Lifestyle piece by Corlia van Tonder Sailing Committee Member 2019/20 When you think of a RS Tera, with her fun little orange panel in the sail, you get the feeling of a calm slow vessel, who surely doesn’t capsize as often as people say she does...Boy, was I wrong! On Saturday, 12 October 2019, our little aggregation of RN sailors (Coert Grobbelaar, Phrankè Nel, Corlia van Tonder, Ursula Schei and Taigen Lindeque ) set off to visit Zululand Yacht Club, to participate in their Mike Leigh Memorial Relay, set to take place on Sunday, 13 October 2019 from 9 am onwards. The relay event was founded by the late Mike Leigh and Renier Greyvenstein to promote interest in fun sailing. What is the relay about you ask…? Well – in teams of four, sailors line up for the race at the top of the lawns, down a beer and leg it down to the tera, which is being held in the water by the balance of their team. They set sail around the short course in the bay, whilst trying not to 1) capsize or 2) lose your little pink pool noodle, both of which we mastered failing at. The RN delegation arrived the day before, as none of our team (other than a rather seasoned Coert) had ever seen an actual Tera, let alone sailed one. Couldn’t be that hard, right? I was the first to capsize on the day! Much to our amusement, the Richardsbay NSRI Station 19 where out practicing in nearby waters - and promptly zoomed to my rescue being delighted at the opportunity of action!! I, however, (and much to NSRI’s disappointment) uncapsized my vessel and they were visibly deflated at a lost opportunity, turning around and tuck-tucking away with me soldiering a second attempt at mastering this little demon of a boat. Gerrit Smith from ZYC, who has been running an exceptionally successful junior sailing division invited us to stay on his old, elegant cruiser, Sugarbush. We were nothing short of spoiled rotten, with our evening beginning with the most beautiful pink, blue and orange Zululand sunset skies, a handful of amazing humans from ZYC and a cruise, with some beers and music, setting the stage for an incredible weekend! Sunday morning greeted us with winds gusting at 25knots and overcast skies – nevertheless… race on! Geared in our Raymarine RN Regatta sponsored shirts, boasting the RNYC Burgee, we dived into the race. Coert was elected to handle the first sprint, considering he has the most sailing experience. Although the downing of the beer was slightly longer than our Zululand counterparts, Coert completed the course like a ninja zooming past all the competition in that leg. Second up was our beloved RNYC ladies racing team Jib trimmer, Ursula. The howling gusts, in conjunction with the wild-child Tera, decided that she preferred the company of the other yachts and Ursula graced us with a few (notable) examples of reverse mooring a Tera. Needless to say, tears streamed down our faces as we laughed out loud at this debacle. Next up – Me! After a successful push off from my team, I succeeded in educating the crowd on how to accomplish multiple donuts in and around the first mark. As well as how a vessel can move when facing the wind head on – BACKWARDS! Last to the grindstone was Phrankè for the final lap, running down the slipway after being cheered for her beer downing abilities. Sailing through the course with sheer determination, and refusing to give up, she capsized while rounding the windward mark, then uncapsized the Tera in 3 seconds flat and continued on to complete the course, much to the amusement and roar of the ZYC crowd. Taigen volunteered to assist with one of the ZYC teams who needed another sailor. They proceeded through several rounds of the race, making it to grand finale, with Taigen flying the RN flag high finishing second –very closely on the tails of Kirsten Schroeder, Ian Eaton and Haden and lastly, James Leigh, son of the late Mike Leigh - who claimed the victory lap. Upon mooring the Tera, Taigen realized he had lost the pool noodle during the most recent capsize. Bearing in mind that the pool noodle is an essential ingredient to completing the race, Taigen frantically hunted around the bay in search of the lost item. The crowd roared and pointed when we spotted the pink noodle floating between two yachts, which drove determined young Taigen back into the water, fighting against the wind to retrieve his loss. Imagine the feeling of sheer pride when James Leigh, on his final lap to claiming victory, tacked his little vessel, sped back to the start line collecting the noodle along the way and graciously passing it back to Taigen, before returning to his final lap.
The race was one for the books showing commendable sportsmanship and camaraderie! With Tera’s capsizing left, right and center, sailors lapping back to ensure everyone was safe before continuing. Tacking and gybing is a feat in 25knots gusting – lest we forget, this all on a Tera with most sailors being adult enough to make for a very tight fit under the boom when doing so. James and his team took the trophy and the RN team was awarded the ‘Club Carrot’ by Commodore Jackie Smit, for our sportsmanship, team work and in appreciation of the participation and support of the RNYC at their memorial race event. Exhausted from fighting the wind, late night chats, so much laughter and happy hearts - our team of sailors hugged and bid farewell to our new friends at the ZYC, late on Sunday afternoon, to begin our journey back home. A heartfelt THANK YOU to Gerrit Smit, Kirsten Schroeder, Jackie Smit and all the members of the ZYC family for the incredibly warm hospitality and welcome. This weekend will not soon be forgotten and I’d strongly recommend that the RNYC members make the trip up to visit the ZYC in Richards Bay. Stay tuned for the upcoming lifestyle piece, on women in leadership in sailing, by Phranke Nel in our next newsletter. For the full album on facebook
1 Comment
Jackie Smit
10/22/2019 02:27:16 pm
Was such an honour to have you all visit us and take part in this very special annual event of ours. The Leigh family were touched by the fact that their father's legacy was shared not just by his club but that other clubs from SA also shared in this event, thank you fir making the day extra special. Can't wait for the next shared event.
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AuthorThe Royal Natal Yacht Club is the oldest yacht and sports Club in Africa and the oldest yacht club in the southern hemisphere. Read our Newsletter to find out more! Archives
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