A Good Week Training

So over the past week I returned from Holland and went straight into training down in Weymouth as part of the British Youth Sailing team. It was a great week with a varying range of weather which threw up many difficult conditions. Luckily as ever we had world-class coaches and Jack Wetherell from the British Sailing Team also joined us in his Laser; sailing against us and keeping us all on our toes.

Talking over one of the practice races after a particularly windy downwind!

So heading into next week I will be doing some in-depth anaylsis of the ISAF Sailing World Cup in Weymouth on and off of the water, followed by a short training block back home before flying out to Kiel Week 2016, held at the end of June in Germany.

I'll keep you posted!

Thanks,

Sam

Holland Review

So the Delta Lloyd Regatta, held in the Netherlands, concluded on Saturday after one more race was held in the morning. Unfortunately I'm rather disappointed with the end result overall however the good news is that I know what mistakes I made meaning I can hopefully work to eliminate them before the big events later on in the summer.

Soon after the start at the Delta Lloyd Regatta 2016 - Medemblik, Holland.

Apart from the result I have thoroughly enjoyed and learnt a lot from this event. We had some stunning Holland weather combined with a broad range of wind conditions and a high level fleet leading to some close, exciting racing.

A fully loaded trailer & car ready for the long drive back to the UK.

I'm currently on the ferry from the Hook of Holland returning to English shores before driving all the way back to Dorset for a short two day break and then getting stuck back into some training in Weymouth next week. I'll keep you posted on how it goes!

Sam

Preparations for Holland

So this Saturday I'm going to be driving all the way to Holland for the Delta Lloyd regatta. A five day international competition including some of the best sailors in the world attending means it will certainly be tough racing!

I feel quite confident heading in to this competition - my training has been going well and I've turned past weaknesses around to be some of my best parts of my current sailing. Lets hope I can convert these successes in training onto the race track.

In the meantime off the water I've been busy building my reputation in the local community and finding potential sponsors to aid my journey. This summer alone I am competing at numerous World & European events in many locations such as Croatia and Germany so I am trying to bring new partners onboard to help me on the journey and allow me to thrive with no financial limitations.

My downtime has also been exciting. Being an adventurous guy I am always out and about, going places and doing new things. One of my favourite places over the last few weeks to visit is St Albans head, near Swanage in Dorset. Breathtaking scenery and beautiful sunsets makes me fully appreciate the wonderful area that I live, train and compete in.

Standing on St Albans Head peering over into the distance trying to make out Weymouth and Portland.

I'll keep you updated on the adventure to Holland!

Thanks,

Sam

Mid-May Training Update

Pleased to report my training this month so far has been going well. Been very lucky with some awesome warm humid weather bringing a broad range of challenging sailing conditions with a lot to learn from!

This past week has been a very busy one on and off of the water. On the water I have been training hard focusing on my understanding of the rare weather systems that we are currently experiencing as well as a lot of technique based around my tacks and gybes. Off the water I have settled into a solid fitness, strength and conditioning program which hopefully will make me into a robust sailor coming into the summer competitions whilst also working on my rules & theory knowledge.

An interesting mix of conditions here back home in Swanage. This photo shows one of the more stable days where I was focusing on technique through turns.

In a weeks time I'll be preparing for travelling to a big international competition in Holland, the Delta Lloyd Regatta. I'm excited in the build up and confident that I will be able to perform.

Sam

RYA Youth Nationals 2016

The RYA Youth Nationals 2016 were held at the start of April in Pwllheli, in Wales. Arriving there in the rain a couple of days beforehand to practice and set up ready for the 5 day competition which lay ahead, I felt confident and happy with my sailing and was looking forward to the first day of competition (and hopefully better weather!).

Day 1 turned out to be sunny and very light winds which unfortunately meant we had a 6 hour postponement whilst we waited for the wind to arrive. When it finally did we set sail and got one solid race in, where I finished 2nd place. Unfortunately the wind had other ideas about letting us race again that day and sailing for the day was cancelled.

Day 2 arrived with a better forecast and some more sun! Wales was really bringing out the best weather for us. The day was light to medium winds with pressure being key to the racing. I managed to achieve good consistency and speed throughout the day which meant that I finished the day with a 2nd, 1st and another 1st to be leading overall.

Day 3 and the weather was slowly getting worse with freezing 30mph winds rushing across the race area. Racing was unfortunately cancelled on safety grounds and we went home to rest and recover ready for the next day.

The forth and penultimate day was tough on and off of the water. Rainy, cold and windy it was hard to stay focussed and I struggled with my speed and consistency throughout the day, leading to some poor performances. However I did manage to minimise the damage done to be in 2nd overall leading into the final day.

The final day dawned with a very variable forecast and the promise of close racing. After sailing out and waiting for the wind to settle in the right direction we got underway with the racing. In the first race I managed to finish 4th, beating the overall leader by one place and meaning that I was just 2 points behind with all to play for in the final race. All I had to do is to win the race and the leader had to finish the race in 4th position or worse – easy to do in the quality fleet we had. I managed to shake off a pre-start attack from the leader to lead round the first mark. Meanwhile the overall leader rounded in 10th position. I stayed in the lead for the entire race meanwhile the overall leader managed to climb up to 5th position rounding the final mark before the finish. I won the race but was gutted to see that my competitor, the overall leader, had climbed up into 2nd place and therefore had done enough to win the championship.

Whilst I was of course disappointed not to have won I am incredibly proud to have got a silver medal and thrilled with how close the racing was. I learnt a lot from it and will make sure next time I will come back stronger than ever.

Thanks,

Sam