The fast cruise to Beaulieu

The up and coming fast cruise to Beaulieu will be a whole new experience for me. I am chartering a yacht for the very first time. I started sailing whilst at school in the early '60s and spent the latter years of the '60s, all of the '70s and early '80s racing Merlin Rocket dinghies and Dart catamarans.

 After a break of several years to raise a family I returned to sailing 3 years ago I have spent the last 2 years crewing on Charles Whittam's Shadow, participating in a number of JOG offshore races and Cowes week last year. Now that I have just about managed to "learn the ropes" Shadow is now up for sale/(sold) and so I am at a loose end for January and February. Some of the regular crew then decided to charter a yacht for the January and February fast cruises.

Originally there was going to be four of us, Simon Hughes, Mark and Anne Blunden and myself who have all sailed together regularly. Anne then persuaded Mark that he should make his annual visit to his parents on the Isle of Wight and they both pulled out (Mark: This is a month too late!).

Simon has found three friends (as many as 3!!)who are potential new members and they have agreed to join us on the boat. (Lets hope they sign the DDs before I put them off)And so we have five people on board at present, three of them with whom I have never sailed, on a GibSea 37 and with me in charge and my deposit at risk.

I would recommend that the rest of the fleet should keep well clear of us and stay a long way behind. (Don, I think that this design of boat is quite slow. We don't want to carry Shadow's handicap rating forward, especially as we will have some newcomers. I think between about 0.300 or 0.400 would be about right).

To be continued after the event.