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I recently sailed the 2.4mR Nordic Championchips in Ljungskile and after some discussion about getting people to go to regattas, I started thinking about our history in the 2.4mR and why we go to regattas. It seemed the appropriate moment to reflect on the next act in the 2.4mR Saga and I now realize the curtain has set on that act – reentering the sailing scene after a number of years off due to kids and and some health issues – and the curtain has risen for act 3: In It For The Long Haul.
As our perspectives on life change and we have more time to travel to regattas, we are thinking about why we spend so much time, effort and money on this endeavor. Obviously, it’s not because we are always winning trophies at regattas, given middle of the pack finishes in the last few years at local regatta events. Nor is it because the 2.4mR is the fastest, coolest or newest thing to hit the sailing community. We take a more holistic tack.
I’ve had this obsession with watching retirement videos on You Tube over the last few years (I recommend it for people who are getting close) and a few of them have gelled my thoughts on 2.4mR sailing after 35 years: ultimately, it’s an experience. We sail the 2.4mR not because we like owning boats (2.4’s or otherwise), nor do we participate in racing because we are driven by results.
We sail 2.4’s because they are an enabler of life experiences that are not about acquiring things for status or achieving goals.
Of course those things are part of the experience at some level and I very much like working on boats and doing as well as I can at regattas but they are not the primary drivers.
We love the 2.4 community; the people, the vibe. It’s a social outlet, a reason to travel to interesting places (foreign and domestic), an ever changing fun and challenging physical and mental activity, and something that we have always done together.
Furthermore, we get tremendous satisfaction from organizing and running events. Sure it’s gratifying from a project management standpoint to pull off a successful event, but more personally it strengthens the 2.4mR Class which is so meaningful to us as it is such a fundamental part of our shared experience and to which we owe so much.
These are things that promote fundamental, lifelong happiness and that’s why we do them.
So we’re in it for the long haul. How we do it no doubt will change – and has changed – over the years, but that’s the great thing about the 2.4 and the2.4mR community, it’s easy to adapt and still fun if the desire to do so is there. We can still sail in 30 knots of breeze and enjoy it.
And we really don’t care about whether we qualify to go to the World Championships or not , that’s just not what motivates us to attend regattas. We’ve been and will continue to be here because we cherish the experience. To a certain extent, that may be a subtle shift from the Serious Sailing, to the Serious Fun but if that’s what it takes, so be it.
Hasse Malmsten, SWE 384
Stradivari Mk I
Boatbuilder and Pensioner