Dinghy Show

I was on the Graduate stand on the Sunday of the show and was part of a group within the Grad fleet who pushed the association to make sure they were at the show. As Rupert says there is a real feeling that if your class isnt at the show then it has probably died out. In my view while the show may have lost its original intent a little, what it does enable is an opportunity for those looking to try new things or move classes due to relocation or changes in circumstance, to have a good look and a chat. That these people are probably already sailing in other fleets and therefore attending to also chat to their current fleet mates doesn't really matter, its the opportunity to determine the next move thats important and if your class is attending then its on the radar as an active class.

The Grad fleet in recent years first had the introduction of the new sails rules which attracted a bit of attention and brought some back into the class, then Rooster gave it a real boost with the new FRP boats built by the Boatyard @ Beer (which made 5 last year I believe) and for a few years we were lucky to be exhibiting on the Rooster stand and the class suddenly felt invigorated but rather than continue the promotion it was allowed to plateau which is understandable, after all the bulk of the then committee had overseen all the improvements and development and were burning themselves out, including Steve Cockerill.
Anyway our feeling at the show, was that it was really successful. The new wooden Alpha Grad built by Tim Harper was stunning and for those who didn't see the paintjob with a light shining on it, you missed out on the twinkling stars from the flecked lacquer! We had plenty of people coming to the stand and stating that they used to sail Grads and that they were superb boats. We signed up a fair few members to the association and a fair few existing owners were encouraged to come along to this years Nationals at Chipstead SC on the Whitsun bank holiday weeekend. Yes the Sunday was quiet but we nearly always had a visitor on the stand and hopefully we came across as a friendly bunch.
One of the things we hopefully demonstrated was the great age demographic, and the fact that there are some really keen teenage teams sailing the boats including Gabe & Ben Hill from Southport who will be sailing the boat that was on show.

As for other boats at the show, I was a little underwhelmed but then I only had time to whizz around quickly after lunch. For me the only other boat worthy of note was the Idol Composites (Alex Scoles) OK on the Harken stand. Its drawing me away from my beloved RS700 every time I see it!!!!!!

Graeme, can I hire you next year?

Originally posted by Sheetpuller More than a few missed opportunities there, guys..

Did they really miss any opportunities? Are you seriously considering changing class? Or did they correctly evaluate you as someone who just wanted to look at the boat?

But you know, at a show where most stands are manned by amateurs, one must appreciate that most stands will be manned by amateurs, and they will lack the slickness of the pros on the stands where the CA takes a back seat. In many ways its a part of the charm, at least for us old hippies who resent the man getting his fingers in everything...

As for what the show is for, it could be
social event
source of ideas for boat setup
chance to see classes that you might not see round your club
chance to take a look at what's fashionable and seems good
and there are plenty more.

And of course the show was never just about attracting non sailors - after all the vast majority of classes aren't geared to attracting non sailors. I vaguely remember that being a theme one year, and puzzling over what role classes like the 505 or Contender, or even we in the Cherubs had to play in that...

When on the stand, it is a slightly difficult balance. Do you do an Ancient Mariner and engage everyone,and have the situation where people can't escape as you extoll the virtues of a boat they were just glancing it, or do you smile and say Hi, but assume that those with real interest will approach you? I'm more in the latter camp, as you can probably tell.

As for why classes go, I suspect it is mainly because if you don't, people assume you are a dead class.

Who is the show for? No idea.

I went for the first time in years, and it didn't look much different to how I remembered it. For me, the best looking boats at the show were on the Merlin stand, but then of course I would say that. I 'hovered' at a few other stands but it was only on the Hornet stand that someone came over and engaged me in conversation; on the others the people 'manning' and sometimes 'womanning' the stand seemed much too engrossed in their own internal conversations to pay any attention to new faces closely inspecting their boat. More than a few missed opportunities there, guys...

The other boat that really caught my eye was that beautiful white OK with the inset wooden deck - what a spectacular piece of work that is. And once I asked questions there was some engagement there too.

Years ago I was on the Dinghy Show Committee - that was when Alice was still alive and the 'Exhibition' was at Crystal Palace - I was still on it when we moved to Ally Pally but left the following year. Back in those days there was a clear purpose for the show - it attempted to attract non-sailors into the sport. Whether it actually succeeded of not might be a moot point, but that was the reason for its existence. That raison d'etre seems to have died a long time ago, and the £15 entrance fee isn't going to breathe any new life into it. I'm not sure there is any real focus for the show any more, and this lack of purpose seems to communicate itself to most of the classes; yes they're there but not sure why - hence the internal socializing on the stands and general lack of interest in anybody not wearing their particular class t-shirt.

But Dougal's book is awesome, and well worth the journey on its own!