Matt,
do count us in for the Teifi racing next year, either with SR 'Craic' or with the BR 'Llafurio' if that will be ready by then. Would love to meet all the other Swallowboaters I so far only know through correspondence.
Just back from Dorestad Raid, great stuff, 25 boats -some latecomers did not find space- only very different from Wales coastal sailing. All sheltered waters, some extremely shallow, miles and miles of reed-bordered tiny canals and dozens of bridges with less than 5m clearance. Extremely classy competitors, almost every boat had some carbon fibre piece somewhere if even under a 'traditional' looking camouflage. Many unstayed masts, which gave them a real advantage when negotiating the low bridges -and the many short stretches between them-.
We were very happy with our own pure sailing performance, but must refine our mast stepping procedure, still took us too long each time. That's the great thing about these serious Raid events, one sees so many brilliant solutions on other boats, and all ideas are shared freely, in great team spirit.
What I found most notable was that one boat had fitted a pedal gear drive with a self-folding carbon fibre folding propeller which worked great and had no propeller drag, and one other boat could fit launching wheels under the hull while being afloat, an needed no trailer to be pulled up the slip out of the water. The good ideas never stop coming, sure we will see some more next season.
Regards,
Claus