53rd West Lancashire Yacht Club 24 Hour Race - Part 1

THE 53rd West Lancashire Yacht Club 24 Hour Race was held over 14 September to 15 September 2019 on Southport's Marine Lake. This event might not look very special from an outsider’s point of view, but it brings in hundreds of people each year to the area, from all over the world. Ever since the very 1st West Lancashire Yacht Club (WLYC) 24 Hour Race, back in 1967, it has continued to go from success to success, and UK's No.1 dinghy endurance race and rated in the top 10 worldwide.

This sporting event attracts teams of all abilities and ages to take part from all over the world,  that includes round the world ocean racing team members, Olympic medallists and even local Schools and Scout groups, but at stake are serious trophies along with the status and kudos of having taken part. Just think of a Marathon for runners, you have the big names and then you have the fun runners. The 24 Hour Race is the same type of thing, but for sailing, but this wide range of ability and ages does not detract from the fact this is an extremely hard race for all taking part.

It is amazing how quickly things can change on the Marine lake. The event started with perfect weather for the race, and as were teams enjoying the unique hospitality provided by 1 of the best social events in the dinghy racing calendar, the officials kept an eye on the weather.

The race is known for its sailing continuously for 24 hours, even in extreme weather, but a team of volunteers man boats and 1st aid points to keep things safe. For many, things looked like it was going to be a easy race, but others knew differently, including some of the teams, who also monitor the weather.

We attended most race at this years 24 hours, but we had to leave at times to charge batteries and download photos and video. In that time a lot can change and the race is known for catching crews out. The race is sailed on the relatively safe waters of the Marine Lake, but that is the key word:- 'relatively' and over the 24 hours, volunteers man safety boats to help those who get into problems. Just after we left, in the early hours of Sunday morning, the wind picked up and resulted in both Sheffield Hallam and Crosby Scouts and Guides teams’ boats sinking. Sadly, they didn’t recover enough to continue the race after being savaged once daylight broke. Also Jumbles sustained damage to their boat and couldn't continue. So if you think this is an easy race, think again. By sunrise, rain had moved in, making it unpleasant for the teams on the water sailing, but again the weather changed for the better. For us, it made filming less dramatic, but that's life...

As this is an endurance sailing event, many teams choose to raise funds for charity and this year both Eden and Josh Hyland, who are brothers from The Chase Sailing Club sailing for the full 24 hours together, for charity. Also on the water, collecting for charity, were Adam and Chris, Eden and Josh and the Kudos team from Burwain. Plus representatives for Sail 4 Cancer.

Even though this is a race, it is also a premiere opportunity for Sailing Clubs and sailing enthusiasts to network, tell stories and also have fun. In fact some also take that fun onto the water. In other years, lots of teams entertained those watching as well as raced, but this has become less and less of a norm for many, however Cambridge University took up this challenge and dressed both their boat and team members in Hawaiian dresses! Yes, for most of the race, the Cambridge boat had a skirt!

If you want to see the final results of the 2019 race, please click on here to visit the official 24 Hour Race website.

The 54th WLYC 24 Hour Race will be held from 12 noon, on 19 September 2020 to 12 noon on 20 September 2020. Already crews and boats are being booked in. The WLYC are very keen to invite boats from European Teams to head over the channel and attend the 2020 event. To book visit:- WLYC.Org.UK/24-Hour-Race and follow the links provided. Entries are accepted from Sailing Clubs, Class Associations and Universities throughout the UK, with past visits from Eire, France and even the USA. Crew, equipment and sail changes are permitted during the race (but, only in a specially designated docking area). Also take note, this race runs continuously for 24 Hours even in extreme weather conditions; you have been warned!

WLYC said that:- "With out sponsors we would not be able to continue to run and we would like to thank all our valued 24 Hour Race sponsors for their continued support. Unlike motor sport, our sport is a far more environmentally friendly sport, so it was fantastic to see Southport's Halliwell Jones BMW, putting on show some great looking electric cars. This display made for an interesting addition to this year’s event. As you will know, this unique race is sailed in classic dinghies (Enterprise, GP14 and Lark) but they are not the only craft on the water. We need to use safety boats throughout the race. Sadly, we need to replace some of the safety boats and we are currently looking for help, both financially to buy 1 or to have a boat donated. As a club we are very keen on the environment and the electric car display got us thinking. we would be very interested to hear from any groups who could supply us with a reliable electric safety boat for next year’s race. It would have to be able to operate for the full 24 hours though. We are currently collecting to buy a new safety boat, but if we could use an electric motor instead of a petrol one, then that would be amazing!"

For more information about the club please visit the WLYC's website and the 24 Hour Race Facebook Page.

Well done to all the teams taking part, in this splendid dinghy endurance race. We still have lots more photos and video to show you, but for now, please enjoy the images in this weeks edition. But do not forget, lots more to come next week and you might be on our documentary video or the many other photos in next week’s, if not in this week’s... In fact you might be on all of them!

If you attended, please do let us know what you thought of this year’s race. Please email us via:- News24@SouthportReporter.Com as we would be interested to hear your memories and views...

More photos on the next page...