In a break from tradition our bi-annual club regatta will take place on 11th June this year, and not the traditional Whit Weekend date, which we hope will enable more members to take part and attract greater participation.
As a further break, the club is preparing a “fun based event” with a move away from the traditional racing format, as follows:
- The plan for the Cruisers & One Design keel boats is a mini costal race potentially using fixed navigation marks, possibly including the Kish, with the aim of giving a 3 – 4 hour sail around the bay. The handicap will be at the discretion of the committee, based on ECHO, with a “Have ECHO” and “Do not have ECHO” approach, to encourage all non-competitive sailors to participate. The more competitive racers are expected to be at the ICRA Championship in Howth. We won’t be following the traditional class start approach.
- For the Dinghies, we intend to run a pursuit race in for all dinghies, Flying Fifteens and Squibs – a “Tortoise and Hare” race, when the slow boats start first, and the faster boats are gradually released, then after a fixed time, the leader on the water is declared the winner. As a second dinghy race we will adopt the Frostbite style racing, and based on an aggregate score of both races, we will award podium place prizes.
We hope to see you all on the day and would be pleased to receive offers of assistance from non-competing participants, as we need to resource several ribs and race committees. Please let Karin in the office know if you can help.
The Après sail will be equally fun, with the Moontour and others facilitating water based activities.
Mark the day in your diary, and watch out for the Notice of Race and on-line entry form in the next couple of weeks.
Neil, Sailing Secretary