PALAMOS CHRISTMAS REGATTA

On the 15th of January I flew to Barcelona for a very slightly sunnier alternative to my winter training.  I met the rest of the U21 Youth Squad in Barcelona airport and we traveled to our apartment together.  Unfortunately I drew 1 of 2 short straws and was left with a single bed for the week.  However, the apartment was in a great location, only a 5 minute walk from the beach, and we had a supermarket underneath us which made life a lot easier!

Our boats did not arrive until the evening of the 16th which left us 2 days to explore the area and get to know our surroundings.  It’s fair to say that Palamos is a lovely place and there is some great coast line to walk along.  I took a few snaps of when we explored the area…

The day before racing commenced, myself and the team took to the water to get a feel for the conditions and warm ourselves up for what was to be a breezy few days!  The sailing felt odd and quite dissimilar to any venue I have sailed at before – this meant there was scope to learn a lot from the unfamiliar conditions.  The conditions for the training day were big breeze and BIG offset swell; these conditions were present for the duration of the regatta. It was a tough week to say the least, this is how it looked…

Day 1:    3 Races sailed in big breeze and big waves!

Day 2:    2 Races, only 1 sailed due to injury

Day 3:    No sailing, 10 metre waves recorded by the committee!

Day 4:    Postponed due to adverse sea state, 1 Race eventually sailed in great conditions

Day 5:    We watched the medal race from the comfort of the rib

There were only 6 races held out of the scheduled 10, this was due to high winds and adverse sea state.  Unfortunately I only sailed 5 of the 6 races due to an inflammation of the ligament in my knee; this was an injury I picked up at the end of my summer competitions.  That aside, there was a lot to be learned from the competitors, just like there is at any international senior regatta.  Although it is hard to take a positive from my final result alone, the event was a great learning curve for me.  The racing gave me a good kick up the backside to step my game up 2 or so notches and really solidify my jump from the radial rig into the standard rig.

After a hard week week both physically and emotionally I flew back home on the 23rd, just in time for a quiet Christmas at home with my family.  I quickly got back to training in the gym on the 28th, 29th and 30th before taking a few days off over new year.

And so my winter training continues…

Thanks for reading,

Lewis

UK WORLD + EUROPEAN AUTUMN QUALIFIERS

Another trio of Qualifiers has come to an end.  It has to be said that the competition is a lot harder now that I have moved into the Standard class – the racing is very tight!  The first weekend loomed just as I was starting to settle into my new flat at university.  Mum and I left on Friday evening and shared the drive, albeit a short one, to South Shields Sailing Club in Newcastle – it was nice to have a weekend a little further North than usual.

We arrived at the sailing club on the Saturday morning, the conditions were light with large offset swell from the night before.  These unusual conditions made the racing a little more interesting than normal.  Although very ironic; the large swell, combined with the light winds, didn’t get on very well with my stomach and I ended up being pretty ill on the water.  However, I was determined to finish the days racing and get on with it.  I finished the day in a disappointing 23rd overall and 9th Under 19.  Sadly the conditions were not in our favour and the racing was cancelled on Sunday.

The next qualifier followed 3 weeks later in Hayling Island.  It was great racing across the weekend with good wind – even the sun popped out for a while.  It was a brilliant turn out with 45 Standards competing!

Saturday brought 10-15 knots of breeze that decreased to 6-8 by the end of the day.  The racing was made very strategic because of large pressure differences across the course, the tide played a big part nearing the end of the day’s racing.  I was very happy to finish day one in 8th overall and 2nd under 19.  Day 2 brought similar conditions with slightly more breeze than the previous day.  I finished day 2 with a 13th, 16th and 17th which dropped me down the results a bit to 13th overall and 3rd under 19.  Although it would have been nice to stick 8th overall I’m pretty pleased with 13th!

The 6th and final qualifier of the year was held in Pwllheli, North Wales with a far smaller fleet than the qualifier before.  The conditions on Saturday were big waves along with 14 knots of wind coming from the South.  Being underweight for the boat didn’t help me in my efforts to put in good results on day one; I scored a 12, 12 and 22.  I feel as though I could have sailed a lot better strategically and tactically and looking back on it I know where I went wrong!  The event was cut short and no races were sailed on Sunday due to too much wind.  I finished the event in 15th overall and 4th under 19.

Having sailed 4 out of the 6 qualifiers in a Standard this year it has allowed me to be ranked on the ladder without having to discard a race that I didn’t compete (DNC) in.  I am currently 14th in the UK and 2nd under 19 in the UK!

I am extremely happy to say that my results from these qualifiers along with my summer results have got me selected onto the Under 21 UK Youth Squad!  This means lots of training down South alongside the Olympic Podium Potential Team, super exciting!

Thanks for reading!

Lewis

Standard Ladder 2016:

http://www.kbsuk.com/laser/events/showrace.asp?EventID=89&RaceURL=%5Bresults%5D/stdlad6.2016nh.html

YOUTH EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

My last ever Laser Radial event has come to a close and it was great to end on a high.  The Championship was held in Tallin, Estonia.  A fantastic venue that was used to hold the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games.

This was an exciting event for me as it was the first major championship that I have traveled with the British Youth Sailing Team instead of doing it with my family, a great experience!  It was also a very important few weeks for me as the next 4 years was going to be determined by my exam results and my placing at the end of the regatta.  A top 8 result would secure me a place in the Laser Standard full time P3 programme, and achieving my conditions would land me a place in Edinburgh University to study Sport & Recreation Management.  This was all to become clear by the end of the championship.

The week of racing was predominantly windy with a range of 15-20 knots everyday, not counting the last day which was called off due to no wind.

Day one was very up and down emotionally.  The racing was abandoned and us sailors were forced to wait around for the wind to drop.  It didn’t, so no races were sailed.  On top of the frustration of no sailing I was also waiting for my exam results on the same day.  In a way it was fortunate, I had a clear head and was able to sit down and sort out the relative details.  After that anxious wait, I’m happy to say that I met my conditions and that I have my place at Edinburgh University secured!

Day two saw the first two races of the regatta.  I smashed the first race to finish in 3rd place and was super happy to get the initial race nerves out of the way.  The second race I finished in 20th which wasn’t as good but still okay.

The third day was the last day of qualifying where we sailed another two races.  I was very happy with the day as a whole finishing 9th and 5th.  This placed me 8th overall going into the gold/silver split!

Day number four was gold fleet racing, where the real gains and losses can happen.  Unfortunately in the first race of gold fleet I picked up a black flag disqualification (BFD) which scored me a 70th place, this was because of me being over the start line at the ‘go’ gun, this became my discard of the regatta.  After a long and painful wait the gold fleet started their second race of the day.  I scored a 15th in that race, which I was happy with.

Day five was very disappointing for me as I picked up another large result, I was 48th due to a number of small mistakes that added up and took their toll on my placing.  The consequences of this result were made worse by me being unable to discard it.  In the race following this mishap I was very happy with my performance.  I was able to switch my focus away from the poor result and focus entirely on the race in hand, this allowed me to sail with a fresh mind and finish in 4th position!  Super pleased to finish the day on a high!

We spent day six waiting for wind with no resulting races.  I finished the championship just outside the top ten in 12th position.  It would have been nice to finish in the top ten and pick up a prize but I am chuffed none the less.  A great week spent with a great group of guys!

Congrats to Dan and Milo, my team mates, for picking up the U19 and U17 silver medals respectively.

I now look forward to a well deserved 2 weeks off!  I have 1 week at home to plan and sort out some of the details for transitioning to University, then 5 days in Paris with my Girlfriend to get away and chill out for a while.  Well needed after a very busy start to the summer!

I have now finished sailing my Laser Radial and have transitioned fully into the Laser Standard (male olympic class) watch the space for more updates regarding my move into the standard class!

Lewis

Full results here:

http://www.euroradialyouth2016.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/boys_gold.htm

YOUTH WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

What an amazing week at my debut World Championships in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland.  A pretty wacky championships gave us a mix of conditions and a lot of waiting around, and I mean a lot!

The racing kicked off on Monday with two races in an offshore breeze of 10 knots and flat water.  The wind was incredibly unpredictable, just as it was all week.  I sailed two good races that day with a 10th and 13th, it’s always nice to get the pre race nerves out of the way on the 1st day and get stuck into racing mode.

Day two, I ended up being on the water for six hours to sail just one race!  The wind was extremely variable and doing multiple 180 degree shifts.  The one race that we sailed on day two was in fickle winds with the unpredictability still playing a big part.  Unfortunately I sailed my self into 48th position, fortunately I was able to discard that race.

On Wednesday and Day three of the championships we spent another seven hours on the water to sail two races.  The first race of the day I finished in a mediocre 23rd, I finished 3rd in the second race of the day which more than made up for my mishap on day two.

The third day of the regatta brought a brisk 15-20 knots of wind that come over Dublin city.  This kept the conditions shifty, gusty and similar to that of the previous races.  We were able to squeeze three races in which brought us back on schedule from the race missed at the beginning of the championship.  Although I sailed well enough to secure my position in gold fleet (on day 4 the fleet split into 4 separate fleets; the best quarter of boats being the gold fleet) I was disappointed with my performance in these races scoring a 16th, 15th and 10th,  I’m usually a lot stronger when it’s windier but some poor decisions put me on the back foot from the start and I was forced to fight my way through the fleet in all three races.

Day 5 was very tedious with a lot of waiting and no racing.  Im happy to say that some of my friends and I made the most of the time and had a great laugh on the water, we even stayed out longer than the entire fleet to nail this picture, but of course we did it first time!

Day 6 was the final day of racing and the only day of racing in gold fleet.  We sailed another 3 races where I scored an 8th, 16th, and my second discard of the regatta, a 45th.  I finished the regatta in 19th but unfortunately due to a protest, that was nothing to do with me, I dropped one place to finish 20th overall!

20th in the world at my first every world championships.  Super happy!  Next up is the European Championships in Tallinn, Estonia.  But before I travel out to Tallinn I have a few days to relax in London with my parents, a bit of sight seeing is in order I think.  Check back for more updates soon!

Lewis

Full results here:

http://www.laserradialworlds2016.com/race-results/laser-boys-2016-gold.htm

KIELER WOCHE 2016

Just finished an intense 4 week block of sailing, exhausted is an understatement!

It all started straight off the back of the Mull trip in my last post.  I sailed with Jamie Calder out of our home club, Royal Forth Yacht Club (RFYC) for the first of the 4 weeks where we settled back into the boats after a long time spent away from the water due to exams.  We had amazing conditions, just like always on the Forth, good breeze and nice waves; even the sun popped out for a short while at the beginning of the week.  We were fortunate enough to have Tim Hulse come up from down south to coach us on two of the days, he helped us refine our sailing in preparation for our trip to Germany the following week.

Part 2 consisted of my trip to Germany for Kieler Woche with Jamie and Calum Rosie.  Kiel week is an amazing experience! If you have the chance to go for any reason at all, GO!  We drove from Edinburgh down to Newcastle and hopped on an overnight ferry that took us into Amsterdam.  About 7 hours later we arrived in Kiel where we set up camp in the van and the awning.

Our trip to Germany involved 2 international regattas, 9 days of back to back racing, 1 day of training before hand and my birthday.  I sailed in the open Radial event first, it was a pretty windy few days which suited me well and I was very very happy to achieve my best international result to date by finishing 5th overall out of a fleet of 120!

The second regatta was with the big boys… the olympic class week.  I sailed in the 110 strong Laser Standard fleet, 5 of which are competing in the Rio Olympics.  It was a big learning curve for me with this being my 3rd full rig event and my first international event.  Not a result to take away but a lot to work on, which is exciting!

I was shattered by the last day, but I have to say it was great to spend the trip with these guys!

The end of my 4 week block of sailing included: packing up in Kiel, my flight home and another amazing weekend spent on the Forth training with Jamie and Tim Hulse.  We had great conditions (bar the rain) with some big waves and strong winds.  A very windy Sunday saw Jamie and I sail through a squall that an easy jet flight about to land in Edinburgh had to change course and avoid, I’m pretty certain its the fastest I’ve gone in my laser!  Great fun and lots of good points to take away and work on.

I have a couple of weeks at home before I leave again for the 2 remaining international regattas.  Until then I’ll be doing some coaching, yacht sailing at RFYC and carrying on my work in the gym. So keep checking in for more updates soon!

Lewis

Radial Open Results:

http://www.manage2sail.com/en-US/event/3d6e4588-3363-4d3d-afad-8e656da38cba/#!/results?classId=447515ad-f7da-4d61-9ac4-8f5b5a7f3789

Standard Results:

http://www.manage2sail.com/en-US/event/3d6e4588-3363-4d3d-afad-8e656da38cba/#!/results?classId=b503aa7f-fabd-4e20-b9cc-7becae318f69

YOUTH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS PWLLHELI

Just back from a busy couple of weeks training for, and competing in the Youth National Championships in North Wales.  The week prior was spent training with fellow Scottish sailors Clemmie Thompson and Anna Sturrock with coach Tim Ellis (photo credit to Tim!).  We were lucky enough to use the new Garmin Virb GPS Cameras, the content was great to analyse after sailing.  We were able to compare video evidence of techniques and see how it affected our speed.  They were also helpful in gauging what side of the course was favoured as we could overlay each sailors GPS track along with their speed.  Very technical but a great tool.

The Racing started on Monday and we sailed in some very light breeze that constrained us to only sailing one race.  Coming 3rd in that race put me third overall, surprise surprise, and I went into day 2 with the red dot.  The second day was a high scoring day for me unfortunately, with me picking up a large discard with another large result to count.  I was happy to finish the last race in 4th to finish the day on a high.  Day 3 saw no racing due to high winds.  The breeze carried through from Wednesday into Thursday but only a shade lighter to allow racing to go ahead.  I found the conditions difficult which led to me having an inconsistent day with a 10th, 2nd and 6th.  Unfortunately I carried on my inconsistency into the final day picking up my second discard along with a 12th and a 3rd.

I was disappointed to finish 8th overall as I know myself I can sail a lot better given my results in the qualifiers.  It has been a massive learning curve for me as the experience in these pressured events will help me cope with them in the future.  However it isn’t all bad…

Finishing 8th has landed me a spot in the British Youth Sailing Team to compete at the Youth European Championships in Tallin, Estonia at the beginning of August! Not bad at all, very very happy and I can’t wait!

It’s now time to knuckle down for my exams.  It is an important year for me in school with university conditions to meet so I have chosen to put the sailing aside from the end of the Youth Nationals up until my last exam.  After my exams in June I will be travelling to Kiel in Germany for 2 international regattas, so I have that to look forward to!

Lewis

Full results here:

Be sure to select the “Radial Boys” tab;

http://events.sailracer.org/eventsites/results_viewer-v2.asp?id=40191&eventid=204289&classtype=420&templ=&panels=

Congratulations to fellow training partner Jamie for winning, well done mate!

UK WORLD + EUROPEAN SPRING QUALIFIERS

Back at home this weekend after 3 consecutive weekends on the water competing in the UK World and European Qualifiers.  The first weekend was sailed in Weymouth from the National Sailing Academy, we raced inside the harbour for a change.  A great decision by the race officer considering how cold it was, especially compared to Scotland! The racing was hard fought and I am pleased to have finished near the top of the results despite the very shifty and gusty conditions.  I finished 4th overall and 3rd U19, very happy!

The second weekend was sailed in the waters of Plymouth, we launched from the Mount Batten Centre.  I took the decision to sail a full rig (bigger sail than usual) for that weekend, so that I had the option to compete in the full rig over the summer to aid my transition into the new rig at the end of this year.  It also gave me great experience sailing against the current world champion, Nick Thompson!  I was extremely happy with my performance,  mixing in with the top guys and learning loads along the way.  Happy to have finished 15th overall and 5th Youth despite equipment failure in the last race of the event (kicker snapped!).

Last weekend and the last of the spring qualifiers was sailed in tricky conditions in a North Easterly in Stokes Bay.  The tricky conditions took there toll on my results after day 1 with me sitting just outside the top ten counting a 14th, 13th and 8th.  The Sunday was far better.  Seeing similar conditions with a better understanding of what was going on let me piece together 3 solid results.  A 2nd, 6th and a 2nd leap frogged me up into 4th overall and 1st Under 19! My best UK result to date, supper pleased!

Next week I travel to Pwllheli in North Wales to compete at the RYA Youth National Championships!

Lewis

Radial Youth Ladder:

http://www.kbsuk.com/laser/events/showrace.asp?EventID=84&RaceURL=%5Bresults%5D/radyouthlad.2016nh.html

Plymouth Qualifier:

http://www.kbsuk.com/laser/events/showrace.asp?EventID=83&RaceURL=%5Bresults%5D/plymstd.2016nh.html