From todays Scuttlebutt Europe:
SCUTTLEBUTT EUROPE #33 - 17 JULY 2002
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LYMINGTON BATH CHAMPIONSHIPS
Lymington River on Sunday 14th July was the venue for the Annual Bath
Championships (racing boats constructed of bathtubs and assorted building
materials).
Design and technological development was clearly way ahead of last year with
a number of new models appearing just before the start. Most of the Baths
were based on one design acrylic mouldings from proprietary builders such as
B&Q and Homebase.
HMS Mysteron incorporated an ingenuous steel girder (lifted from a local
building site) as a keel for ultimate stability, but drag proved to be their
undoing.
Frying Saucer considered the threat from other competitors and invested all
their efforts in defensive measures - a high powered water cannon.
Unfortunately the weight of them and the ammunition was too great for the
acrylic skin and they sank.
Go Bath was based on Go-kart technology. The concept offered the most
successful launch method - 15 knots down the slipway and a huge wave of
water, giving the Harbour Master some concern about the safety of moored
yachts. GO BATH was good for cornering but weight Vs buoyancy didn't stack
up. The rear taps had been left open and the vessel sank in the vicinity of
the race start.
Whirlwind, competing in their first season of Bath Racing, went off to a
good start but suffered when the advanced silver paint coating started to
come off. A later 'incident' on the course led to a capsize, but in
accordance with the RRS, they managed to coax their craft over the line to
win the prize for determination and endeavour.
The catamaran Bath Ship Enterprise again proved formidable, with its
advanced, high tech injection moulded sewage pipes strapped to each side for
stability, but it was no match for J's Fluid who managed to stay vertical
at the race start and miss the meteor attack of flour bombs and eggs, to
cross the line first.
This year the Jetty had to be cordoned off for crowd control - a sure sign
that Bath Racing has more spectators than most sailing events. More than
£60 was raised for the RNLI.
L.T.S.C. Organisers stated "it has all the elements of a Round the World
Race, but without the cost or distance". Next years race is open to all,
with invites going out to local sports clubs and industry. -- David Pitman
