South West RS Tera Squad Camp at Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club
by Peter Solly 18 Dec 2024 09:32 PST
14-15 December 2024
South West Tera Squad Camp at Bristol Corinthian © Peter Solly
There was sun and fun for the first two-day camp of the South West's Tera Squad Regional Training Program. Good wind, nice sun and very high-quality race coaching was the name of the game this weekend.
As usual, sailors brought along homemade cakes to share during the debriefs at the end of each day - and with Christmas jumpers and Santa hats on show, there was a lot of fun.
For the first time this year, the SW Tera Squad is running two-day camps alongside its traditional one-days, aimed at the more experienced sailors. This was the first of these weekend camps and was very successful. The Tera coaching team was lead by experienced race coach Duncan West, alongside ex-Tera sailor Jack Solly.
With good shore-based briefing and debriefing at the beginning and end of each day, as well as at lunchtime, the coaching was delivered to a very high standard. Detailed pre and post event briefings and individual video feedback for the sailors has also helped sailors to consolidate the learning.
One club member who was on the water doing the club race commented "I have to say your coaches are doing an amazing job: I sailed around them while doing some of their exercises, and the skill level was amazing!"
Sailors worked on starting and boat speed, with a range of exercise including stop-tacks double-Us and trigger pulls; as well as sail control, heel and rudder movements. Throughout the fleet there was significant progression over the two days, with all sailors reaping the rewards of working hard.
The weekend was run alongside the SWYSA Squad Topper fleet, and although all coaching was run in class-specific groups and focussed specifically on each class, it was a great opportunity for Tera sailors to catch up with Topper-sailing friends.
Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club provided a very friendly welcome, with well organised logistics and a helpful team shoreside team to assist with safety boats. Parent volunteers ran the galley, serving warm pasta and sauce lunches both days for all sailors as well as parents.
A huge thank you to all of the coaching team, the organisers and Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club for hosting.