2008 World Championship, Warnemünde, Germany

July 8th-12th

To Results

Pictures:

From Peter Zeidler at Segler Bilder

From Jan Wäller at the official Worlds Website

The official Website

Reports by Robert Deaves

Day 1 , Tuesday 8. July – Purdie produces a perfect score

Two tough and challenging races. One clear winner. Karl Purdie (NZL) dominated proceedings on the opening day of the Bombardier OK Dinghy World Championships to win both races to take the early lead. Defending world champion Nick Craig (GBR) lies in second place with a 7th and a 3rd. By this morning, a total of 91 sailors from seven nations had completed measurement and registration and were ready for the battle ahead.

With forecasts varying between 10 knots and 35 knots, depending on who you listened to, the fleet set out to the start area in torrential rain and 10-12 knots of wind. By the time the first start got away at 11.00, the wind was more like 15-18 knots and pretty gusty. A large shift 10 minutes into the beat favoured those on the left of the course and produced a massive split down the ranks as the half of the fleet on the right struggled to get back into contention.

Jørgen Lindhardtsen (DEN) was the early leader and as the wind increased the leaders stretched away from the fleet. Hot on his heals was Purdie, finally taking the lead at the start of the final beat to take the winning gun. Andre Blasse (AUS) clearly enjoyed the fresh conditions to post a second place while Lindhardtsen slipped to third by the finish.

The second race started soon after, but not before waiting for a large black cloud to pass which brought winds exceeding 25 knots. By the time the race started the wind had abated to 12-15 knots, though it strengthened again during the race. Again the race was dominated by black clouds and large shifts. An early shift to the right had seemingly favoured the left hand side again, but Purdie had started mid-line and tacked for the right hand corner before coming back into the first mark on a right hand shift and an enormous lead.

Blasse was again in second with Craig soon working up to third by the leeward mark. The increased wind stabilised for the second upwind leg with few place changes until the final beat. Then another large shift to the left brought about 10 more boats up to the front runners. Purdie’s lead was quite safe though and he took a second race win. Blasse slipped to ninth, while the 2000/01 World Champion Karsten Hitz (GER) hooked into the left hand shift to take second while Craig hung onto third. In the final 200 metres there was more place changing than in the rest of the race as the finish line became a mass of boats all arriving together for an exciting finish to a tough race.

The exhausted sailors were sent home to be greeted by ample quantities of beer and snacks generously provided by many of the event’s minor sponsors such as Quantum Sails, Icebreaker Boats, Green Sails, Sylvester, AXA, Gutaussehen Cosmetics, Gerike Segel and Marina Dellas.

Last night the opening ceremony was held at the Baltic Point Cruise terminal, dwarfed by two enormous cruise ships in port for the day. Greg Wilcox, President of OKDIA was encouraged by the health of the class. He said, “The class has experienced an excellent period of growth in the past few years with a number of new boat builders and more boats built in the last year than in any year in the past 10 years. This has to bode well for the future of the class.” OKDIA also used the occasion to officially launch its exciting new book,’Completely OK – the history, techniques and sailors of the OK Dinghy’, a magnificently illustrated and comprehensive 208 page book charting the first 50 years of the OK Dinghy class. Copies were on sale at the ceremony and are also available this website.

Day 2 – Dogs off chains

With winds strong enough to blow dogs off chains, sore legs and weary arms were the order of the day on day two of the Bombardier OK Dinghy Worlds. Karl Purdie (NZL) maintained his overnight lead with two second places, while defending world champion Nick Craig (GBR) posed his first serious challenge with a 3, 1 scoreline. The first race went to Purdie’s team mate Steve McDowell (NZL).

Race one got underway on time in 15-20 knots of easterly wind and a large sea starting to build. Steve McDowell (NZL) started at the committee boat and crossed to the left to lead round the top mark. Those on the right initially suffered from a more backed wind, although a late left shift brought them back into contention. McDowell showed excellent boat handling skills to extend on the fleet and win by a useful margin. Overnight leader Karl Purdie (NZL) was one of those on the left at the start and had to catch up from 6th at the top mark. Making ground on each leg, he crossed the finish line in second place, just ahead of Nick Craig (GBR).

The second race started in stronger wind conditions which were close to limits set under class rules. This was reflected in only about 60 boats out of the 91 entries managing to finish the race. This time it was Craig who started close to the committee boat end and sailed across to the left before tacking for the windward mark. Many of those boat beneath him overstood the mark, which was quite hard to spot in the large and often rolling waves. Craig led round the mark and was never headed, though Purdie did threaten him a few times on the upwind legs. Purdie recovered to second place again, just yards ahead of Andre Blasse (AUS) in third. The downwind legs proved especially challenging in winds up to 30 knots, and while some sailors excelled at it, others just survived.

So, overnight Purdie maintains his 8 point advantage on Craig, while Blasse moves up to third after posting a 3, 4. Craig clearly enjoyed the extreme conditions and said, “We had wind, waves and sun. It doesn’t get any better than this and not many classes would have held racing in those conditions. Although I didn’t close any points on Karl today, I have kept the pressure on.”

Purdie said, “It was a tough day with awesome reaches and a bit of a washing machine upwind.” Although he ended up with two second places, he admitted to making mistakes. “In the first race, I started at the wrong end and in the second I overstood the windward mark. So I had to play catch up in both races. For both Steve and Nick, the offwind legs were made easier because of their leads, sailing in clear water and extending on the rest of the fleet. But for sure today everyone was overpowered, which meant we were all very equal in terms of boat speed and it was boat handling that made the difference.”

Many of the sailors here welcomed the news that the next days should bring lighter winds, but that remains to be seen. Two more races are scheduled for Thursday at 11.00.

Day 3 – Kiwis dominate and Purdie extends lead

Yesterday’s tough physical conditions were today replaced by tough mental conditions as the fleet at the Bombardier OK Dinghy Worlds contended with large and frequent wind shifts caused by the unstable offshore wind. However regatta leader Karl Purdie (NZL) extended his lead with a third and second, while both race wins went to his Kiwi team mates Alistair Deaves (NZL) and Matthew Steven (NZL).

After waiting around for 100 minutes for a stable wind to develop, the race committee set a course in a very shifty offshore breeze of 8-10 knots. Starting mid-line Alistair Deaves (NZL) was first into a massive left hand shift that brought him to the first mark with a nice lead followed by Jørgen Lindhardtsen (DEN) and Andre Blasse (AUS). Deaves extended his lead over the next legs to take his first ever race win at a OK Dinghy World Championship. Behind him, Blasse dropped to fifth on the downwind, only to recover to second on the final beat. Luke O’Connell (NZL) spent most of the race in third place, but lost his advantage to regatta leader Karl Purdie (NZL) on the final upwind leg. Deaves commented, “Our boats and rigs are ideally suited to these sort of conditions, and that allows us to pop out at the starts and gives us the freedom to tack on the shifts in clear air, without worrying about the other boats.”

And today there were certainly a lot of shifts. Conditions didn’t improve much for race six of the championship, although the wind did increase slightly to 12-14 knots. Again the race was characterised by a large left shift soon after the start. Mark Perrow (NZL) was first to tack away from the biased line, and headed right to round the first mark in the lead. Behind him, Kiwi junior, Matthew Steven (NZL) and Deaves were in close pursuit. By the second windward mark, Steven was in the lead, followed by Purdie and Christian Olesen (DEN), although on the final lap, Olesen lost this to Thomas Hansson-Mild (SWE), posting his best result of the series so far.

After six races, the series seems like Purdie’s to lose. So far he has not placed lower than third and holds a 12 point lead over Blasse and 14 points over defending champion Nick Craig (GBR). Today Craig had an indifferent day, posting an 11th and an 8th.

Day 4 – Mixed fortunes for front runners at OK Worlds

On the penultimate day of the Bombardier OK Dinghy World Championship, Nick Craig (GBR) sailed the best of the day with a race win and a fourth place, while regatta leader Karl Purdie (NZL) struggled with a 16th and a 7th. However, the Z-flag took its toll on more than half the top ten, including Craig, leaving Purdie with a 16 point lead going into the final day.

After two general recalls, race seven started in 10-12 knots from the sea. The forecast Force 6-7 never materialised, so the sailors enjoyed near perfect conditions for this race. Nick Craig (GBR) led out of the committee boat end, never to be seriously challenged during the race. He extended on each leg and with the wind relatively stable for a change, controlled the fleet easily from the front. Second place was dominated by Pawel Pawlaczyk (POL), while third at the first mark, Terry Curtis (GBR) dropped to sixth before climbing back to third on the final beat.

Race eight was where everything changed. Before the fleet finally got underway under a black flag there were three general recalls under the Z-flag. In a slightly decreased wind, Purdie led round the top mark from Thomas Hansson-Mild (SWE), Matthew Steven (NZL) and Craig. Greg Wilcox (NZL) found the best route on the reaches to move ahead by the gybe mark, and then led all the way to the finish to record yet anther Kiwi race win. As the race progressed, the wind dropped to virtually nothing and the final upwind leg was shortened as the boats got slower and slower. Wilcox remained in front, with Hansson-Mild in second and Steven in third. However many of the front runners received Z-flag penalties, Wilcox got one, Steven got two and Craig got one. In a fleet of 91 boats this means a scoring penalty of 18 points per infringement.

Craig came ashore thinking he had closed the gap on Purdie and set up a last day showdown. However his scoring penalty could cost him dear as Purdie has extended his lead despite sailing his worst day so far. However, Purdie is not getting too excited yet. He said, “I have a bit of breathing space, but anything can happen tomorrow.”

Tomorrow’s forecast is 15-18 knots when the final two races will be sailed.

Day 5 – Karl Purdie wins OK World Championship

On the final day of the Bombardier OK Dinghy World Championship, only one race was possible because of violent storms crossing the course area. Though regatta leader Karl Purdie (NZL) performed badly under pressure, placing 16th, it was enough to take the title by just four points.

Race nine started with the usual general recall and then under black flag. Race winner Thomas Hansson-Mild (SWE) takes up the story. “Before the start I noticed a pressure line coming down the course with a right shift in the wind. So I went to the committee boat end and started there are headed out to the right, working the shifts on that side.” It paid off and he rounded the top mark just behind Alistair Deaves (NZL) and Jonathan Fish (GBR). However true to form, Fish crash tacked to avoid Marek Jarocki (POL) and fell out the back of his boat.

Hansson-Mild continued, “It was a tight race from there on with Nick Craig (GBR), Karsten Hitz (GER) and Andre Blasse (AUS) fighting for the lead. Karsten led round one side of the downwind gate, and I went to the other mark and took the lead. The finish was very tight. We all crossed very close. It was very exciting. It feels really good to win the race. My goal here was a top ten and I have achieved that, but it’s a shame not to have been able to sail the final race as I would have had a chance of a medal then.”

With Craig fourth and Purdie 16th in race nine, the potential was there for a final race showdown, with any of five boats still in with a chance of taking the title. However it was not to be, Soon after race nine finished, the skies started to darken and the wind increased. With reports coming through of Force 8 winds further up the coast, the race officer decided to abandon racing for the day and the send the fleet home. By the time the storm had passed so had the time limit for starting a race.

This left Karl Purdie as the 2008 OK Dinghy World Champion, with the three times and defending champion Nick Craig in second, and Andre Blasse picking up his first ever medal at a world championship. For Purdie, winning the title is a dream come true. This year was his third attempt. In 2006 in Belmont, Australia he finished 5th. In Leba, Poland last year he finished third, so having specifically requested sail number NZL 531 for his new Icebreaker boat, it is very fitting that he should finish first this year. Craig says he will be back next year to try again. He was realistic about his chances today, but clearly would have liked to sail the last race, having reduced the points gap on Purdie to within striking range.