RS800 circuit draws to an end - here's the summary

This season has been one of the most exciting the 800s have seen since the boat was first born. We�re not missing Mike Lennon or Nick Peters � we have Steve Irish & Martin Gotrel, Spod & Jane Olive, Chris Haworth & Stuart Aston, Justin Deal & Sarah Marriot, Andy Jeffries & Allyson Oddy, Tom Jeffcoate & Toby Wincer and Philip King & Ian Robertson all fighting for top three places at all the events. Steve Irish still triumphed at the nationals, but didn�t find this season the walk-over he might have expected � there was plenty of competition to keep even this legend sailor on his toes.

Further down the fleet was no less fun � place swapping was going on just the same, and the gains and losses against the �usual suspects� helped all of us see how we were doing.

It has been noticed that the 800 fleet has been particularly friendly this year � it might be a bit new-age and touchy-feely to describe us as �one big happy family�, but the welcoming atmosphere, which has been evident throughout the season, was particularly marked at the nationals, helped by the introduction of a group buddy system. This is probably also because the 800 fleet now has its own very motivated committee, with separate areas of responsibility like socials, weighing in, event planning, training, and pr, as well as the usual things a rep would do. (Please note any help or suggestions will be very welcome, as will new committee members!)

The 800 is a wonderful boat � fast and exciting, but still manageable for lighter sailors and chicks. The aft mainsheet (which reduces mainsheet loads immensely) was introduced this year, and the take-up has been pretty high, not just amongst the girlie helms, making the 800 even more accessible.

All in all, it�s a real shame the season is coming to a close, but at least the winter may bring some lovely strong winds. Just get ready with the drysuits for the winters next year!