A View from the Beach A Parents eye view of Paignton Sailing Club. Contender & Wayfarer Nationals 2024

Published 21:23 on 18 Jun 2024

This was going to be a four-day event will I survive?!

Wednesday, whilst I was still at work, competitors started arriving. Luckily Nick was around and managed to get one of the bollards out, and some of the sailors went for a practice. In the evening, we still had Club Racing on, which was well attended (with Chicken stew or Baked potatoes afterwards), so the clubroom was full. With light winds and a glorious sea, what could possibly go wrong?

Thursdays weather forecast looked awful! Nick was watching the NCI weather station like a hawk, and it looked just like the forecast, with a big wind spike predicted to come through just as the racing was supposed to start! There was much conversation

between the race team and the class associations about whether we should go or not, and having delayed until 12, it was decided to not go, but to start early the next couple of days to try and catch up. The evening was the Commodores reception, which was well received, and the food looked delicious after all the work that had been put into it, Angela could have a well-deserved drink.

Friday saw an early start to try and make up for some of the lost races, but the weather soon built, and Id had a quarter of the sailors come ashore before theyd finished the second race. The ones that stayed out though were flying along. Tom had taken his camera and took some fantastic action shots (much better than mine!). The three races in the programme were finished, although no extras were done the sailors were just too tired by this time. We were a bit light on beach crew, so Luca came running round from the harbour wearing my waders (if only I had a picture of that!). The Contenders got beer for their tallys and there was tea and cake in the clubhouse for the Wayfarers. Hog roast for tea, and an interesting quiz, compered by Dale. I skipped out on this as I recognised some of the questions and secured the Green, whilst my son, Ben fitted springs to the ribs.

I was woken up in the early hours of Saturday morning with the sounds of a storm! Luckily, I was able to hide under the bedcovers and pretend it wasnt happening! Day three always seems the hardest for me, but the harbour was looking great, and we were hopeful the wind would be a bit calmer. The wind was definitely blustery, so the dreaded AP flag was raised, and racing was postponed for a couple of hours. This gave me the opportunity to go into town and spend loads of money. It seemed like there was a gap in the weather just before lunch, so with only about 15 minutes notice all the Contenders were on the beach. I took over the job of tallys, just as another 5-minute squall came through with a load of rain - luckily, I could hide in the tent! This appeared to be how the afternoon progressed, with lovely sailing sunny weather, followed by short bursts of rain and massive gusts. After only two races, the competitors came back to the shore, tired and appreciating their beer courtesy of Bays.

The ladies in the kitchen did us proud again, with a curry for the Contenders, whilst the Wayfarer sailors went downstairs to the Stillhouse and had pizza. Another great night in the club, where we all left Dale running the bar and went home for a well-deserved rest.

Sunday dawned with practically perfect conditions at Paignton, we always save the best sailing weather for the last day. The sailors launched asap after the committee boat could leave the harbour and they managed to get three races in on the water, with only a couple of boats retiring you can always tell its champagne sailing when the boat park is empty! It was Lees first quiet day as CSL talk about a baptism of fire! I had help on the beach again and it all went smoothly we even had a chance to sample the beer the sailors had been drinking, before packing away.

There were loads of trophies presented and everyone went away happy. Both classes had some great characters and there was always someone happy to help with the running of the event. Next time Id like to spend more time with the Wayfarer sailors, as I hardly saw them, being on the beach most of the time (our paths only crossed in the bar!).

Thanks to both classes for a great time at their Championships, and we hope to see them again soon.

Last updated 21:25 on 18 June 2024