The Scottish National Scout Regatta
by Neil McLaren 8 Oct 2015 20:57 BST
26-27 September 2015
Scottish National Scout regatta © Neil McLaren
The 26th - 27th of September saw over 100 Scouts, Explorer Scouts and Network Leaders descend on The Lochgoilhead Centre on the west coast of Scotland. They were here to compete in the annual Scottish National Scout Regatta, which sees individuals, crews and whole scout groups from all over Scotland competing in a number of different water sports.
The previous year's event was plagued with light winds and the build up to this year's event saw scouts from all over Scotland watching weather forecasts hoping of a good weather window for this year's event.
The regatta encapsulates 3 main water sports: Sailing, both single handed and crewed events; Paddle sports, team canoeing as well as individual kayaking. Running alongside these events was a powerboat challenge course run by RYA Scotland, where individuals were against the clock to get the fastest time.
On Saturday morning the competitors woke up to find low clouds hanging above the trees and a mirror finish across the loch. Perfect for the paddle sports events, but not so good for the sailing, leading to the postponement of the racing. The wind eventually came in mid afternoon enabling the single handed events to get under way in light winds. This lend to some close sailing over short courses with water at the mark often contested.
Sunday provided to be a rerun of the previous days weather, calm; clear and not a breath of wind. The morning saw the paddle races concluded with the kayaking events for the scouts and Network/ Leaders, as well as the continuation of the power boating. Just after lunch the towel had to be thrown in for the sailing events due to the lack of wind.
The overall group results for the weekend were well contested with 82nd Craigalmond retaining the trophy they won last year. This year's event was lucky to boast a number of sponsors including Tunnocks, Gael Force Marine, Arnold Clarke, and Palm Equipment, who very kindly provide prizes for all the individual and group winners. All of which we are very grateful to and hope we can continue our affiliation for future events.
Finally we would like to say a massive thank you to all who were involved in making such a fantastic event happen. You have all been key in introducing young people across Scotland to a wide range of water sports We look forward to welcoming you and others to next years event.
For more results and more photos please visit the Lochgoilhead Centre's Facebook page, www.facebook.com/lochgoilhead.