Ready for the Road - Brixham here we come

Andy & Helen preparing their GP14 Dinghys ready for the trip to Brixham, to take part in the Nationals.

 

 

There will be 4 entrants from the Welsh Harp Sailing Club - Steve Cooper, Andy Wadsworth, Helen Allen and Dennis Adams.  

Roll on the weekend!

Fitness Check before the Nationals

Last session at The Body Factory to work with Andy Howell - Personal Trainer, Sports Coach and Physio, as well as being a great motivator. 

Thanks to Andy, I am probably fitter than I have been in the last 5 years. 

Today was three sessions involving running, planks, sit-ups, weights and standing runs.

The boat is as ready as it can be. 

The helm is as prepared as possible. 

Now it's just a case of getting down to Brixham and enjoying it. 

First race of the GP14 Dinghy National Championships will be on Sunday 2 August.

Will keep you advised of progress. 

Count Down to GP14 Nationals ...

Today was the last Saturday for Club Sailing before the GP14 National Championship starting on Sunday week. 

The boat has had the "once over", the parameters ( mast position, spinnaker pole size, etc. etc. ) have been checked. Medical forms are signed. Towing arrangements are finalised. We are ready to go. 

All I need to do is make sure I remember how to sail. ...

Some Dinghy Racing coaching - it's not an easy sport

A certain relative of mine thinks that dinghy racing just involves pulling a few ropes and sitting down all the time. 

It's an "in-joke", of course; if you really want to race a dinghy then you have to be physically and mentally strong, as well as having the skills to manage both the power and the subtlety of an ever-changing combination of wind and water conditions. 

So you have to be constantly focused, to pick up those minute changes in wind direction and power that can make just a half-a-boat-length difference. And that's before you factor in the effect of rival boats. 

The enormity and complexity of Dinghy Racing was really driven home to me yesterday. 

I had asked Roger Walton - the top WHSC Racing Instructor - to crew for me and highlight some areas of improvement for me. There are many. 

Technically, I use too much rudder to turn the boat (I should heel the boat so that the hull shape causes it to change direction), have an annoying habit of "heading up" when I am meant to be sailing downwind, don't concentrate enough, don't react quickly enough, need to sit out more, heel the boat to windward more etc. etc. the list seemed endless. 

Roger's  comments were exactly what I needed to hear. I have a huge amount to absorb & learn. 

The challenge now is to apply them, and see the improvement.  

Victor - Lots of Potential, but no Aeroplane

Just got home from the 2015 Victor Trophy today - 4th July.

This was the last Open Event for me before the GP14 Nationals in the beginning of August, so it was a chance to test our mettle against some stiff competition from outside the club. 

There were 20 boats today, so a reasonable field to fight.

We showed lots of promise - got to the windward mark in 4th place during the first couple of races, and really managed to get the boat beating upwind. But I was never able to capitalise on those positions, and ended up 10th or 9th. 

The last race we were about 15th, after some complete mis-reading of the wind-shifts. Our final overall position was 12th.

Mike Smith did some great crewing, and was able to keep us in contention all of the time - it was a pleasure sailing with him, as always. I just get frustrated when we can't capitalise on our potential. 

My good friend Ricardo managed to get the Silver trophy - a mug with the HP Victor Bomber on it. 

As for me, I think it's back to the gym again to get those Core muscles strengthened before we go down to the GP14 National Championships in Brixham at the end of the month. 

The photo shows us heading for No 3. mark, in pursuit of Martin Hime, with Jim Dimond following us.