Hamilton Island junior sailors to try first ever regatta
by Johanna Gardner on 14 Apr 2014
Isabel Davis, Tom Sharpe and Chloe Reid enjoy the perfect conditions off Hamilton Island marina for some regatta preparation. Johanna Gardner
Whitsunday Sailing Club Easter Regatta 2014 - This weekend’s Easter Regatta at the Whitsunday Sailing Club in Airlie Beach is providing an opportunity for some of the Hamilton Island junior sailors to try out their skills against their mainland peers in their first ever sailing regatta. With a mix of students who have taken the opportunity to learn to sail both through the Hamilton Island State School sailing lessons and the Whitsunday Sailing Club on-island weekend sessions, five students, ranging from age 9 through to age 13, are hopeful that their practice will get them around the green fleet courses set this weekend.
The students have taken advantage of the school holidays for some last minute skill practice, sailing in almost zero wind the day before Cyclone Ita to a steady 10-15 knots the day after. The previous week had seen the children enjoying the thrill of speeding around in 20 knot winds. Four out of the five students have never experienced sailing in any other waters other than those off the southern breakwater of the Hamilton Island marina, so the change of scene and unfamiliar conditions of Airlie Beach may prove a challenge.
There is guaranteed to be smiles all round though from Tom Sharpe, Isabel Davis, Matthew Stephens, Michael Stephens and Chloe Reid, as all students approach sailing with an attitude of positivity, camaraderie, and fun.
'It’s been with the full support of Hamilton Island that we have had access to such great Opti Tacker boats, as well as overcoming the distance to get equipment on and off the island in order to attend this regatta,' instructor and volunteer Johanna Winstanley said. 'I hope the kids catch the sailing regatta bug – making friends, wearing themselves out with good fun and getting that sense of achievement at the end of every race. I’m positive this won’t be the last the mainlanders see of our up and coming junior sailors!'
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