ContactApply

Young Sailor Qualifies for World Feva Championships!

June 04, 2015 at 1:03 PM

Congratulations to Year 8 Boys’ School student, Henry McLachlan who, with his sailing club partner, Hamish McLaren, has qualified for the 2015 Feva World Championships to be held in Germany during July. Well done!

Representing the Royal Akarana Yacht Club (RAYC), the pair competed in the first ever New Zealand Feva Nationals, hosted by Milford Cruising Club in April this year. The format was a two day regatta with five races sailed each day. Before the regatta, RAYC went through a selection process to identify their top sailors and subsequently, Henry and Hamish completed two days of intense training, which included; starts, boat handling and boat speed skills. At the end of training, the boys were fired up to get out and race!

The first day of racing brought tough conditions with winds gusting up to 20 knots during some of the races and a lumpy sea-state. It was hard going for the competitors with lots of boats withdrawing from races after capsizing.

In complete contrast, the following day brought light winds and sunshine for the four windward-leeward races, followed by a longer race. When the overall results were tallied, Henry and Hamish finished in second place in the U16 division.

The boys will be flying the New Zealand & RAYC flag at the Feva World Championships where they will be competing in a field of over 140 boats in Travemunde on the northern border of Germany. They are currently training hard, with a minimum of three days on the water every week, under the supervision of their Coach Nathan Laurie.

Racing in Travemunde kicks off on July 20th with five days of intense racing in this fast growing class. We wish Henry and Hamish all the best in their training and for some fantastic close racing in Germany!

 

Back to News List