And embarrassing for them. These are all accomplished sailors taking advantage of what the rally offers them in experienced weather forecasting and general commaraderie some folks enjoy(not for everybody). There may be some sailors that simply "herd" in these rallys, I haven't met any personally. I think the "herd mentality criticism, is a poor shot at this SDR group of what look to be well experienced sailors.

Schedules though, everybody I've ever known that sails, has a schedule. One schedule may not be as rigorous as the next guys, but everybody sails on a schedule. Many of these sailors (my friends on RUFFIAN I know for sure), are sailing to THE schedule of seasons. Fiona doesn't like the cold! They aren't going to wait until the snow flies.