One of the great aspects of sailing an International class such as the OK Dinghy is the international competition and travelling to events to meet sailors from across the world. The last two years has been hard with very few events able to be held, but as the schedule starts to return to normal following the pandemic, sailors are finding additional problems sending their boats overseas due to the vastly increased cost of shipping boats around the world, as well as increased logistics bureaucracy, complexity and unforeseen delays.

The OK Dinghy International Association (OKDIA) has accepted that this problem is likely to persist for 3-4 years, so has been investigating ways to provide boats at events for those wishing to travel. While some classes have long standing charter options, for the OK Dinghy this has not been the case, with charter boats supplied on an ad hoc and private basis.

It has been acknowledged that for the next few years International OK Dinghy events will largely rely on charter boats for sailors from other continents, so OKDIA is seeking to try and redress the balance by launching a new platform to put those wishing to charter in touch with those wanting to charter their own boats. This is believed to be the key to providing inclusive events in the short term and the success of events may be largely dependent on how many charter boats are available.

This new platform can be found here: http://events.okdinghy.org/charter-boats

Encouragement to members to charter out their boat if it is not being used
At present it is fairly basic, but will be developed as it is used and its needs are better understood. The platform allows owners and sailors to register interest and see what is available. Currently the platform covers events up to 2024.

From the page above users can select either

CHARTER OUT YOUR OK DINGHY
or
REQUEST A CHARTER

Under each option there is a list of expressed interests.A list of charter boats available
A list of those looking to find a charter boat for a specific event
It is hoped that with enough exposure that members will be encouraged to charter out their own boat, or a second boat, if it is not being used.

Any financial arrangements and insurance remain solely between the owner and charterer, but the following pricing structure is suggested:

• Championship winner – Up to date with latest development €1000-€1500
• Top half finisher – Good condition and ready to race €500-€1000
• Mid fleet finisher – A good contender under €500

These price bands do not necessarily have to include extra costs such as insurance and delivery.

The platform is now live. The hope is that this will both make it easier for everyone to connect and also encourage those who haven’t thought about it before to charter their boat to help boost attendance at international events.

More at: http://events.okdinghy.org/charter-boats

OK Dinghy sailors across Europe are keeping their fingers crossed that they can return to Bandol in September for the inaugural Autumn Trophy. The Notice of Race has now been published and online entry is open for the four-day event at Société Nautique de Bandol.

The club hosted the hugely successful 2018 European Championship, and ever since then, sailors have been clamouring to go back for another major event. Bandol’s idyllic beachside location on the Mediterranean, the welcoming hospitality of the family based club, and the wonderful food and wine make it the perfect venue for the class.

After the class has had to cancel all its major events so far this year due to COVID-19, everyone hopes this one can go ahead. There has already been a lot of interest from Denmark, Germany and UK, and providing further travel restrictions are not brought in, the turnout is expected to be high.

The OK Dinghy Autumn Trophy

Initially intended as the Grand Final for the Euro Tour, the Autumn Trophy in Bandol has for many sailors been the light at the end of the tunnel after a very strange year.

The Autumn Trophy is part of class history, being originally presented by the International Sailing Federation in 2007 to commemorate the 80th birthday of HM King Bhumibol Aduladej of Thailand, who built and sailed OK Dinghies in the 1960s and 1970s. He famously won the gold medal in the class in the 1967 South East Asia Games.

This beautiful half model of His Majesty’s OK Dinghy, TH27, ‘Vega’ was disposed of by World Sailing during the 2017 office move from Southampton to London, but was offered to the class for safekeeping. The class is very proud of this heritage and very happy the half model has been saved and put to good use.

Racing in Bandol is scheduled to take place from 16-19 September. Keep your fingers, and toes, crossed…

The Entry Fee is EUR 150 and shall be paid in full by 1 September 2021, after which a late entry fee of EUR 175 will apply, as detailed in the Notice of Race.

Bank details for payment can be found here:

http://events.okdinghy.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/RIB-SNB.pdf

Please reference your payment with your name and sail number.

The Notice of Race for the Autumn Trophy in Bandol has been published.

Bandol-NOR-Autumn-Trophy-2021

In response to the rapid growth of the OK Dinghy class in recent years, and calls for a coordinated European circuit, the International OK Dinghy Association has launched the 2020 OK Euro League.

In this inaugural year five events have been chosen, covering many of the popular regattas, as well as new ones to encourage local fleet development.

The series will start at the ever-popular Spring Cup in Medemblik, the Netherlands, which is the traditional European season opener. Next is the three-day European Championship in Lundeborg, Denmark and then Kieler Woche, in Germany.

In the Autumn, the two day Dutch Nationals on the Oostersee will be followed by the inaugural Autumn Trophy at Bandol on the Mediterranean coast of France.

Key aspects of the OK Euro League include:

• Silver and Bronze fleets with separate prizes
• Innovative scoring system so that all events count the same, regardless of entries
• Sponsor focussed media presentation
• Easy to qualify with three events to count
• Weighted points on final round
• Mix of 2 day, 3 day and 4 day events

The concept behind this selection is that most travelling OK Dinghy sailors will do at least two of these events normally, so with a series of three out of five to count, it encourages them to do one more event to stand a chance of winning some of the more than €4,000 in prizes offered by a range of very generous sponsors.

The sponsors are at the heart of the series, with a media package designed to promote each one as well as the class and its sailors. So far Allen, Art of Racing, Ceilidh, Ovington, Synergy Marine and Turtle Sails have offered some great prizes.

After the first four ‘Rounds’, Bandol will act as the Final, which is slightly weighted in terms of points, but more important in terms of prizes. Bandol was the venue for the hugely successful 2018 European Championship and the fleet has been begging to go back ever since.

The Notice of Series can be downloaded here and further details will appear on the dedicated OKDIA Events website at events.okdinghy.org

2020 OK Euro League
Round 1 – Spring Cup, Medemblik, NED, May 1-3
Round 2 – European Championship, Lundeborg, DEN, May 15-17
Round 3 – Kieler Woche, Kiel, GER, June 20-23
Round 4 – Dutch Nationals, Oosterzee, NED, August 22-23
Final – Autumn Trophy, Bandol, FRA, Sept 16-19