50th Anniversary year anything but a damp Squib!
by Mark Jardine 26 Feb 12:00 GMT
Stand B90, 3-4 March 2018
Squib Nationals at Weymouth © Mike Rice /
www.fotoboat.com
The Squib is celebrating 50 years in 2018, and already the season is shaping up to be cracker. Advance planning by the class has resulted in a number of key steps being put in place to ensure high attendances and huge celebrations for those within the class.
The highlight of the year will undoubtedly be Lendy Cowes Week, where the 50th Anniversary Squib National Championship will be held. 79 boats have entered already and it's quite possible that the 100 boat milestone will be passed. Sponsorship from aql means that every competitor will receive a free spinnaker and, for the first time in living memory, the XOD will be usurped as the largest one-design fleet at Cowes. It won't just be great racing on the water, with a full social programme organised for the week, this truly is an event every dayboat sailor should be trying to get their hands on a boat to get involved.
The class will be exhibiting at the RYA Dinghy Show with a set of 'concept sails', to see what appetite is out there for an update from the traditional mace. The reaction will be gauged and recorded! Furthermore, the class are running a draw throughout the year for a brand-new Rondar Squib.
For those who are looking into small keelboat sailing, there really are few more affordable routes into a large, competitive fleet than the Squib. It's well worth dropping by Stand B90 in the Great Hall at the RYA Dinghy Show and talking to the class members manning the stand. Before long you'll find yourself hooked!
After the show we'll be running a video interview on YachtsandYachting.com with the class, giving you more details about their plans for the season and why you should join them for some of the closest dayboat sailing imaginable.