Calendar 2011
After many discussions, deliberations and poring over tide charts, the Sailing Secretary has published the final version of the Calendar 2011.
Have a look at the page on this site or download and print a copy in a .pdf format.
Here are a few dates to notice, in no particular order:
Have-a-Go Days
Two Have-a-Go days are planned for this year: the first is on Saturday 11th June and will be preceded by the Youth Regatta. Over the last few years, the Youth Regatta has been marred by strong winds, so the sailing committee has decided to make it a fun event, with games and silly prizes. Even if it's blowing a gale, there will be things to do!
The second Have-a-Go day is going to take place on Saturday 20th August, to coincide with the Shoreham Airshow. This date has proved to be popular with passers-by, who came for a walk on the beach and watch the planes and had to admit that the best place to watch the airshow was from the sea.
Of course, as with all events, the club needs its members to help. Bring friends, bring equipment - buoyancy aids, etc - and take people out... The more the merrier!
Open meetings
The Laser Open traditionally finds its place towards the end of May, depending on the tides. This year will follow the same pattern, with Sunday 22nd May as a chosen date. It gives our occasional Laser sailors time to dig out the wetsuits, change a few bits on their boats and take part in the action! Notice of race and sailing instructions will be posted on our Sailing and Notices of Race pages closer to the time.
A little later than in the previous years, the Topper Open will keep us all busy on Saturday 9th July. Exams will be over, school holidays not quite there and the water should be a little warmer. Hop on a Topper and join the race! Again, the notice of race and sailing instructions will be posted on our Sailing and Notices of Race pages closer to the time.
Laser Bonanza
New this year, the Laser Bonanza! David Trout and Steve Lynch, who look after the interests of the Laser fleet in the sailing committee, will do their best (and more) to get as many Lasers as possible on the water on Sunday 17th July. There will be training offered for all boats and all skills and other classes will benefit too! With so many Lasers in the boat compound, we're quite likely to get a great turnout.
Similarly, the Topper fleet is planning a Totally Topper Time when several dates are being considered. More about it later in the year...
Pursuit race
It's been a bit of a hit-and-miss with pursuit racing over the last few years. Often programmed at the end of busy days (training or Have-a-Go days), the only participants were those who had enough stamina to launch their boat again and go sailing before hitting the bar.
This year, there's no confusion, there's only one pursuit race on the programme. It's going to happen on Saturday 2nd July and will follow the timetable established last year, unless our results guru tweaks the times a bit. Whether you're on a Topper and you get your full one-hour sail, or you're on a fast mean machine and you go caning along, trying to catch up everybody in the mere 18 minutes allocated, the outcome is the same: there's a barbecue after the race, where everyone can unwind and enjoy the evening. For info, you can see the start times allocated to each fleet in the file Start times for a pursuit race of 60 minutes and 75 minutes on this website.
Family fun weekend
To conclude this brief review of the sailing calendar, there is going to be a new and improved version of the Family Fun Weekend. On the Saturday last year, the weather wasn't helping, with gale force wind and strong chop. However, we had one of the most fantastic social evenings in recent years, as well as a great time on and off the water on the Sunday. Some members regretted that there wasn't any formal racing included in the order of events. Well this year, there will be racing too! More to come later...
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