Title Sponsorship up for grabs with Sailjuice Winter Series
by Andy Rice 4 Feb 07:03 GMT
GJW Direct Sailjuice Winter Series © Tim Olin /
www.olinphoto.co.uk
The Sailjuice Winter Series is looking for a new title sponsor for next season. After six successful years of sponsorship, GJW Direct is now passing on the mantle for another company to get involved.
Founder and co-organiser of the Sailjuice Winter Series, Andy Rice, commented: "Back in 2012, GJW Direct spotted the potential of the Sailjuice Winter Series for being almost unique in its ability to reach the whole of the dinghy racing scene in a way that few other events can. We have developed a loyal following from many sailors, who come back after year. We will be sad to say goodbye to GJW Direct, however the exciting thing is that we can open up the title sponsorship to a new commercial partner who is looking to reach the whole of the dinghy racing market in the UK."
Lev Osman, CEO from GJW Direct commented: "The Sailjuice Winter Series has grown in strength over the years, and we have been proud to be a part of it. Most recently, encouraging those youth sailors coming through the classes by contributing to their entry fees for the Sailjuice events has been a huge success, and hopefully something that will continue into the future."
After launching the first Sailjuice Winter Series (then known as the Sailjuice Global Warm-Up) in 2010, Rice teamed up with Simon Lovesey of SailRacer and together they brought in a number of innovations that have made the Series more popular each year that has passed. These innovations include:
- Use of the PY numbers generated by the Great Lakes Handicap Group, which has made for much fairer racing between many different classes of boat.
- Advance Online Entry: opening up advance entry for events has created much greater commitment from the sailors to show up on the day, making it far easier for sailing clubs to plan logistics both on and off the water, manage catering demands and so on. It has also led to many events selling out in advance with sailors keen to secure their spot.
- Classes using the Sailjuice Winter Series as their class winter championships. Why bother creating your own travellers' series when you can rely on proven events that you know are going to be well managed and well attended?
SailRacer has also provided live GPS tracking at some of the Series events which is great for spectators, competitors and also provides some cross-referencing for accurate scoring of events. Recent months have seen Lovesey experimenting with 'Dynamic Handicapping', to see if GPS tracking can be used to create an even more accurate method of handicapping. "Everything we do in the Series is about looking at ways of making the racing fairer and more fun, and the more we do that the higher levels of participation we see," said Lovesey.
"The Sailjuice Winter Series has developed a loyal following from many sailors who come back year after year, event after event, whatever the weather. And for those that don't come, there are still hundreds of people who tune in to see how their friends are faring on the water. Which is why we reckon title sponsorship of the Sailjuice Winter Series offers great value for anyone looking to reach this market."
Such has been the level of interest in the Sailjuice Winter Series, the national governing body US Sailing has consulted Andy Rice about organising similar handicap racing in the USA, and more recently there have been enquiries from Australia and New Zealand about franchising the Series.
If you're interested in finding out more about sponsorship opportunities, contact:
Andy Rice, , 07980 801006
Simon Lovesey,
You can find out more about the facts and figures, the number of competitors and types of class engaged in the Series at events.sailracer.org/eventsites/content.asp?id=46191&eventid=210542
Meanwhile, Series 9 continues with five events down and two to go. The next one is the John Merricks Tiger Trophy, taking place this weekend at Rutland Sailing Club on 3 & 4 February.
Enter at www.sailjuiceseries.com
The Events:
The following regattas constitute the GJW Direct SailJuice Winter Series 2017/18):
- Draycote Dash, Draycote Water Sailing Club
18 & 19 November 2017
- Datchet Flyer, Datchet Water Sailing Club
9 & 10 December 2017
- Brass Monkey, Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club
27 December 2017
- Grafham Grand Prix, Grafham Water Sailing Club
30 December 2017
- King George Gallop, King George Sailing Club (replaced cancelled Bloody Mary)
6 January 2018
- John Merricks Tiger Trophy, Rutland Sailing Club
3 & 4 February 2018
- Oxford Blue, Oxford Sailing Club
17 February 2018
You can find out more about the Series at
www.SailJuiceSeries.com