OK Dinghy World Championship Preview

OK Dinghy World Championship is being held in Vallensbaek, Denmark from 21st to 28th July 2012. No sailor has ever won five OK Dinghy World titles. Three sailors have won four titles and two of them called it a day after that. The third sailor in question is the current World Champion Nick Craig (GBR) and he is about to try for a record fifth title at the 2012 OK Dinghy World Championship next week.

Sailing Club Spotlight Rickmansworth Sailing Club

Rickmansworth Sailing Club has received more than £40,000 in funding from Sport England to repair its ageing pontoons and buy two new dinghies. The club, which sails in Troy Lake, West Hyde, was given the grant from the £135 million "Places People Play" Olympic legacy programme. One grant of £32,116 will be used to replace the old pontoons, which are used to get in and out of the boats, with a modern plastic-modular system. The main decking on the access road bridge will also be replaced. A further grant of £10,000 from Sport England will be used to buy two new dinghies. Club commodore, Paul Johnson, said "We are delighted to have been awarded these grants. The new pontoons are safer to use and easier to maintain. "These investments will move our club towards the quality facilities we want to provide for our members and will help attract new members." Martin Smethers, a past commodore and grants officer said: "Rickmansworth Sailing Club is a strong local club and are always looking to attract more members. "Our project is opening up our club and giving people in the Rickmansworth and surrounding areas the opportunity to try their hand at sailing for the first time in these brand new boats. "We’re delighted to have received Lottery funding to make it all happen." The improvements will also benefit organisations such as the U3A, Royal Life Saving Society, Batchworth Dragon Boat Club and local angling groups which use the sailing club's facilities. David Gauke , MP for South West Hertfordshire, said: "This investment is fantastic news. Rickmansworth Sailing Club, has always has a strong sailing tradition both locally and nationally." "This money is an investment in helping young people of today and for securing the future for the Club, allowing them to work on their development plan which is aimed at increasing membership, and providing improved and modern facilities." Rickmansworth Sailing Club one of hundreds of projects across England benefiting from funding during the second round of the Inspired Facilities fund. Seb Coe, LOCOG chairman, said: "This is a fantastic funding project that will deliver a real legacy from the London 2012 Games. "It will provide a whole range of sporting opportunities for young people through improved facilities and will I hope inspire them to take up sport."

13' Inflatable Portable Sail Boat Catamaran.

Team Vodafone Auckland - Noumea 2012

London 2012: Team GB's top 10 sailing hopes for Olympic glory

Ben Ainslie Finn Has one Olympic silver and three golds but remains as determined, focused and fiercely competitive as ever. Admits that at 35 his body is beginning to let him down but his mind most certainly is not. Won a sixth Finn world championship in May. Gold at London 2012 would ratify his position as one of the greatest Olympians Key rival Ainslie says there are 10 or 12 sailors capable of winning on any given day. American Zach Railey won silver at Beijing and will be hoping to cause an upset Medal prediction Ainslie will not be satisfied with anything but gold Paul Goodison Laser Once held the Olympic, world, European and British titles at the same time following his gold medal at Beijing. Goodison also knows what it is like to miss out on a medal, finishing fourth at the Athens games. Passionate and aggressive, he still uses the disappointment of that fourth place to motivate himself in training and competition Key rival Since Beijing he has battled with Australia's Tom Slingsby for top spot. The scrap could be one of the keenest in Weymouth Medal prediction A consecutive gold is not beyond him Alison Young Laser Radial Aged 25, the youngest member of the GB sailing team. In May she finished two points off the bronze medal position at the worlds. Then at the Skandia Sail for Gold regatta in June she showed how quickly she is learning by winning gold at the Olympic venue Key rival China's Lijia Xu will be one to watch. She won bronze in Beijing, the first Chinese sailor to win a medal and has been in good form throughout 2012 Medal prediction A medal of any colour would be a great achievement Bryony Shaw RS:X women's windsurfing The only British woman to win an Olympic windsurfing medal — bronze at Beijing. The decision to drop windsurfing as an Olympic event will motivate all the competitors to make the most of this last chance Key rival Lee Korzits is aiming to become the first Israeli woman to win Olympic gold. Medal prediction Shaw's preparation has been hampered by illness but she will challenge strongly for a podium place Nick Dempsey RS:X men's windsurfing Has experienced ups and downs at the Olympics. Made his debut aged 20 at Sydney in 2000 when he finished 16th. Won bronze at Athens in 2004 but was bitterly disappointed to manage only fourth in Beijing. Took bronze at the Sail for Gold regatta in Weymouth in June Key rival Frenchman Julien Bontemps won silver at Beijing and took first place in the world championships in Cadiz in April Medal prediction Has been training well – could go one better than Athens and take silver Hannah Mills and Saskia Clark 470 women The pair came together only in February 2011. Clark had finished sixth in the 470 class in Beijing and her attempt to find a new partner became something of a soap opera. Mills and Clark won a string of silvers before taking gold at the world championships in May, becoming the first British women to win in the class Key rivals Bound to be a competitive fleet with lots of potential winners but the Australian pair of Elise Rechichi and Belinda Stowell, who have both won golds in the 470 with different partners, will be tough Medal prediction These two could be very popular gold medal winners Luke Patience and Stuart Bithell 470 men Patience is a jovial Scot, Bithell a down-to-earth Lancastrian. Both started sailing aged seven and have worked together since 2009. They showed they were Olympic medal contenders when they won silver at the Sail for Gold regatta at Weymouth Key rivals Australians Malcolm Page and Mathew Belcher are the men to beat. They have been a dominant force since teaming up after Page won gold in the class in Beijing Medal prediction Will struggle to upset the Australians but a silver medal is possible Stevie Morrison and Ben Rhodes 49er Morrison and Rhodes grew up competing against each other in Exmouth, Devon. Went to Beijing as one of the favourites and were bitterly disappointed to finish ninth. The 49er is one of British sailing's strongest classes and the pair are planning to use their failure in China to inspire them to success Key rivals Australians Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen are firm favourites. They head the world rankings and have a brilliant record at Weymouth Medal prediction The Australians are in pole position. Silver medal would be a great result Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson Star The elder statesmen of the team, Percy, 36, and "Bart" Simpson, 35, have three gold medals between them. They used to battle with Ben Ainslie in the heavyweight dinghy Finn class. They teamed up in 2007 and won gold at Beijing in the technical keelboat class. Lifelong best friends who love the pressure of elite competition Key rival Weymouth will be the latest venue for the latest round of a long-running battle between Percy and the great Brazilian Robert Scheidt, winner of two gold and two silver Olympic medals Medal prediction They will leave disappointed if they do not take gold Lucy Macgregor, Annie Lush, Kate Macgregor Women's match racing Likely to be one of the hits of the Games. The event is exciting: a series of one-on-one races around a two-lap course, it is likely to be held in front of the main spectator area at Weymouth. Lush and the Macgregor sisters are all making their Olympic debuts but with home advantage are hoping to make a big impression Key rival The American team led by Anna Tunnicliffe-Funk (born in South Yorkshire) were beaten into silver position at the world championships in Gothenburg this month by a Finnish crew but may be the team to beat Medal prediction A new team, first Olympic Games, a bronze medal would be a good result

Magic Carpet Ride

Amazing Sailing Videos of When It's "Fresh to Frightening"

sailingpanic - we love reaching

Sailing Club Spotlight Carrickfergus Sailing Club

MEMBERS of Carrickfergus Sailing Club have vowed to continue normal activities “as far as possible” after a fire destroyed the clubhouse at the weekend. Fire and Rescue crews were called to the scene at 11.40pm on Friday after being alerted by staff departing for the night. The blaze was attended by crews from Carrickfergus, Whitehead, Glengormley, Belfast and Lisburn fire stations, as well as an aerial ladder platform from Knock fire station. A spokesperson from the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service confirmed that while the cause of the blaze is still under investigation, it is thought an electrical fault was to blame. “We will be using offices that a few local organisations have offered us for a few days, and then hope to arrange a temporary premises,” said Roger Woodward, Commodore at Carrickfergus Sailing Club. “However, we are keen to emphasize that all the club’s sailing, racing and cruising activities will continue in the meantime. We have a sailing course for children that will continue as planned next week as we have very kindly been offered the use of the facilities at the Sea Cadets building. “As I understand it, when the building was being locked up on Friday night, staff heard the smoke alarm going off and returned to see that a fire had started. The barman Karl Brannigan was absolutely excellent in following the proper procedures to get staff evacuated and the fire crews contacted,” Roger added. “I arrived at the club myself at about five past midnight, and at that stage the flames had already spread considerably, so the main focus of the crew had to be preventing them from spreading further and igniting other buildings such as the boat shed. However it was clear to see that the club was lost at that stage. “We’re very grateful for the support we’ve received from the local community; the Mayor and Mayoress came to club at about 1:30am on Saturday morning which was much appreciated. We hope to continue with our activities as far as possible and focus on supporting the efforts our member Ryan Seaton in the Olympics this summer.”

Sailing: Foxall in need of trouble-free finish with his Ocean dream on the horizon

The six boats competing in the Volvo Ocean Race are sailing their final day at sea today as the 39,000-mile contest reaches its final destination on Galway Bay, eight months after departing Alicante. The overall lead is held by French entry Groupama 4, skippered by Franck Cammas, with a 10-man crew that includes Ireland's Damian Foxall, but success hinges on avoiding incidents. "We've seen it all during this race -- masts coming down, rudders breaking, we don't want any of that in the last 36 hours of the offshore section of the race," Foxall said. "It's going to be harder for the other guys to take it away from us." The fleet is expected to reach Galway sometime between midnight and 6.0 tomorrow, depending on wind conditions on the 540-mile leg from Lorient in Brittany. Groupama's overall win is widely expected, though it relies heavily on a strong performance in this final leg in which they must place fourth or better. American entry Puma, skippered by Ken Read, is the principal challenger and needs to win this leg plus have the French boat finish worse than fourth. Thousands In that scenario, the outright victory of the 39,000-mile race would depend on next Saturday's short In-Port race to be held off Salthill where tens of thousands of spectators gathered in 2009 when the previous race stopped off after crossing the Atlantic from Boston. However, if Cammas and his crew do win tomorrow, next Saturday will still decide the In-Port series that has been sailed in each of the other nine ports around the world since last October. A win for Groupama would be the first Volvo Ocean Race victory for Foxall, who comes from Derrynane and had a childhood dream of competing in the then Whitbread Round the World Race. He will join Cork sailor Justin Slattery, bowman on Ian Walker's Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing team, as a winner of this race from 2006. Slattery and Walker haven't fared as well this time after their boat had to miss two stages of the race due to damage. "It's going to be quick trip to Galway, we're really looking forward to it," said Slattery shortly before departing Lorient yesterday. "It can't come soon enough." Live position reports on www.volvooceanrace.com will update the estimated time of arrival into Galway in the course of today.

Sailing is really boring ??

Prince Charles drops in to sailing academy

PRINCE Charles cracked open a bottle of Dorset beer on a visit to the Olympic Sailing venue – and poured it all over a boat. He raised cheers with his impromptu royal seal of approval of the new Team GB 49er Skiff, while enjoying a ‘whistle-stop tour’ of the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy yesterday. The sun shone as the prince toured at the invitation of triple Olympic gold-medallist Ben Ainslie, who is an ambassador for The Prince’s Trust. He was also met by the Lord Lieutenant for Dorset Valerie Pitt-Rivers, the High Sheriff Jeremy Pope, Portland mayor Sylvia Bradley, Councillor Jenny Collinge, sailing academy chairman Edward Leask and chief executive John Tweed, and RYA Olympic manager Stephen Park. Ainslie said: “It’s great for Prince Charles to see what’s taking place down here and the activities, not just for the Olympic sailors but for the youngsters coming down to use these facilities more and more. “It’s really getting exciting, there are so many international teams training and preparing, as there have been for a long time. “You can feel the excitement and tension building up.” Britain’s 49er sailor Stevie Morrison said it was a ‘real honour’ that Prince Charles had toasted their new vessel, which will be sailed in the Games. Ads by Google Custom flags made in UK Custom flags printed to your design Fast delivery. Free art assistance. www.MrFlag.com Yacht Charter London 2012 Support Team GB In August From Your Own Chartered Yacht In Weymouth Bay www.leopard3.com/Olympics2012 Stevie’s crewmate Ben Rhodes, of Exmouth, said: “He used a bottle of Palmer’s Dorset Gold ale. “We’ve called her Lovely Rita after the Beatles song, we thought it was about as British a name as it could be. Also, Ben calls his boats Rita so we thought we’d get in with that action too.” He added: “Prince Charles was really nice, he told us about when he was here in the Navy.” Portland Paralympian John Robertson said: “This was the first time I’d met Prince Charles, he’s a nice chap.” Weymouth’s Olympic windsurfer Bryony Shaw said: “He told me about all the times he used to do windsurfing back in the ’80s. “He seemed really interesting.” Charles also met a line-up of athletes from Australia, New Zealand, Canada and America. Australia’s 470 sailor Amanda Clark described the Royal visit as ‘pretty incredible’, which highlighted how the Olympics brought about ‘good will’ and the chance to meet very influential people. She added: “I’m so happy he came down to support sailing and to christen the boat for the British, that’s just so cool.” PRINCE Charles helped students leave a lasting flavour of 2012 under the new Dorchester Sports Centre. After attending a Prince’s Foundation reception in Poundbury, Charles was met by cheering children at the sports facility. The prince helped pupils from the Thomas Hardye School to bury a time capsule under the new £8million centre. The school’s history department ran a competition of ideas and chose six Year 9 pupils to put together the final product. Hannah Roberts-Baker said: “It was really exciting getting to meet Prince Charles, I thought he would be really prim and proper but he was really funny and friendly.” History teacher Gemma Cambell said: “They all got into it and some of the ideas they came up with were really interesting. The capsule includes a student film depicting a day in the life of a young person in 2012, photos of animals that could become extinct or landmarks that might be eroded, music lyrics, favourite recipes, a TV guide and a plaque from West Dorset Warriors swimming club. The new centre on Coburg Road is being developed by West Dorset District Council in partnership with the county council and Thomas Hardye School. District leader Robert Gould said: “The time capsule will not only provide future generations with a snapshot of life in 2012, but is a fantastic way to show the excitement surrounding this development.” The Prince then hitched a ride back to Poundbury on an electric bus. His final engagement of the day was a visit to the anaerobic digester at Rainbarrow Farm near Martinstown, which is supplying 750 Poundbury homes with electricity and will soon be providing gas for around 4,000 homes. PRIME Minister David Cameron hopes to get to Weymouth and Portland to catch some of the action during the Olympic Sailing events, the Dorset Echo can exclusively reveal.

Young adults off on sailing adventures

Sixteen young adults from throughout Shetland are all set to experience life at sea for an exciting adventure as they join the tall ships Swan, Europa and Alexander von Humboldt II as sail trainees. Ten trainees left Lerwick onboard the Swan on Sunday to sail across the North Sea to join other traditional sailing vessels from Scandinavia taking part in “Nordic Sail”, with the Swan being the only visiting boat. Forming in Hals, Denmark, the 29-strong fleet will race to Uddevalla, Sweden, with the event ending with a second race to Risør, Norway, before the Swan heads back to Shetland, returning on 9th July. The trainees on the Swan are Vaila Henderson, 15, Robbie Jamieson, 15, Lauren Johnson, 16, Ryan Leask, 16, Thomas Meadows, 18, Callum Mustard, 18, Ailish Parham, 16, Michaela Peterson, 15, Ellie Simpson, 15, and Erin Simpson, 17. Nordic Sail is renowned for its friendly atmosphere and is organised by the Sail Training associations of Norway, Sweden and Denmark. Over 400 crew will be taking part in the event between 28th June and 7th July 2012, with activities organised in each port for the visiting crews, similar to a Tall Ships event. The other six trainees are due to take part in the the Tall Ships Races, presented by Szczecin and organised by Sail Training International. Jack Jamieson, 20, Daniel Lawson, 19, and Scott Sandison, 18, will be setting sail on the Europa from the Netherlands as part of a European Youth-in-Action programme on the race between St Malo and Lisbon from 7th to 21st July. Kristen Jeromson, 21, Michelle Robertson, 23, and Emma Rochester, 18, will be joining the newly built Class A German tall ship Alexander von Humboldt II on the leg between Lisbon and Cadiz before returning to Lisbon as part of the Cruise-in-Company from 21st July to 2nd August. All of the Shetland trainees will work closely with the crew of their allocated ships, undertaking tasks such as watch-keeping, setting sails and other domestic duties which they will share with other trainees. Sail Training Shetland chairman Peter Campbell said: “This year will see the total number of young people participating in our annual sail training schemes reaching eighty since the charity’s formation in 2009. “We are delighted that we have again been able to recruit a spirited group of young people from around Shetland. I am confident that all of our trainees will take away something positive from their experiences and will be great ambassadors for our community. “We would also like to take this opportunity to thank all our grant funders, sponsors and supporters for their generous and valued support.”