British Keelboat Academy enjoy a glorious weekend of racing
by Matt Carter, RYA 27 Apr 2011 21:41 HKT
22-24 April 2011
Sailors from the British Keelboat Academy enjoyed glorious sunshine and light to moderate winds as they competed in the RORC Easter Challenge over the Easter weekend (22-24 April).
The RORC Easter Challenge, held on the Solent, saw over 60 boats compete, with the British Keelboat Academy – the RYA/UKSA’s joint keelboat race training scheme – entering three J80s compromising of the BKA Development squad and the Farr 45 Kolga in the IRC One fleet, crewed by the BKA National squad.
The event is unique within itself as it stands alone as the perfect regatta for the competitors to bring together all of their winter training as well as the perfect opportunity to receive on the water coaching as it acts a training regatta for many of the sailors.
The BKA’s three J80s had mixed fortunes, however it was Robin Elsey and his crew of the BKA 3 J80 that had the most impressive regatta as they finished the weekend in second place, one point behind winners ‘Jasmine’.
BKA development squad members, who had aimed to finish the championships in a top four position, had a great start to the regatta posting a second and a fourth on the opening day with this being their first regatta as a crew. They followed this up with steady results on the Saturday and the final day brought about an impressive bullet to round the regatta off and secure their overall second place finish.
Lizzy Foreman, crew member of the BKA 3 J80, commented: “The racing was very tight all weekend; however it was the little mistakes which were having a big effect on race positions in such a small fleet.”
“Having not sailed together as a crew before, we found that our team work had improved greatly from our first day’s sail on Friday. This has been a good result overall and we are looking forward to the J80 Nationals, Round the Island Race and Cowes Week.”
Joe Adams and his crew posted another great result for the development squad at the event as they picked up some impressive results over the three days of the RORC Easter Challenge leaving them in a respectable fourth place overall.
BKA development squad member Stevie Beckett and his crew started the week off extremely well having posted two seconds, however a lack of consistency and two disappointing races on the final day resulted in them finishing the regatta in sixth place overall.
The BKA National squad were aiming to improve upon their result from the Warsash Spring Series as they once again set sail in the Farr 45 Kolga. The opening day saw the BKA team post two solid third place finishes, and with confidence high, this form continued in the opening race on the Saturday, however the final race saw the team finish in ninth.
With everything to play for on the final day the National Squad were determined to put Saturday’s race behind them and came back with a second in the first race of the day. Still, with the pressure now on and a podium finish in sight the team posted a disappointing seventh which left them in fourth place overall, one point off a podium finish.
“Overall this was a great start for Kolga, but there’s always more to work on. We still looked less impressive in breeze, and none of the crew was selected because they’ll accept ‘good enough’ so we’ll be out training hard and aiming for an even better result in our next event, the Vice-Admiral’s Cup,” said Hamish Macdonald, crew of Kolga and BKA National squad member.
Luke McCarthy, British Keelboat Academy Head Coach, commented: “The BKA was treating this event as a process where the sailors could test and develop their manoeuvres under pressure, as well as their communication in a competitive environment. Identifying areas to work on was the real focus and the final result was secondary.
McCarthy continued: “It was great though to see the J80s get some strong results on the water, and for the crew of Kólga to hold their own in a highly competitive IRC fleet which certainly does not suit the boat. Most satisfying for me however was the way the sailors conducted themselves during the regatta, both on and off the water, showing the benefits of all the hard work put in through the BKA’s training sessions over the winter and spring. Although the sailors posted some good results, they were also all continually searching for areas to improve which should allow even better performances in future.”
The BKA’s sponsors include X-Ray at 77 and Group Dental, plus a number of generous supporters and suppliers. For more information about the British Keelboat Academy and how you can help with fundraising visit BKA website at www.britishkeelboatacademy.org, or follow the BKA on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BritishKeelboatAcademy or on Twitter (@tweetbka).