Land Rover BAR Academy take a fast boat to China
by Land Rover BAR Academy 29 Apr 2016 16:05 BST
29 April - 2 May 2016
Land Rover BAR Academy team in action © Lloyd Images
The Land Rover BAR Academy team move onto the next leg of their Extreme Sailing Season (ESS) this weekend in Qingdao, China. They resumed competition with seven teams for the four day event from 29th April – 2nd May. Qingdao's spectacular waterfront – a former Olympic sailing venue – will host the racing, and will see senior sailing team members Leigh McMillan (three-time ESS winner) and Bleddyn Mon mentoring the Academy triallists Neil Hunter and Adam Kay.
Land Rover BAR Academy Project Manager Rob Andrews commented, "We've kept the same core group for Qingdao as we had at the first event in Oman, so we're hoping to build on that result. If we can consistently sail as we did at our best in Oman we should get another spot on the podium. We have lost Ed Powys who is staying in the UK to focus on boat testing, but we have replaced him with Michael Barnes, who at 26 will really benefit from the experience."
"Neil and Adam, the triallists from Oman will race again in Qingdao, but we recently had 40 triallists at the Land Rover BAR base for a day of testing, narrowed down from over 70 applicants. So Neil and Adam are currently the top of a pyramid with a very large base. We will be seeing a lot more young sailors on the boats as we go forward. Sailors of the quality of Leigh and Bleddyn can really fast track their skills. And while it's not all about the results at this stage, they will be looking to build on the great start that they made with a third place in Oman."
After the first day of competition produced just a single race - which Land Rover BAR won - before light winds forced a cancellation of the rest of the day, mentor and ESS skipper Bleddyn Mon commented, "It's been over a month since we last raced, so it's great to get back out on the water. We've had two days to rig the boat and get it ready to race, a practice day and although we only got one race done today, obviously it was good to get the win."
"There is potential for some much stronger breeze tomorrow, but given what we have seen so far the conditions can be very changeable. This is my first time out in Qingdao, and it's great to be sailing in the 2008 Olympic sailing venue. Leigh has obviously spent a lot of time out here in the past, both with the Extreme Sailing Series and during his Olympic career [McMillan raced for Team GBR at the 2008 Games in the multihull Tornado]. I'm sure his experience will prove extremely valuable."
Racing is scheduled each day from Friday 29th April – Monday 2nd May.