Latest Developments

Another winter season approaches and so it is time for new plans and a new training programme. Samantha had  interviews at The UK Sailing Academy last week and has secured a place on the tri-watersports Internship Programme.  She will be starting work there in November and after completing her training will have instructor qualifications in canoeing, windsurfing and hopefully scuba diving and of course, high performance dinghy sailing.  She hopes to spend next summer working in somewhat warmer climes.

After returning from the Topper Worlds with a solid performance placing in the Gold Fleet with a consistent race series across all wind conditions it is finally time for Joanne to say farewell to Junior racing and move formally into a Youth Class.  Having not grown a great deal since last year she has decided the Laser Radial is just not a realistic option yet so the summer has been a time of re-evaluation and contemplation with the focus moving from 29er to 420 and back.  

Ultimately it is the all round nature and technical challenge of the 420 which has proved more attractive than the high adrenaline point and shoot nature of the 29er.  The 9er has been great fun and a real challenge particularly in the challenging, shifting winds of Loch Tummel and is very much the "cool" way to go but ultimately the strength in depth and quality of competition across Europe, (the French, Dutch, Germans and Belgians seem to have hundreds of them!) the availability of coaches (and parents) who also sail the boat at the highest level and also the example of Luke Patience in the 470 at the Olympics has swayed Jo towards the 420 and we will be collecting her new "blueblue" shortly after the UK Inlands at the end of September.  We plan to keep the 29er too and will be sailing both classes but will focus on the 420 for National and International Competition. 

The 420 is a two person boat and not generally one which favours mixed crews so if there are any dedicated  15 years old girls out there born in 1997 or later who would like to sign up for winter training and a full international race programme, please get in touch.

Championship Week

A busy week.  Samantha in Torquay for the 420 National Championships and Joanne in Workum, Holland for the Topper World Championships. Sure beats going back to school tomorrow doesn't it Jo.

Tay Yacht Clubs Association Youth Regatta

With Samantha coaching at Royal Tay Cadet Week Joanne decided to accept a long standing invitation from cousin and Topper 4.2 maestro Alastair Ferguson to come sail with him on the very tidal waters of the famous silvery Tay.

Having made a very last minute decision to take advantage of grandad's better condition in the hospice and head over to the 2012 Topper World Championships at Workum in Holland this also presented a great chance to shake off the Topper cobwebs and get in some practice.  Joanne was therefore delighted to enjoy four hotly contested races in the TYCA Youth Regatta and come away with the Topper class win and also the much coveted overall trophy for the all classes handicap race  comprising a variety of Lasers, Toppers, few as and RS 500, a terra and various other assorted youth vessels.  Joanne was also able to confirm the very high standard of the local competition which shows that Samantha's coaching had perhaps been of some help to the enthusiastic home fleet.

Well done all.

Tummel week 2012

Although family illness still presents a major cloud, especially for dad, the silver lining is that the first time in about four years we have all been able to participate in Tummel Week.  This is a brilliant family sailing week in the beautiful setting of Loch Tummel Sailing Club our original sailing home where we both took our first trips afloat.  Ten all classes handicap races over five days with boat swaps and fun racing very much the order of the day.  We mixed it up in 420, 29 er and RS200 and had a great time.  We even recorded our first ever race win in the 29er on the windy final day but oh boy we need to buy some ratchet blocks for the kite sheets!

Flanders week 2012

Jen and I ready for launch

With grandad still seriously Ill and too much happening at home to allow much travelling or serious training Samantha was delighted to be asked to go to Belgium to participate in the annual Flanders Youth Regatta crewing in a 420 with fellow Scottish sailor Jennifer Abraham.  The weather was brilliant for the trip down but the planned post regatta holiday was terminated by a torrential downpour which flooded out the campsite and had possessions floating away.  In between there was some great sailing in a wide variety of conditions and lots of opportunities to practice boat repair and be reminded of the importance of better preparation next time!  Next planned 420 outing will be the UK Nationals in August provided we can get a new rudder and stock sorted out by then.

Summer 2012

It has been a long time since our last post on the blog.  Winter training in the Radials came to an end with the RYA Youth Nationals at Pwllheli which was not our most successful ever event and was also Samanthas last competitive outing as a Youth sailor.

A catalogue of disasters had occurred just around the time of the Youth Nationals ranging from the theft and destruction of Samantha's car when she left it between Laser Qualifiers to fly back for a weekend of squad training with the Scottish Squad on Cumbrae to the sad news that grandad was very unwell with prostatic cancer and had to be taken into hospital and was near death for a time.

Following these events and the long winters training we were both ready for a bit of a change and so we have been taking some time out to sail in other boats.  We have tried swimming around a 29er in various wind strengths and states of tide.  Samantha has also tried some 420 crewing and Joanne has taken a fancy to helping a 420 whenever she can.

We have also purchased an RS200 which is a better boat for local club sailing both at Dalgety Bay and at Loch Tummel where we have been glad to return as more active members this year after several years away on the campaign trail.

It has also been great to get a chance to help some younger sailors and do some coaching at our clubs.  Samantha in particular has coached at Youth weeks at both Loch Tummel and the Toyal Tay Yacjt club.

Meanwhile Joanne has also been working hard on her school exams with some success and has also had at school exchange trip to Germany and also a week long outward bound week in the Scottish Highlands.

Life on the road as a professional athlete.

Charlotte in Action for Team GBR

Here is an except from the diary of Anna Dobson, currently the best Scottish Laser Radial Olympic athlete who is still battling for selection for the one place available for a sailor from Great Britain to compete at the 2012 Olympics.  It describes her winter training last year - up to sail for Gold 2011 where she won selection to the team for the pre Olympic event at Weymouth.  This gives some insight into the level of commitment it takes to make the step by step small improvements  necessary to become one of the very best.

"

GRAN CANARIA TRAINING CAMPS

2011 started off with a bang. The fireworks had only just fizzled out and I was on an early morning flight to Gran Canaria for my first training camp of the year. The climate in Gran Canaria is fantastic, usually a balmy 23 degrees and a huge variety of wind and wave conditions, which makes a perfect venue for winter training camps when the sea temperature in the UK hovers around an icy 8 degrees.

We sailed from the Real Club Nautico de Gran Canaria which is a beautiful club which has hosted many World and National Championships over the years. They have enormous wood paneled walls along all the staircases which have the names of all the champions from that club and those who have won regattas the regattas hosted there. It made for some really good coffee time reading picking out all the people you knew or had read about on the boards. The club had a full size gym too which meant keeping up with the gym programs easy. We even witnessed the 60 yr old + weekly Bench Off competition which I thought was an exclusively a Finn boy game but I was amazed to see some of the old men benching high into the 80kilos.

The camp was 10 days and mainly light winds. The venue has attracted a great deal of teams which provides a great opportunity to join up in the afternoons and do some long races after we have done our own exercises in our respective groups. I like training like this as you are always relating the small things your working on into the big picture of the race.

Back in the UK the next thing on the agenda was BOOTCAMP! I wanted to do a month period of high intensity training in the gym with all the specialists. I’ve recently had some lower back pain so it provided a good opportunity to investigate and work on the problem without the irritation sailing can cause to the injury. It was also a good opportunity to just beast myself in the gym and really maximize the gains at the beginning of the season so I can maintain later on in the year when the focus is definitely on the sailing. After fitness tests at either end of the bootcamp period it looks like I’ve definitely got stronger which was the key area I wanted to improve on. A usual day would include a weights session in the morning and then a core session or boxing session. I would then go home for a couple hours and try to do some admin but would invariably fall asleep and wake up ready to do the afternoon cardio pyramid session. I was a bit annoyed with myself for continually falling asleep at lunch time and I though it was just from the tedium of admin but in actual fact that is exactly what the rowers and cyclists do. They train hard early morning and then go to sleep for 3 hours until their next session in the afternoon to maximize their recovery. I couldn’t believe it when I fessed up to the physiologist that I was sleeping at lunch time that he highly recommended it!

After I finished a month of bootcamp I was feeling really confident with the gains I’d made and a having a whole month off sailing I was absolutely mad for yachting! I did two weeks of training with a couple of local sailors doing some boat handling exercises to brush up on that and lots and lots of time on distance starting work which put the foundations down for my next big training camp in Gran Canaria.

My second trip to Gran Canaria was a two week camp starting on the 21st March. This time I joined two of the top radial girls from Belgium and Czech Rep and a training group of Belgian youth boys. In all we had 12 in the group which was a perfect size for lots of race practice and starting practice. My coach, Tom came out for the second week which was brilliant to go through some of the decision making protocols with him which we’ll use in the upcoming regattas. The best part of the camp was I really noticed the progress I’d made strength wise in the breezy conditions, which is a huge boost and makes motivation easy for the next block of strength sessions as I can see the progress and I know the program is working.

Next on the agenda is a week long cycling camp in Palma with two of the 470 girls and another laser sailor - the fight for the Queen of the mountains is going to be a tough fight I think this year! After that I stay out in Palma for another week of laser sailing with the British team and also a small training regatta out there. Everything is building up to European spring leg of the World cup series at Princess Sophia regatta in Palm Mallorca at the beginning of April and then onto Hyeres Semaine in the south of France at the end of April. These two regattas will act as a mini peak for me to see where I’m at after the winter training program and assess what I need to work on before the first major peak of the year at Sail for Gold regatta in June which is the qualification for the Pre-Olympic Test Event is August.

Fingers crossed everything goes well for heron in. So far this winter has been great fun and I can’t wait for the regatta season to start!"

(Charlotte Dobson, March 2011.)

Winter Squad Regatta

With Sam still on compulsory rest it was just Joanne who could participate in the RYA Scotland Winter Squad Regatta this weekend.  Saturday was basically blown off so it was an opprtunity for yet more fitness tests which confirmed good progress and then more exercise and some land based training.  Sunday was a good day with light and testing winds giving excellent race practice. 

Next week is a normal squad weekend at Cumbrae and both girls hope to be fit.

Injured!

Samantha had an excellent weekend sailing for Team Scotland in the Tri-Nations inter-squad event at Pwllheli but unfortunately suffered a nasty shoulder injury which will take few weeks to heal.  Fortunately still a few weeks to go before the first Spring Qualifiers but the fitness programme has become a challenge with one arm.  No strength and conditioning work but lots of swimming (in a nice warm swimmimg pool for once).

Miami OCR 2012

Charlotte working hard at Palma in 2009

As the battle between the ladies for the Laser Radial berth at the London Olympics continues great news from Miami is that in the Rolex Olympic Classes Regatta Charlotte Dobson is currently lying 2nd overall behind Ladies World Champion Marit Baumeester and is on a very respectable 20 points from 4 races.

Good effort Charlotte.
G.

Sailing at Last

With a brief respite from the storms today we managed to get down to the sailing club.. Despite the wind looking less than promising we  decided to give it a go and later in the afternoon the wind arrived in good style so we were rewarded with a good blast in the 420 to blow the cobwebs away.  Fingers crossed for more weather like this.

G.

All quiet on the sailing front

Low Flying Lasers

Narrow escape for our 420
despite being tied down and mast
removed! (its under the 200).

With extreme weather battering the UK and Central Scotland seemingly getting the worst of it there has been little opportunity for on the water training in recent weeks so the Christmas holiday has given the opportunity for some well deserved rest time.  Rest is an essential component of every


athletes training programme and something that is often neglected in the busy training and racing schedules we follow.  Lets hope that a good winter break with only some modest gym work to keep the body ticking over will be our secret weapon as the new racing season begins....

Here are a few images of our recent storms.  And a link to a short video of waves at the club.  The weather station directly opposite on Blackhall Hill recorded 102mph whilst the Lasers were flying around the club grounds.  Fortunately our Lasers are safely in storage at home.

Latest news from Australia - ISAF Worlds 2011.

Racing is now well underway at the ISAF Sailing Worlds in Perth, Australia which is almost certainly the final selection event for the Radial berth for team GBR at the London Olympics 2012.

Team GBR await the qualifying race start.
Charlotte is GBR 22.

After a difficult start on Monday Charlotte Dobson picked up her first race win this morning followed by a healthy 8 to move her up to the top of the team GBR standings.  Analise Murphy of Ireland  had a similarly challenging first race but is now clearly enjoying the conditions and with the first discard in play has now moved to the top of the leader board.

In the mens 470 class Luke and Stuart have engaged first gear and followed their 5, 1 scores from Monday with three more bullets today.  With the 470's in the unusual position of using flights, Luke and Stuart are just ahead of the Australians who also dominated their flight today to give a scoreline of 9,1,1,1,1.

More Scottish interest in the Finn class as our adopted sailor Giles Scott picked up two firsts today with Ben Ainslie scoring two 3rds.

Alison Young takes no prisoners on the start line today.

In the women's windsurfer Bryony Shaw is also looking very strong at this early stage.

Shark watch has been increased following some confirmed suspicious sightings....

G.

Go team GBR.

 

I will post evnt summaries on www.Scottish radials.blogspot.com and you can also follow the action direct at http://www.perth2011.com/

A pause for Pudsey - Running the Forth Bridge, both ways, twice.

On Saturday Joanne took some time out to raise funds for BBC Children in Need 2011.  Here is the story....

Early Starts and Autumn Gales

Up at 05.30 this morning for the drive to Largs and the 08.15 Ferry to Cumbrae.  Check of Forth Road Bridge dashboard http://www.forthroadbridge.org/travel-plan-your-journey# confirms speed restrictions but no ban on trailers and CALMAC service status page http://www.calmac.co.uk/journey-information/service-status.htm confirms ferry still running so off we go.

Forecast is very windy so either a really hard weekend on the water ahead or more likely a good opportunity to max out in the gym.  Sailors at Olympic level have to be super fit for what is one of the most physically demanding of all the Olympic disciplines and being the very best in the Laser Radial Women's class is all about physical fitness.

Training News

Just back from a great weekend of training with the rest of the Scottish Laser Sailing Squad at Largs.  Great winds yesterday and enough today to complete 4 testing full length races in the first of our RYA Squad Winter Regattas.  There are several of these planned over the winter allowing the various squads to try and maintain match fitness during the quieter colder closed season.

Investing in the future?

Thanks to Dalgety Bay Sailing Club we now have a new addition to our training fleet.  We have invested in a "mature" 4.5m Tornado Rib which we will be keeping here on the Forth so that we can use it as a coaching and safety support boat allowing us to train safely without having to travel to the Clyde coast every weekend.

Gordon Brown MP joins our training.

Gordon Brown MP with local resident Colin McPhail at Dalgety Bay

 Well I guess you know you are doing something right when your local MP joins in to your weekend training session and especially so when your local MP is Gordon Brown, former Prime Minister of Britain and Northern Ireland.

SEPA Officials testing with a Radiation Monitor

Sadly as it turns out Gordon had arrived for a television interview to highlight the issues with Radium contamination on the Dalgety Bay foreshore and to support calls for the MOD to get engaged in measures to try and stop further particles from being released onto the beach and causing a risk to the public.  So he was not there to support our campaign of training towards the Youth Nationals 2012 and the Women's singlehanded berth at the Olympics in 2016.

Warning Sign and closed area

Sam and Joanne were in mid briefing watching videos of upwind laser techniques when Gordon walked into the room and said hello.  TV cameras were following and recorded the girls as they prepared to launch for their training session.

All in days work for our young Olympic aspirants.

G.

Radial Squad Begins

Both Sam and Jo were at Cumbrae this weekend for the first full Scottish Laser Radial Squad training session of the year.  Sadly the wind was not in attendance and the Island was fog bound so the emphasis was quickly changed to physical fitness and session planning.  We will try again next weekend with a planned personal coaching session with Robin Paris.

The Axa Ambition Awards

News has reached us that Joanne has been selected by her school to be nominated for an Axa Ambition Award.   These bi-annual awards aim to recognise the talent, hard work and dedication of 12-18 year olds in sports, science, community, the arts and enterprise.

Paul Evans, CEO of AXA UK:

 “Recognising talent and developing people is something we place great importance on within AXA. We have created the Ambition AXA Awards to recognise, reward and develop extreme talent among 11 to 18 year olds. For five gifted individuals with the talent and the ambition to get to the top, this is a unique opportunity to win a bespoke mentoring prize of up to £40,000 each. Winning this prize could be life changing and we are proud to be able to offer this opportunity.”

http://www.ambitionaxaawards.com/

Fife Sports and Leisure Trust

Samantha has been busy this week working with the fantastic team at Pitreavie Athletics Centre and Fife Sports and Leisure Trust who have been helping Samantha to develop a personal strength and conditioning programme for the months ahead.

Fife Council - Individual Sports Grant

A big thank you to Fife Council for the award of an Individual Sports Grant to both Joanne and Samantha.  These small grant awards aim to support National and International level athletes with the costs of training and competition and are very welcome indeed.

G.

RYA Scotland Laser Squad 2011

Joanne

Samantha

Happy news as both Joanne and Samantha have been selected for the 2011/2012 RYA Scotland Laser Radial National Sailing Scotland.

The squad trains over the winter at various locations including the Inverclyde National Sports Centre, Scottish Sailing Institute and the National Watersports Centre on Cumbrae Island.

G.

Samantha 2011 Report Card-

The first year in the Laser Radial is what seems to make or break most female youth sailors in the single handed classes.  Moving on from an Optimist or a Topper it is not the size of the rig (in theory the sail is not much bigger than a Topper) but it is the combination of the power of the rig and the weight of the hull, especially around the beach and in the slow speed maneuvering of start lines which perhaps present the greatest physical challenge at a time when the female competitors are pitched against male youths who are growing bigger, stronger and physically more powerful every day but using exactly the same equipment.

Sail for Gold 2011, Weymouth

Looking back on 2010/11 it is clear that Sammi has had a challenging year and it certainly has not been all plain sailing.  It is clear that Sammi Could NOT have tried harder. Perhaps on reflection she has tried too hard.  Seven full sailing weeks over the summer across two classes, in four seperate countries including two world championships, an ISAF World Cup Event and both the UK Youth and UK Open Nationals and two full time coached training weeks with all the travelling in between was always an ambitious programme when added to school work and Scottish Qualifications Authority Exams.

Big Waves at Pwllheli Qualifier, May 2011

Perhaps a lesser programme would have flattered to deceive.  International and Olympic sailing is an incredibly tough sport, perhaps one of the most challenging of all.  International success demands performance not just on one day but repeatedly day after day in all conditions both at home and abroad.  Medals are not won in a single performance but across a whole week or more in a range of conditions and testing the very bounds of athletic skills, technical knowledge, and physical and mental endurance.

Fireworks at the Topper Worlds, Ireland August 2011

This year was not about achieving excellence in a single event, this year has been about building the foundations of a long term campaign.  Gaining every experience possible, being in the right place at the right time and building the toughness and endurance which is essential in international competition.

Sovereign Ski Topper
World Championships 2011
 

In a difficult year there have been high points for Sammi including a Gold Fleet place at the UK Laser Radial Inlands 2010, a top ten race place at the Laser Nationals, great overall results at the Topper Inlands and the Derwent Nationwide and 2nd place overall and 1st Lady in Silver Fleet at the Topper World Championships, 2011 and just finishing the extremely challenging sail for Gold Regatta, the UK Olympic Test Event Selection Trials, sailing all week in winds of up to 30 knots which tested even the most battle hardened Olympic veterans!

With good passes in all her highers and all our key objectives delivered I am scoring Samantha A+ for effort..

All change for Joanne

Following a challenging season in the Topper class where light winds have seen almost all events dominated by the smaller, lighter sailors it is time to reflect on lessons learned and plan for next year.  Despite having at least one more year in the Junior classes with the possibility of least a further year if pursuing the female singlehanded pathway into the Laser Radial Joanne is considering her options.

Despite some genuine high points and very strong performances both in training and at moderate and high wind events, the UK Inlands being a key example, it has been a season dogged by significant challenges.  Missing the Gold fleet cut at the Worlds was a particular disappointment as were the very light conditions which dogged the first two days of the UK Nationals. But sailing is a weather dependent sport and champions have to be competitive in all conditions. There are still issues to work on. Starting technique being a particular challenge, again especially in light winds when on a 100 boat start line it is vital to be able to match the acceleration of everyone around you.

With nature taking it's course Joanne is now fast approaching 6 feet and another season in Toppers would mean another season of dieting at a time when working on fitness and muscle mass is what is really needed for her longer term goals Joanne as faced a difficult choice.  Hang on in the Junior classes until the normal transition point and hope for a windy season next year and a chance to excel as a Junior or move up early (very early) to the Women's Olympic Class, the Laser Radial and accept a step outside the National Squad system for a year or more in pursuit of longer term goals.

After discussion with her coaches, her parents and the high performance manager Joanne has decided to take the plunge and move now in to the Laser Radial Class.  Having just turned 14 she will be one of the youngest female Radial sailors for the next year but by leaving the Junior classes early she will gain a full year of extra training before it is time to seek transitional training and Laser Squad places next year.

So it is with some considerable sadness that Joanne has packed away her Topper for possibly the very last time but with great determination that she will be out on the Laser Radial race course from the weekend of the Scottish Zone Championships at Largs which is also a Scottish Laser Radial event.