OK Dinghy Spring Event Preview
by Karen Robertson 30 Apr 15:17 BST
Line 'em up © Kevan Bloor
After a quiet start to the season awaiting the return of the boats from the fantastic World Championship in New Zealand, the British OK fleet have a busy few weeks ahead with a flurry of events to choose from.
First off is the ever popular Spring Cup in Medemblik which attracts visitors from Northern Europe for a compelling mix of sailing and socializing. At the time of going to press there are over fifty OK dinghies from seven different countries entered. Although not an 'official' UK event it always attracts a strong UK contingent with sixteen boats currently being expected to travel to the Netherlands to compete. The event starts on Friday 3rd May with three races followed by Happy Hour, three more races followed by the famous OK Class Dinner on the Saturday and two final races on the Sunday before the fleet departs for all corners of Europe again.
A week later the fleet will is off to the South West to take part in the POSH singlehanded event at Paignton on the 11th and 12th of May. This is the first year the increasingly popular POSH event has been on the OK calendar and regulars rate it as one of the best events of the year and this years for the first event in the North Sails sponsored Travellers' series.
The end of May will see visitors join the strong local OK fleet at Upper Thames Sailing Club to take part in the OK River Championship as part of Bourne End Week on the 24th and 25th May. In what must be a near unique event in the Worldwide OK calendar the River Championships mixes classic riparian socialising with, tactically challenging sailing, plenty of gin and the odd cow to call water on. This event is the second in the HD Sails sponsored OK Inland Series.
Finally in this flurry of events is the ever popular Inland Championships which are being held at Northampton Sailing club on the 8th and 9th June. This venue has been a popular end of season fixture for the OKs over many years, but this year the OK fleet get to see what Pitsford Reservoir looks like in the summer. Always a well-attended event, with some new faces joining the fleet in 2019 and 2018 winner Terry Curtis focusing on his Osprey this year, it will be interesting to see who will come out on top this year in this challenging venue. The Inland Championships form a key part of the HD Sails sponsored Inland series and is also being supported by Harken UK.
There is still time to register to take part in all of these events and the class demo boat is available to sailors interested in trying out the OK Dinghy, either at an event or in a lower key situation. With the World Championships coming to the UK in 2022 along with an influx of new talent into the class from ex-Olympians and from other classes there has never been a better time to try the OK out and find out why the class is becoming one of the fastest growing international classes outside of the Olympics. Email for more details and to check for availability.