The Salty Dawg Rally’s list of sponsors providing goods and services to the rally and its participants has grown remarkably, according to Rally founders Bill & Linda Knowles. The list has grown to more than 25 sponsors including such well-known names in the marine world as Quantum, Hylas Yachts, Jeanneau North America, and more, all of whom are prominently listed on the Salty Dawg Rally web site, www.saltydawgrally.org.
“We appreciate all of our sponsors, from the large yacht manufacturers to the smaller providers, Bill Knowles, Co-founder of the Rally, states. “Each sponsor brings something unique and of real value to our participating Rally members.”
“For example, nv-charts provides up-to-date chart sets in paper and digital format to all of our boats,” Linda Knowles says. “Quantum has provided each boat with a high-quality Skipper bag. Offshore Passage Opportunities helps our members get crew for their boats at no charge. In all, participants in our Rally not only don’t have to pay a participation fee, but benefit from the generosity of Salty Dawg Rally sponsors. It is a tremendous incentive to join us,” she adds.
The first sponsor to sign on at the founding of the Rally was George Day, Editor of Blue Water Sailing Magazine, and others followed quickly thereafter as news of the Rally began to spread.
The Salty Dawg Rally is a ‘grass-roots’ rally, free for all participants, and leaves Hampton, Virginia, Beaufort, NC, and other ports in the fall, headed for the British Virgin Islands (BVI) and other ports in the Caribbean. In mid – May the Salty Dawg Rally will head North.
The Salty Dawg Rally is comprised of blue water sailors who have completed at least one blue water passage. There is no formal inspection of boats, since it is the responsibility of each skipper to have proper safety equipment and to ensure that the vessel is prepared for the passage. Information including weather, Gulf Stream analysis, location of eddies, and daily weather forecasts during the passage is provided to each skipper by well-known weather router Chris Parker, courtesy of Blue Water Sailing magazine. Volunteer Dick Giddings manages float plans for all of the boats in the fleet and maintains a daily SSB radio schedule, as well as daily positions for everyone (via HF radio Spot Messengers and Sat Phone).
For more information about joining the Rally or becoming a sponsor, visit www.saltydawgrally.org
