Sail Caledonia 2013

[Llafurio]

Graham,
if the prize is not for the overall accumulated race time then it will not represent "the fastest BayRaider overall" but the "BayRaider with the minimum points in certain races".

The traditional Sail Caledonia race rules are such that  to finish one single short rowing race in sixth position by seconds late cannot even be compensated by winning five long sail and oar races by hours each. Thus the usual Sail Caledonia race point system can clearly not be used to find a true winner for the title "Fastest Bayraider 20 overall".

[Tony]

Ha!  Discards?
Shame they can't apply the principle elsewhere - like Wimbledon or the European Cup, for example?  The Brits could really do with other ways of  "not really losing" .


Nice to hear about the Swallow Boat-sponsored cup for the fastest  (Terms and conditions apply) BayRaider.    Er....Sorry. Sponsored  Quaich, that is. (You'll probably need something with two handles to hold the whisky steady after all that rowing  against the wind.)
The only way "Four Sisters" will get into the silverware is if I nick the spoons from the Premier In at Fort William. (Should I get that far!)
.....and the only way, Graham, to beat LLafurio ( if he still has the crew I saw him with last), will be to tie a bucket to his rudder and hope he doesn't notice!  (Llafurio, I have FOUR daughters and none of them are willing to pick up an oar!)

  Anyone up for the Irish Raid?   Fourteen days of it .... and they spell it "Whiskey" over there!

[Graham W]

Matt as sponsor of the BR award and Martin as organiser of Sail Caledonia both agree that the 2013 quaich should be awarded on normal SC rules (race points minus discard). The feeling is that raids like SC are special because of the rowing element. It is driving the evolution of a type of boat that balances the opposing requirements of rowing and sailing - and also the lottery of wind direction in the Great Glen.  The points system does this and without it, as one committee member (skipper of this year's overall winner) put it, SC would become "just another sailing race".

We all know that BR's sail extremely well in nearly all conditions. The challenge for BR competitors now is to make sure that the rowing aspect of their raid is also up to scratch. Not everyone will want to do this but I think that in the right conditions, the BR is surprisingly fast as a rowing boat.

[Graham W]

11 boats are now entered for next year, including two past overall winners.  It is shaping up for quite a scrap!

The barge and first cabin cruiser are fully booked and only one double cabin remains on the second cabin cruiser.  After that, it's camping (on shore or on your boat), B&B's or hiring your own cabin cruiser.

[Reg Barker]

I participated in the 2012 Scottish raid, and really enjoyed myself as crewing member in the Bayraider Ristie. Everybody to me seemed to have lots of fun teasing and challenging other boats. The getting together in the evening and enjoying the food and alcoholic beverages, discussing different topics brought us all together for a memorable occasion. Thanks should go to the organisers and support crew. Yes, I've already signed up again (sorry for those who got to know me).

[Graham W]

I've already signed up again.

Reg,

Congratulations on ordering your new BayRaider.  That means three of the eleven boats registered for Sail Caledonia (so far) are BayRaiders. Matt mentioned (I don't know whether he was being serious) that he was also thinking of entering with a BayRaider, which would raise the possibility of presenting his own trophy to himself.

[Graham W]

James Lowden has entered his Bay Raider 17 'Tarika' to Sail Caledonia 2013, bringing the number of Swallow Boats to 4 out of a total of 12 so far. 

There is currently one berth available on each of the barge and the cabin cruiser.  There may be other accommodation possibilities organised, depending on demand.  Otherwise, it is down to tents or sleeping on board, in both cases supported along the route by a van, the barge HQ 'Ros Crana', 3 safety RIB's and at least three other larger boats.

[Graham W]

An article entitled 'Preparing for a sail & oar raid' has been posted to the library.

[Graham W]

Jonathan Stuart and Simon Russell have both entered their BRe's for the raid, which means that six out of 14 of the boats entered are Swallow Boats.

Sadly, the Caledonian Yawl 'Elsie', 2012's winner, has had to pull out but will be back in 2014.  Swedish entrant 'Sommarvind', overall winner in 2011, is still in and there are also some fast Dutch boats among the competitors.

[Graham W]

For anyone still pondering whether it is too late to enter for Sail Caledonia 2013 (25th May to 1st June), it isn't!

Two more boats have entered since January but Claus has withdrawn his BR20 Llafurio, which means that a third of the 15 entrants are Swallow Boats - all BayRaiders of one kind or another and all eligible to compete for the BayRaider Trophy donated by Matt.  A limited number of comfortable floating accommodation places are still available for those who don't want to camp.

Anyone who has taken part in the raid will tell you that it is very well organised, you get well fed, it is great fun despite being somewhat challenging at times and that going across the picturesque middle of Scotland from sea to shining sea engenders a huge sense of achievement. Enthusiasts enter every year!

This year, there is a small pool of boatless participants who are keen to crew in any boat that will have them (the Press Gang), although some have expressed a preference for Swallow Boats.  If you can't find crew or don't want to participate solo, this may be an opportunity.

One last thing - you are guaranteed to be extensively photographed by John Macpherson from his committee boat, as well as by several others.  You will therefore have as souvenirs some cringe-making shots of your boat badly trimmed, as well as some shots, like the two below (both courtesy of John M), that you will want to have framed.  I had a Photobox photobook made up of mine last year, which I gave to my crew.

[Graham W]

Tim Riley has entered his BR20 'Ristie' for a second year, so we are back up to six Swallow Boats registered for the sail & oar raid at the end of next month.  The total number of boats entered is now 17, which is higher than it has been for many years.

[Rob Johnstone]

On the subject of rowing without rowlocks - I found out at Rutland water last weekend that that a BC23 can be successfully "paddled" using a couple of dinghy oars though I wouldn't want to do it against a current.

Rob J

[Graham W]

You are guaranteed to be extensively photographed by John Macpherson from his committee boat, as well as by several others.

Photographer and writer Kathy Mansfield is now coming to next month's Sail Caledonia http://www.kathymansfieldphotos.com/

Her brief is to find out what makes a good sail & oar raid boat.

[Tim Riley]

Ristie will be back this year to defend our reputation agains Alice-Amy whos skipper jumped ship last year at North Kessock and immediately ordered his own Bay Raider and entered Sail Caledonia. So it looks like we will have the ideal opportunity to see who was right about those tacks on Lock Ness... is it better to sail quicker but a little off the wind.. Watch out Alice Amy we are coming for you!!!
ps if anyone else in a bayraider decides to leave their engine behind please work out how to come to a stop before you reach my stern when entering a lock.
cheers
Tim Riley

[Graham W]

The BayRaider fleet has finished safely and an excellent time was had by all.   We had all four seasons during the week, although there was less wind than usual which meant quite a lot of rowing....

I have posted the first of what I hope will be a torrent of photos to a new Sail Caledonia 2013 gallery http://www.swallowyachtsassociation.org/?page_id=449&album=1&gallery=12  Links to other galleries, including those of Kathy Mansfield, will be posted in due course. In the meantime, Kathy will be on the 'Water Craft' magazine stand at Beale Park next weekend, and has promised to bring her computer along for sneak previews of some truly stunning photos, particularly on Loch Oich.