Pop Up Tender Rally - The Crate at Trafalgar Wharf
Well that was different! Trafalgar Wharf suddenly announced that dredging would start just before the rally and all pontoons were to be removed. We were forced to hold the first ever “tender rally without tenders” event! This year we'd already had a 'boat rally without boats' in the Hamble! Somehow for a 'Yacht Club without a Club' it felt natural!
With no moose 
calls, no gathering at the lock gate at 18:00 and no waving us all off from the the lock side the natural gathering point seemed to be at the bar at The Crate.
Eventually over 40 members were gathered “on the terrace” in fine warm and calm early Autumn conditions with the twinkling lights of Port Solent in the distance making us fell most welcome.
The very low Spring Tide making the inner harbour inaccessible, however gave us an almost dystopian view of the mud flats and beyond. The dredger made an appearance to dock before dark where members with critical eyes watched on.
The bar service was swift and friendly, the food truck service just spot on with generous portions and the atmosphere grew, with various dogs being given lots of TLC. The two young musicians were most excellent and, during their second set of the evening , threw open invitations for song suggestions. For those of you who attended the great Beaulieu rally, we finally got “Hotel California” played to us. Result.
What could have turned out to be a damp squib was in fact another terrific evening at Trafalgar Wharf / The Crate , due to our members being willing to go above and beyond and a can do mentality from the organisers!
Sarah and I would like to thank you for coming along and making something of an historic first for the club. Well done all.
For those of your who’d like to run a PUTR ( or any other rally event ) it’s just a load of fun and you get great support by a committee member from start to finish. As I said at our AGM, to paraphrase a somewhat famous American politician, “Ask not what your club can do for you ,but rather, what you can do for your club”.