On Saturday 9th May, four RPAYC development sailors, Isabelle Ruffat, Louisa Brown, Leisa O’Conner and Jill Matthews, travelled to Newcastle to participate in the Newcastle Cruising Yacht Club’s 10th annual She Sails regatta.
This regatta was founded a decade ago by NCYC sailors Jan Howard and Mary Holly and was created to provide a supportive pathway into fleet racing for female sailors — combining learning, confidence-building, teamwork, and plenty of fun.
The day began with shore-based briefing of some basic rules, including the ‘3 boat length rule’ or ‘Zone’ rule, followed by on-water coaching sessions. These focused on race start tactics, racing rules and course layout knowledge before the six crews hit the water for three exciting races in a stiff and building 12 knot southerly.
Each of the three races was contested enthusiastically as all six crews negotiated and jostled at the start line, working shifting winds on-route to the top mark then hoisting and setting spinnakers downwind.
The introduction to the “3 boat rule” proved prophetic as during the first race this rule was called on us as we approached the first mark ahead of the rest of the fleet. We disputed the call as we did not believe there was an overlap inside the zone. Unfortunately, we were then forced to make room rounding the mark to prevent a collision which cost us the lead in this race, so we protested this action!
Back ashore, sailors, instructors, mentors and volunteers came together over food and drinks and plenty of laughs to debrief the regatta, which included a ‘mock trial’ to resolve our ‘protest’. During the question-and-answer exercise it became apparent that an official on the committee boat had videoed the incident. On video playback we were found to be correct and that there was no overlap! This was an excellent demonstration of the lesson given in the morning briefing, providing a valuable real-life learning opportunity.
We all enjoyed a super Saturday both on and off the water at the NCYC, making it a fantastic day of learning and friendship.
Our sincere thanks to NCYC, their instructors, mentors, volunteer Race Management Team and the other student competitors who made this unforgettable day of racing possible.
- Jill Matthews