From a Projection sportsboat to a fishing smack that celebrates its 200th birthday next year, from a classic Stella to modern Bavarias, with cruisers from 20 feet to 47, the field for Fox's Two Rivers challenge could hardly be more varied.
The event - described as “the challenge to all your sailing skills” - is such that it's impossible to predict which of these craft is likely to win. It's a nightmare for the handicap committee. But it's worth the head scratching because it's a powerful antidote to the increasing seriousness of yacht racing, even at club level. The Two Rivers puts smiles back into the sport.
Don't expect to see carbon sails and crew uniforms in the Two Rivers. The “two rivers” in question are the Orwell and the Stour, on the East Coast It is a pursuit race and the marks of the course are not buoys but drinking establishments ¬- at Harwich, Shotley, Erwarton, Levington, Pin Mill, Woolverstone and Freston.
Each competing yacht must tow a dinghy and at each “mark” a rower and a runner must transfer to the dinghy in a minimum depth of two metres of water. The dinghy is then rowed ashore, the runner has to go to the mark, purchase a “beverage” and collect a token.
Then the shore party return to and reboard the mother ship before sailing on to the next mark. The first boat to cross the finish line and hand in tokens from all the marks is the winner.
As well as considerable skills in boat handling (not to mention rowing, running and drinking) this race requires understanding of tides and tactics, as it is up to each competitor to decide in what order they visit the seven “marks.”
There is also the question of how many marks each runner should be allowed to visit - and therefore how many rowers and runners each boat needs in its crew!
All in all it is a seriously fun event. (The drinks don't have to be alcoholic, although water is not allowed!)
And there are some seriously good prizes, too. The event is hosted by Fox's YC and sponsored by Fox's Marina and 100 guineas goes to the club of the winning boat, with Fox's chandlery vouchers (£50, £30 and £20 respectively) for the first three boats, plus a trophy for every finisher.
There are special prizes too for the best stories and notable performances of the day (which usually involve a certain amount of East Coast mud). And the event is rounded off with an evening barbecue and live music at Fox's Yacht Club, in Ipswich. There's free berthing for competitors that night, too.
Already there are more than a dozen confirmed entries for the event, which takes place on Saturday July 21st. Organiser Sarah Jane Rogers is happy to accept late entries and the fee is £10. Contact sj-rogers@tiscali.co.uk
for more details.
