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It is surprising how an idea can come together aided by good networking and weather, and that set the scene for informal racing on Saturday afternoon. We ended up with 22 boats participating in a series of 5 two-lap races giving amble opportunity to finesse starts and strategies to get upwind effectively. The weather even held out for a barbeque in the evening. Sunday was a different situation all together; no viable wind all morning (as forecast) and that left low numbers to contest 2 back-to-back handicap races. The final event of the day was a coached introduction to racing session. This proved productive for those who participated, and we will be repeating this format over the next 2 weeks.
The good weather also allowed us to continue to sort out the Dinghy Park. The efforts over the last few months to identify unused and abandoned dinghies has resulted in 30 berths available for re-allocation and there are still more boats tagged for disposal/removal thanks to John Murrel and Sandy Sharp, and to Steve Tanner clearing junk and strimming out jungle-like berths. Disposal of the fiberglass hulls and assorted junk, left by unidentified owners), is like to cost thousands which is why we had to introduce better control measures and not allow dinghies to languish unused for years and rot away. We also aspire to get rid of all the tyres in the Boat Park and that comes at a cost. Please do not bring your old tyres to the Club.
For those who have been down to the Club last week, you may have noticed the return of the swam and flamingo pedalos that are sited at the far end of the boat park over the winter months. The decision to extend the facility to Cotswold Canoe Hire was not taken lightly. It is a temporary commercial decision for a company that has given us canoes and discounts. It was only considered possible because we now had 30-plus empty berths, there was space at the far end of the park, and they will be gone by Easter. The fee raised is allocated to the Dinghy Park re-organisation and tidy-up.
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