UK Dinghy Racing
Newsletter No 2
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This is the second issue of the Newsletter and I hope to produce one a month, with possible extra issuse during the summer when there is more sailing activity.

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Both the Newsletter and the site are non commercial, I do this as a hobby in the evenings and weekends.

The aim of the site is to entertain like minded people who have a passion for dinghy racing or sailing. I have tried to keep the site as specific as possible, ie UK not worldwide although the info and chat may be of interest to many. The listings of Sailing Clubs and Class Associations are purely British so there are no hugh lists of useless links to try and find one useful one.

On the question of links I have spent many hours searching for the UK sites but am sure I have missed some, so if you find any relevant ones please send them to me.

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1998 Spa Regatta

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If you havent already seen it there is an excellent site for the Spa Regatta.
At the time of writing this the event is about to finish, but I am sure the site will remain for some time.
Check it out at:

sparegatta.org

There is a first class results system, which allows you to search by class, country and the number of placings you wish to see. Why cannot more major regattas offer this sort of service? Can you see the RYA doing it for Weymouth?

Highlight of the week so far is the performance of Michael Blackburn in the Laser fleet with placings in the first 5 races of 1 2 1 2 1. With a day to go he lies 4th in class and has more race wins than anybody, and that includes Olympic Gold Medalist Robert Scheidt.

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Fantasy Sailing Championships
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The first competition of the year is still accepting entries on the site, with a steady flow of entries, dont forget to enter by 30th June.

If you have any ideas for future competitions then please email me and we will see if its possible.

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Whitbread Round The World Race
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I feel almost sad to say the race is over!
Nolonger do I need to access Ceefax 3 times a day and the Web site every evening. Something is now missing fron my daily routine.

I am sure that we are all, along with Lawrie, disappointed with the performance of Silk Cut.

There are obiously many reasons for the result, loosing a mast is bound to knock you back, but lets face it the boat did not look like a winner at the time.

Now dont get me wrong, I am a HUGE admirer of Lawrie Smith, and being a member of Elton SC when he was just beginning to make his mark in the 70s, I know the awesome talent the man has, but it appears that his reluctance to move far away from the rhunb line meant that he did not make the huge gains often seen on other boats. Easy to say after the event I know, but Paul Cayard always seemed to be in control and showed the ability to claw his way back after making a bad call, often sailing as much as 90 degrees off the straight line course to seek out better wind angles and stronger breezes.

The other thing that strikes me is the ability of Cayard to always appear media friendly. There always appeared to be more email from his boat, and his appearance was of a man who wanted to and enjoyed talking with the press and TV. Again I suppose this is easier if you are winning.

Now we must wait to see what unfolds for the next race, a new sponser, different stopovers, new class rules, and new starting and finishing ports are all either arranged or promised; and what about a British entry or two? who will take up the challenge, I am sure the race is a doddle compared with raising the cash.

I shall be tuning into Eurosport tonight to see the pictures of the final leg as I have been in France for a week and have not yet seen it, 11.30 UK time.

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Results Service
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With the summer on us and sailing events a plenty I am considering adding a results service to the Web Site.

If anyboby is interested I am keen to hear from them.
The idea is to just publish a short 50 word report together with the first 6 placings. It will be relatively easy, and if the reports are submitted by email they can be converted to html in a couple of mins.

Please let me know if you would like to take advantage of such a service and I will decide if the demand is there.

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Additions to UK Dinghy Racing
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Since the last newsletter ther have been a number of additions to the site.

Several new Clubs have been added to the list that now numbers 43.

Doug Craib has sent me the URL of Lancing SC

freespace.virgin.net/nick.m

This is an excellent club site with unique content, and Doug is planning to hold chat sessions on the site. Give them a visit and let him know your opinions.

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Anyway thats all for now.
Please keep sending the emails, links should have, suggestions, comments on the Newsletter or the site, and anything you would like published.