This weekend was spent training with the 109 squad, in preparation for our offshore races this season.
We spent the morning checking through all the appropriate safety kit & sails, trying to find mugs, and stowing away the copious amount of sandwiches I had made. Heading off for a sail round the Isle of Wight, we soon got into a 'watch system', which I liked as I do like a bit of helming! We managed to excite a few people on our way past Hurst Castle; taking close inshore, I expect they thought we'd soon be joining them on the beach...
Over the course of the day we got though a couple of headsail changes & had a look at the Code 0 and spinnaker staysail. With it being pretty cold & everyone concentrating hard, it was a good thing I was up till gone midnight on Friday making healthy rolls...we had a problem with the gas, so no one could have a cup of tea, nor try a bit of freeze-dried food! We were home just after midnight after spending the last few hours drifting rather than sailing.
Little breeze early on sunday morning, but by the afternoon there was enough to practice a few more headsail changes. With a bit of a cheeky picnic for lunch, all the boys who had forgotten to send a Mother's Day card made a quick phone call home! A successful weekend, with some good de-brief points.