Southwold Harbour Rally 28th - 30th June
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See updates below, added 1st Feb - please register your interest!
This year marks the 75th anniversary of Southwold Sailing Club (SSC), and 200 years since the formation of the RNLI.
To mark the occasion, SSC are inviting all gaffers (big & small) to join the party! With activities afloat and ashore, it's a great opportunity for the OGA to revisit & rekindle memories from the rallies in the 1990’s. Throughout the weekend, the clubhouse & facilities will be open to members.
With thanks to our hosts at SSC, there are free moorings available for up to a week for participating gaffers. These include some floating pontoons & quayside moorings. These will be allocated in terms of size/draft of vessels.
For smaller boats, there is a slipway, assistance will be given to launch/recover boats & some hardstanding/limited moorings which can be used from Friday lunchtime (28th) onwards. There is limited space at SSC for campervans or tents. Otherwise there is a campsite located at the Harbour mouth (10mins walk).
Outline for the weekend:
Friday 28th – from lunchtime onwards, small boats will arrive and launch. Campervans and tents can set up their pitch. In the evening the club bar will be open, we expect shanties, an informal group meal (probably local takeaways)
Saturday 29th – boats form a parade of sail visible from the town, a beer festival will open around 1pm, there’ll be a Harbour stage by the club with music going on until the evening and food available all day.
Small boats will head up the Blyth with the tide returning on the ebb. HW 17:00
Sunday 30th – Race day! LW 11:52 Harbour entrance anticipated depth at LW 2.2 metres
Race briefing 0930 at SSC Fleets will race off the town, course and timings tbc, leaving harbour around LW. An inshore course for OGA dinghies will be confirmed, subject to demand.
After the race, participants are invited to ‘drink the barrels dry’ (if they’re not already) in SSC and enjoy a BBQ or catch the tide - whichever suits. Prizegiving will be held at SSC after the race.
We hope you like the sound of this – if you do, please initially email Joe Farrow on jfarrow64@gmail.com indicating whether you will require mooring or launch and recovery, camping or sleeping on board.
When booking opens, there will be an entry form asking for more details but it would be useful for Joe and Southwold Sailing Club to know the number of boats who are thinking of attending at this stage.