South west Tera squad gets going in Torbay

by RYA on 28 Oct 2014 Newly-formed SW Tera squad has its first training weekend at the Royal Torbay Yacht Club.

Royal Torbay Yacht Club (RTYC) hosted the first of six winter training weekends for the newly-formed South West Tera Squad last weekend (25-26 October). Keen junior sailors from as far afield as Taunton have formed the squad to bring the best possible coaching and raise the bar to new levels of RS Tera sailing in the south west.

The youngest sailor William James (8), who won his RS Tera in the RYA Design-a-sail competition and is regularly at the front of the local fleet, said: 'Its brilliant to have top coaches come to Torbay. I certainly have learnt a lot this weekend.' Tony Wood, the RYA’s regional development officer was also on the water. Tony was really impressed by the safety and organisation of the whole event.

With growing fleets of RS Teras in the South West, the squad draws motivated sailors from RTYC, Teign Corinthian Sailing Club, Paignton Sailing Club and Royal Dart Sailing Club.

RTYC, an RYA Championship Club, has pulled out all the stops in helping this next generation of top racing sailors get the very best training and support that's available and is looking forward to hosting several national Tera events throughout 2015-16. Coaching will continue through the winter at both RTYC and Sutton Bingham near Yeovil.

There was fantastic support from the RYA, which provided its own National Squad coaches, Lynn Billowes and Joseph Wellerd as well as from RS sailing boats, Gill Marine for junior squad jackets, and Duncan West who is Club and Pathway coach for the south and south west and helped piece these events together.

Without the continued support of the RTYC, Torbay Youth Sailing Trust and Teign Corinthian Sailing club, this amazing opportunity would never have got out of the starting blocks. The first weekend ran very smoothly even with up to 15 - 20 knots of breeze in the bay.

RYA head coach Lynn Billowes said she was really impressed by the commitment and level of sailing all the members of the squad had reached in their first session, and is really looking forward to taking the sailors further in the next session on 15 and 16 November 2014, also at the RTYC.

Event organisers and junior sailing heads Nick James and Benedict Miles from RTYC and TCYC are currently working on several more joint events to encourage more competitive junior racing in the RYA website