A bad day sailing is better than no (broken) sailing!

Ouch - no sailing :(

Over the last few weeks some of my racing has been a bit up and down for some reason. I've had some great results, good results and not so good ones. But even a bad days sailing is better than no sailing which is what I now have for the next 3 to 4 weeks or so as I've broken my collarbone!

More about that later but here's the sailing I've been doing. 

In my boat my Dad writes me messages. It started off when I was first learning to sail to remind me of stuff I had to do. Now for regattas we draw on the course and tide information etc. And then he also puts in comments about family jokes and song lyrics. 

When the Selection’s weren't going so well Dad went on about how when you fall off a bike or a horse you have to get straight back on and ride again to build up your confidence. So in my boat he wrote ‘It’s a horse. Giddy up’ 

This is all a bit weird but a couple of weeks after the Selection trials we had the Inland Championships, our first ranking event of the year, so I needed to do well. So Dad’s message made sense to me and the Inland Championships went really well. 

It was another windy event but flat water compared to the Selection Trials so the racing was great. We did six races in total, three on Saturday and three on Sunday and all my results were inside the top 10. Overall I came 6^th so was very happy with that and to be back sailing how I should be. It’s good to have bagged a solid ranking result too.

My prize picture

After the Inlands next up was some training at my home club, Gurnard SC, and then an open regatta at the Royal Victoria YC on the Isle of Wight. It made a nice change sailing at home and not have to get up early and catch ferries to get to an event. The open event was one day with a mixed fleet of non squad sailors up to national squad. It was a perfect sailing day with moderate breeze and sunshine. I won the event which was good as the prizes were excellent – trophy, limited edition print picture of the needles and a SailSpy UK Go-Pro t-shirt. We also all got a free garlic which was a bit random but makes sense if you live on the Isle of Wight!

The Royal Lymington YC open regatta came next. The first day was an epic windy Solent day. Winds up to 30kts and choppy seas. I had a blast and one of the days when my heavy wind technique felt really good and I got a 4, 14, 6 for the day’s three races. We stayed at my grandparents for the night which meant roast lamb, loads to eat and pancakes for breakfast.

On Sunday the conditions couldn't have been more opposite with almost no wind until mid afternoon. We had a couple of races in the super light stuff which were a bit of a lottery and saw some very dodgy tiller wagging and body pumping from some sailors. The first race I got the tides all wrong and came 19^th and then a 13^th. The third race of the day was in a sea breeze so really nice sailing and I came 7^th so finished up 10^th overall.

My sister Freya was also racing in the regatta fleet at Lymington and they used the same course as us. It was the first time ever that we've been sailing together at the same time. It was nice seeing her racing and when we finished we sailed back together which was awesome. Freya came 29^th in her fleet.

After Lymington we had a weekend off sailing to go the Isle of Wight Festival which was brilliant. Then last weekend it was back to sailing this time at the Hayling Island Open regatta. Over the two days my results were a bit mixed and not the best as I couldn't seem to get my strategy quite right. Saturday we had quite a gentle breeze and with the strong tides made things pretty tricky. There were crazy gains and losses being made by everyone. Sunday was pretty breezy again, we seem to be having a lot of windy events this year. I had a better day on the Sunday but a start line capsize didn't help in the first race. With a couple of shocker results and the rest OKish I finished 16^th overall so not my best regatta. Freya raced in the regatta fleet at 

Hayling too. She had her best result yet coming 23^rd with her best race being a 13. Unlike me she didn't capsize!

So it’s been a funny time results wise and all a bit up and down. I like the ups but not the downs so need to make sure I have more of the ups and understand what causes the downs.

Next up I was supposed to be going Nieuwpoortweek in Belgium from 4 – 8 July. I was one of the Team GBR sailors with 5 other boys. But on Friday I had an accident playing football at school which ended up with one of my friends falling on me a breaking my collarbone. Now I can't sail for 3 - 4 weeks. I think the pain of not going to Flanders and not sailing is worse than the break. I've got to take it easy and hope I'm better enough to race at the Nationals at the end of July. 

I've had loads of get well messages from so many people, Which means a lot so thank you everyone.

Winning the Salterns Optimist Trophy and Twitter Chatting with Extreme 40 sailors

Hello everyone. Here is a bit of an update on what I've been doing since coming back from Turkey. 

Firstly Mum and Dad made me have a bit of time off from sailing to recover. It meant I didn't go to the Hayling Island open which was not so good. But the Saturday it was on I didn't wake up until 1030 so they were probably right. Which isn't so good either!! :-) 

A couple of weekends ago I took part in the Royal Lymington Optimist Open Regatta. It was on the same weekend as the Isle of Wight Festival which was really bad timing. We've been to the Festival as a family for the last few years and it is awesome but so is the Lymington Regatta and as it was being used as a training event for the British Team for the Irish Nationals I really wanted to go. It made the weekend quite complicated though. I stayed over at my friend Oliver's house on Friday night so Mum, Dad and Freya could go to the Festival. Dad picked me up early on Saturday morning to take me to Lymington. He looked like he should have had more sleep and less festivaling (ha ha). Then it was blowing well over 20kts and racing was cancelled. There was a time trial instead but before I got to my go that was called off too as it was even windier.

I spent the night with my Grandparents with fish and chips from the chip shop as a treat for tea which was very nice but not as nice as their roast dinners.

Sunday was the complete opposite and hardly any wind. We did get three races in though. It was tough going in the conditions and tide but I was really pleased with the way I sailed. On the first race I didn't manage to work with the tides so well and I got a disappointing 25th. In the next race I had an amazing start and managed to defend my position for the whole race giving me a well-earned 2nd place which I was really pleased at. In the next race I didn't have such a good start but I worked the shifts and managed to finish 9th.

Me with the Salterns Optimist Trophy

Overall I finished 8th out of 94 and as always at Lymington it was a very competitive fleet and at the end of the day I got a bonus as I had won the Salterns Optimist Trophy as the highest place sailor age 10 or under. There's some good names on this cup including Milo- Gill Taylor, Matthew Whitfield, Richard Mason and Vita Heathcote.

As well as Lymington I've been sailing on Friday's cadet night at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club and I've joined Gurnard Sailing Club and been sailing there on Thursday nights in Picos and Fevas. It's been good fun sailing in two handed boats.

As well as having fun on the water I joined in with a @SAPSponsors twitter chat with Jes Gram-Hansen and Rasmus Kostner who sail on the SAP Extreme 40. I asked quite a few questions but my best one was 'Would you like to swap, you can have a go in my Optimist if I can have a go on your Ex40!' I got a reply from Jes & Rasmus '@Haydn_Sewell come to Cardiff you might get lucky!' which is epic. So just got to get dad to take me to Cardiff now!

I got another new North Sails DZero6 this week so I have a new sail for the Nationals and a good spare. Thank you North Sails for your help. It's great getting new sailing stuff.

My next event is the the Warsash Open this weekend which is looking like another light wind one so good for us light weights :-))

Easter Holiday's - Optimist & Pico Sailing and More

I have had a really busy Easter doing loads of Optimist sailing and other water activities.

It started off on the first Sunday of the holidays, at my local sailing club, Royal Victoria Yacht Club.  It was the open race of the season, the Commodore's Cup. We had a mixed fleet start so I was up against Squibs, Lasers, RS's on the start line which was fun. I was one of the first boats off the start so all the winter training must be paying off. The Optimists had a different course from everyone else. I won the racing by a country mile,  despite getting the course wrong at one point, which secured me a Trophy!!

From Monday through to Friday I was at UKSA, a watersports activity centre in Cowes, with a bunch of my friends doing lots of activities such as: sailing, kayacking, raft building, Easter Egg hunts etc. It was great fun. Obviously I enjoyed the sailing the most but it was great to be out on the water doing other stuff as well!!

Crossing the finish line to win

On Sunday, I went down to Gurnard Sailing club for some Pico racing with my friend Lily. I was her guest helm for the day as she wanted to get her revenge on her brother who had beaten her the week before. AND we definately did that. We beat all the other Picos on the water including some adults with racing mainsails and we won the slow handicap class!!! It was fun to be racing a different type of boat and to go sailing with someone else. HAPPY TIMES!

The winning team with matching drysuits 

Me and Lily being briefed by Lily's Dad

On Wednesday I started some Oppie training at Gurnard with all my friends which finishes on Friday and then I'm straight into more sailing in Lymington! HECTIC!!!!


On Wednesday my little sister Freya had her first go at sailing in her (my old) Optimist on her own for the first time. She was really good. Holding the tiller properly, sitting on the side of the boat and everything. I was really proud of her and pleased to see her out on the water. I hope she loves sailing as much as I do.

Freya winning!

Awesome Optimist sailing from Freya

Great technique

One other good bit of news, We've ordered my brand new North Sail which should arrive soon. I can't wait to get it. I'll have it in time for the Selection trials in Weymouth which is my next big event.