Holiday Greetings from Your SnipeToday Editors

The third year for SnipeToday is coming to an end, and we want to write a little about where we are today.

We are …
2 editors and 97 contributors! How is our work?

The site requires a daily commitment of half an hour up to two hours.

It is not easy to find and gather new stories for the site. It often requires searching on Facebook or around the web, and asking the sailors, yacht clubs and fleets to send us their news. This activity is the most laborious. It’s a lot easier when somebody sends us results, or even better a photo or video, ready to post on the site. In some cases, we have to check and correct results, and edit videos, stories, and interviews.

It is not easy, especially after a long day at work, or better yet… after a long and tough day of hiking on the water. Sometimes it is difficult to keep our eyes open.

Do not forget that we are a group of volunteers, not paid.

But it is worth it to see a good story on the site, knowing that our friends will be happy to read it.

(drawing by Paolo Cardoni for SnipeToday)

…

We want to thank those who helped us from the race venues. We believe that the daily reports, photos, videos and interviews from racing the European Championship, the WH&O, the World Masters and Women’s Worlds were interesting for those who were not there and even for those who were at each event.

We have also followed other races, whether international or local, that took place in North and South America, Europe and Japan. It is truly an international site now, with contributions and events from around the Snipe world.

We also published several technical articles, stories about the Snipe, interviews with sailors (the famous “14 questions”), and jokes (on April 1st). We emphasized initiatives for the promotion of the class. And we’ve successfully launched a new category, “SnipeYesterday”, where there are articles and photos about our glorious history.

Here’s a look back at 2014 by the numbers:
SnipeToday: 350,000 visitors, 5,500,000 page views
Stories posted in 2014: 692
Regattas covered in 2014: 183
SnipeToday Digest: 656 subscribers
Facebook page: 6,676 visitors in one day (during the WH&O Championship)

So thank you to our readers and contributors!

As we look forward to 2015, it is important for us to hear from you: Is the site too much oriented on racing or too much focused on promoting the “elite” of the class? Does it need a broader perspective? More history? More interviews? More technical articles?

For us (and maybe for you, dear readers) it is also important to ask for your help, especially contributing news, stories, photos, videos. The SnipeToday motto is “A Site for all Snipe Sailors”!

So please, do not hesitate to contact us ([email protected]).

Merry Christmas, and see you on the water in 2015!
Pietro Fantoni, Moruzzo, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy
Carol Cronin, Jamestown, Rhode Island, USA