I understand that a longer event makes the prospect of travelling further more appealing, but it also makes it harder for others to attend. It would be much easier for me to take one or two days off work for a 3/4 day event than it would to take a full week off. A "warm up" day would be a good compromise e.g. 4 days of sailing, with only the last 3 days counting for the results, thereby making attendance on the first day optional.

Paul