24th August 2001
Mr Jay Colville
Commodore
East Down YC
Killyleagh
Co. Down
N. Ireland
 

Dear Jay

There has been universal praise from the whole fleet of Wayfarers for your Club’s arrangements and management of the Wayfarer International Championships and Cruising Event for 2001.

From the moment we arrived, we all felt we were being helped to enjoy every minute of our stay in Strangford Lough, no matter whether those moments were on the water cruising or racing, camping in the Club grounds, socialising and dancing in the entertainments tent or sampling the Co. Down countryside and its restaurants and pubs.  So this letter is to send you and all your fellow members, who voluntarily gave up so much of your time – and lives – to ensure its success, a very big thank you indeed, coupled with our congratulations for running a marvellous event.

It was a remarkable achievement to encourage all but 100 Wayfarers to come to Killyleagh during the peak holiday season, and at the end of the week, I don’t believe there was a single disappointed boat in the dinghy park.  Speaking personally for myself, I cannot remember such a gathering before;  it surpassed for instance two National Championships of recent years – one in the Carrick Roads at Falmouth and the other on the Medway Estuary in Kent – which, in themselves, set new benchmark standards of what Wayfarers could enjoy and expect in the future.  It is very good news for the future of the Class, particularly as weather conditions varied form one extreme to another, giving our splendid boat the best chance to display her talent as a craft for all seasons.  The reason we all choose to sail in her.

In sending you our thanks, it might be regarded as invidious to single out certain people for a special thanks when it is clear that everyone at EDYC pulled their weight so willingly and effectively, but we have to record our total admiration for the way Ann and her colleagues, notably Roy, ran the race office and administration; a mammoth task.  Then there were the unsung heroes masterminding the beach and safety boats and providing support for PRO John Russell, which allowed him to do a really professional job of setting our courses.  Surely too, no one will forget the team of trolley handlers (not all dollies!) who made life possible, even agreeable, while launching and being recovered each day.  One also appreciates how much work must have gone into the matter of obtaining sponsors and coordinating the financial aspects of the event.  The list of those who contributed must be endless, but if not singled out for a mention, I hope they all feel they have had their reward in the knowledge that the event was absolutely top class.

Finally may I include a thank you to all the Irish helms whose enthusiasm for Wayfaring was a big element in the UKWA’s decision to come to Ireland and EDYC for these Internationals.  We would welcome chances to return the hospitality that we, the ‘mainland’ lot, have received from you, at our Club Open events and Championships in the future if we can persuade you to make the reciprocal journey.

With all good wishes for the continuing success of   your club and its members and many many thanks again for a wonderful Championship.

Yours sincerely,
 
 
 

Simon Winn
‘W’ 8595 
 

Please reply to:  The Plateau, Ide Hill, Sevenoaks, Kent   TN14 6AX
                         Tel & Fax:   (01732) 750 548          E-mail:   commodore@wayfarer.org.uk