Back from the Capital!

You may have noticed the lack of posts over the past few days, I've been down in Canberra for the ACT Dinghy Champs, and then handing in my final uni assignment (Yay!). Of the two, Canberra was definitely more fun, and after my second trip down for the regatta I'm even more of a fan. Being regatta coach to all the competitors was a real challenge, but getting to meet and coach a whole bunch of people I haven't worked with before was great. There is a lot of talent moving through the Optimist fleet at the moment and the next few years are looking good.

What was really drilled home to me over the weekend is that Canberra is a fantastic place to learn a lot about sailing. It is shifty, gusty and difficult to read - so when you make a mistake it is immediately obvious. This makes it really easy to learn about reading shifts and boat positioning on the fleet. Hopefully the competitors had a great time and we can see an even bigger fleet next year. Congratulations to Jim Colley on his dominant win!

Game Changer

The Volvo Ocean Race is due to start in 2 days time and I'm beginning to get excited. Held every 3 years it is alongside the Vendee Globe and Jules Verne Trophy as one of the premiere round the world races. I'll be posting more in the coming days about the race itself and the teams to watch, for the moment I want to introduce everyone to a neat way to stay involved with the event.

The Game

There is an official Volvo Ocean Race Game, where people can skipper a virtual VO70 around the same course as the sailors - each leg starts with the actual race and is run on real time weather data. Competitors plot the course and trim sails to try and get a jump on the other sailors, you can even compare your progress to the actual boats.

It kicks off in 2 days with a practice race so sign up and get in to it!

It's Huge!

Last time around the game attracted more than 50 000 competitors, catching developers by surprise and all but crashing their system. This time they are better prepared and expect numbers to be even bigger, if you want a shot at virtual sailing glory then this is the place to do it. I played last time around and this game is seriously addictive, with so many people playing, you get punished for every wrong move.

Get Connected!

One of the really fun parts of the game is the option to link to friends and form groups. This lets you keep track of how your friends are going or even operate as a team. My boat name is BrewerCoaching, so add me as a friend and then put your boat name as a comment below so others can see. You can also follow the game on twitter, and facebook.

See you at the starting line!

The Endeavor!

So I realise that over the past week I've posted quite a lot about Vestas Sailrocket and the kiteboarders currently pushing for the outright sailing speed record in Namibia. As a coach who primarily works with slower one design dinghies this may come as a surprise, but no matter what your sailing background is, you have to admire the endeavor these people possess. The teams that are chasing the illusive 60 knot barrier aren't driven by corporate gain, they are normal people who had radical ideas and the courage to back themselves in to making them reality. There is no reason that one of the junior sailors sitting around Australian sailing clubs couldn't be doing the same thing in a few years time, all it takes is a good idea and confidence!

As potential inspiration (and to highlight again how ridiculously cool this boat is), here is an on board perspective of sailing at 100km/h!

Taste of Oz

The America's Cup defenders Oracle Racing will have a distinctly Australian flavour after the announcement of a crew change for the next AC45 event in San Diego. It was announced today that the Oracle Racing Coutts team would for this event be helmed by Australian Olympian Darren Bundock, with tactics called by fellow Australian Olympian and ISAF world sailor of the year Tom Slingsby. Considering that the other Oracle boat is helmed by Australian James Spithill and you could begin wondering why the team flies the stars and stripes!

Tom Slingsby (right) training on an AC45 from www.oracleracing.com

All this is very exciting for Aussies following the series, but it highlights one of the biggest disappointments in Australian sailing. Despite having the best sailors, being snatched up by teams all around the world, and a knowledge and skill base to rival any nation, there is still no Australian challenge to the America's cup. The media interest and following of the AC is so big that the reflected glow of Australia II's victory still falls on the sport, imagine the interest and opportunities that a new challenge would bring. Maybe we will make an appearance at the 35th AC - in the meantime good luck to the Aussies in all the teams!

The Chase!

An often underestimated element of coaching his having the right equipment and skills to keep up with the athletes, and still being able to concentrate on what they are doing. While this is rarely a problem with boats like sabots or opti's, keeping up with a 29er or 420 in 25 knots and a big seaway can be a serious challenge. Even with the right equipment it requires a lot of concentration to drive a powerboat at speed in rough conditions - in many cases the sailboats are better equipped to do it!

Take this up a level to 49ers or F18 catamarans and the problem becomes worse, but what happens when you are chasing a boat designed to set speed records? Vestas Sailrocket has given us some insight in to the problem with a new video from their runs in Namibia - anyone got a rib capable of 55 knots they can lend them?!?

Keep Truckin'

So a few days ago I posted up a photo that I found on the internet of Maitre Jacques, a 50 foot trimaran training for the Transat Jacques Vabre double handed race. I was so stoked that it's now the background photo on my laptop. Turns out there is an accompanying video, and the boat is even cooler than I first thought. It makes you wonder, why does Australia 'oooh' and 'aahhhh' so much over yachts like Wild Oats 11 when this 50 footer with two blokes on board would smoke it in just about any conditions?
Make sure you sit out (or skip) the french bits at the beginning to see the sailing that starts at about 1:35!


Maître Jacques- Transat Jacques Vabre 2011 from Easy Ride on Vimeo.

Good Luck!

A whole bunch of Aussie Optimist sailors are heading across the ditch for the NZ North Island Championships this weekend. Held in Napier at the venue for this years worlds in December, there will be a number of top class sailors competing. Hopefully our young sailors can right the wrongs of last weekends Rugby game and come out on top of the Kiwis!

Best of luck to Annabelle Davies, Richard Maher, Connor Nicholas, Jim Colley, Tyrone Gowans, James McLennan, James Grogan, Jack Graves, Michael Parks, Daniel Quinlan, and Thomas Cunich. It's not clear yet where results will be posted, but I'll keep everyone up to date with how they're going.