RS Feva South West Open Training at Royal Western Yacht Club
by James Dowrick 23 Nov 2016 06:49 GMT
19-20 November 2016
RS Feva South West Training Weekend at Plymouth © James Dowrick
On the weekend of the 19th & 20th of November eighteen young RS Feva sailors travelled from all over the South West to attend the 2nd training weekend. Unfortunately due to poor weather the first one which was due to be held at Porthpean SC, Cornwall was cancelled so we were very eager for this weekend in Plymouth. The coaches for the weekend were Bex Partridge (Welsh National Squad Coach) and James Dowrick (Experienced RS Feva Sailor & Coach). Below is a weekend report from Henry Hallam & Ashley Hill from St Mawes SC.
Saturday started early. After a two hour journey we finally arrived. We took the boat off the road trailer and began to rig the boat ready to go, this process included putting up the mast and re-rigging the spinnaker before finally putting up the jib and hoisting the main sail. After everyone was rigged we had a short briefing from Bex & James on what we were going to be doing, this was then followed by getting changed and, after having a quick bite to eat, we all headed out on to the water.
As we first left the slipway, it was nice and calm and the wind was just strong enough to move us along nicely. However, after a while of sailing we passed the outer break water and not only did the wind pick up considerably, so did the swell. Out on the water it was great fun as with the strong winds we were flying along especially with the spinnaker up. Our exercises involved; follow the leader, sailing around the triangle and making sure we did 3 tacks and 3 gybes per lap. Unfortunately this meant quite a few capsizes. The wind got too much after a while so we all headed back to shore. After a good sail we arrived back at the club for lunch and since most people were cold and very tired it was decided not to go out again in the afternoon and so we did some theory on wave sailing and boat rigging for different conditions.
On Sunday there was very little wind which was in complete contrast to yesterday. During the rigging time our coaches came around to have a look at our boats and gave us their recommendations for how we should set up our boats. We then got changed, had a quick briefing then headed out onto the water. Once on the water we found we had some nice waves to practise the wave sailing techniques that we had learnt the previous day in the theory session. We also spent time perfecting our roll tacks and gybes, learning how to get maximum propulsion out of the turns. Bex & James then set us some fun challenges which involved a free pumping race and first to the mark race. These were great fun and made for a great end to the morning. We then all had a tow back to the shore where we had some food & drink. Over lunch the wind dropped even more and local weather station was showing just 3knts, with this in mind Bex & James decided to end the weekend to let everyone travel back in daylight and thanked everyone for coming.
It was a great weekend, although the conditions weren't ideal. We can't wait until the next training event as no doubt it will be just as much fun and exciting. A huge thank you to our coaches for the weekend Bex & James. Also thanks to the Royal Western Yacht Club, Plymouth for hosting the weekend. We had great fun.
Thank you to all the sailors & parents for coming to the Royal Western Yacht Club for this train weekend. We look forward to welcoming you to the next training weekend which is on the 14th & 15th January 2017 at Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club. You can sign up by visiting the RS Feva South West Facebook Page... if you have any questions please contact us at . Have a good Christmas everyone.