Dear Fellow Sailors
Well a year of our tenure as Captains Yachts has flown by and we are grateful for all the support, notably from Tony and Terry, who have worked hard behind the scenes to keep things running smoothly.
We said this time last year that the weather could only improve for the forthcoming season and after the July and August we had in 2009, the odds must be surely be stacking up in our favour for the 2010 season.
There was a very good turnout for the end of season Wash-up Meeting and the general consensus was more of the same, so the Racing Calendar has been put together along the same lines as last year, promoting both IRC and PY racing. Yacht racing kicks off again on 7th April with a Spring Series of four Pursuit Races and continues through to 22nd September by which time the evening light has gone. There will be a few changes in the IRC Class this season with Jacobi sporting new sails and a new rating, a stunning little Corby 25 arriving to replace Jetta, and Gotcha!’s replacement still tbc! One thing for sure is that competition will be strong so please forward your IRC certificates to Penny in good time along with your entry forms.
The PY class remains strong and is continuing to grow. The invitation remains open to all yachts to come and join the PY fleet races, with their own starts and separate Series Trophies which will be eagerly contested again.
As well as the Wednesday evening focus it is hoped that Helford yachts will be competitive again in the COGs series in both PY and IRC, which has its first race to Fowey on 1st May. The Helford River Club Regatta is on 18th July. After a very successful event in 2009, in which a number of Falmouth boats joined us, they have pledged to come again. Please enter early so we can run a number of classes if necessary.
The plans for Falmouth Week are being finalized as we write this and Helford’s day will continue as normal on the first Sunday, 8th August. This year’s Falmouth Week programme also includes the Pendennis Cup for Superyachts and the IRC Southwest Championship which runs from Monday 9th to Wednesday 11th August, and this should help to swell the entries.
The annual L’Aber Wrac’h Race will take place on Friday 25th June, and it would be great to see a similar number of yachts cross the starting line as last year, but hopefully with fairer winds so many more can finish. Finally, the Autumn Spirit Series, which is jointly organized between HRSC and Royal Cornwall Yacht Club, rounds up the season from 19th September to 24th October.
Hopefully this has whetted your appetite for sailing and we look forward to seeing you on the water shortly. In the meantime, if you have any ideas or questions about racing your yacht at any level, please get in touch.
Regards Garth & Stuart - Captains Yachts
