Eddystone Charity Pursuit at Royal Western Yacht Club

Out on Plymouth Sound one of the largest fleets of the year gathered on Saturday 15th July for the 5th sailing of the Eddystone Charity Sailing Pursuit in fabulous sunshine and with a perfect sailing wind. With £11,500.00 prize money at stake, competition was keen.

The event raised £25,000.00 for charities in the south-west or projects of larger charities directed to the area. With every yacht sailing on behalf of its own nominated charity, many in 3 boat teams, the average amount raised per boat was £410.00.

This is a very unusual event sailed as a Pursuit and not a race, with a wide variety of yachts taking part, from 20ft day boats to 45 ft ocean cruisers and even a big trimaran just returned from the Round Britain and Ireland race. Many of the 60 boats taking part seldom or never race and the Pursuit brings together a great diversity of yachts which would never normally be seen, all sailing together on a very simple 26 mile offshore course from the Sound out to round the Hand Deeps Buoy and back to finish where they started.

The event is supported by two sponsors, a private charitable trust and J.M. Finn & Co., a major city firm of Charity and Investment Fund Managers. All the prize money won goes directly to Boats’ nominated charities and no individual owner benefits financially. All boats are encouraged to raise sponsorship for their cause. This year in the Individual Yacht Event, top prize was £1,000.00 with prize money extending down to 42nd place and in the Team Event, first prize was £1,500.00 with two other substantial prizes for 2nd and 3rd. There were also prizes for maximum sponsorship raised as well as 4 special prizes awarded at the organiser’s discretion.

Some of the boats had people from the charities aboard, one taking disabled children from Dame Hannah Rogers School and others actually being sailed or crewed by the charities themselves. Horizons Children’s Sailing Trust, which takes very disadvantaged children from the Devonport area and teach them to sail and maintain their boats, entered their 3 Hawk day boats crewed by the children with their instructors. These small boats in the conditions proved very fast dashing past many of their larger rivals and earning the children much commendation and the Trust much needed money. The Pursuit started shortly after 9.00 am for the slowest boats, but such was the speed of the huge trimaran “Wave Rider” that they started at 2 pm. and they were back at the finish before 4 pm, before many of the main fleet had got back.

In all it was a great day’s sailing, enjoyed by all from the great atmosphere at the prize giving afterwards, which produced a wonderful result for the charities involved – to be repeated next year!