Derbyshire Youth at Toddbrook Sailing Club
by Mike Haynes 14 Apr 2006 10:33 BST
8 April 2006
Action from the Derbyshire Youth Sailing event at Toddbrook © Mike Shaw /
www.fotoboat.com
Gusting winds challenge youth sailors
Saturday 8th April saw the first Derbyshire Youth Sailing 2006 Series event at Toddbrook Sailing Club, one of the sailing clubs in the North of the County. Craig McCarthy (14) a sailor from the south of the county and a member at Burton Sailing Club, travelled North and came away with success winning the three race event in his Laser 4.7 class dinghy. He was closely followed by two Carsington Sailing Club members, Rocky Banks (13) who sails an Optimist class dinghy and Tom Harlow (17) who sails a Splash class dinghy.
The racing was very close and packed with incidents as the conditions were very variable with gusting winds racing across the reservoir. The safety boat crews, manned by volunteers, were kept busy ensuring the safety of the sailors who did capsize when the wind was too strong for them or they made a small mistake in helming their boats.
There were Junior racers there as well and Ben Pole (11) from Swarkestone Sailing Club not only was the first junior but was also fourth overall in his Optimist class dinghy just behind Tom Harlow.
Toddbrook Sailing Club, located near Whaley Bridge in the High Peak, is a very friendly club that has wonderful views of the rolling peak district hills, criss-crossed by stone walls and dotted at this time of year with sheep and their new born lambs.
Kevin Law, Vice Commodore of Toddbrook Sailing Club, commented “It was wonderful to welcome these talented young sailors from around the county to our club. The variable wind conditions certainly tested them to the full and they sailed magnificently. They also seemed to really enjoy the sausage, mash and beans we provided at lunch time. They had certainly worked up a healthy appetite!”
It always provides an interesting spectator sport watching the racing and seeing who might be next to manage a ‘dry capsize’ where the sailor climbs onto the top side of the boat as it tips over and then proceeds to bring it upright again without getting wet!
There are nine further series events to come and with the outcome of the series being calculated from the top six results for each competitor, there is still plenty of opportunity for youth sailors to join the series and challenge for the annual series prizes. Details and pre-event registration is available, along with lots more information on the www.dysailing.com website. The next event is on 22nd April at Trent Valley Sailing Club who are celebrating 120 years of sailing this year.