As our ferry company have their largest ship being serviced at the beginning of the early Spring Bank Holiday there will be no sailing at 02.15 from Heysham on the  5^th  May. Sailings from Liverpool are as normal.  Some would have trouble getting here on time so we have put racing back. There will be a 12.00 sailing from Liverpool on Saturday 5^th and we will have a practice race at aprox 4.30 that day. The Regatta will be on Sunday and Monday am with time to catch the fastcraft back to Liverpool at 3pm.

To book sailings please ring 01624 661661 and quote the RS Tera Open – you should get 50% discount for a competitor, boat and 1 adult. Any problems email brian.convery@steam-packet.com or bpartington@mcb.net. If you would like to stay in a local home please let Brian Partington know. (Some will already have made arrangements). We look forward to seeing you at the Isle of Man Yacht Club for a great weekend.

The Isle of Man RS Tera Open

5th and 6th May 2012

For those planning their 2012 programme there will be another chance to travel to the Isle of Man for the early Spring Bank Holiday. Last year we had a great weekend with lots of sunshine – but too much wind. Hopefully it will be just right for the 5th/6^th May 2012 when the Isle of Man Yacht Club will be the hosts again. It gives the Manx sailors the opportunity to repay the hospitality they receive through the year.  Full details will be appearing on the club site www.iomyc.com but for now further details from Brian Partington bpartington@mcb.net or 01624844173.

The Isle of Man Steam Packet Co.Ltd (our ferry company) are generously sponsoring the event by offering 50% reduction on ferry costs for competitor + adult + car and boat. You will need a code to book with. The event will also have a main sponsor. We hope to offer some homes for those who would like to stay with 'sailors' and other accommodation details can be found on www.gov.im/tourism/accommodation . Sailing in the Irish sea is great fun so come and join us and try it.

Bewl Valley Squad Training

With the weather forecast for Saturday ranging from a steady 6 knots slowly building to around 12 knots and Sunday’s forecast being 12 knots gusting up to 18knots, the scene was set for an amazing first squad weekend. New squaddies would have the opportunity to learn and practice new skills and techniques over the course of Saturday then adapt them and put them to better practice on the breezier Sunday.

As everyone rocked up Saturday morning it was impossible not to notice the astonishingly low water which has also been the case at many other reservoirs around the region.  After a quick rig everyone assembled ready for the first briefing of the weekend and winter. Jonathan didn’t hesitate to make people feel at home in the squad and after a speedy introduction to all new comers the first lesson began. We discussed the correct techniques for ‘reverse flow’ and filled in new squad members about what it was. We were divided between Pro sailors and Sports sailors and taken off by our selected coaches. The newbie coaches present were Libby and Tom. The Pros were given to Tom and Tintin (Dan) and the Sports were delegated to head honcho Jonathan Lewis and Libby Watkins.

After a quick run and change we were ready to hit the water!

The Pros began by sailing around a windward leeward course allowing Dan and Tom to gauge  current skill levels and pick up on any bad habits. With the main focus on smooth roll tacks and gybes technique was crucial. After giving everyone areas in which to improve the fleet faced a number of short punchy one lap races whose winners were determined by the quality of speed, starts and tactics given the swinging wind coming off the shore. Anya proved consistently at the top and set the standard for the day.

After a chilly sail a warm lunch was fantastic and we gathered upstairs ready for the evaluation of the morning’s session and the plan for the afternoon session to come.  After being told we were going to be taking part in two lap team races the pros were buzzing but not without a reminder that we shouldn’t be crashing into each other! This would be a test of skill, tactics, rule knowledge and ability to find clear air. It also put quick decision making to the test which can be the difference between winning or not out on the race course.

The wind had built and we were now able to hike and get the boat shifting; team racing became a real rush as we were divided into 5 teams of 3 and were pinned against each other in back to back races which consisted of two teams racing at a time.

After a debriefing and changing into smarter clothing we were ready for the squad dinner. It was great fun and we enjoyed post training banter and cracked various jokes related to the animal on Dan’s top lip. Sadly this was short lived by an early night for some (not the parents).

Sunday morning saw rocketing excitement at the prospect of meeting England rugby hero Jason Robinson who later went for a cruise in an RS Vision with national squad parent Martin Lewis. Inevitably he went swimming but luckily cameras were at the ready!  He was joining us with the team from Proskin who were generously presenting all National squad members with thermal legging and top base layers. Over the course of the day the verdict was unanimous that the Proskins were brilliant in maintaining your body’s temperature as well as relaxing your muscles during and after exercise. 

After a briefing we took to the water this time all in one group. The plan was that the Sports would race off after a 3, 2, 1 sequence and a minute later the Pros would start and race through them in search of clear air! It would force both Pro and Sport sailors to get their heads out of the boat. With Daniel Lewis dominating almost every race during Sunday and with a couple of wins for me and Anya a high level of competitive spirit was evident among the Pros.  

We came ashore de-rigged and enjoyed a relaxed debrief with video analysis to aid the coaches with pointing out improvements for bad tackers who were named and shamed. The video not only helped the person who was being videoed but gave coaches the chance to demonstrate areas which relate to bad habits of some of the  guilty squaddies hiding at the back.

 It was an amazing weekend fraught with capsizes (mainly me) but there were successes and all learned valuable lessons which have improved their performance. I was also pleased to be named overall sailor of the day for Sunday for the Pros with Joshua Boniface taking the title for the Sports.

By Flynn Davies, Pro National Squad

by Rupert Jameson Sport Development Squad (Age 8)

My first squad weekend at Bewl Valley Sailing Club.

It was fantastic, I learnt if you push your tiller over too hard it will slow you down a lot.

I got sailor of the day twice, I was very proud of myself

Thank you all of the coaches, I've learnt so much from just this weekend

By Joshua Boniface age (11)

On the 5th and 6th of November, it was the first squad weekend. It was at Bewl Valley Sailing Club which is a Reservoir. This was my first training weekend because I had only just joined the RS Tera Sports National squad.

The first day there was not that much wind, so it made it a bit harder to sail. We were looking at reverse flow. That is where the tell tails are flying in the opposite direction to which they are supposed to, downwind. You bear away to the edge of jibing. This increases speed by at least 30%.

Also we looked at the basic things, like tacking which surprised me because that is the first thing you learn. I soon found out that there was alot I could improve on.    

On the saturday evening we had a special dinner with the sponsors. We got to have dinner all together which was fun.

On the Sunday the sponsors from Proskin gave the National squaddies Proskins which keeps your body temperature stable, we got to meet a rugby hero Jason Robinson which was exciting. The Proskins kept me very warm and I slept in them as they said it helped your muscles recover from exercise.

On Sunday we fine tuned the technique’s we had been learning and had some fun races. It was easier because there was more wind, but quite gusty, at one point 11 boats capsized in a massive gust. I got sailor of the day on the sunday which i am very proud of.

 I would like to thank Bewl Valley and our coaches Jonathan, Dan, Tom and Libby . This weekend was so much fun and I’m looking forward to the next one.

By Joshua Boniface age (11)

RS Tera Sport National Squad

A very interesting write up about energy drinks. It explains what each type does and how to make your own. Well worth a read.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/health_and_fitness/4289704.stm

The conclusion to the four event Southern Traveler Series was due to be the RLYC Open Meeting, due to high winds this event was abandoned which meant that all three previous events counted, with no discard.

2011 is the first time this series has been run and it has been a great success with those that have done all the counting events being rewarded with a good overall result, the results have been run in a trial format as weighted average points for each counting event, meaning the higher the entry, the lower the number of points scored.

Thanks to Sutton Bingham, Hayling Island, Hill Head and Royal Lymington for including their open meetings in the series, all well organised and fun events.

Results

PRO (18 entries)

1. Tristan Bracegirdle (Castle Cove Sailing Club)

2. Anya Green (Hayling Island Sailing Club)

3. Yann Bracegirdle (Castle Cove Sailing Club)

4. George Catchpole (Waveney & Oulton Broad Sailing Club)

SPORT ( 69 entries)

1. Henry Jameson (Hayling Island Sailing Club)

2. Liam Willis (Lymington Town Sailing Club)

3. Jonny Tate (Royal Lymington Yacht Club)

4. Osian Bracegirdle (Caste Cove Sailing Club)

5. Alex Butler (Hayling Island Sailing Club)

6. Billy Vennis-Ozane (Hill Head Sailing Club

7. Joshua Bonoface (Hayling Island Sailing Club)

8. Rupert Jameson (Hayling Island Sailing Club)

Thanks to Hyde Sails for some great prizes and to Rachel Green who has been instrumental in organising the event.

Looking forward to 2012, same format, same scoring system, and possibly additional venues, watch this space.

Royal Lymington YC hosted the fleet for Train and Race on Saturday and Sunday, 22nd and 23rd, with a forecast of wind and plenty of it.

On Saturday the fleet were split into 5 ability groups and set off in a good blow down the river to the open waters of the Solent for training in big wind and waves, most of the sailors managed to cope with the conditions for a couple of hours before the training team decided that conditions were too much for the less experienced sailors and brought a number ashore for hot showers and a welcome mug of hot chocolate.

The more experienced guys took part in a number of short races to hone their skills in preparation for the Open meeting on Sunday.

Considering the conditions it was great to see that we only had one bit of gear failure, Tristan Bs' mast decided it was too windy and sacrificed itself so it could have a lie down.

The weather forecast was set for even more breeze on Sunday morning building to 30 knots in the afternoon, the race management team took a decision to move the start times to earlier in the morning so as to try and get some racing in.

The fleet arrived with much anticipation of a great days racing, unfortunately it was not to be, as the anemometer hit 30 knots before the briefing, the race team took absolutely the right decision and abandoned  the event.

Unfortunately this is the second time that RLYC have had to call the RS Tera Open Meeting off for too much breeze, hopefully the new open meeting trophy will get its first airing in 2012, lets hope its 3rd time lucky.

Congratulations and thanks must go the Gina Bassett ably assisted by Fred and the team at Royal Lymington, she and they have put an enormous amount of effort and enthusiasm into organizing the event this year, we will be back in 2012 to enjoy the hospitality of RLYC again.

Rooster Sailing RS Tera Open Hill Head Sailing Club 2011

In 2008 Hill Head Sailing Club held the first RS Tera nationals, in this short time the class has grown exponentially, the race team and all involved at Hill Head have opened their eyes to the new youngsters in the line-up.

Commitment, joy to be on the water and inclusiveness are adjectives which spring to mind.

The club organised a training day on the Saturday  which attracted over 30 sailors, with sailing conditions sent from heaven; the only issue was seeing the mark flags flying in the sun-reflected wavelets. Dan Alldis, John Piatt, Charly Capon and Tracey Jacobs arranged some superb training exercises which saw some of the local and visiting sailors prosper with new found confidence. The chance to sail amongst a good sized fleet has an inspiring effect; the day was finished off with a number of mini races and a de-briefing.

Race day woke with only a whisper of wind and eyes were fixed upon the Rooster Sailing flag the race team willing it to fly a little fuller. The start was postponed and the race team kept on their toes and set a trapezoid course as the wind built. With the Pros starting first and a long first beat out into mid Solent the Pros made short shrift with the building wind. Brothers Yann and Tristan possibly chatting about local conditions gave them a 1,2 with the rest of the fleet close on their sterns. The sports set off with a great start, Liam Willis from Lymington, Joshua Boniface and Alex Butler carving out through the fleet on the first lap contesting hard,  with Alex keeping everything together and fine display of lee bowing to cross the line first. The finishing line had to be moved as the wind dropped to torment the sailors and the race team, the mid fleet being tested by a strong tide.

Some hasty mark moving and a shorter windward/ leeward course got proceedings underway. George Catchpole took a shine to this new course and worked hard at keeping an advantage over Josh Bakker. Sports were also raring to go on this new course, Billy Vennis Ozanne was on fire after finishing  4^th  with an OCS in the first race, flying up the first beat creating a commanding lead over  Ossian Bracegirdle and Henry Jameson to take local boat line honours.

3^rd Race saw the Pros with the line hotly contended and this time 1^st place was taken by Anya  Green with George on her heels and Luke Bailey with some great manoeuvring around the sport fleet on their beat. Sports with a hard fought start for committee boat end start was all clear, Henry, Alex and Billy contesting hard up the first beat; Billy rounded first and kept position to the finish first, followed closely by Henry and Alex.

With Tristan and George very close on points these two had all to play in the fourth and last race, George showing good consistency finishing third just pipping Tristan on points for overall victory. Very gracefully the Pros allowed all four races to have a new winner and Luke Bailey from Emsworth took line honours. Sports were just as close on points with Alex, Billy and Henry all up for an event win. Four OCS’s gives an idea of the pressure on the start, Alex getting a clean start along with Henry at the port end forged ahead. Alex’s consistency gave him the race and the event, followed by Billy one point behind and Henry one point further back. Commendation most go to all sailors with a 100% finish ratio this surely shows enjoyment and commitment .Local Sailor Gemma Ainscow received the Achievement  award sailing in a new model boat kindly loaned from RS sailing for the event.  Prizes sponsored by Rooster Sailing with tea and some tasty cakes finished a superb two day event. Thanks to all the volunteers at Hill Head Sailing club for the same commitment that the sailors gave and thanks to RS sailing and Rooster Sailing for sponsorship, look forward to seeing you and many more next year.

Full Results- 

HHSC Open Event - RS Tera Pro Fleet - Final Results

HHSC Open Event - RS Tera Sport Fleet - Final Results

NORTHERN TERA COACHING

On 15 and 16 October Ripon SC hosted the first of a series of Tera training sessions to be held in the north over the winter months.  Ripon now have a fleet of 22 Tera dinghies, and most of the home boats were out for the event, augmented with visitors from Sunderland YC, Derwent Reservoir SC and Yorkshire Ouse SC.  With coaching led by Jonathan Lewis, the National Squad Coach, and Brett Cockayne, who will be working with the Northern fleet from now on, the participants had 2 days of great sailing. 

The coaching on Saturday focused on boat handling skills, with the fleet learning to ‘Superman’ as they approached windward marks, developing their roll tacking skills and looking at start line tactics.  On Sunday the participants joined in the club racing, with a 75 minute pursuit race in the morning and two handicap races in the afternoon.  Jonathan and Brett provided on the water coaching and the fleet then reviewed their performance during the debriefing sessions.  There were some very tired, but happy sailors at the end of a brilliant two days!

The timetable for the remainder of the coaching is now being finalized and there is a great circuit of Tera Open meetings being developed for the North of England for 2012, including the inaugural Northern Championships which will be hosted by Ripon SC at the end of May.

For further information on this please get in touch with Chief Coach Jonathan Lewis or with Ripon SC’s Jennie Clark (commodore@ripon-sc.org.uk)