Quest for Hayling Island! Episode 4 "Spring Dinghy Regatta"

In this new series of The Rogue Rigger I take you along on our campaign to go to the 5o5 World Championships in Hayling Island, England. The worlds start in July of 2026 so we have just a year and a half to go. Follow Mike and I on our journey to get to the world championships, from boat upgrades, practice days, regattas, debriefs and some shenanigans along the way. In this episode we take you onboard our 505 for this years Spring Dinghy Regatta hosted by the Alameda Community Sailing Center. Normally this event is hosted by the St Francis Yacht Club, this year they canceled the event after 25 plus year run... A few Laser Sailors and 505 sailors decided to save the event and move it to ACSC. Some how I ended up being the regatta chair. This year we are kept the event small only inviting the 505's and ILCA's. Next year we will add more fleets if there is interest. This is time of year can be tricky with the weather and it was looking like we might get blown out with a big storm. Fortunately the weather held out for the first day where we were pleasantly surprised to get a warm 65 degree sunny day with 5-10 knots of breeze. Unfortunately the wind ended up dying in the second race. On day two we were treated to a cold 50 degree day with breeze ranging from 12-34knots out of the south. Launching and retrieving our boats was super challenging in these conditions. The fleet worked together to get everyone on and off the water safely. The amazing race committee managed to get in three races in the constantly changing conditions. Overall it was a great event and I look forward to next years event!