Derbyshire Youth Sailing at the National Schools Team Racing
by Mike Haynes 3 Oct 2011 08:21 BST
1-2 October 2011
Derbyshire Youth Sailing at the NSSA team racing © Phil Ascough
This weekend two teams from Derbyshire Youth Sailing entered the National Schools Sailing Association, single handed team racing competition, held at Upton Warren Sailing Club in Worcestershire. Thirty-two teams from around the UK spent two days, with more than 120 races completed, using the Wilson Swiss League process, to find the best school age, team racers.
Both Derbyshire teams sailed really well in the light winds and unseasonally warm weather, enjoying the sunshine and being able to wear light sailing clothing in October! Derbyshire A team were overall 11th at the end of the league racing and Derbyshire B team were 3rd which took them into the semi-finals. Frustratingly for the Derbyshire B team, one of the teams from Cambridgeshire squeezed out a two-from-three-races victory in the semi-final and went on to become runners-up in the final, to a team from South Tyneside.
Derbyshire B team comprised Matt Luxton, aged 13, a member at Burton Sailing Club with sailing brothers Joshua Haynes, also aged 13 and Benjamin Haynes, aged 16, who are members at Trent Valley Sailing Club.
Derbyshire A Team included Ogston Sailing Club member Natalie Smith, aged 15 and Burton Sailing Club member Sam Ford, aged 18 with late substitute Callum Lambourn, aged 16, a member at Swarkestone Sailing Club.
Derbyshire Team Coach, Ben Crossdale, aged 18, a member at Ogston Sailing Club, said "I am really impressed by all six of our sailors who sailed excellently all weekend. They focussed on the task at hand and used their skills and talents to great effect. They had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed the competition."
Each team comprises three members and the racing format is one team against another and the Wilson Swiss League provides the racing order, so that all the teams have a fair chance of progressing to the semi-finals stage. The semi-finals is then between the top four teams after the league and they race two teams against each other and progress to the final if they win two races in the semi's. The final is again a first to two wins process.
Derbyshire Team Captain, Chris Ford, Sam's Dad and also of Ogston Sailing Club, commented "The races are always exciting as the sailors in each team work together to try to ensure they win by forcing the other team into losing. There are some really neat tricks, fully within the rules, that can be used to slow the other team down and it takes rules knowledge, very good boat handling and complete awareness of your team position, to secure victory."
Next year, in 2012, the NSSA Single Handed Team Racing event is to be staged in Derbyshire and it will be a very special occasion as the NSSA is also celebrating it's 50th anniversary year. The organising team from Derbyshire Youth Sailing is already working on plans for the event which will take place on the weekend of 6th & 7th October 2012 – make a note of it in your next year's diary and come along.
For the latest information, go to www.dysailing.com