Grafham Water Centre
Hi I'm Gordon Baines, as part of my role here at Grafham Water Centre, I co-ordinate our RYA ONBOARD Team. This week will be an exciting week for 8 young ONBOARD sailing enthusiasts aged from 10 years old, they will be representing Grafham Water Centre as part of the NSSA (National School Sailing Association) Regatta being held at the Centre this week. This is our diary of their week....
Sunday 24th July 2011
After an excited arrival, I presented our team with their team t-shirts, this was met with great delight to see their team name "Grafham Flyer" printed on the back....I suspect a highlight of their week! It was now down to the hard work, rigging and moving the boats in preparation for tomorrow. Following our evening meal, we held our first briefing where there was lots of information to take in about the week ahead.
Now off to bed for some much needed rest for the busy day of racing which awaits them tomorrow.....
Monday 25th July 2011
Its an early morning wake up for our very excited team today!!
Changed and ready to go, first race completed - not a bad start considering it's a "first time experience" for all of my Rookie Crew. 2 races in the morning...back in for lunch....a short rest before back on the water for 2 more races in the afternoon. We're doing ok - Will James is lying in 28th place with Hugh Suffield close behind him and the whole gang really enjoying the whole experience!
After a good day on the water with some great finishes its dinner time....but most importantly, Matt made it onto local TV....we have a superstar in our midst!! The whole team had photos taken by the local press so watch this space for more celebrity features!
An evening of activities including climbing and high ropes followed and then off to bed for the whole team.......
Tuesday 26th July 2011
A great day of racing yesterday but today everyone is still a bit tired - once breakfast was eaten though they were all raring to get out on the water again!
What a fab day with a force 2 breeze developing by 10am - perfect for us as the results at the end of the day showed! We celebrated top ten finishes for Will James in all three races this morning and with all of the team in the top 30 on the finish line, everyone moved up the ranking...what a team! WELL DONE!
Raft building tonight...then fingers crossed, a good nights sleep. Tomorrow brings the pursuit race - a 2 hour long race which will be a great experience for all the team. A chill out afternoon to follow so we can recharge our batteries ready for the final 2 days of sailing.
Wednesday 27th July 2011
After a fantastic day of racing yesterday, everyone woke this morning feeling very tired - even me! With breakfast over, our team of 8 enthusiastic youngsters were ready for another day of sailing.
The All-Comers Pursuit Race was the order of the day and after the 10am race briefing the team rigged up their boats ready for their allotted start time of 11.21am. With over 134 boats on the start line it all got a little interesting out their for our OnBoarders but yet again some fantastic results at the end of this epic race.
Jack surprised us all by coming 35th overall out of 134 boats....closely followed by Will in 85th, Hugh 100th, Matt 104th, the Abigail and Emily in 114th and Ross and Jack bringing up the rear in 116th and 118th.
After the thrill of the mornings racing and lunch, we all chilled out for a while and watched a few heats of the Mount Haise Trophy Race which was being sailed by professionals compared to us! With an afternoon off from racing the whole team enjoyed trying out windsurfing. Evening activities included rafting and canoe racing - I've never seen as much fun and laughter had by all!
Me thinks the team will all be tired out tonight...another fantastic day but an exhausting one.
For all the results of the racing, take a look at http://www.grafham.org/ - Grafham Sailing Club NSSA Regatta Results.
Thursday 28th July 2011
For the first time this week we've had no wind at Grafham Water! Lots of warm sunshine but no wind...which meant a very frustrating morning. The team did get out briefly after lunch but no sooner than they were on the start line...guess what - the wind dropped again!
By 3pm all racing had been abandoned and then typically half and hour later, the wind filled in again!
With no racing today, we've got tons to look forward to tomorrow with a catch-up day...the plan being an early 9.30am briefing, 2 races back to back, lunch and then another 2 races back to back - all we need is some wind! Friday night is also PARTY NIGHT - with BBQ, Disco, Prize Giving and generall good times!
Friday 29th July 2011
Its Windy!!!! We've woken up to a nice breeze over the water today so its 3 races back to back this morning and that's all the hard work done.
Some good sailing out on the water today but I think our OnBoard Flyers are a little tired today....after the mornings hard work, its time for lunch and then de-rig and wash down the boats before packing away.
With the rest of the afternoon free, it means the team have a couple of hours spare to tidy their rooms - that's if they can find their rooms under the mounds of clothes everywhere!
BBQ, Awards and Disco tonight to celebrate what has been a fantastic week for our team of 8 intrepid sailors!
Final results are - Will James finished in an amazing 10th overall, followed by Hugh Suffield in 21st, Matthew Hood in 28th, Jack Fisher in 39th, the girls team of Abigail Clarke and Emilie Cummerson in 40th, Ross Ellis in 45th and Jack Ellis in 47th.
WELL DONE TEAM - YOU'VE ALL BEEN AMAZING!!!
Log in tomorrow to see the final diary instalment with all the Party Antics and Prize Giving.
Friday 29th July 2011 - Party Night and Prize Giving
What a party and what a successful event for the Grafham Water OnBoarders and the Cambridgeshire Team this NSSA Regatta has been!
All of the team were awarded with certificates and gifts with a special recognition award going to ABIGAIL CLARKE and EMILIE CUMMERSON for being the most improved sailors of the week - much to their delight! I don't think we're going to hear the last of this - are we girls!
Great food was eaten at the BBQ and then Jim Saltonstall made the NSSA Presentations. The Sports Hall looked fantastic - filled to the brim with over 300 young people plus adults attending this prestigious event. The atmosphere was amazing with everyone clapping and cheering! Much to our surprise one of the Cambridgeshire OnBoard Team's name was read out - the Seamanship Award went to ROSS ELLIS - WELL DONE ROSS! Ross had his picture taken with Jim and then joined the rest of the prize winners on stage for more photos....I think Ross was in a state of shock - we've never seen him so quiet!
The awards went on well into the evening and a booming disco....the team eventually went to bed but what a week - roll on 2012!
Next year NSSA will hold the regatta in Weymouth, the 2012 Olympic Sailing Venue....so its our chance to sail at the same venue as the likes of Paul Goodison. On the back of our teams success this year, we are really looking forward to it already!
I will be looking at expanding the current OnBoard Team and bringing on our exisiting sailors up through the ranks. OnBoard runs every other Saturday from May to September and every Thursday through the summer months. Its only £12.50 per session for non-members and just £10 per sessions for members (membership is just £15 for the year). All equipment is provided.
RYA OnBoard is an initiative set up by the RYA to get young people into sailing. So if you've never sailed before and fancy giving it a go, don't be shy, just pop in and see us and you never know - you could be sailing with us at the Weymouth 2012 Olympic Venue!
WELL DONE TO THE GRAFHAM ONBOARD FLYERS -!!
More information about Grafham Water Centre ONBOARD