Racing took place after lunch, starting in a light westerly breeze that was getting up nicely and then a bit alarmingly as the race went on, enabling Rod to finish with great gusto in first place. James and Tyrone are to be commended for sailing the course with extra sail for the fun of it and Paul and Renate who raced with us and made it safely to the beach when the storm came over. We will present Rod with the trophy when we have determined where it is.
Ice-Sailing (ArntA)
Thanks a lot for the second e-version Gossip. I do find the e-version an obvious step forward. I can confirm that it apparently comes through all the way to your reader here in Trondheim, Norway in perfect condition. Great colour pictures! I'll very soon sit down and read it more carefully. If I could suggest something for the editor, I would find it practical if you took more advantage of the possibility to have clickable e-mail addresses hidden under, for instance, the names of the organisers of the various OCSG events, and also clickable web addresses when telling about, for instance, the ever-improving OCSG web-site.
While you are enjoying your winter sailing season, I can report that we do so here in Norway too. The water at the lakes around town here is however a little too hard for launching our canoes yet. Conditions have lately been rather perfect for ice-sailing though, and we were out with Audun's DN ice yacht two weeks ago. Speed around ten times canoe sailing speed in similar wind conditions is rather thrilling. Perhaps a few pics in the Gossip would be of interest?
HCKA Web-Site (RodL)
I and three other OCSG members belong to the Historic Canoe and Kayak Association (HCKA). The Association now has a web-site that I have created. Please regard it as only the start of a site as I hope it will grow, but it at least allows interested parties to get a flavour of the group. Please publicise it to other canoeing groups, perhaps by asking them to include us in the links page of any web-site they have. Small, private sites like ours do not automatically feature on the large search engines. The site has an Album page and members can contribute relevant Jpegs and actual photographs. Another page is called News and Views The association was formed in 1989 to promote an interest in old kayaks and canoes. There is a quarterly printed Journal and gatherings to display craft. UK membership is £13 p.a. or £30 for two years. Send three second-class stamps for a sample back issue or a cheque for membership to June Pearton.
Anglia Afloat (John Lawson)
I'm very happy for you to quote Greg Chapman in your magazine. As we commissioned him to write it, the magazine holds the copyright. If you could credit the magazine as "Anglia Afloat incorporating Norfolk Afloat" that would be great. As from January 2007, the magazine became a regional rather than a county title and we launched it as such at London Boat Show to enthusiastic response. If you have any unusual stories involving your members from Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Essex we would be happy to learn of them for forthcoming editions.
Sail When You Can; Paddle When You Must (Greg Chapman)
Greg Chapman discovers you don't have to paddle your own canoe!
Here is the Norfolk article without some images of OCSG members. It was originally published in the magazine "Anglia Afloat incorporating Norfolk Afloat".
The Open Canoe Sailing Group made what has become an annual trip to the Broads in June. They took advantage of some great summer weather, with near ideal conditions both for camping and sailing. It was DaveT from Lancashire who had organised both this and the two previous Norfolk Broads meetings. In 2004, the OCSG had been hosted by the Norfolk Punt Club at Barton Broad. It was an obvious partnership, as the two groups might be described as having similar history. Both had their origins in the mid-nineteenth century. While Scotland provided the focus for mounting sailing rigs on open canoes, in Norfolk much the same was happening with the equivalent local craft, the wildfowler's punt. However, last year, Hickling Sailing Club was asked to host the event and the venue proved so popular with those who attended that Dave was asked to arrange a return trip this year.
The OCSG was formed in 1990 to bring together those interested in sailing their canoes. The members keep it informal, relaxed and sociable. The group's web-site even suggests that any seriousness and over-competitiveness is likely to be treated with gentle teasing. And that's just how it was as I joined members of the group, sitting round a picnic table at Hickling Sailing Club. They had just finished a morning's racing, and members were relaxing in the sun when I arrived. Jibes were being tossed light-heartedly about, aimed at those who bought purpose-built sailing
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