April might have been cold but it has seen a lively start to the season. There have been Gigs chasing all over the estuary in training for the up coming World Championships in Scillies this coming weekend. The Falmouth Men and Ladies crews dominated the Championships last year and are probably favourites again this year but the Roseland crews will be looking to push them hard.

The Gig club had an exciting new arrival this month with her new FRP training Gig. These plastic boats have caused a bit of controversy as the traditional wooden boat is made from narrow leaf Cornish elm. The fore runner of all today’s Gigs is the Trefry a boat built by William Peters of St Mawes which was generally reckoned to be the fastest ever built. The club takes these links very seriously with their first Gig named after William Peters and she has a proud racing and voyaging history. The demands of a very long season and winter training do take their toll on wooden boats, which like all ladies require some TLC to keep them in top shape. Oops! The FRP boats provide an answer to this giving the wooden boats some time off and requiring virtually no maintenance themselves. Good luck to all crews participating, na powes!

St Mawes sailing club and Roseland Paddle and Sail got off to a flying start over the 13th and 14th of April with their RS Feva open meeting. The forecast wasn’t promising with heavy rain and gales forecast but twelve intrepid crews took to the water for training on Saturday and racing on Sunday. There were visiting crews from Rock and Porthpean but St Mawes based sailors took first and third places, in testing conditions sailing in the Percuil River. Well done Ross and Olly, Rachel and Olivia a great start to the season.

Kayaking remains a very popular pastime and there has been a surge in activity around the area as the weather warms up. Sit on top kayaks are a very safe and easy way to get afloat and enjoy the water. You don’t get the feeling of being trapped inside them which some of the older readers might remember from school or youth club trips. The new designs are very stable and track nice and straight making for easy paddling. The only down side is that you will get wet! Wetsuits are a good idea especially with vest type tops as they leave you shoulders and arms free to move and coupled with a spray top will keep you warm and comfortable. For the keener paddler Launceston based company Nookie provide a wide range of quality paddling gear, have a look at their website.

Roseland Wave Riders windsurfing club have started their season again at Percuil and are getting afloat every Wednesday at 5pm with coaches Tom and Gemma both ex junior National squad sailors. The club is always on the lookout for new members so pop down and give it a try. Our squad sailors Lucy, Scarlett and Lowenna have had one of their last training weekends nice and close to home at Roadford lake and are now all set for the coming season. The club hosts the first T15 event of the year on the 19th of May at Percuil and they renew there contest with Sibblyback and Polkerris Pirates. Both of these clubs have also had team members in the SW squad this winter.

As the sailing season gathers momentum local sailors Chris Thomas and Jack Hawkins are already flying in their 49er, the Olympic skiff class. The boys have been working hard at home, in Weymouth and recently in Palma Majorca for the season opening Olympic classes’ regatta.

The top tips from the boys are; to take lots of care over your boat preparation so nothing is going to let you down. When you are out training try to work on some specific goals to improve performance. Remember to work on your body too, all dinghy classes need a good level of fitness to be able to concentrate and sail hard for the whole race.
They are following the RYA mantra, control the controllables

Whatever your interest on the water I hope the coming season brings you at least some of the weather you want, see you out there!

The RS Feva event held over the wet and windy 13th and 14th of April

Other Upcoming Events:

4^th 5^th May Pilot Gig World Championships Isles of Scilly.

9^th St Mawes SC first spring points race.

10^th St Mawes SC junior sail training starts.

19^th Roseland Waveriders T15 event, Percuil.

10^th Percuil Sailing club training evenings start

25^th-27^th Firefly SW championships Restronguet SC

27^th -31^st Half term lessons and activities at Roseland Paddle and Sail