Sunday 31st August to Friday 5th September are the dates for the 2008 Looe Champs.

Looe sailing club are looking forward to welcoming the Merlins back for another champs. 

Please save this date.

Great to see next year's champs are in good hands we would have loved to be there with you.  I am not sure whether you realise but school's start back on the 3rd September next year which is right in the middle of the week.  I am sure this will affect many young crews, teachers etc., who will have to be there for the beginning of term.  Is there any reason that both Salcombe week and the Champs have to be during term time do they not want families there.  I know from past experience that Looe is a wonderful family holiday destination (as well as an excellent sailing venue) and we have been looking forward to it since we left after the last time.  Is there any chance it could be moved back a week?

When is Salcombe Week next year?

6th July - 11th July as far as I know

Sorry to say we all won't be able to make it either. Hywel will be teaching, and Morgan will be back at school so Hywel snr and Jane are out as well which probably means Gareth and Tom won't make it. So that's three boats down. 
It's a real shame because Looe is an amazing venue and It is being organised by two top blokes who we would love to be able to support in their first outing as champs organisers.
Is there no chance of the week before?

Yes Salcombe is 6th - 11th July, the other end of the 'hols' from Looe. I suspect that 2008 is one of those silly tide years - it happens occasionally......................

That'll be me and the Leney's out too.

Having just come back from Looe I wouldn't have thought the tide made too much difference - it's beach launching anyway and sailing well out in the bay. The week before would be awful - it's Bank Holiday and the place will be heaving with grockles. Beach launching was bad enough last week with kids digging sandcastles in the middle of the coned off boat-way!!

How come we haven't got early August as usual???

Are we talking about the dates of Salcombe Merlin Week 2008, or Salcombe Week 2008?

Would the week before be that bad, it would only be full of 'Grockles' for the weekend, and they wouldn't have much accommodation anyway if the town was fully booked with merlin sailors. 
Also the week before would mean people would only have to take four days off work rather than five. 
Please consider it.

That'll mean us out too.... what's going on!

Greece anyone - know a fantastic place in Zakynthos for a couple of weeks!

Looks as if the Nationals next year have a potential problem due to the schools returning during that week.
Could loose some key mid fleet members.
Redwings only sail from Looe and Tenby. Would it not be worth asking the club if there was some flexibility as revenue could drop by 25% or more with the current projection. So would it not be in there interest and the MRs interest to try and move both events back one week. 
My expereience of the Redwings is they have been amenable guys to deal with in the past, though nearly 20 years ago (oh was it that long!).
Anyway, see you all at the Nationals 2007.
Bye for now
Barnsie and Pete

Why go to a holiday resort like Looe out of season, the whole purpose is to encourage the whole family to go?
Why not put Looe back another year rather than loose support, Go somewhere where they are happy to have us during the holiday period or better still persuade Looe to change the date.
John 3652

we are investigating a change in time now that Salcombe dates have been confirmed.  
Regarding years.  Venues are booked about five years in advance.

Thanks

Having purchased a Merlin and sailing with a teacher (my wife) we would love to do Salcombe or the Nationals next year however as the dates stand neither will be possible. I guess from the last posting that the nationals date could change and we are hopefull that it will end up in the school holidays.

Salcombe was going to be very difficult next year with the early week nearly 3 weeks before the end of school term (23/7) so we thought perhaps we'll go to Looe instead ........Anyone fancy Salcombe Yacht Club Regatta ?

Hi all, 

Thanks for the response. We have spoken again with Roger from Looe and they are holding a committee meeting this Friday to discuss the possibilities of bringing the Merlin Champs dates forward by one or two weeks. (Either 17th August or 24th August). We hope very much that they can accomodate this change given they have already had to notify harbour authorities, town people etc .. 

We'll keep you all in the loop.

Toughen them up. Tell the kids they can only go if they truant and hitch hike down there.

Darn, if it hadn't been for those blasted kids I could have won these Champs

Just to back up what others are saying; I'm a teacher and my son will be just starting college so that is another two boats that were intending to do the nationals next year that won't be able to attend. Hope you canget the dates changed.

I can do it!! 

Just wanted to add a bit of posativity to this thread!!

Perhaps you posItively should spend some time in school.

It's not people being negative, people positively want to go! 

If all the people who don't normally but have expressed interest due to the venue do turn out -  if we can get the dates changed - it could be the biggest champs for a very long time.

This is good!

Hopefully Looe will be able to help us out on this one, and if we do all those who want to go in school holidays will support the event. 90 boats would be a realistic target at this rate!

erm....WOOF!

Okay Peeps Took me two days to recover from fri nights antics???????????/ But onto more important things?? My FIRST CHAMPS was Looe and from what I can remember it was AWESOME?? Done a few since then but seriously nothing really came close - the Barmaid 4 the blokes -the commodore 4 the ladies - the riding of the bouys down the high street and of course who can ever forget or even remember the Admiral Boscombe??????????? So fingers crossed Looe SC Let us all come down and enjoy your wonderful hospitality????????? OH Yeah forgot to mention someone from from Hampton won it that year!!!!!!!!!! Cheers AAAAALLLEEEEEEEEEEEZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!
Sorry forgot to mention my parents are going to be there cos they haven`t been to the Champs for a few years?? Does Butlins ring any bells with the the slightly more mature generation of the Rocket fleet?? Cheers Moi!!!!!!!!!!!

Of course people want to go to their class championships.
In the Merlin Rocket Class for instance the Championship was historically held outside School Holidays because it was primarily a sailing event and the venues were also holiday resorts and the additional load of 100-230 fleets was deemed to be too great. (Some will remember the Parking Ticket Scandal of Weymouth in 1966.)  Many people treated it as a bachelor (Of either sex.) event (I hesitate to say Singles!). Some venues are a long drive and a conflict of venues and events led to a very sad accident on the road due in large to fatigue that ruined that years Championship not just for the unfortunate sailor involved.
Times change social customs and pressures change. Fleets across the sailing world get smaller and looking at a ten year analysis of clubs and classes across the varying sub-sets from Keel boats to single handed dinghies it seems that neither date nor venue (Salcombe for Merlin Rockets and other examples may be an honourable exception here!) is the factor that decides attendance. What does is availability, of venues and crews, with so many people racing more than one class and the subsequent crew shortages it’s an across class joined up regatta programme that’s needed. Inevitably there will be people who cannot make it – Exams, Exam Marking, School Trips, CCF Camps, all of which mitigate against the June-July Slot, August which is a zoo anywhere, End of August beginning September is the start of the State School Year. Let’s take a few vaguely similar classes, Merlin Rocket-RS200-RS??-Firefly, National 12, Lark, the smaller keelboats put a week between them to allow recovery and reorganisation and you have a pretty long championship season.
The RYA has a well meaning and hard working race management group which from its newsletters spends a lot of time discussing and working on some pretty esoteric subjects, perhaps it could be persuaded to look at the subject of  Regatta Calendars and perhaps just perhaps, more people could be satisfied and championship numbers might climb again. And just possibly a (HIPS) type risk assessment for a venue could be arrived at which (risk assessment.) adds to the cost and the time of the largely volunteer work force that make our championships so enjoyable.

Take Will Warrens example leave the wife and kids at home (or husband and kids), relieve yourself of all the associated hassle/endless questions and compromise - have a great time (you deserve it) and win... 

This advice comes free.

I think this has been a realy useful thread for the committee - it is a great way to get feedback.

Just a couple of points to make though:

Some of the people making the noise don't actualy come to the Championships - no Pages or Bowen Perkins this year for example. I am not sure who Craig and Carol are but of course we all want as many people of all ages to come and join in. Certainly the Toshes have a point and I guess Jeremy Williamson and the Winders might too.

The other side of the coin is that the later date wont clash with as many other events - 12's, Fireballs, Fireflys, Larks, GPs, Cowes, Poole, Falmouth, etc - many of our cosmopolitan sailors do other things too. Accomodation will be easier too and we wont have the problem we had last year, when people said Salcombe and the Champs were to close!

On the subject of the tides at Looe: They do matter. It is best to choose a week when it is low tide in the middle of the day, because the whole beach is available for launching/recovery (otherwise every one has to go down a narrow slipway) and the committee boat and support boats have to come out of the tidal harbour in the morning and go back in the evening. Looe Sailing Club are very good at the organization - we must listen to what they say. Probably one weeks change wouldn't work but 2 might - if they don't have another event clashing!

I am sure Downham and Dolby will do their best to reach an amicable solution - but the feedback might be useful for future years too.

So if you are affected - why not join in and let us know?

There are a couple of reasons for Salcombe Week being so early next year.  During the following week the tides would be awful, and the week beginning 20th July the harbourmaster would restrict the number of boats he was prepared to allow on the start line to quite a bit less than 50.  So, with 100 boats there this year, the decision was made to go for the earlier week.

Pat,
Very strange comment you have posted and very misleading too under the circumstances.
Some of the people you mention have provided a large part of the class support at the championships over many many years and one of them is lending your son his boat!!!

I think Pat's post is very much to the point. 
The Championship (In any sport or class of sailing boat.) is just that a Championship Sporting event.To do anything else is to demeen the Champion. In the case of a mainly (But not exclusively.)amateur and Corinthian Class like the Merlin Rocket it will happen that those not retired will need to take holiday from their "Day Jobs" to take part. Those who want a holiday can of course still take part, and or do Merlin Rocket Salcombe Week (Not every entry this year came to the line, when others might have liked to come.) or one of the other many Weeks sailing/Racing at any venue you can think of. Yachts and Yachting did a very good feature on this (Sailing weeks.) earlier this year.
The windows of opportunity to run a Championship at almost any venue are small. There is a derth of venues. The insurance and 'elf n safety rules forced on organisers mean planning ahead is necessarily pretty long term. All sailors in all classes should be glad people are prepared to do this for what is a future generation.

John, I'm sure Pat didn't mean to knock the Perkins and Pages support of the class and the Championships. Merely point out that as with all these events it is impossible to please everyone, there is of course a happy medium that the committee will strive to achieve. 

If the Champs are too early then they may clash with Cowes week, or when A-Level results are being released, conversely later in August/ early September the wind is often better (less hot summer breathless days), accommodation is easier to find and their are fewer tourists filling up the restaurants and bars, as for tides I'm not even going to start on that.

I think this thread has raised an interesting issue however may I suggest that further comments be emailed direct to the committee or organisers and we'll update you re Looe as and when appropriate.

Cheers

Alex

Hope this gets resolved soon so everyone can book early and hopefully not miss out on both the two big events. One reason for going to Looe last week to watch (and measure) the Larks was to suss out the venue for the Merlins next year as 3 days is about right for us. Don't know if school terms will affect us then - depends on daughter.
Allez obviously sank a few in Looe - it's the Admiral BosCARNE and Sandy (2121 helm) used to run the bars there back around 1970!!

I don't think Sage is quite right when he says that not all boats at Salcombe this year came to the line.  I've just had a look at the full results and even the last (100th) boat posted 2 results during the Week - the rest of his races are recorded as "DNF"

I stand corrected but 2 out of six isn't commitment to the sailing is it.

I'm going to close this but not delete it as the info might be useful to onlookers.

As everyone can see it's being dealt with, so i think we can get Pwlelli out of the way and worry about Looe afterwards. It's in good hands.