Youngsters take to sailing like ducks to water 

Threatening skies, the occasional shower and increasingly breezy conditions did little to dampen ...

Threatening skies, the occasional shower and increasingly breezy conditions did little to dampen the enthusiasm of over 50 youngsters, mostly from surrounding towns, who took part in the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) OnBoard Sailing Festival at Alton Water, Stutton, near Ipswich, on Saturday (11 July).

The event was open to youngsters who are learning to sail at clubs in the area through the RYA’s OnBoard grass roots programme as well as any children who were keen to get involved. Out of the 52 youngsters on the water, 25 came from OnBoard clubs in South Suffolk and North Essex, 13 had never been in a boat before, and three were on holiday from Angmering-on-Sea in Sussex – they went home so fired with enthusiasm they are now looking to join their nearest OnBoard club.

The youngsters were divided into three groups based on their experience, ‘newbies’ (who had never been in a boat before), intermediates, and advanced. The day started with a noon briefing and a description of the boat parts and how to use them and then the boats – 30 Bugs loaned by Laser Performance, manufacturers of the Laser range of performance dinghies – were rigged and launched. Instructors gave the children tuition as they sailed. Some less experienced children were paired with more experienced ones.

RYA OnBoard Development Officer Chris Hussey, who organised the event, took the 13 beginners under his wing. “It’s remarkable how quickly the youngsters, some of whom were quite nervous, took to it like ducks to water.”

Within minutes he had them reaching and tacking backwards and forwards. And like most youngsters, they were soon splashing about in the water having fun. “It was so fantastic to see so many happy faces out on the water, many sailing for the first time. None of this would have been possible without all the effort put in from the volunteers on the day and the guys from Laser Performance,” commented Chris.

“The weather was not kind to us, after three weeks of solid sunshine and constant gentle winds, it was overcast and threatening. However the occasional heavy showers, shifty winds and gusty conditions didn’t seem to phase the youngsters one little bit,” he added.  Comments from the youngsters ranged from “smashing, cool” to “can I come again”.  

Run by sailing’s National Governing Body, the RYA, OnBoard is a highly successful industry supported grass roots programme, which seeks to make sailing easier to get into for young people. Over a ten-year period the programme aims to introduce a minimum of 500,000 children to sailing in the UK, converting over 10 per cent of them into regular participants. So far it’s nicely on track.

For more information about OnBoard visit the website www.ruob.co.uk.