Radical new ideas are coming to the fore for next month's Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC) regatta. The Notice of Race just published outlines a “King of the Bay Challenge” open event. (Downloadable below).
In a change from the format over recent years, the DMYC has broken away from the combined clubs format which the DMYC considered to be a 'Dublin Bay “Deja Vu” race', and is offering a different format that it hope provides a novelty and encourage interest in to participation from the less competitive side of the sport. The emphasis is on 'fun and participation' with a less competitive element as the serious racers will be at Howth for the ICRA Championship.
The features of our format are, for cruisers;
· A costal race for racing cruisers based on standard Echo, which disregards the personal performance of the crew and gives the more accomplished a chance to use the boat driven handicap.
· A costal race for non-racing cruisers, when DMYC awards handicaps, if there are none available.
· A sheltered costal race for the sports boats based on the DBSC Sports Boat handicap scheme
For Dinghies:
DMYC plan to run a pursuit race, for all monohull dinghies of approximately 100 minutes, a tortoise and hare type format, with the first home being the winner. Then DMYC will run a “frostbite” type handicap race divided into fast and slow boats. This format is successfully run in the UK, for events like the Tiger Trophy at the Bloody Mary SC.
As further encouragement DMYC are setting the entry fee low, with a late cut off, with a fully online entry system, for convenience.
The aim is to avoid class starts with only a handful of competitors, and give everyone a day on the water and someone to race against.