SigneT Open Meeting

Final 2008 SigneT Open Meeting

For as long as I can remember the final SigneT open meeting has always been held on a Sunday at Ferry Meadows in Neene Park, Peterborough. It is usually preceded by a SigneT Class Owners Assoc. committee meeting on the Saturday. Nowadays that is held at Pat & Jenny Overs who live in Little Paxton, near St.Neot's. Coincidentally Little Paxton SC is also the venue of the first 'open' of the season.

This year two Aquarius boats attended the meeting. ST368 with Richard his crew Rob and ST369 with Lyn & myself. No, Lyn doesn't sail, for this meeting that was Keith Hatton's job. He and Madeline drove across country to Paxton from a family bash that I believe started on Friday.

The committee meeting mainly centred on alternative venues to the Alexandra Palace RYA dinghy show following a decision at the Chichester AGM not to attend the 2009 show on cost grounds.

This year the meeting attracted seven boats. The conditions were warm and sunny but with virtually no wind, which I have to say is unusual for Ferry Meadows.

Three races were held but they were drifters with the occasional zephyr of a breeze out of the SE just to get the helm's hopes up. All three were sailed over figure of eight courses, short on duration, with two of the three being finished at the next convenient mark rather than the actual transit.

Aquarius SC did quite well with ST368 winning the open and ST369 coming third. Richard also won the annual 'Traveller's Trophy' for the best points score over the whole 2008 series.

The drive back from Peterborough featured the usual delays on the M25, I guess made worse by the additional traffic enticed out by the good weekend weather.

Mike (Over Easy) Baker