall might help but we mustn't expect anything as simple as this to occur.
On the plus side we did manage to present Dave Tuckwood with the trophy for winning the Summer Series so "Well Done" David. It was a close contest this year with the top three placing all being decided on the last race of the season. Nail biting stuff but David won through. The Winter Series starts the second Wednesday in September so be there!
28.8.19 Yet another abandoned days sailing due to extremely light winds. We did manage a bit of recreational sailing but that was the limit. On the "up" side we managed to re-position that pesky lower right buoy and shorten the holding cable as it has become a magnet for keels. (Especially mine!!!) Note that we tried it in various places but the water all round is VERY shallow. I estimate it at no more than 18" It could do with being moved some distance but this would interfere with the C500 chaps so we've left it where they can use it best. Please note that the entire lake is VERY, VERY heavily contaminated with blue/green algae. Not totally hazardous to humans but deadly to dogs. Wash your hands as soon as possible after using the lake has to be the recommendation.
New handicaps to be issued shortly. Given the lack of racing I doubt there will be too many changes.
2.8.19 Special "Thanks" are due to Nick Roberts who brought along his (very professional) Sailing School equipment this week and gave us a Teach-in on the Starboard Rule. Very informative and interesting. I think some 16 Skippers were in attendance which made things very worthwhile. Nick has promised us further programs on other aspects of sailing so that's something to look forward to. If only we could all obey the rules!!!! (Yes, I'm as guilty as the next man!)
Wilton Park let us down big-time once again this week with v.v.v light to non -existent winds and only two races possible. Manvers looks ever more promising.
27.7.19 apologies for the big delay in updating things here. Various factors have interrupted normal progress including illness and periods of almost zero wind down at the lake with nothing to subsequently report.
Weather permitting, we will trial the Sunday racing schedule on Aug 4th commencing around 10am. The decision to place something before the KMBC committee will depend on the outcome of this so please attend if you can.
Very limited response so far to the suggestion to try out the lake at Manvers near Wath-on-Dearne which is very disappointing. Those members who visited have reported on conditions and facilities as being excellent to fantastic. Suggestion must be to call by one day and witness it for yourselves.
There are plenty of new names at the top of the leaderboards in all competitions together with some close scores. Just as it should be.
More news as it arises.
4.4.19 Following a call for comment on the way we run things it has been agreed to leave everything "as is."
We've now got a lovely Dragon Trophy courtesy of David Sykes. First winner of this is David Tuckwood. Presentation and image to follow soon.
John Goodyear contrived to win both the JIF and RG65 Winter Series trophies again this year. There's a picture on the "Images" page.
We start the 31" class Summer Series next Wednesday so it's all to play for once more.
20.3.19 John managed to win the Winter Series (Jack Frost) Trophy this year but only by the narrowest of margins. There's an image on the appropriate page elsewhere on the site.
I've put a call out for comment regarding two suggested changes to the way we run things and am awaiting feedback. Please do respond via email in the usual manner so we can come to an agreed consensus. If only a few members bother to reply then things will just stay as they are.
27.2.19 AT LAST, after weeks of hit and miss we managed to complete a full race schedule today.
Thanks also to all those who contributed in any way towards today's lake clean up. This is what we accomplished:- On the first pass we skimmed off a large black dustbin sack full of surface leaves and feathers together with the usual bottles and plastic bits 'n bobs.
With the "heavy equipment", courtesy of Doug at our disposal, we subsequently removed three x 1Tonne builders bags of various rubbish. Included here were the equivalent of 13 loaves. (Jesus not around so no small fishes but we did recover a large and very dead terrapin.) Also present in the trawl were bottles, branches, plastic, crisp bags and an enormous quantity of leaves. Despite these valiant efforts I doubt we have scratched the surface but any rubbish removed is a bit less to foul keels, rudders and propellers so the scale and C500 chaps will also benefit.
As an aside I estimate that there is a 2 foot deep layer of compacted sub-surface leaves adjacent to the weir near the playground. If we can get this out, (eventually) I guess we could flood Batley as the water begins to flow again.
We have safely deposited all the recovery tackle in the club shed ready for immediate use when conditions allow and we have enough volunteers to do some work. If we could get a small working party, say, once a month to stay behind after racing finishes or on a Sunday morning I reckon we could make some real inroads into cleaning up the lake. Volunteers please form an orderly queue!
6.2.19 Yet another abysmal day with the lake half frozen and no wind. The BBC Weather forecasters clearly don't have a clue when it comes to Wilton Park. Today was supposed to be "BREEZY" with winds averaging 10mph. In the event there was next to nothing. We managed one race on a shortened course and only two of the 11 entrants finished in the required time. It's the February Trophy Race next week so fingers crossed for some improvement.
2.2.19 All items below now SOLD. No new results to post because there has been either no wind or a frozen lake. Wonderful!!!
4.1.19 Through sheer serendipity I have for sale the following items from club members:-
Super light-weight JIF built by your truly late last year. Test sailed only and immaculate. Complete with two servo's £100
Not yet built DF65 which I think is a V3. Complete with radio. Offers please
New, boxed Imax B6 multi-charger. Unused £20
New, unused, latest model Flysky radio. Boxed. £30
Old but good JIF. Needs some TLC but sailable "as is." Complete with 2 servo's. Offers.
Old but good North Wind needing some TLC but in overall good condition. Mylar sails, 2 servo's. Offers.
At least 10% of all proceeds to the Charity Tin.
Please form an orderly queue.
2.1.19 Happy New Year to all our readers!
I believe we managed to create yet another very unwanted record today by making it 5 consecutive weeks without wind. Despite this we managed to organize a team race of three Skippers each using basically the Club500 course. It took us almost an hour to complete just two laps which says it all. The winners were "Team Green" consisting of Doug, Mick H. and Brian. They were duly presented with a "Flake" each and now have to fight it out over who buys the "Flakes" for next week!
Talking of next week, we need to placate the Wind Gods somehow so please bring along your prayer mats, holy water, prayer wheels, voodoo masks or whatever.
28.11.18 Well, the forecast was for winds to increase to 42mph meaning we all looked to our "C" rigs. In the event the wind dropped to almost zero so another spectacular result for BBC Weather. Do they know that Batley exists?
7.11.18 Half decent day today but with an ever dropping wind meaning that we elected to abandon the Dragon race. When will our forecasters get it right? Supposed to be solid 10-12mph today but nothing like. At least it only rained for half the time we were sailing.
4.11.18 Thanks to all those who volunteered help on this one. I have to tell you that nothing worked, but at least I tried. Andy Nall thinks he has a solution, however, so we'll be trying his fix shortly. Watch out for news.
URGENT REQUEST FOR HELP Having experienced nothing but conflict between my ipad, PC and iPhone I elected (stupidly) to completely reinstall Windows on my PC. BAD MOVE as I now find that with the latest system you cannot send group emails. Unbelievably, but true; I even called Microsoft for feedback and they embarrassingly confirmed this. What a set off idiots!!!!
So, does anyone knoof any other systems that permit group emails to be sent? I have tried gmail, live and outlook to no avail; they don't or won't work with the latest version of Windows 10 HELP !!
1.11.18 A good day's sailing yesterday although the wind did drop off quite considerably for the last race. Results have been entered on this site today and the minor errors noted last week have been resolved. (Hopefully!!) New handicaps will be issued shortly once I find a minute to calculate them.
One other item; I've been reminded that this weeks results for the DF65 race are VOID as there were insufficient entries for the scores to count. (At least 6 yachts are required to constitute a race.) This will be corrected the next time results are published.
27.10.18 Whoops, we've discovered a few errors in the new, latest results sheet just published. These will be corrected shortly and an update issued. Well spotted those who pointed this out.
24.10.18 We have a new name heading the Handicap Board in the shape of David Sykes who has now recorded his mandatory 10 scores. He will continue to sail off 5 minutes until such time as the handicaps are recalculated so he's very much the Skipper to watch.
A great days sailing today with good wind from a reasonably constant direction. (Well, for Wilton Park anyway.)
Changing the course round for the final race created a bit of confusion but I think it worked out well in the end. Comments anyone?
17.10.18 Today belonged to a certain Mr. Hebden with two wins and two third places. Well done mick, Special mention also to Ray Baskerville for showing many of us the way home in the open class with his Micro-magic. We will have to se about banning these!!
A significantly improved turnout today with 15 yachts contesting three of the four races. Our Dragon class continues to be poorly supported however. Why??
10.10.18 A poor turnout today despite the very promising weather forecast. In the event the 8-12mph winds failed to appear and it was a struggle to get any movement at all. Added to this was a large quantity of leaf-litter and the usual assortment of plastic bags making for very difficult sailing. Most if not all Skippers had to recover their yachts to remove rubbish on every lap of every race and some of us fared worse than others!! Hopefully, the oncoming gale over the next few days will dislodge most of the leaves on trees surrounding the lake and cause them to sink. Then again, we should be so lucky.
3.10.18 John Goodyear somehow contrived to win both the RG65 and JIF Summer Series and was duly presented with the Trophies by Andy Nall at the lake side today before the start of the Winter Series races. A picture has been uploaded to the "Images" section of the site.
15.9.18 Please remember to vote either electronically or "manually" at the lake regarding changes to our race rules BEFORE Friday, Sept 21st.
We completed the Summer Trophy Series this week and John G contrived to come out on top again with three wins and a second place counting as his four top scores. Ray Baskeville was just three points behind however confirming that the competition is hotting up. We start the winter series second week in October so it's all to play for once more.
27.8.18 I’ve had a somewhat subdued response to my previous note on changing courses. (Diplomatic statement!) Fact is only four Skippers commented. One of them is a guest member from Albuquerque, New Mexico, one a reader of Model Boats Magazine who previously requested I keep him in touch with our events, one from a semi-retired Skipper and only one reply from a current sailor.
Statistically I imagine there are many interpretations one could put on all this but mine is that most Skippers are, at best, lukewarm to the proposal floated. One suggestion made, however, is that unless we start racing with upwind starts we are simply painting over the cracks and with the current course collisions will remain unavoidable. (I agree.) Starting upwind with the prevailing winds, however, would be highly problematical due to the massive wind shadow created by the island and would inevitably result in all yachts clustering together where some wind was in evidence and we all know what that would mean!
Time for a radical rethink and for what they’re worth, here are my thoughts.
1. We create a new start line utilizing the two buoys nearest the cascade. We might have to move them a tiny bit but that wouldn’t interfere in any way with their use by the C500 boys. This would provide for a much longer start line offering more room for manoeuvring. Yes, we would have to move our “centre of operations” a few yards, but is that such an issue?
2. We adjust the rest of the course (only marginally)) as depicted in the diagram shown. This should allow the fleet to sort itself out by the first buoy and minimise the effect of the island wind shadow. This will provide for a course giving us a long run and a good beat utilizing most of the lake on “our” side of the island on every lap.
3. Races can be of one, two or three laps just like now.
Comments on all this gratefully accepted but please remember, if you don’t respond (either way) then nothing will happen.
Now for my next suggestion which continues the radical theme.
It has been pointed out to me on several occasions that we spend as much time preparing yachts between races as actually racing! Fair comment???
One easy way round this is to adjust the way we operate. My proposal is that we only run one class of yacht each week on a rolling basis repeating every four weeks. Looking at what yachts are generally used I think that this means that all Skippers will be able to race in at least three races every four weeks with the majority having the necessary “kit” to race in all four. Scoring would be on the basis of the average of everyone’s scores achieved on the day. (Why am I suggesting this? It means I will have additional work to do!!) For the Trophy race in the 31” class we can dedicate the first race to count for this and handicap the rest of the races.
Comments again requested please with the caveat noted above in red.
One final thing; we now have some 50% of skippers who are used to racing against rules elsewhere. I think it’s worthwhile pointing out that these chaps apply the most important of these rules at Wilton Park when racing against each other and somehow seem to avoid accidents. (Some of them even do penalty turns, occasionally without even being asked!!!!) Is there a lesson here I wonder?
Enough for now. Time for a large tot of Scottish falling down water i think.
25.7.18 Yet another day of light and frustrating winds making any form of real racing a lottery. We did manage four races of sorts using the four buoys to the right of the island. Richard and John won one apiece and our Spanish renegade Stuart won two so the "Flakes" are on him next week.
New Handicaps for August and September will be published soon.
2.6.18 New June / July handicaps uploaded to the site today.
11.4.18 Even by Wilton Park standards the wind was beyond fluky today but we did manage to complete a full program of races including the "Gold Cup" won by David Etchells. It was very much a case of if you caught the wind you could easily build a half lap lead whilst others wallowed around pitifully. (Wasn't it Andy Nall?) Roll on better weather!
4.4.18 A great start to the laughingly named "SummerSeason" of races with us having to abandon sailing after the RG65 event due to truly torrential rain. Last time I witnessed a downpour like this was in the tropics and at least the rain there was warm! Fingers crossed for some weather improvements--- Soon!!
31.3.18 We managed to complete the winter JIF and RG65 series this week but had to curtail the number of counting races from 15 to 13 due to so many weather affected racing days. John contrived to win both events for the second year running by decent margins in both events but others are getting closer. If a few more Skippers had been available to sail a few more times it could have been a different story. We will do a prize presentation next week.
14.3.18 I think we might safely and accurately say that today's sailing conditions were the best this year to date. We even managed an upwind start which is almost unheard of!! Having said that we have managed to have 5 weeks worth of sailing cancelled due to various weather vagaries so maybe we were due a fair day for once. Thank you Weather Gods.
We managed to complete the Winter Series races for the Jack Frost Trophy today and John contrived to win again with three first places and one second making up his 4 out of 6 scores. It could all have been so different, however, because Stuart Smith came in only 4 points behind John and he only sailed 4 times. With a better "attendance record" and some smart sailing he could easily have won.
We commence the (laughingly called) Summer Series second Wednesday in April so it's all to play for once more.
There are two more races to go in both the JIF and RG65 Winter Series so we must all hope for some decent weather conditions.
9.3.18Vincent Formosa has a 31" class yacht for sale. (It's too big to fit into his car and shed.) The model is nearly new and based in the IOM Britpop design and is competitive. Will come complete with two servo's and all running gear. Anyone interested please contact John G. as Vincent is away skiing for the next few weeks. (Lucky man!)
7.3.18 At Last!! We finally managed a day's sailing after weeks of zero wind, frozen lake and other issues. Mind you, we only managed two out of the three scheduled events due to a steadily decreasing wind. Thanks to Cathy for discovering a new way to attract Dog's Abuse by volunteering to act as OOD. Next week is the Trophy Event so please come prepared with your 50 pences. There might even be sufficient wind to stage a race. Then again.....?
17.1.18 Plenty of wind today but only 10 Skippers available to race. What a pity the wind blew from every direction at once making sailing difficult for all. On one occasion a complete circle of wind was visible on the surface of the lake so how on earth do you explain that? More importantly, how do you sail in it?
We (finally) managed to complete the January Trophy race and also ran the RG65 event. With less than 6 JIF's available to race, however, under current protocols we had to abandon this event and just run a free-for-all. Hopefully, things will have stabalized by next week and we can return to some reasonable conditions. Then again, we are talking about Wilton Park!
3.1.18 First race day of the new year and we were blessed with sufficient wind to power up the Dragons with "B" rigs being necessary in some of the gusts. First prize for audaciousness goes today and forever to Mick Hebden for sailing (successfully) between the island and the piles!! No idea how he did it, especially with the sun blinding him as he did so. What a Skipper!! Next week will be the January Charity Race so please have your £0.50's at the ready.
27.12.17 JFI, I sent off a cheque for £160 to the local Blind School today. As agreed, the extra £30 collected during 2107 will go into the 2018 Charity Tin today when we meet at the lake. A copy of the letter to the blind people will be posted on our notice board soonest.
20.12.17 Well done to all Skippers who turned up today for the annual Christmas "Fuddle." As ever, we had far too much food and drink, but better that than too little. Sailing conditions were rubbish with most yachts in terminal drift mode through the ice flows for most of the time but we did, (somehow) manage to complete two rounds of our "Yacht-Swap" event. Winner by just two points was Fred Senior piloting Andy Nall's JIF with Bill Crowther second. Fred dutifully took home the bottle of bubbles. No formal racing now till Jan 3rd so let's just all enjoy the festive period.
22.11.17 A great sailing day today with enough wind to get our Dragons powered up for once. The wind actually got so strong in one of the gusts it blew over Stuarts heavy starter box. Mercifully, I was sat by it so the only damage done was to my hip. Better that than damage the paintwork!
A new winner of the Flake-race today in the shape of Andy Nall. Nice one.
Almost all the MYA fees are collected but if there's anyone else out there wishing to join act quickly please.
1.11.17 Probably one of the best attended Winter race day's ever with 19 Skippers challenging for honours today beating last weeks new record by one. With the current handicaps we have almost 90% of Skippers eligible for the Gold Cup race so this should prove a bit more excitement over the coming weeks. MYA subs for 2018 due soon. I will put out a note once fees are confirmed but it looks like £14 for the year.
25.10.17 Probably one of the best days this year in terms of wind making for some close and exciting races. With John somehow contriving to win all three main races despite being off "scratch" in the main event we now have a new record to equal. It was a great turnout as well with 18 yachts challenging at any one time. New handicaps will be issued shortly.
18.10.17 An "interesting" day's racing with the wind dropping away steadily as racing progressed. The final JIF race of the day witnessed us running a mere one-lapper on a shortened course and even that seemed to take forever. The Gold Cup event was subsequently cancelled. We did manage to make the JIF and RG65 Summer Series Trophy presentations and I've added an extra page to the site with an appropriate photo. We'll use this page now for any additional images.
11.10.17 Usual capricious winds today with gales for race 1, dead calm for most of Race 2 and wind all over the place for the third event. Thank you Wilton Park! We have new leaders in the three winter series events with David Tuckwood heading the JIF's, John Goodyear leading the RG65's and Doug Potter out in front in the Winter Series. All still to play for, however, as we have five and a half more months to go.
Rain cancelled the Summer Series JIF and RG65 Trophy presentations today. We will try again next Wednesday.
22.9.17 John won the 2017 Summer Series with three wins and a second place. He was duly presented with the Trophy at the lakeside by Raymond Binns on Wednesday, September 20th. David Tuckwood and Doug Potter finished joint second just a few points adrift. An image of the event is on the Summer Series 2017 page on the site. (Well, it will be if I can manage to transfer it over!!!)
3.9.17 - Five ROFWAC registered Skippers took part in the inaugural "Wooden Yachts Only" race at Askern today. Sailing conditions can only be described as EXCELLENT with a good, steady 12-15 mph wind blowing all day. Compared to Wilton Park it was totally brilliant with the organisers running two fleets simultaneously with a 2 minutes split start time. (IOM's and "Anything else".) Sounds a bit peculiar but it proved to be very popular and eminently workable.
I'm aware it's been said before but Askern is a superb venue and it's a shame that more of our Skippers don't have an "away-day" to sail here. Most of us could put up very creditable performances against local competition so why not give it a whirl?????
31.7.17 - Stuart Lockwood and John represented ROFWAC at the Askern Dragon Event on Sunday the 30th. We were hoping for great things after a one/two finish in the third race but it all turned to dust later in the day. Neither of us finished up in the prizes but did enjoy a cracking day's sailing. Dave Lee and Andy Nall also dropped by to offer support which was very welcomed.
For those members who don't know Askern, it's near Doncaster just off the A19 and is a brilliant place to sail with a cafe literally 20M off the sailing area. All ROFWAC members will, I'm sure be made most welcome if ever anyone fancies a "day-away."
14.7.17 Hurrah, the prayers worked and we managed three out of the four races scheduled for this week in some wind and actually got the forth completed as well although it was a bit of a struggle. I'm not quite sure if all this represents a conversion equivalent to that of St. Paul on the way to Damascus but it makes you think!
5/7/17 Yet another day of fickle, flukey, capricious, non-existent winds making for very hard work. We did manage to turn out 16 Skippers and run 4 X one-lap races on a reduced course in each class. May I invite all members and anyone else reading this to pray for better conditions next week as we are all forgetting how to sail.
28.6.17 No racing once more today due to low attendance (5) and piss-istant rain. Thanks are due to Doug & Brian who between them removed two tree branches over 10 foot long each. Both were situated in the middle of our usual sailing course at the playground end of the lake. One of the offending articles had clearly been in the lake a long due and was probably submerged. I guess this explains many of the "hook-up's" we've been having. Well done those two men!
22.6.17 No racing this week due to lack of wind, again! We did manage four impromptu "one-lappers", however which took almost two and a half hours. Not good. Commiserations therefore to the 16 Skippers who turned up in the hope of better things.
A word of warning. One of our club members was fined £75 for flicking his cigarette butt into the lake. You have been warned !!!!
8.6.17 IMPORTANT NOTICE :- Sorry everyone on my ROFWAC circulation list. For reasons unknown I am unable to send mail to anyone with an aol address. Not only this but every time I try my list becomes corrupted and I have to rebuild it. Would all Skippers affected please note and advise me of any alternate address they might use. Thanks and apologies. I have no what's happening but it's a right pain!!!!!
7.6.17 Congratulations to the ten or so skippers who braved the elements today. I don't think the winds ever reached the predicted 40+mph but there were times when yachts were lifted bodily out of the water! It was a day for "Dragons" providing you had either a "B" or "C" rig. Prize for "Most Unfortunate Skipper of the Day" was won hands down by Doug. His radio died in the first race, his Dragon almost sank in the second and was rescued just in time, his radio failed again in another yacht in race three and the keel dropped out as it reached the bank side resulting in him having a wet sleeve. To cap it all (no pun intended) his hat blew off into the lake in the final race and his radio failed again before restarting after he had run right round the lake. If ever a man was unfortunate!!!
29.5.17 I think we all owe Stuart Smith a huge vote of thanks for his recent efforts in producing six brand new buoys on behalf of both ROFWAC and the KMBC. All these buoys are to our "standard" design incorporating self-cocking working together with an easily replaceable soft outer covering that we can all hit with impunity and without fear of damage until such time as rules will demand a penalty turn or something equally silly. They are of the upright tubular design that combines ease of visual recognition with long life. Thanks are also due to the KMBC who immediately funded the purchase of raw materials against request. Once more "Nice one" Stuart.
25.5.17 We held our Team Race on Wednesday and it proved to be quite an exciting event. The low handicappers generally didn't do awfully well and it was left to the "5 & 4 minute" Skippers to score most of the points. Maybe it was the lure of Cadbury's Twirls for the winners? Winners on the day were Team RED winning by five clear points from Team Green. Congratulation therefore to John, Raymond Binns, Kevin and Harry. Well done to all 16 Skippers who took part and here's to next time.
9.4.17 One of the best sailing days for months today with all four events run in steady-ish winds. We also managed the presentation of trophies for both the JIF & RG65 Winter Series. Harry Smith officiated and presented the "Goodies" to Stuart & John. The Summer Series is now underway so it's all to play for. Don't forget, it's six races with the best four scores to count.
Congratulations are in order to Andy Nall who won his first "open" race this week against our largest ever fleet. His handicap WILL be amended!!
One other point, we managed to turn out a 20 strong fleet in the RG65 class today which is a new record. I bet a lot of clubs with more heritage than us would be pleased to witness such enthusiasm so "Well Done" to all Skippers for their support.
29.3.17 Well, despite the weather we managed to run three races and complete the RG65 and JIF Winter Series events. Details of runners and riders are listed elsewhere on the site. We will host a double trophy presentation event next Wednesday when we kick off the Summer Series of events. Please will you all pray for better weather!!!
15.3.17 - Wow, a great day today with an 18-strong fleet out for the main event. I think this is our best ever? Roll on Summer !!!!!
8.3.17 A great days racing today with a 16 strong fleet and (reasonably) constant winds, albeit with the occasional gust just to make life interesting. Congratulations are in order to Dave Etchells who won the JIF race. Nice one Dave.
The Winter Series trophy was decided today as well with four out of five scores to count. With three wins and a second place John Goodyear came out top of the heap this time with Stuart Smith 5 points adrift and Dave Tuckwood a further 10 points behind in third. Don't forget, from now on the Winter and Summer Series will each consist of six races with the best four scores to count with the 2017 Summer Series commencing in April.
15.2.17 We ran our first series of races today under the new "Timing Protocol" and it seemed to work pretty well although we didn't have to invoke the "Time-Out" rules of 10 minutes in a two lap race and 15 minutes in a three lap race. We must have done something right, however, as we managed to squeeze in 5 races. About time too I hear you all shout.
2.2.17 Well, after four weeks of zero wind and one week of hurricanes we finally managed to complete a full four race series yesterday. (Hurrah they all cried!) This has severely affected the Trophy, RG65 and JIF series but we have managed to "adjust" scoring to take account of missed days for the latter two events. We are also now back on track with the Trophy series having completed the January race in February. This means, however, that the February race will have to run next week on Feb. 8th making it two races on the trot. Sorry people, but blame the UK weather. Note that this year the Trophy Winter Series is a FIVE event series with the best FOUR to count. This will bring everything back in sync. so that from the 2017 Summer Series onwards we will be running 2 X six month series each year. One final bit of news, we got a nice "thank you" letter from the Batley Blind Association thanking us for our £130 donation so "well done " all contributors throughout 2016.
9.1.17 Just a reminder folks concerning the running order of events commencing Jan 1st 2017.
We will run the RG65 "open" event starting at 1:00pm followed by the restricted 31" class followed by the JIF event. If there is sufficient time and the wind holds out we will then run the "Gold Cup."
One other item, one Skipper reported that some of the tables on the web site were so small as to be unreadable. No idea why this should have heppened but I believe I have corrected it but if anyone else has a problem please advise.
Thinking ahead, does anyone fancy racing in "foreign parts with their Dragons this year? Askern, Southport, Fleetwood, Weecher, Lincoln etc are just some of the options. If so, please let me know.
9.12.16
Many thanks to everyone who took part in the (mad) balloon bursting contest this week and helped boost the coffers of the charity tin. Despite some reservations no yachts were damaged and a good time was had by all. Winner on the day was our resently returned Spanish exile Stuart Lockwood who, with only two yachts left on the water had the audacity to dislodge John G's Pin rendering his challenge "over". Stuart was duly presented with his bottle of "bubbles" by Harry Sharpe and normality then returned to the lake side. Well done Stuart!!! How about bringing us all back some Spanish "plonk" the next time you return to cold, dismal and miserable shores?
On a slightly related topic, are there any bright ideas out there about other novelty events we might run? We haven't had a "Round-the-Island" race for some time now so does this get any votes?
Final thing, it's the Faith Lunch next Wednesday and we'll be opening the Charity Tin. Any guesses as to value? Any volunteers to do the count?
26.10.16
I think we can claim that today's team race was a great success with only seven points separating the top finishing four out of five teams. Perhaps not surprisingly given the condition, the two teams with "scratch" and "one-minute" handicappers in didn't fare too well although some excellent individual performances were recorded. Overall winners were Team "C" consisting of a "Two-minute" man, a "four-minute" man and a newcomer to the ranks sailing in his first full race with a borrowed yacht so congratulations to John, Roger and Steven who all went home with Flakes.
Next "silly" event is Balloon Bursting so watch this space.
One final bit of news:- Please, please, please will all Skippers call out (LOUDLY) as they cross the finishing line. This makes the scorers task so much easier.
1. Winner of the November award is Jerry Hannabuss. It took 11 months of very near misses but he got there in the end. Well done Jerry. Photo to follow. If you're desperate to see it try FB.
2. Our Xmas Faith Lunch will be held on Thursday Dec 16th at Winscar. Bring along whatever you have . We'll pile it all up and get troughing at break time.
3. We have 19 members wishing to be in the mYA for next year, a nice and substantial increase. Getting altogether competitive isn't it?
One last thing, I know some of you must be fed up with reading the same news via emails, Facebook and this web site. Fact is I keep getting asked to continue updating all three so that's how it is folks.
November 6th. Our October monthly trophy winner is Stuart Hoare. There's a picture of him being presented with his winnings by September's winner Andy Witham on the images page.Well done (yet again) Stuart!!
November 1st. Well, winter is on it's way and as I type it is tiddling it down, again!! Sailing continues, however and the good news is that the water level at Winscar is rising rapidly.
One other bit of news is that Cheryl has organised a Bonfire Special Open event on Sunday, November 7th for Dragons. Entry on the day for all comers. You don't need to be a member of any club or the MYA so come along and have a go. There may even be prizes !!!
Sept. 13th. Hurrah, someone read my plea for input. I've uploaded a couple of images courtesy of Cheryl in the "Images" section. (Three actually Enjoy.)
Sept 10th 2021 - Hi everyone. Plan was to take this site down and focus on our Facebook page but I have received request to keep things going here. So here we are.
ROFWAC is now completely consolidated at Winscar Reservoir situated between Holmfirth and Stocksbridge (Sheffield) where we have 24/7/365 access with racing on Thursdays and Sundays. Regular site visitors will know we race DF65's on Thursdays starting at noon. Sundays are "sail anything days" but when sufficient Dragons turn up you can guess what happens. (Rather like today) All good fun.
Enough for now. More updates on a roughly weekly basis.
August 1st 2021 :- ROFWAC now operates at Winscar Reservoir above Holmfirth, West Yorks and is the R/C "arm" of Pennine Sailing Club. We elected to migrate here following a dreadful period of zero winds, Covid and ongoing issues with the KMBC who are on record as stating, "if you want to race yachts this is not the club for you." No ambiguity there then !! We sail DF65's and DF95's at Winscar on Thursdays from 1pm and Sundays from 10am. All welcome to visit, sail and try out the superb facilities we now enjoy. (Club House, bar, hot food, drinks, rescue boats, good company and a (very) warm and inclusive atmosphere.) For more info please see the ROFWAC Facebook pages.
This site will soon be modified to reflect our transfer to Winscar and the racing we undertake there.
Some good news for those who still wish to sail at Wilton Park, Batley. A new club independent of the KMBC has been formed and is called the Kirklees Model Yacht Club. They sail all the old ROFWAC classes of yacht and have a growing enthusiastic membership sailing on Wednesday afternoons and Sunday mornings. All welcome to drop by and sail. They are on Facebook so check out what's happening here.
June 2nd 2020 Please would all visitors note that we will be running this site down shortly as we have migrated to Facebook to allow all members to post their information and have it viewable by all other Skippers. You can find us by simply entering "ROFWAC" on Facebook, BUT, unless you are an invited member of the group you will not be able to post anything.
18.3.20 We completed the first of the Winter events last week with John Goodyear winning the Winter Series Trophy by just a couple of points from David Sykes. There's a picture of the presentation elsewhere on the site. The Summer Series will start, Coronavirus permitting, on April 8th.
Just a "Heads Up" concerning Askern. As many of you will know the Askern Club have been offered the use of The Blue Lagoon at Womersley. (DN69BB) This water is a little nearer saving me and no doubt many others 10 miles each way on the trip. The area available for yachting is 200M square so plenty of room. Some Skippers have already sailed there and have reported very enthusiastically. (The use of B-rigs was actually mentioned. Whatever next?) Recommendation must be to visit and view.
3D printed yachts seem to be catching on with at least three members known to have either got one or are in the process of making one on their own equipment. I believe it's the way to go. Imagine; switch on machine, go to bed and half a hull is ready for you next morning. Repeat overnight and there you are. Can't be bad.
26.9.19 Yet another abandoned day yesterday due to the lake being extremely contaminated with blue/green algae despite heavy overnight rain. Today, the 26th, the council have cordoned off the lake as "Dangerous" so who knows when it will next be available? Hint:- Turning on the cascade waterfall might help but we mustn't expect anything as simple as this to occur.
On the plus side we did manage to present Dave Tuckwood with the trophy for winning the Summer Series so "Well Done" David. It was a close contest this year with the top three placing all being decided on the last race of the season. Nail biting stuff but David won through. The Winter Series starts the second Wednesday in September so be there!
28.8.19 Yet another abandoned days sailing due to extremely light winds. We did manage a bit of recreational sailing but that was the limit. On the "up" side we managed to re-position that pesky lower right buoy and shorten the holding cable as it has become a magnet for keels. (Especially mine!!!) Note that we tried it in various places but the water all round is VERY shallow. I estimate it at no more than 18" It could do with being moved some distance but this would interfere with the C500 chaps so we've left it where they can use it best. Please note that the entire lake is VERY, VERY heavily contaminated with blue/green algae. Not totally hazardous to humans but deadly to dogs. Wash your hands as soon as possible after using the lake has to be the recommendation.
New handicaps to be issued shortly. Given the lack of racing I doubt there will be too many changes.
2.8.19 Special "Thanks" are due to Nick Roberts who brought along his (very professional) Sailing School equipment this week and gave us a Teach-in on the Starboard Rule. Very informative and interesting. I think some 16 Skippers were in attendance which made things very worthwhile. Nick has promised us further programs on other aspects of sailing so that's something to look forward to. If only we could all obey the rules!!!! (Yes, I'm as guilty as the next man!)
Wilton Park let us down big-time once again this week with v.v.v light to non -existent winds and only two races possible. Manvers looks ever more promising.
27.7.19 apologies for the big delay in updating things here. Various factors have interrupted normal progress including illness and periods of almost zero wind down at the lake with nothing to subsequently report.
Weather permitting, we will trial the Sunday racing schedule on Aug 4th commencing around 10am. The decision to place something before the KMBC committee will depend on the outcome of this so please attend if you can.
Very limited response so far to the suggestion to try out the lake at Manvers near Wath-on-Dearne which is very disappointing. Those members who visited have reported on conditions and facilities as being excellent to fantastic. Suggestion must be to call by one day and witness it for yourselves.
There are plenty of new names at the top of the leaderboards in all competitions together with some close scores. Just as it should be.
More news as it arises.
4.4.19 Following a call for comment on the way we run things it has been agreed to leave everything "as is."
We've now got a lovely Dragon Trophy courtesy of David Sykes. First winner of this is David Tuckwood. Presentation and image to follow soon.
John Goodyear contrived to win both the JIF and RG65 Winter Series trophies again this year. There's a picture on the "Images" page.
We start the 31" class Summer Series next Wednesday so it's all to play for once more.
20.3.19 John managed to win the Winter Series (Jack Frost) Trophy this year but only by the narrowest of margins. There's an image on the appropriate page elsewhere on the site.
I've put a call out for comment regarding two suggested changes to the way we run things and am awaiting feedback. Please do respond via email in the usual manner so we can come to an agreed consensus. If only a few members bother to reply then things will just stay as they are.
27.2.19 AT LAST, after weeks of hit and miss we managed to complete a full race schedule today.
Thanks also to all those who contributed in any way towards today's lake clean up. This is what we accomplished:- On the first pass we skimmed off a large black dustbin sack full of surface leaves and feathers together with the usual bottles and plastic bits 'n bobs.
With the "heavy equipment", courtesy of Doug at our disposal, we subsequently removed three x 1Tonne builders bags of various rubbish. Included here were the equivalent of 13 loaves. (Jesus not around so no small fishes but we did recover a large and very dead terrapin.) Also present in the trawl were bottles, branches, plastic, crisp bags and an enormous quantity of leaves. Despite these valiant efforts I doubt we have scratched the surface but any rubbish removed is a bit less to foul keels, rudders and propellers so the scale and C500 chaps will also benefit.
As an aside I estimate that there is a 2 foot deep layer of compacted sub-surface leaves adjacent to the weir near the playground. If we can get this out, (eventually) I guess we could flood Batley as the water begins to flow again.
We have safely deposited all the recovery tackle in the club shed ready for immediate use when conditions allow and we have enough volunteers to do some work. If we could get a small working party, say, once a month to stay behind after racing finishes or on a Sunday morning I reckon we could make some real inroads into cleaning up the lake. Volunteers please form an orderly queue!
6.2.19 Yet another abysmal day with the lake half frozen and no wind. The BBC Weather forecasters clearly don't have a clue when it comes to Wilton Park. Today was supposed to be "BREEZY" with winds averaging 10mph. In the event there was next to nothing. We managed one race on a shortened course and only two of the 11 entrants finished in the required time. It's the February Trophy Race next week so fingers crossed for some improvement.
2.2.19 All items below now SOLD. No new results to post because there has been either no wind or a frozen lake. Wonderful!!!
4.1.19 Through sheer serendipity I have for sale the following items from club members:-
Super light-weight JIF built by your truly late last year. Test sailed only and immaculate. Complete with two servo's £100
Not yet built DF65 which I think is a V3. Complete with radio. Offers please
New, boxed Imax B6 multi-charger. Unused £20
New, unused, latest model Flysky radio. Boxed. £30
Old but good JIF. Needs some TLC but sailable "as is." Complete with 2 servo's. Offers.
Old but good North Wind needing some TLC but in overall good condition. Mylar sails, 2 servo's. Offers.
At least 10% of all proceeds to the Charity Tin.
Please form an orderly queue.
2.1.19 Happy New Year to all our readers!
I believe we managed to create yet another very unwanted record today by making it 5 consecutive weeks without wind. Despite this we managed to organize a team race of three Skippers each using basically the Club500 course. It took us almost an hour to complete just two laps which says it all. The winners were "Team Green" consisting of Doug, Mick H. and Brian. They were duly presented with a "Flake" each and now have to fight it out over who buys the "Flakes" for next week!
Talking of next week, we need to placate the Wind Gods somehow so please bring along your prayer mats, holy water, prayer wheels, voodoo masks or whatever.
28.11.18 Well, the forecast was for winds to increase to 42mph meaning we all looked to our "C" rigs. In the event the wind dropped to almost zero so another spectacular result for BBC Weather. Do they know that Batley exists?
7.11.18 Half decent day today but with an ever dropping wind meaning that we elected to abandon the Dragon race. When will our forecasters get it right? Supposed to be solid 10-12mph today but nothing like. At least it only rained for half the time we were sailing.
4.11.18 Thanks to all those who volunteered help on this one. I have to tell you that nothing worked, but at least I tried. Andy Nall thinks he has a solution, however, so we'll be trying his fix shortly. Watch out for news.
URGENT REQUEST FOR HELP Having experienced nothing but conflict between my ipad, PC and iPhone I elected (stupidly) to completely reinstall Windows on my PC. BAD MOVE as I now find that with the latest system you cannot send group emails. Unbelievably, but true; I even called Microsoft for feedback and they embarrassingly confirmed this. What a set off idiots!!!!
So, does anyone knoof any other systems that permit group emails to be sent? I have tried gmail, live and outlook to no avail; they don't or won't work with the latest version of Windows 10 HELP !!
1.11.18 A good day's sailing yesterday although the wind did drop off quite considerably for the last race. Results have been entered on this site today and the minor errors noted last week have been resolved. (Hopefully!!) New handicaps will be issued shortly once I find a minute to calculate them.
One other item; I've been reminded that this weeks results for the DF65 race are VOID as there were insufficient entries for the scores to count. (At least 6 yachts are required to constitute a race.) This will be corrected the next time results are published.
27.10.18 Whoops, we've discovered a few errors in the new, latest results sheet just published. These will be corrected shortly and an update issued. Well spotted those who pointed this out.
24.10.18 We have a new name heading the Handicap Board in the shape of David Sykes who has now recorded his mandatory 10 scores. He will continue to sail off 5 minutes until such time as the handicaps are recalculated so he's very much the Skipper to watch.
A great days sailing today with good wind from a reasonably constant direction. (Well, for Wilton Park anyway.)
Changing the course round for the final race created a bit of confusion but I think it worked out well in the end. Comments anyone?
17.10.18 Today belonged to a certain Mr. Hebden with two wins and two third places. Well done mick, Special mention also to Ray Baskerville for showing many of us the way home in the open class with his Micro-magic. We will have to se about banning these!!
A significantly improved turnout today with 15 yachts contesting three of the four races. Our Dragon class continues to be poorly supported however. Why??
10.10.18 A poor turnout today despite the very promising weather forecast. In the event the 8-12mph winds failed to appear and it was a struggle to get any movement at all. Added to this was a large quantity of leaf-litter and the usual assortment of plastic bags making for very difficult sailing. Most if not all Skippers had to recover their yachts to remove rubbish on every lap of every race and some of us fared worse than others!! Hopefully, the oncoming gale over the next few days will dislodge most of the leaves on trees surrounding the lake and cause them to sink. Then again, we should be so lucky.
3.10.18 John Goodyear somehow contrived to win both the RG65 and JIF Summer Series and was duly presented with the Trophies by Andy Nall at the lake side today before the start of the Winter Series races. A picture has been uploaded to the "Images" section of the site.
15.9.18 Please remember to vote either electronically or "manually" at the lake regarding changes to our race rules BEFORE Friday, Sept 21st.
We completed the Summer Trophy Series this week and John G contrived to come out on top again with three wins and a second place counting as his four top scores. Ray Baskeville was just three points behind however confirming that the competition is hotting up. We start the winter series second week in October so it's all to play for once more.
27.8.18 I’ve had a somewhat subdued response to my previous note on changing courses. (Diplomatic statement!) Fact is only four Skippers commented. One of them is a guest member from Albuquerque, New Mexico, one a reader of Model Boats Magazine who previously requested I keep him in touch with our events, one from a semi-retired Skipper and only one reply from a current sailor.
Statistically I imagine there are many interpretations one could put on all this but mine is that most Skippers are, at best, lukewarm to the proposal floated. One suggestion made, however, is that unless we start racing with upwind starts we are simply painting over the cracks and with the current course collisions will remain unavoidable. (I agree.) Starting upwind with the prevailing winds, however, would be highly problematical due to the massive wind shadow created by the island and would inevitably result in all yachts clustering together where some wind was in evidence and we all know what that would mean!
Time for a radical rethink and for what they’re worth, here are my thoughts.
1. We create a new start line utilizing the two buoys nearest the cascade. We might have to move them a tiny bit but that wouldn’t interfere in any way with their use by the C500 boys. This would provide for a much longer start line offering more room for manoeuvring. Yes, we would have to move our “centre of operations” a few yards, but is that such an issue?
2. We adjust the rest of the course (only marginally)) as depicted in the diagram shown. This should allow the fleet to sort itself out by the first buoy and minimise the effect of the island wind shadow. This will provide for a course giving us a long run and a good beat utilizing most of the lake on “our” side of the island on every lap.
3. Races can be of one, two or three laps just like now.
Comments on all this gratefully accepted but please remember, if you don’t respond (either way) then nothing will happen.
Now for my next suggestion which continues the radical theme.
It has been pointed out to me on several occasions that we spend as much time preparing yachts between races as actually racing! Fair comment???
One easy way round this is to adjust the way we operate. My proposal is that we only run one class of yacht each week on a rolling basis repeating every four weeks. Looking at what yachts are generally used I think that this means that all Skippers will be able to race in at least three races every four weeks with the majority having the necessary “kit” to race in all four. Scoring would be on the basis of the average of everyone’s scores achieved on the day. (Why am I suggesting this? It means I will have additional work to do!!) For the Trophy race in the 31” class we can dedicate the first race to count for this and handicap the rest of the races.
Comments again requested please with the caveat noted above in red.
One final thing; we now have some 50% of skippers who are used to racing against rules elsewhere. I think it’s worthwhile pointing out that these chaps apply the most important of these rules at Wilton Park when racing against each other and somehow seem to avoid accidents. (Some of them even do penalty turns, occasionally without even being asked!!!!) Is there a lesson here I wonder?
Enough for now. Time for a large tot of Scottish falling down water i think.
25.7.18 Yet another day of light and frustrating winds making any form of real racing a lottery. We did manage four races of sorts using the four buoys to the right of the island. Richard and John won one apiece and our Spanish renegade Stuart won two so the "Flakes" are on him next week.
New Handicaps for August and September will be published soon.
2.6.18 New June / July handicaps uploaded to the site today.
11.4.18 Even by Wilton Park standards the wind was beyond fluky today but we did manage to complete a full program of races including the "Gold Cup" won by David Etchells. It was very much a case of if you caught the wind you could easily build a half lap lead whilst others wallowed around pitifully. (Wasn't it Andy Nall?) Roll on better weather!
4.4.18 A great start to the laughingly named "SummerSeason" of races with us having to abandon sailing after the RG65 event due to truly torrential rain. Last time I witnessed a downpour like this was in the tropics and at least the rain there was warm! Fingers crossed for some weather improvements--- Soon!!
31.3.18 We managed to complete the winter JIF and RG65 series this week but had to curtail the number of counting races from 15 to 13 due to so many weather affected racing days. John contrived to win both events for the second year running by decent margins in both events but others are getting closer. If a few more Skippers had been available to sail a few more times it could have been a different story. We will do a prize presentation next week.
14.3.18 I think we might safely and accurately say that today's sailing conditions were the best this year to date. We even managed an upwind start which is almost unheard of!! Having said that we have managed to have 5 weeks worth of sailing cancelled due to various weather vagaries so maybe we were due a fair day for once. Thank you Weather Gods.
We managed to complete the Winter Series races for the Jack Frost Trophy today and John contrived to win again with three first places and one second making up his 4 out of 6 scores. It could all have been so different, however, because Stuart Smith came in only 4 points behind John and he only sailed 4 times. With a better "attendance record" and some smart sailing he could easily have won.
We commence the (laughingly called) Summer Series second Wednesday in April so it's all to play for once more.
There are two more races to go in both the JIF and RG65 Winter Series so we must all hope for some decent weather conditions.
9.3.18Vincent Formosa has a 31" class yacht for sale. (It's too big to fit into his car and shed.) The model is nearly new and based in the IOM Britpop design and is competitive. Will come complete with two servo's and all running gear. Anyone interested please contact John G. as Vincent is away skiing for the next few weeks. (Lucky man!)
7.3.18 At Last!! We finally managed a day's sailing after weeks of zero wind, frozen lake and other issues. Mind you, we only managed two out of the three scheduled events due to a steadily decreasing wind. Thanks to Cathy for discovering a new way to attract Dog's Abuse by volunteering to act as OOD. Next week is the Trophy Event so please come prepared with your 50 pences. There might even be sufficient wind to stage a race. Then again.....?
17.1.18 Plenty of wind today but only 10 Skippers available to race. What a pity the wind blew from every direction at once making sailing difficult for all. On one occasion a complete circle of wind was visible on the surface of the lake so how on earth do you explain that? More importantly, how do you sail in it?
We (finally) managed to complete the January Trophy race and also ran the RG65 event. With less than 6 JIF's available to race, however, under current protocols we had to abandon this event and just run a free-for-all. Hopefully, things will have stabalized by next week and we can return to some reasonable conditions. Then again, we are talking about Wilton Park!
3.1.18 First race day of the new year and we were blessed with sufficient wind to power up the Dragons with "B" rigs being necessary in some of the gusts. First prize for audaciousness goes today and forever to Mick Hebden for sailing (successfully) between the island and the piles!! No idea how he did it, especially with the sun blinding him as he did so. What a Skipper!! Next week will be the January Charity Race so please have your £0.50's at the ready.
27.12.17 JFI, I sent off a cheque for £160 to the local Blind School today. As agreed, the extra £30 collected during 2107 will go into the 2018 Charity Tin today when we meet at the lake. A copy of the letter to the blind people will be posted on our notice board soonest.
20.12.17 Well done to all Skippers who turned up today for the annual Christmas "Fuddle." As ever, we had far too much food and drink, but better that than too little. Sailing conditions were rubbish with most yachts in terminal drift mode through the ice flows for most of the time but we did, (somehow) manage to complete two rounds of our "Yacht-Swap" event. Winner by just two points was Fred Senior piloting Andy Nall's JIF with Bill Crowther second. Fred dutifully took home the bottle of bubbles. No formal racing now till Jan 3rd so let's just all enjoy the festive period.
22.11.17 A great sailing day today with enough wind to get our Dragons powered up for once. The wind actually got so strong in one of the gusts it blew over Stuarts heavy starter box. Mercifully, I was sat by it so the only damage done was to my hip. Better that than damage the paintwork!
A new winner of the Flake-race today in the shape of Andy Nall. Nice one.
Almost all the MYA fees are collected but if there's anyone else out there wishing to join act quickly please.
1.11.17 Probably one of the best attended Winter race day's ever with 19 Skippers challenging for honours today beating last weeks new record by one. With the current handicaps we have almost 90% of Skippers eligible for the Gold Cup race so this should prove a bit more excitement over the coming weeks. MYA subs for 2018 due soon. I will put out a note once fees are confirmed but it looks like £14 for the year.
25.10.17 Probably one of the best days this year in terms of wind making for some close and exciting races. With John somehow contriving to win all three main races despite being off "scratch" in the main event we now have a new record to equal. It was a great turnout as well with 18 yachts challenging at any one time. New handicaps will be issued shortly.
18.10.17 An "interesting" day's racing with the wind dropping away steadily as racing progressed. The final JIF race of the day witnessed us running a mere one-lapper on a shortened course and even that seemed to take forever. The Gold Cup event was subsequently cancelled. We did manage to make the JIF and RG65 Summer Series Trophy presentations and I've added an extra page to the site with an appropriate photo. We'll use this page now for any additional images.
11.10.17 Usual capricious winds today with gales for race 1, dead calm for most of Race 2 and wind all over the place for the third event. Thank you Wilton Park! We have new leaders in the three winter series events with David Tuckwood heading the JIF's, John Goodyear leading the RG65's and Doug Potter out in front in the Winter Series. All still to play for, however, as we have five and a half more months to go.
Rain cancelled the Summer Series JIF and RG65 Trophy presentations today. We will try again next Wednesday.
22.9.17 John won the 2017 Summer Series with three wins and a second place. He was duly presented with the Trophy at the lakeside by Raymond Binns on Wednesday, September 20th. David Tuckwood and Doug Potter finished joint second just a few points adrift. An image of the event is on the Summer Series 2017 page on the site. (Well, it will be if I can manage to transfer it over!!!)
3.9.17 - Five ROFWAC registered Skippers took part in the inaugural "Wooden Yachts Only" race at Askern today. Sailing conditions can only be described as EXCELLENT with a good, steady 12-15 mph wind blowing all day. Compared to Wilton Park it was totally brilliant with the organisers running two fleets simultaneously with a 2 minutes split start time. (IOM's and "Anything else".) Sounds a bit peculiar but it proved to be very popular and eminently workable.
I'm aware it's been said before but Askern is a superb venue and it's a shame that more of our Skippers don't have an "away-day" to sail here. Most of us could put up very creditable performances against local competition so why not give it a whirl?????
31.7.17 - Stuart Lockwood and John represented ROFWAC at the Askern Dragon Event on Sunday the 30th. We were hoping for great things after a one/two finish in the third race but it all turned to dust later in the day. Neither of us finished up in the prizes but did enjoy a cracking day's sailing. Dave Lee and Andy Nall also dropped by to offer support which was very welcomed.
For those members who don't know Askern, it's near Doncaster just off the A19 and is a brilliant place to sail with a cafe literally 20M off the sailing area. All ROFWAC members will, I'm sure be made most welcome if ever anyone fancies a "day-away."
14.7.17 Hurrah, the prayers worked and we managed three out of the four races scheduled for this week in some wind and actually got the forth completed as well although it was a bit of a struggle. I'm not quite sure if all this represents a conversion equivalent to that of St. Paul on the way to Damascus but it makes you think!
5/7/17 Yet another day of fickle, flukey, capricious, non-existent winds making for very hard work. We did manage to turn out 16 Skippers and run 4 X one-lap races on a reduced course in each class. May I invite all members and anyone else reading this to pray for better conditions next week as we are all forgetting how to sail.
28.6.17 No racing once more today due to low attendance (5) and piss-istant rain. Thanks are due to Doug & Brian who between them removed two tree branches over 10 foot long each. Both were situated in the middle of our usual sailing course at the playground end of the lake. One of the offending articles had clearly been in the lake a long due and was probably submerged. I guess this explains many of the "hook-up's" we've been having. Well done those two men!
22.6.17 No racing this week due to lack of wind, again! We did manage four impromptu "one-lappers", however which took almost two and a half hours. Not good. Commiserations therefore to the 16 Skippers who turned up in the hope of better things.
A word of warning. One of our club members was fined £75 for flicking his cigarette butt into the lake. You have been warned !!!!
8.6.17 IMPORTANT NOTICE :- Sorry everyone on my ROFWAC circulation list. For reasons unknown I am unable to send mail to anyone with an aol address. Not only this but every time I try my list becomes corrupted and I have to rebuild it. Would all Skippers affected please note and advise me of any alternate address they might use. Thanks and apologies. I have no what's happening but it's a right pain!!!!!
7.6.17 Congratulations to the ten or so skippers who braved the elements today. I don't think the winds ever reached the predicted 40+mph but there were times when yachts were lifted bodily out of the water! It was a day for "Dragons" providing you had either a "B" or "C" rig. Prize for "Most Unfortunate Skipper of the Day" was won hands down by Doug. His radio died in the first race, his Dragon almost sank in the second and was rescued just in time, his radio failed again in another yacht in race three and the keel dropped out as it reached the bank side resulting in him having a wet sleeve. To cap it all (no pun intended) his hat blew off into the lake in the final race and his radio failed again before restarting after he had run right round the lake. If ever a man was unfortunate!!!
29.5.17 I think we all owe Stuart Smith a huge vote of thanks for his recent efforts in producing six brand new buoys on behalf of both ROFWAC and the KMBC. All these buoys are to our "standard" design incorporating self-cocking working together with an easily replaceable soft outer covering that we can all hit with impunity and without fear of damage until such time as rules will demand a penalty turn or something equally silly. They are of the upright tubular design that combines ease of visual recognition with long life. Thanks are also due to the KMBC who immediately funded the purchase of raw materials against request. Once more "Nice one" Stuart.
25.5.17 We held our Team Race on Wednesday and it proved to be quite an exciting event. The low handicappers generally didn't do awfully well and it was left to the "5 & 4 minute" Skippers to score most of the points. Maybe it was the lure of Cadbury's Twirls for the winners? Winners on the day were Team RED winning by five clear points from Team Green. Congratulation therefore to John, Raymond Binns, Kevin and Harry. Well done to all 16 Skippers who took part and here's to next time.
9.4.17 One of the best sailing days for months today with all four events run in steady-ish winds. We also managed the presentation of trophies for both the JIF & RG65 Winter Series. Harry Smith officiated and presented the "Goodies" to Stuart & John. The Summer Series is now underway so it's all to play for. Don't forget, it's six races with the best four scores to count.
Congratulations are in order to Andy Nall who won his first "open" race this week against our largest ever fleet. His handicap WILL be amended!!
One other point, we managed to turn out a 20 strong fleet in the RG65 class today which is a new record. I bet a lot of clubs with more heritage than us would be pleased to witness such enthusiasm so "Well Done" to all Skippers for their support.
29.3.17 Well, despite the weather we managed to run three races and complete the RG65 and JIF Winter Series events. Details of runners and riders are listed elsewhere on the site. We will host a double trophy presentation event next Wednesday when we kick off the Summer Series of events. Please will you all pray for better weather!!!
15.3.17 - Wow, a great day today with an 18-strong fleet out for the main event. I think this is our best ever? Roll on Summer !!!!!
8.3.17 A great days racing today with a 16 strong fleet and (reasonably) constant winds, albeit with the occasional gust just to make life interesting. Congratulations are in order to Dave Etchells who won the JIF race. Nice one Dave.
The Winter Series trophy was decided today as well with four out of five scores to count. With three wins and a second place John Goodyear came out top of the heap this time with Stuart Smith 5 points adrift and Dave Tuckwood a further 10 points behind in third. Don't forget, from now on the Winter and Summer Series will each consist of six races with the best four scores to count with the 2017 Summer Series commencing in April.
15.2.17 We ran our first series of races today under the new "Timing Protocol" and it seemed to work pretty well although we didn't have to invoke the "Time-Out" rules of 10 minutes in a two lap race and 15 minutes in a three lap race. We must have done something right, however, as we managed to squeeze in 5 races. About time too I hear you all shout.
2.2.17 Well, after four weeks of zero wind and one week of hurricanes we finally managed to complete a full four race series yesterday. (Hurrah they all cried!) This has severely affected the Trophy, RG65 and JIF series but we have managed to "adjust" scoring to take account of missed days for the latter two events. We are also now back on track with the Trophy series having completed the January race in February. This means, however, that the February race will have to run next week on Feb. 8th making it two races on the trot. Sorry people, but blame the UK weather. Note that this year the Trophy Winter Series is a FIVE event series with the best FOUR to count. This will bring everything back in sync. so that from the 2017 Summer Series onwards we will be running 2 X six month series each year. One final bit of news, we got a nice "thank you" letter from the Batley Blind Association thanking us for our £130 donation so "well done " all contributors throughout 2016.
9.1.17 Just a reminder folks concerning the running order of events commencing Jan 1st 2017.
We will run the RG65 "open" event starting at 1:00pm followed by the restricted 31" class followed by the JIF event. If there is sufficient time and the wind holds out we will then run the "Gold Cup."
One other item, one Skipper reported that some of the tables on the web site were so small as to be unreadable. No idea why this should have heppened but I believe I have corrected it but if anyone else has a problem please advise.
Thinking ahead, does anyone fancy racing in "foreign parts with their Dragons this year? Askern, Southport, Fleetwood, Weecher, Lincoln etc are just some of the options. If so, please let me know.
9.12.16
Many thanks to everyone who took part in the (mad) balloon bursting contest this week and helped boost the coffers of the charity tin. Despite some reservations no yachts were damaged and a good time was had by all. Winner on the day was our resently returned Spanish exile Stuart Lockwood who, with only two yachts left on the water had the audacity to dislodge John G's Pin rendering his challenge "over". Stuart was duly presented with his bottle of "bubbles" by Harry Sharpe and normality then returned to the lake side. Well done Stuart!!! How about bringing us all back some Spanish "plonk" the next time you return to cold, dismal and miserable shores?
On a slightly related topic, are there any bright ideas out there about other novelty events we might run? We haven't had a "Round-the-Island" race for some time now so does this get any votes?
Final thing, it's the Faith Lunch next Wednesday and we'll be opening the Charity Tin. Any guesses as to value? Any volunteers to do the count?
26.10.16
I think we can claim that today's team race was a great success with only seven points separating the top finishing four out of five teams. Perhaps not surprisingly given the condition, the two teams with "scratch" and "one-minute" handicappers in didn't fare too well although some excellent individual performances were recorded. Overall winners were Team "C" consisting of a "Two-minute" man, a "four-minute" man and a newcomer to the ranks sailing in his first full race with a borrowed yacht so congratulations to John, Roger and Steven who all went home with Flakes.
Next "silly" event is Balloon Bursting so watch this space.
One final bit of news:- Please, please, please will all Skippers call out (LOUDLY) as they cross the finishing line. This makes the scorers task so much easier.