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Warsash Spring Series 2009 - 1st Overall

Following on from her huge success in 2008 and under the leadership of Tim Thubron, one of the UK's finest racing skippers, Addiction entered the Warsash Spring Series with a crew of Activ Racing sailors. The event consisted of six weekends' racing run by Warsash Sailing Club on the River Hamble with racing taking place on the Solent.

Sunday 15 th March saw the first race get underway; a mild sunny day with light winds making it an excellent test for the new crew on their inaugural race together.  Skipper, Tim Thubron, ably assisted by first mate, Ian Finlay and the crew made the most of the tough conditions and coaxed Addiction along searching for every little patch of breeze.  The previous day's training proved its worth when the crew built on their lead at the first mark, bringing Addiction home in first place in a time of 3 hours 34 seconds – a full 3 minutes ahead of Encore in second place.

Both Addiction and the sun continued to shine for the 2 nd week of the series.  True to expectations, Addiction secured her second victory on the 22 nd March, which saw fine weather and light winds providing very challenging racing.  The crew packed away their thermals and out came the shorts and sunscreen for another victorious race day. With courses varying in length from 13.5 nautical miles for IRC Class 1 down to 11.5 nautical miles for IRC Class 3 combined with a breeze that stayed mainly in the 8 to 12 knot range, the team had to put in plenty of effort to make sure they maintained their lead in the series.  The crew had quickly become a force to be reckoned with and their teamwork, dedication and perseverance paid off as they crossed the line first in IRC Class 2, securing Addiction's second win of the series.

Unfortunately the 3 rd weekend's racing was cancelled due to lack of wind but, with another training day under their belts, including onshore training and tactical instruction, the enthusiastic team were in high spirits for the next weekend's race.

With entries to the event now topping 200, a steady breeze combined with lots of sun, the fourth week of racing saw the Addiction team maintain their unbeaten record and strengthen their chances of winning the overall title. With near perfect conditions once again, and a north-easterly off-shore breeze of 8-14 knots, the Addiction team secured their fourth consecutive win assuring a trophy following the final race.

The final week saw Addiction finish in 9 th position, showing the strength of the competition, this allowed Addiction to secure her title as winners of IRC Class 2 and receive an special award for Outstanding Achievement.

Skipper, Tim Thubron says “This is a fantastic result for the team who have all worked really hard during the races and on the training days put in around the races.  Addiction is one of my favourite boats and the new sails added mid-way through the series definitely sharpened the team's competitive edge and I'm looking forward to working with Addiction and the team again”.

The team are now looking forward to entering Royal Dartmouth Week in August, whilst the Hamble Winter Series is due to start in October 2009.

Activ Race Team wins RSYC Autumn Double

Addiction took an impressive first on Saturday in the last event of the Autumn Solent Double racing event, based out of the Royal Southampton Yacht Club. With only 2 crew from the Activ Race Team on board, Paul Jenkins and Matthew Larkin, Addiction proved herself against 25 other yachts in her class.
The racing started somewhat slowly with a 2 hour delay due to poor wind. When it did fill in the wind continued to shift during the race which meant that legs that were beats for some boats became more of a fetch for others following behind. Eventually a more consistent 6-10 knot south-easterly appeared and the majority of competitors completed the course that had been shortened by the Race Committee after 2-3 hours of racing.

Paul Jenkins comments “Two handed sailing is becoming increasingly popular in the UK. We were pleased with Addiction's performance and coming in first proves the versatility of her design. It was a shame about the poor wind conditions but we did eventually get some good sailing in. Racing two handed certainly put us through our paces and proved a great test of our boat handling, navigational and team work skills. It was great fun, with a great result!”

 

Activ Race Team wins Beneteau Cup 2007

The Activ Race Team swept the board at the Beneteau Cup taking three 1sts, a 2 nd and a 4 th . Dominating the event made up of 55 entrants, the team were able to see off their closest Class A rival, Tim Spalding's ‘Love Shack', winner of the Black Group at Cowes week.

Ian Handley helmed Activ power+sail's Beneteau 40.7, ‘Addiction', with a crew of 12 from the Activ Racing programme.

“We've had some fantastic racing, albeit in light and shifty winds which kept the crew hiked out and on their toes. The competition was particularly close with Love Shack and Beam constantly on our tail, keeping the pressure up. The event overall was great fun with some superb social events, the best on the Beneteau circuit. We're delighted to have won, thanks to all the team. We look forward to defending our title next year.”

The Beneteau Cup is a unique event in that it attracts cruising and racing yachts alike and a full range of sailing and racing abilities. Entrants include professional crews in Class A's IRC division through to Class B ‘Handicap Nationale' cruiser racers and Class C family rally enthusiasts who get to pursue a Treasure Hunt on their first day at the event. To provide fair racing to all, the classes are split in two according to their ratings.

The event was held over 3 days in August, based in Cowes on the Isle of Wight and with the racing under the control of the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club.

Activ Race Team equal first at Easter Regatta

The Red Funnel Easter Regatta saw the first competitive outing for ‘Addiction', Activ's new Beneteau 40.7, result in 2 nd place, on equal points with the Class 1 winner. The event was a light wind affair with only 5 of the 7 scheduled races possible.

Day one had a light, shifty Northerly, and Addiction posted two 2nds to finish the day equal on points with two other boats. The new crew started pulling together during the day and showed good speed in the fickle conditions.

Day two had no wind for four hours and race 3 turned out to be a patchy, drifting affair. With the wind finally deciding to fill in from the opposite side of the course to where Addiction was placed, the final result was a disappointing 8 th . Overall, the series stayed wide open with one of the other series' leaders posting a double figure score.

Race four had a shifty sea breeze and once again Addiction's speed and ever improving crew allowed another 2 nd to be posted, thus leaving her leading overnight by one point.

The last day, Easter Sunday, was warm and windless and as the midday decision whether to race drew closer, it looked like Addiction would win her maiden regatta. At 11.55am a sea breeze started, and in the best wind of the weekend a final race was held.

Seventy boats on a 1.4 mile course, in a force 3 made for very tight racing with clear air at a premium. Excellent crew work on the course enabled Addiction to post another 2 nd place, only being beaten by a few seconds on handicap. The overall points tally had ‘Addiction' equal with ‘Vortex' but finishing 2 nd on the tie break.