AndrewHannah wrote:
Hi All,
I thought I'd make a post to let you know of the fantastic attendance at the Dart 16 nationals last weekend. I dare say you would like to know the number of entries. Read on.......................
The Dart 16 nationals were held on the same weekend as the Sprint 15 TT event at the Open Dinghy Club. This year, the Dart 16 nationals were held at the Thames Estuary Yacht Club at Westcliff-on-sea, about half a mile west of Southend pier.
This time, they had sponsorship from Laser Direct who put up the prizes. Laser had their flags flying everywhere, and a whole throng of people were wearing bright red Laser T-shirts. It was a two day event, which started on the saturday. To begin with, the winds were somewhat light, so I took the opportunity to cycle up to Westcliff to see how many had entered.
But before I tell you the numbers, I think it would be helpful if I explained what the Southend Council had done to accommodate the large influx of sailors. There is a wide central reservation between the carriageways, so the council used traffic cones to divert the cars. This confused many drivers, because they don't usually see so many Dart 16s all at once. It really was spectacle to behold.
Bob Carter and Trevor B-J will be tearing their hair out to match the Dart 16 numbers. I don't know how they are going to do it. But rest assured, Thorpe Bay Sprinters will definitely be entering a team this year. This should help a bit. I am sorry to be a tease, but I will come to the actual numbers in a moment.
The Dart 18s had over 70. But you'd expect a good number because 2006 is their 30th anniversary. A bit like our own Pentewan a few years back. But they do have 7000+ boats in the class. The latest Dart 16 sail number I saw was 2762, which is higher than our latest Sprint 15 number. I already sense your despair. To make matters worse (for us), Laser Centre also provided two extra boats to swell the numbers. This is looking something like a nightmare for Bob.
Wait for it. Hold your breath. This is it. They had eleven. I am told this number was even more than last year. But without the Laser Centre two, they would have had nine.
I would love to finish 11th at the Sprint nationals!
Andrew.
