Its back - the RYA Dinghy Show SailX Championship 2013

by Emma Slater, RYA 21 Jan 2013 16:03 GMT 21 January - 3 March 2013 Following the success of the inaugural RYA Dinghy Show SailX Championship last year, the RYA is delighted to announce the return of this exciting virtual fleet-race regatta, powered by the inshore sailboat racing and training game SailX.com.

Registration is now open for you to sign up to this unique online game that enables you to race virtual sailboats against racers from all over the world in real-time around short courses and in strict accordance with the Racing Rules of Sailing.

The Championship will be run in three Phases over six weeks in the lead up to the RYA Dinghy Show with Phase 1 kicking off today (January 21) and will continue for two weeks until February 03. Phase 2 will follow immediately from February 04 to February 17, with Phase 3 will running from February 18 until March 03, the final day of the RYA Dinghy Show.

Each phase will include three x five-race regattas every day at 18:00, 20:00 & 22:00 GMT, with each race lasting between seven and ten minutes with competitors top-three regattas per Phase counting towards their overall result.

A final ranking will be compiled for the top individuals and classes (competitors have the opportunity to nominate a class that they will represent in the championship) with the winning class being awarded the 'RYA Dinghy Show SailX Championship Trophy 2013' and the winning individual the 'Virtual Endeavour Trophy 2013' on the show's Main Stage on Sunday 03 March. Further prizes are to be announced closer to the Show.

"SailX, is a high-performance rules and strategy based game and every day we are seeing more and more sailors (approaching 35,000) getting involved", explains Amando Estela, creator of SailX.

"SailX is a great way to sharpen your mental racing skills and keep in touch with friends (and keep an eye on competitors). It's designed to 'game' the mental aspect of inshore racing, with the gamer able to issue simple instructions to a virtual sailor on board their race boat. These instructions are based on the same complex strategic and tactical considerations that exist in real-world racing and because of this (like chess or checkers) the game is simple and addictive for the 'newbie' and, at the same time, extremely challenging for the advanced user and real-world sailor."

Entering the RYA Dinghy Show SailX Championship is easy. All you need to do is visit the Championship website www.sailx.com/ryadinghyshow to register to SailX.com and to complete a simple entry form. Registration and racing is completely free and once you've registered you can take part in racing 24/7, 365 days a year, as part of a truly global community of almost 35,000 sailors from 117 countries worldwide.

"We're thrilled that the RYA Dinghy Show SailX Championship is returning to the show again this year. I'm sure the finals will once again be extremely exciting and showcase some very close and competitive racing. Registration is open for the full duration of the Championships, but don't worry if you miss out on the pre-show racing, there will be an opportunity for you to race at the show in the Panorama Hall, so come along and have a go", explains RYA Shows Manager, Helen Waterhouse.

For more information on the RYA Dinghy Show SailX Championship 2013 and to register to take part, visit www.sailx.com/ryadinghyshow. Read the full Notice of Race at www.sailx.com/ryadinghyshow/nor

To find out more about the RYA Dinghy Show 2013 and to buy your ticket visit www.dinghyshow.org.uk