West Highland Yachting Week’s search for the best young journalist

2018 marks both Year of Young People and the 71st year of West Highland Yachting Week. To mark this occasion, WHYW will be running a competition to find the best young writer or budding journalist in the fleet and, at the end of the week, the overall most informative and enjoyable entry will be awarded a prize.

Unlike many other events, West Highland Yachting Week encourages competitors to enter for individual races if they do not want to take part in the whole series. Some choose to enter only for the passage races or just one race – or even a feeder race before going off on a cruise. In addition to spinnaker classes, restricted sail classes are offered which attract skippers with limited experience, crew or equipment. While these classes also suit the yachts with small children aboard, some of the most competitive crew members are the children themselves.

The regatta moves from place to place during the week, a time which will see yachts passing many miles of different coastline. They will see great numbers of islands, mountains, lochs, castles and wildlife, all providing a spectacular backdrop to the close and varied racing. Many of our competitors are infrequent racers, often first-timers and the committee is always delighted to encourage those dipping a toe into racing waters for the first time.

How to enter: each day we ask any young crew member aboard competing yachts to file race reports, by 6pm each evening, in Word format of no more than 500 words describing the action and conditions enjoyed by the boats in their class.

Each evening we will post the best entry and at the end of the week the overall most informative and enjoyable entry will be awarded the West Highland Yachting Week Young Journalist Award and their entry will be published.

Simply send the completed article with your name, age and boat name to: office@ whyw.co.uk by 6pm on the evening of the race. You can add images if you wish or we can assign one from our daily selection captured by Yachting Images on the water.