Cadet Nationals at Weymouth - Preview
by Tony Jaffa 16 Aug 2006 11:36 BST
19-25 August 2006
The UK Cadet fleet is set to descend on Weymouth and Portland Sailing Academy this weekend, for the 2006 National Championships.
This year's week-long championship again looks set to be the UK's best attended double-handed dinghy championship of 2006. And with more than 120 boats expected (and with a number of entries still to be received), 2006 looks set to confirm that the Cadet is the premier two person racing dinghy for juniors.
The competition is expected to be hot, following Team GBR's success at the recent Worlds in Hungary. With 3 of the 7 strong team finishing in the top 10 at the Worlds, the standard has been set at a particularly high level. All eyes will be on World runners-up Hamish Stone and Aaron Woolf, who have dominated the UK fleet in 2006, and finished just a handful of points behind the new World Champions from Argentina. Will they add the National Championship to their haul, or will they be challenged by the other up-and-coming teams?
As usual, youngsters new to the racing scene will be well catered for. New competitors, who will be sailing in the Regatta fleet, will have their own coaches and a dedicated racecourse, and will spend the first few days receiving top quality training, followed by a 7 race series in which they can put their newly learned skills into practice. As ever, the competition is expected to be as intense in the Regatta fleet as in the main fleet!
And of course, the week would not be complete without lots of land and water based FUN! The entertainments committee have had their thinking caps on, and competitors and parents alike can expect to work as hard off the water as on it!