Entry Fees

Originally posted by iiiiticki I bet sailing is cheaper than any other sport where one sits on or in a vehicle. There are classes out there where you can cobble an old boat together and do the circuit. There are absolutely no comparisons with anything you put petrol in!

My local motorcycle club has entry fees around £10 to £15 for a one day trials event.
Club membership is less than my sailing club, you have to have ACU membership which is somewhat cheaper than the RYA.

Originally posted by iiiiticki ... Yes but are there nice ladies making you tea and cooking lunch?

The opens I've been to in the last 5 years, one fleet has been notable for low entry fees and high probability of cheap, quality snacks, sometimes even free.

Some clubs/classes treat opens as a cash cow. Others treat them as an  opportunity to get quality sailing at their club, put their club on the circuit map and repay the hospitality they got at the other clubs last time.
Of course nobody wants to make a loss, and it's fair to place some value on volunteer time and lost club sailing.

But it pays to consider ths kind of thing when deciding what boat to sail and what events to do.

Paying £30 for say 4 well-run races in a quality fleet seems pretty good value to me, but if the quality of the racing drops off (for instance you get a compromised course because they're running several fleets, or poor time management), or there's few boats you are competitive with, and you have to deal with a lot of jobsworths on shore, the value can quickly go out of it.

The worst thing is spending a weekend on some godforsaken puddle in a shifty force 2 (later reported as 'champagne sailing in sunny F4, with pictures showing crews sat to leeward...) then getting back to your home club as people are just coming ashore in a cracking sea breeze.
That's when you start resenting having been charged £1.50 for a beaker of Maxwell House on top of your entry fee and travel costs.

Originally posted by jeffers Originally posted by RS400atC Originally posted by iiiiticki ... I suppose CVRDA have Mothers Pride white bread and spam sandwiches, swiss roll swilled down with Typhoo leaf tea? Yes but are there nice ladies making you tea and cooking lunch? The opens I've been to in the last 5 years, one fleet has been notable for low entry fees and high probability of cheap, quality snacks, sometimes even free. Some clubs/classes treat opens as a cash cow. Others treat them as an  opportunity to get quality sailing at their club, put their club on the circuit map and repay the hospitality they got at the other clubs last time. Of course nobody wants to make a loss, and it's fair to place some value on volunteer time and lost club sailing. But it pays to consider ths kind of thing when deciding what boat to sail and what events to do. Paying £30 for say 4 well-run races in a quality fleet seems pretty good value to me, but if the quality of the racing drops off (for instance you get a compromised course because they're running several fleets, or poor time management), or there's few boats you are competitive with, and you have to deal with a lot of jobsworths on shore, the value can quickly go out of it. The worst thing is spending a weekend on some godforsaken puddle in a shifty force 2 (later reported as 'champagne sailing in sunny F4, with pictures showing crews sat to leeward...) then getting back to your home club as people are just coming ashore in a cracking sea breeze. That's when you start resenting having been charged £1.50 for a beaker of Maxwell House on top of your entry fee and travel costs. I know of a few clubs who treat Opens as a break even or even loss leader events as it gives publicity. At Hunts we usually offer free tea and coffee to competitors as part of the entry fee and the food is very reasonable and freshly made. There is also usually someone who volunteers to make the ubiquitous Bacon sarnies as well (the club is entirely volunteer run). Other clubs with paid staff and outside catering may not have the luxury of being able to offer this. We have the CVDRA rally again this year, let us hope they are as impressed as they were the first time round with our hospitality.

Originally posted by pompeysailor Horses are the worst! Show jumping or Dressage competitions = £10-20 for about 3 minutes of actual competing time!

Originally posted by craiggo  I prefer clubs where members muck in and pull their weight, not only are these clubs more friendly but they have the benefit of being cheaper.