Members' Youth Academy

Hi All,

It's that time of year again, for those of you who haven't been sailing during the winter months, it's time to dig out the sailing gear and get out on the water!

Every year at Alton Water we have held a successful Topper Academy for aspiring Youth Sailors, working on the skills needed to race well at club level and beyond. Through this process many ex academy sailors have gone on to race successfully at events around the country in a variety of different classes. The academy not only serves the purpose of honing your racing skills, but also you make great friends who you will go on to race against for many years to come.  Like most clubs, Alton has a thriving dinghy racing programme at weekends for members, we need to get more young sailors out racing!

The academy this year is going to be slightly different than in previous years, it is going to be run by our enthusiastic youth team, members of the club who are running the academy for fellow members . You do need to be a member of Alton Water to participate in this years academy, but if you're not, then don't worry, you can join anytime. Just pop in to the office and talk to one of the members of staff or you can now join online at www.altonwater.co.uk. The membership for juniors is very modest, and gives you access to a whole range of benefits exclusive to members, including club racing and members run training events like this years academy.

Throughout the weekly sessions we will cover the key aspects of starting, upwind sailing, mark rounding, downwind sailing and racing rules along with tactics and boat set up. For the first time this year there is going to be a Youth regatta exclusively for Under 18's on the 12th-13th July, and this is what we will be working towards throughout the sessions.

So, when is this going to happen? Sessions will run from 7th June through to 5th July every Saturday Afternoon, from 1:30-4:00. If you don't have your own topper then don't worry, as in previous years you can use one of the Alton race spec toppers throughout the sessions, and these will also be available to use in the Youth regatta. The cost will be £10 if you have your own topper or £20 if you need to use one of the centre toppers.

This is a great opportunity whether you're new to racing or an experienced racer, don't miss out! My aim over the course of the next few years is to expand the youth sailing section at Alton, and with the support of you this can happen, and other training and racing opportunities can be provided in the future.

Reply to this with details of your past sailing experience and whether you would need to use one of Alton Water's boats by the 30th May to get your name on the list. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. My e-mail is harryforbes9@gmail.com, if you can e-mail me with contact details I will add you to the list, from which e-mails will be sent out with details when the time comes. I've learned a lot from being part of the academy a few years ago, I'm really looking forward to the opportunity to run the academy this season.

Regards

Harry Forbes