Brightlingsea Invitation

[Mike Gilbert]

Cutters, please find the attached invitation. Saturday 17th is the same day as the Hamble River Raid and I know a lot of our travelling rowers are committed to that.  But if you fancy a 4.5 mile race on the Sunday in Essex, then this is a possibility - there is a trophy for the Claydon Class... If interested then reply to this thread...

Hello Rowers,

The Brightlingsea Rowing Festival is only a month away and we're
hoping to see you here on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th May. All boats
are welcome for both/either day, be you fixed or sliding seat. Please
let us know asap if you know you can or can't make it so we have a
rough idea of numbers...

Saturday's plan is to kick off about 10am with launching and
signing-in, with the race briefing at 11am. We have arranged parking
for trailers and towing vehicles nearby, but please could extra cars
find their own space. The Colne Yacht Club will be open, and there
will be a cake stall outside as well as the nearby Coach House for
tea/coffee etc.
The main race (approx. 3.5 miles) will start at 1130 off the Hard;
there will be a break for lunch then we will run three short sprint
races for mens/ladies/mixed crews. These will be on a time trial basis
and the mens' class will start at 2pm.
Colne Yacht Club will have their barbecue set up for hotdogs, burgers
etc (we asked for better burgers than last year!) and their bar will
be open; the Coach House also sells excellent food of the
bagels/panini/jacket potato type.
We are aiming to finish racing by about 5pm with prizegiving at 6 in
the Colne Yacht Club.

Please stay for the evening as well- after the prizegiving CYC will be
serving food (a set menu, no bar meals) and later on we'll have a
ceilidh with a great band called Hunt The Wren.  Tickets for the
evening will be £7/head in advance from BCRC (£9 on the day), with
food extra (approx. £7 per meal) payable to CYC on the night. CYC only
have room for 90 people so please book up now to avoid disappointment!

There are lots of places to sleep in Brightlingsea so no excuse not to
stay for the Sunday as well- please ask if you would like us to send
you a list. If you wish to stay, or just want to leave your boat here
overnight, we can arrange either a mooring or overnight parking, but
please, let us know beforehand so we can make sure of availability.

Sunday will be a more socially-oriented day with BCRC holding a 'Come
and Try' session from 9-11am (open to all comers, an opportunity to
give non-rowers a taste of what it's all about); sign-in for the race
to Rowhedge is from 11am. Race briefing will be at 1145, and the start
is at 1230 out in the river.  The race to Rowhedge is approx. 4.5
miles; at Rowhedge we'll have a stop for lunch (the Anchor pub serve
food and the Heritage Hut will have tea/coffee/cakes/soup on sale).
High water is 1545- leave for the trip back to Brightlingsea when
you're ready, but we will be running a Crew Swap for anyone who
fancies a go in a different boat with different people. We will match
up people and places on the day when we know how many want to join in-
sign up on the day (or day before). The more competitive amongst you
can time your run, and we will put the times up on our website - no
prizes, just for fun. We aim to be back in Brightlingsea around 5pm to
give everyone time to get home.

Entry will be £2 per head for each race; we will have safety boat
cover for both days but we will require coxes to wear a lifejacket,
and if you have a vhf radio please bring it with you. Passengers are
fine, but not required, and also must wear a lifejacket.
Saturday's prizes are 1st, 2nd, 3rd boats on time, 1st boat under 15',
1st Harker's Yard Gig, 1st Clayton Skiff and 1st sliding seat boat.
There's also the prize for 'getting best value out of the course' (we
couldn't call it the wooden spoon!). There will be small prizes for
1st in each of the sprint races.
Sunday will have small prizes for 1st fixed and 1st sliding seat boat
to Rowhedge.

If you won a trophy last year, Please don't forget to engrave it with
the year and boat's name (if possible) and return it to us!

Looking forward to seeing you here,
Lucy Harris (on behalf Brightlingsea Coastal RC)