Friday 18th March Junior Sailing session was well attended with three new faces as we welcomed Mel and Bugz with their three lovely girls Tiotiana, Davina and Ani aged 8,7&5. The gusty wind, blowing directly onshore, made it an easy decision to hold an "off the water" training, specially as we had 4 beginners, and we didn't want to put them off! After a quick introduction to the Optimists we went straight into teaching the parts of the dinghy and how to rig and de-rig the boats. I think the parents enjoyed the experience as much as the children. Then followed some pretty competitive team rigging competitions, where the children were divided into three teams, had to rig and de-rig the Opti as fast as possible, with minimum help from the adult in their team! The children then learnt the five "P" of how to tack:- Prepare, Plant the back foot, Push the tiller, Pivot the body to change sides, sit forward and look in front, Push the tiller back to the middle, and I might add a sixth, which would be Pray that you're on the new tack! They all had lots of turns in the dinghy to practice on the shore without having to worry about the boat tipping, the main sheet getting tied round their ankles or being hit on the head by the boom. Then a quick de-rig of the dinghies followed by a game which is an old time favourite of manning the Pirate Ship. Connor won the first round and Davina the second, well done to everyone who took part and I know the older members enjoyed the spectacle of a gang of junior sailors rushing from port, starboard, bow, stern as well as saluting the Captain and scrubbing the decks! A good time was had by all and thanks to Denise, Gary and Andy for helping out and making the Junior Sailing such a success. Gill Moore Dinghy Sailing Coordinator |
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