RLymYC team attend the Royal London Yacht Club Etchells Youth Academy 2019
by Vicky Leen 7 Feb 13:36 GMT
A young keelboat team from Lymington are attending four training camps in Cowes in bid to win the use of a fully funded Etchells for the Cowes 2019 racing season. The four training camps include intensive training both on and off the water and on-board coaching from current racing sailors and coaches. The team will attend a selection weekend on March 30/31 in Cowes.
Successful teams will be granted the use of an Etchells for the entire season and will attend events including The Etchells Class Europeans, Cowes Week and The Etchells Class Nationals
The young team are led by team captain, Robby Boyd (bow/jib trim) with Hattie Rogers (helm), Max Crowe (mainsheet/tactics) and Henry Collison (spinnaker trim/navigation)
'The opportunity to hone our inshore keelboat skills against some of the best sailors in the world is a challenge we are up for. We believe we have a chance of securing one of the boats on offer and hope to continue with this program into the future' said Hattie Rogers.
Robby and Henry were both introduced to the Academy last year when sailing in a team which included fellow Lymington sailor Nik Froud. At the 2018 Etchells Class Europeans, Nik and Henry sailed in a team that achieved the outstanding result of first Corinthian and Youth boat.
The driving force behind the academy is Cowes Etchells Class Captain David Franks. David, with head coach David Bedford, have been running the program since 2011. Many sailors have gone on to both sail with local owners and Internationally.
RLymYC Commodore Roger Garlick said: 'David Franks' generosity, support from the Royal London Yacht Club and The Etchells Class coaches and volunteers have created a unique opportunity for rising stars to learn and excel against world class talent. As a club, our future is the young and we actively encourage young talent into keelboat racing. The club is pleased to contribute to the training fees and are proud they are representing the RLymYC'
More information here.