Wednesday was an exciting day for the kids! All the groups began their day by meeting upstairs and playing some fun games with counselors until everyone arrived. Afterwards, they sectioned off into their groups, and started their lesson plan for the day.
Mercury Mentors began their day by having a quick debrief and review upstairs before making their way down into the boat. They reviewed points of sail, and parts of the boat, which helped them to fully understand the new material Coach Dae taught them. Today, she introduced a new maneuver- gybing! She explained how gybing was turning the stern of the boat, so it passes through the oncoming wind, which causes the sail to switch sides. Then, when they got on the water, they were able to put classroom diagrams and instructions into action. She showed them how all the parts of the boat came together on the water, and what happens when you gybe.
Beginner Optis started their morning by receiving a lesson by Coach John and Coach Sophia, who taught them about a new kind of course we were going to be sailing later this morning. By explaining how a sailboat moves through the Triangle Course and which point of sail is on each leg of the course, the kids have a much easier time on the water. They know what to expect, and how to complete each task we’ve given them. All they have to do is practice! All the kids are working up towards learning how to sail through a whole race, complete with starting sequences, starting lines, marks, and how to sail fast around a course. By the end of the week they are going to race around the course!
Green Fleet began their day with a short debrief and plan for the day with Coach Stephen, who also worked on a Triangle Course. However, since Green Fleet is more advanced than the beginners, they were more focused on fine tuning, and consistency. Another great element of the course was that the 420 kids were moving around it too! By practicing calling right of way, and having to think quickly to avoid other boats, the kids have gotten much better at real racing. By practicing their racing, they are improving on skills used by the Green Fleet team during the fall season.
420s started their morning by rigging their boats and getting out onto the water quickly! They sailed on the same course the Green Fleet were on, and as I had previously mentioned, practiced some quick thinking and some right of way calls. Their skills have improved so tremendously during the course of this past week. They sailed upwind, downwind, and reached with ease, even when on a course designed for advanced sailors!
Towards the end of the day, the rain started to come in, and we could only sail for a little bit. Even while it was raining, the kids were great helpers in putting the boats away and helping to organize sails and equipment. To thank them, we put on StarWars for the remainder of the day! Although we didn’t get a whole afternoon of sailing, our morning was a great! We hope for another fine day of sailing tomorrow- Emma
