The New Mach2.2

Blimey its been so long I forgot the log -in. I havent sailed a Moth for a while now. I sold my boat, and this is a year to be with my boys. Its their time now and my job is to support their sailing. Besides which they've nicked all my sailing kit. Off the water I've decided that parents dont deliberately get unfashionable, they just buy stuff their kids wont steal.

Still we have a little National 12 to sail on Wednesday evenings, it kinda fun, slow but fun.

Perhaps I'll think about the worlds at Hayling island next year. I don't feel under any pressure to sail though, 2 world championships wins and 6 europeans championships will do, and really the only reason to come back is that Andrew McDougall is possibly 1 point ahead of me if we add up all the placings at worlds we've had over our very long moth sailing careers.

Anyway the purpose of this post is to tell you about the new Mach2.2. Our boat is better than it ever has been. If you are thinking of upgrading, or buying a boat for the first time check out the below.

Do email us if you have any questions.

http://www.mach2boats.com/index.php/en/the-news/all-news/13-featured-tabs/310

GBR 9 for sale

Hi my Mach 2 is for sale. GBR 9 aka 3836.

All the gear including travel box and choice of sail.

All mint condition

Email me at simonpaynegbr@btinternet.com if you are interested.

The Gearing Business

For me the back end of this year has been so busy that sailing seems a thing I used to do. Those sparkly days of recreational fun long gone. The sun, my uplift, has become merely an hour hand, rising with the Nikkei and setting with the election results. It's a busy life where the sea has played no part.

I read that most peoples fantasies would be satisfied by a private island, but right now an afternoon in my Moth at Hayling Island would do me, and I might achieve that this weekend.

Anyway the real reason for writing is to show you the new Mach2.2 Gearing Adjuster with axle. It has a feature that will allow Mach2 sailors to adjust the gearing from the wing and makes use of the "utility tube" that runs through the ship. This means that you won't have to capsize your Mach2 in order to change the gearing at the front. Or risk running yourself over should you try to reach across to the bow to do it. It also means you can sail with the bonnet on. It's available soon. Delivery and prices to follow

A Blog for Hawaii

(Guest Blogger Simon "Hollywood" Propper reports..)

2013 Moth Worlds in Hawaii will be a once in a lifetime sailing trip

Mothies experiencing Garda withdrawal symptoms will be wondering how to get their foiling glamour kicks next year. The Worlds are scheduled for October 2013 at Kaneohe Yacht Club on the Hawaiian island of O’ahu. Your intrepid Moth reporter took a trip over there for the US nationals this October to find out what our first Worlds in Hawaii will be like. I know it’s a tough assignment but I am dedicated to the cause.

 

O’ahu is a small island about 20 miles wide and 30 miles long. You fly to Honolulu, a busy developed tourist resort. Kaneohe is a twenty minute drive across the island to a much quieter and more idyllic spot. The bay is a stunningly beautiful enclosed sailing area bordered by hills and completely protected from ocean swell so the water is flat and warm as a bath. Coral reefs mean you have to sail out of a channel before the bay widens into the race-course. It’s exactly large enough to set a 1 mile beat and wide enough for tactical sailing upwind and downwind. So it will be a different kind of racing to Garda. Boat speed and tactics will be more significant than wave handling.




We had trade winds of 15 to 20 knots every day so there were high numbers on the GPS downwind. It can be lighter in October if the trades don’t blow but we didn’t see those conditions.
 

If Carlsberg ran a yacht club it would be Kaneohe YC. In a dramatic Hawaii setting it’s palm lined lawns slope to the dock, the wooden bar is festooned with trophies and local artifacts and the drinks are cheap and plentiful. There’s a pool and tennis courts outside the bar for non-sailors or après sail and the barbecue seems always on. It has an air of expat country club but with Hawaiian hospitality and chilled out atmosphere. The chef’s a punk rocker so great sounds served with great food.




Launching is from floating pontoons into the mini-marina leading to the bay. These are fine for us but the club needs to add some more for the event so we can launch in greater numbers. The great thing is they are really keen to host our event and have a star race organizer in Tom Pochereva who will do whatever it takes to make it a classic regatta. The race organization was faultless for our warm up event – the US nationals – and they are working closely with the class to get feedback on courses, race length and number of races etc.




There are no local hotels. Accommodation is in B&B’s near the club or rented houses and apartments. I would think that the cheapest deals will be rented property which could be as little as $50 (GBP30) per person per night if a group of us shares. The nearest small town is Kailua ten minutes drive from the club. If you have family with you that could be the best base because it has a fantastic beach and all the usual holiday amenities without being at all trashy. Opportunities for hiking, surfing and generally exploring the incredible natural beauty of the island are plentiful.

Ok so it’s going to be a one-time Moth Worlds in paradise. If you miss this one, when will you next get the chance to race in a tropical island setting? But it’s a long way from Europe and the event really won’t be the same without a UK and European entry. There’s no way to make this a cheap trip, but it may be less than you are imagining and there are things we can do to cut the budget.




I just checked Expedia and flights in September are GBP930. October isn’t on the booking calendar yet but its low season and could be less. The stop-over would be San Francisco or LA. Two great places to break your trip if you are interested in seeing some of California.

Shipping will be the other big ticket cost. Si Payne is going to talk to the Mach 2 shipping partner Rohlig to see what rates they could get us for a group deal out of London and presumably Sydney would be the other main hub. Si will report back about prices and specifics. Maybe the rate could apply to several European airports.

  

Mach2 Seminar - Its a date

Hi

I plan to run the one day Mach2 seminar at HISC on the 12th of October. This is the day before the Hayling Island Open Meeting.

My goal is to impart Mach2 set up advice and sailing tips based on our latest learning from Italy. Everyone is welcome of course, this is in no way meant to be elitist but I really only know about Mach2’s, and thats what we will focus on.

A number of people are already confirmed, let me know if you are interested.

S

Mach 2 seminar

Summer seemingly finished at about 1400hrs yesterday when I was in Lymington with my son in 420's. I had a chance to reflect on what a good season it had been with a very enjoyable UK Nationals and a challenging Worlds. This is the time of year though when you can have some of the best sailing, there's less yachts, more space and the water is still warm. I was thinking about running a one day "How to set up and sail" a Mach2 at HISC in the near future if anyone is interested? I don't want it to conflict with the classes Castle Cove training this coming weekend which I'm sure will be excellent or the Hayling Island Open meeting, but if anyone is interested let me know at sales@mach2boats.com. I'm sure we can arrange something.

S

Racing, Italian Style

Photo by kind permission of Thierry Martinez

"Is your boat tied down?" "Yes".
(Boat flies through the air as 60 knots of wind hit the dinghy park)
"Your boat is not tied down!!"(Shouted this time, not spoken..)
"That is not my boat"

And so a touch of Pink Panther style humour ended an excellent Moth World Championships!

Stand out performances came from Anthony Kotoun who sailed into 4th place overall, Tom Offer who came in 15th, and of course Josh McKnight who decided to win. And did!

This World Championship was an experience for sure, in all aspects actually, and whilst one might argue that the qualifying goes on too long, in the same way that Christmas seems to go on too long these days, there is no denying the new levels of excellence that the top boys have taken the class to.

We used to have the 20 knot club only 5 years ago and now the front runners are hitting 17 knots upwind, and its clear that despite the more evolutionary development of late, the boats are going faster and faster in a way that no other class can or does. What a great time to be sailing Moths.

And whilst we at Mach2 came equipped with the excellent Simon Owen Smith and a couple of crates full of spares, there was probably less breakage than one might have imagined. There would have been even less if the start line wasn't so chancy.

Its clear that the new KA MSL16 has taken the rig to the next level too and that Mach2 Moths remain the leaders choice. Another great regatta for us which of course makes us very proud.

For me? Well I was pleased to make 9th overall and achieve 2nd in the European Championships. I'm looking forward to working with Andrew on a new rig for the lightweight sailor and I take back all I ever said about adjustable wands, and I'm going to get one of those soonest!

I loved the last day!  Sometimes we get into thinking that we shouldn't sail when its too light or too windy, but we must remember that we are a sailing class that foils, not a foiling class that sails and in years to come we'll cruise round in those winds and waves, but only because we are going out in them today.

Very many congratulations to Josh. He sailed superbly and said, as does every winner, that his overwhelming emotion was one of "relief". As he was waving the Aussie flag I remembered that feeling from 2010. Not any delirious happiness at that stage just sheer simple relief. He will be an excellent World Champion and I suspect he is the youngest ever. Time for plenty more.

The UK fleet did OK! If we can figure out how to work together better, a great strength of the Aussies and the Americans, then we can get more than two boats in the top 10 for sure!

Right now I still feel exhausted. A by-product of giving it my all, and a long drive home. I may not manage rigging the boat tonight, but I probably will the day after!

S