RNYC Successfully Defend the Lipton Cup

by Richard Crockett

This was a Lipton Challenge Cup like no other in recent history as the event has moved from being a one-design contest to being a handicap contest for a two year trial basis.

The change has its critics and those who simply refused to engage due to the apparent unconventional change. While others embraced it fully as it opened the contest up to some 50-plus yachts around the country, all of which fitted the ORC rating band, and all of whom had an equal chance of winning. That was in theory anyway, although in reality it possibly did not quite turn out that way. Far from being negative, there are good and not-so-good points to take away – and these will be dealt with later in this editorial.

On the water, racing was from the very top drawer. It was intense, it was relentless, it was tactical, it rewarded good crew work and it was engaging from a spectator perspective. Most importantly it rewarded the boat which appeared, from my vantage point anyway, the fastest all week and were deserving winners of the Lipton Cup.

It was the Royal Natal Yacht Club team sailing the Cape 31 ‘Orion DYP’ which ultimately took the overall honours and lifted the Lipton Cup in victory under the guidance of joint skippers Davey James and Mark Sadler.

Theirs was a hard-fought victory as on the first day they were not able to string two good races together with positions of 3 and 5, making one wonder whether their hearts and minds were really in the event. But on day two they bounced back with two good wins, and did the same on day three to finish the sixth race first overall and with four good consecutive victories to their credit. That’s called stamping one’s authority on the event!

However, four consecutive wins may make it look easy, but this team did it the hard way by gaining an advantage to lead a race, then losing it, then ultimately gaining it back by fighting hard all the way to the finish line. I don’t think that they won a race by leading from start to finish. The important thing is that they were always able to claw their way back to lead over the finish.

And it did not end there as there were two more races left in the series, weather dependent. The final day was expected to be light and the fear was that just one race would be possible.

The weather gods played ball and two absolutely stunning races, seven and eight, were held. If it was all very close amongst the top three Cape 31s in the previous races, these were even closer, much, much closer.

Race seven had the three Cape 31s sailing as if bound by an elastic band that would stretch ever so slightly before pulling all three back together. Occasionally one team would break away from this close combat sailing, only to come back a tack or gybe later for the same elastic band to keep them close. Without giving a blow-by-blow account of that race where the lead changed many times by a boat length, or maybe two, but mostly even less than one, the results showed that Aeolians Club had won, followed two seconds later by Royal Natal, and Walvis Bay 24 seconds later. This was a shoot-out right to the bitter end with no quarter given.

It’s difficult to say emphatically that race eight was even tighter, but the same rubber band that kept them close in race seven was again in play, and again at the finish Royal Natal had edged out Walvis Bay by a mere six seconds with Aeolians nine seconds behind in third spot.

Walvis Bay flew a protest flag at the finish of that final race, alleging that the Royal Natal had touched the leeward mark. As the RNYC took a scoring penalty, the matter never went to the jury for adjudication. That penalty did not affect their overall score line and they won the contest by a single point from Walvis Bay Yacht Club.

The Walvis Bay Yacht Club team, skippered by Bjorn Geiger, were, in every race, very serious contenders for the overall honours. In contrast with 2019 when they looked to be serious contenders but could not quite take good positions all the way to the finish line, this year they were better at finishing. They finished with one win and five second places in eight races. With time on the water and more racing against top competitors, they will overcome that lack of ability to convert good positions to winning positions, and may well lift the Lipton Cup in victory, and defend on their home waters in Walvis Bay. Now that would be a very different experience!

‘Nemesis’, representing Aeolians Club had the two “silver assassins” aboard in Philip Baum as skipper and Dave Hudson as tactician. The balance of their crew were all under 30, making them the youngest team on the water. Youth is vital in our sport, so hats off to them for bringing them aboard as they would have learnt masses from these two experienced campaigners. Sadly for them they never quite got it all right all the time, with small errors creeping in, which, in that competitive fleet, simply nullifies all gains. Having won the final race in the last two contests, they had a team goal to do it again and get the third win. Sadly their maths went wonky and they won the penultimate race, succumbing to a third in the final race. While it would have been good to keep that record going, it was not a make or break goal, especially as they won the really tough and hard-fought seventh race. Tactically they sailed that race exceptionally well, especially as just two seconds separated first and second.

Having briefly reflected on the performance of the top three boats, all of which were Cape 31s, one has to have some measure of sympathy for the two Clubs which chose to challenge in conventional ORC handicapped yachts.

Royal Cape Yacht Club chose ‘RCYC Jackal’ a modified Farr 38 which was stretched to 40′, and which in the past had competed very successfully by winning several key top-flight regattas. They started well on the first day when conditions were strong by winning the first race on handicap and being second in the next race. After three races they were leading overall, but were never able to get a handicap position in the top two again. That played against them and cost them dearly.

For those watching the racing, it was very evident that this was an exceptionally well sailed boat. There was just one blemish in their boat handling when a 30-knot gust hit them at the leeward mark as they dropped the spinnaker pole seconds before dropping the kite. That gust caught them unawares and put the kite out of control, costing them time. But that was it in terms of errors, as their crew work and the execution of manoeuvres were always flawless, as were their tactics.

Rick Nankin, their tactician, said after the final race that he felt by sailing alone on the course, he sailed his best Lipton Cup races ever this year. “Our crew work was flawless, as was every manoeuvre, and as we were rarely in close combat with anyone we had to sail the prefect race every race, or lose time”. That’s an admission from a man with many Lipton victories to his credit.

Similar may be said for the False Bay Yacht Club team sailing Nigel Clack’s modified L34. In the early stages they had a few errors and were terribly late for one start, but as the days went on so they became more proficient in everything they did. But on handicap they were never able to get better than a fourth.

The man making the calls on the water can either make or break a regatta. Bruce Keytel made his first appearance as Race Officer in a Lipton Cup contest, and did a phenomenal job. He was always out early and ready to start on time, but most importantly he was not afraid to mix things up a little by choosing to have some downwind starts in the windward / leeward races – something I am not aware has ever happened in Lipton before. They were different and required different skills from the teams, and importantly kept the fleet just far enough off the line to avoid any recalls. Well done Bruce and your team.

The fleet this year had masses of talent with numerous skippers and crew having their names engraved on the trophy several times. This report would not be complete without mentioning Rick Nankin, the second oldest person competing. His age is not important here, but the fact that he has now competed in five different Lipton classes in his time is an enviable record, and one which won’t be broken. His first Lipton was aboard a 30-Square, followed by the 1/4-Tonners, L26, Cape 31 and now IRC. Well done Rick!

But also there with their names emblazoned on the trophy as skippers or co-skippers were: Dave Hudson; Mark Sadler; David Rae and Pete Shaw, all playing vital roles for the Clubs they represented. And too, the new faces the Lipton Cup contest.

The elephant in the room needs to be addressed, that being the choice of using ORC as the handicapping system as a trial for two years. I will say this as I see it, warts ‘n all, and I have broad shoulders which can handle the hate mail!

The biggest gripe coming from most quarters was that people felt that the Lipton Challenge Cup contest IS a one-design event so should not have been open to handicap racing. I defy anyone to find that provision in the Deed of Gift.

People also felt that “the first boat over the line is the winner” is really what the Lipton Cup is all about, and that having to wait for handicap results to be calculated would affect the simple understanding of racing. I must admit that the provisional handicap results were out pretty smartly after each race – probably within 30 minutes maximum, often quicker.

So did handicapping really affect anything?

Honestly, probably, as in reality the Cape 31s generally outperformed the two non-Cape 31s, and the results do show that the three Cape 31s did take the top three positions quite comfortably, which to some will indicate that they will always win irrespective. Remember, after the compulsory three courses, ‘RCYC Jackal’ headed the leader board, NOT a Cape 31.

Having said that, there was a distinct feeling amongst competitors that ORC handicapping be given a fair chance and allowed to develop next year. It’s a sentiment with which I agree, and should the people who made noises about entering this year and never did, actually come to the party next year, the event will be bigger, better and even more diversified in terms of the spread of yachts. That’s what we want to see in the sport as a whole and also in this, our premier event.

It’s quite easy to say that as the Cape 31s dominated and their crews sailed them so well with close-quarters racing in every race that they should be given free-reign and be the Lipton class of yacht until another one-design class is found. This has some merit although in reality the C31 fleet needs to rebuild their numbers again for this to ever happen.

My biggest fear is that one does not want to take the Lipton Challenge Cup back to where it was in the L26 days. The L26 is no longer a competitive class – and let’s be honest about this. When did it last stage a nationals, with good numbers, that were nothing more than a regional championship?

The Lipton Cup is all about excellence and the country’s best sailors – and absolutely nothing else. It’s not a youth regatta, nor is it a development regatta. While it is an inter-club contest, that does not mean that every club must, or should, enter. As already stated, it’s all about close racing amongst the best sailors in the country – no more, and certainly no less.

We should never compromise the integrity of the Lipton Challenge Cup contest with mediocrity.

So, what I suggest is that all the naysayers out there should start finding an ORC boat NOW for next year as there are some 50-plus in the country. If you don’t start NOW, you have no reason to whinge nor criticise, nor beg for time, nor make excuses. One does not win a Lipton Cup on a whim, it takes time, energy, effort, preparation and tons of time on the water practicising. It is, after all, the pinnacle of yacht racing in our country.

In closing, the Lipton Challenge Cup contest may not have happened this year had one man not stepped in and dug deep as a sponsor. That man is of course Ellian Perch who is a long time very generous benefactor of sailing in this country, and sponsor of the Royal Natal Yacht Club team for many years.

Sadly he was unable to attend the prize giving dinner, but when he addressed those present at the opening function, he expressed his disappointment at the low entry, and aimed his disappointment at those who had made noises about competing, but never did.

Our sport needs men like Perch, and our sport certainly need generous sponsors like him who want to add extra to events, and enable the sport and events to do special things. I concurred with his disappointment.

2022 Lipton Cup – Final Overall Results