Club Hunter 707

For several seasons and thanks to the generosity of Brian May Younger Members in particular have been able to enjoy access to the Royal Thames Hunter 707 class yacht at a very reasonable flat-rate charter fee. This has facilitated participation both in regular 707 class events and more demanding regattas including championships and Cowes Week.

We have recently concluded an arrangement with UK Sailing Academy whereby our own boat Royal Thames is kept at their Cowes sailing centre alongside their Hunter 707, on the basis that both of us will be able to do much more with a matched pair of 707s than with just one. Match racing, and match race practice, are the immediate and most obvious opportunities that spring to mind.  Both boats are available for charter to members (of whatever category) at the almost nominal rate of £50 per day per boat.  The 707 can be sailed with four aboard or with five: so a weekend of informal, self-organised fun for 10 members is available at the modest cost of a score a crust (or £20 per person, if you prefer) – which has to be value for money.

The opportunities afforded by the new arrangements are limited only by Members’ enthusiasm and imagination. In addition to being available for Members needing to practice for existing match racing events it will now be possible for those Members who have previously voiced interest to set up a match racing ladder. It works like a squash ladder – to ascend you challenge the person ahead of you; they have a set time to respond and if they don’t meet your challenge you overtake them. The Sailing Office stands ready to assist with any basic rules and record-keeping required – but essentially such an enterprise is Member-driven. At its simplest and most informal level, neither signal boat nor umpires are needed – the sailors run it themselves, agree the course and keep the score.  Just pick two buoys, one upwind of the other, and race around them – what could be simpler? To ensure an even start one boat follows the other round the leeward mark, leaving it to starboard. The lead boat must then tack (by definition onto port) and must cross astern of the trailing boat, still on starboard, and... game on.

If there is sufficient interest, the CSO stands ready with his launch Chinook or with Thames Five to lay marks – including a proper start line, to enable proper pre-start manoeuvres, and organise something not quite so informal, but quite deliberately at this stage RaceCom has not put a formal event into the calendar until we see where, or even if, there is demand.

And of course, both boats are available for ordinary, regular use, including Cowes Week: book now.

For more information, contact the CSO at sailing@royalthames.com  and to book one or both boats contact the Sailing Secretary at sailsec@royalthames.com