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HISC Aero Sailors at the Worlds - Report
On the 29th July, 15 HISC sailors joined the total of 170 competitors from 17 nations at the 2025 RS Aero World & Youth World Championship, hosted by France's National Sailing Centre on the Quiberon peninsula in southern Brittany: Jo, Iona, Debbie, Anka, Ed, Georgia, Carol & Jemima in the 5s. Spike, Andre, Tracey, Brian and Chris in the 6s, Dom in the 7s and Victor in the 9s.
The forecast looked promising for the week, with sunshine and Westerly sea breezes. And so it started with the first race in a 7 knot but building breeze; by the end of race 3 it had built to 13 knots and the verdict on the course was that it was EXTREMELY shifty, and consequently some big scores had already been accumulated, even amongst the front runners. Racing for subsequent days was postponed for an hour or two to allow the breeze to build and settle into the West, and races were then run in 10 to 13 knots with occasional peaks to 15. The flat water kept boat speeds very close and the fleets compact for the whole duration of the races; the differences being made by the sailors' ability to read the shifts, both upwind and down.
On the last day of five, the late arrival of wind meant that the 2nd of the 2 scheduled races could not be started, so the Championship was concluded with a total of 13 races. Highlights for the HISC fleet were a couple of bullets from Georgia; although hampered by a cold, she was not able to retain her World title and had to settle for 4th overall; 2 bullets and 4 x 2nds from Dom to also finish 4th; Jemima, Brian and Spike all visited the podium with a 3rd place each and Tracey retained her Women's Master's title. The Australians sent a large contingent, hoping to drum up enthusiasm for the 2027 Worlds at Blairgowrie YS, Melbourne, 18 - 22 January; the mood seemed to suggest that they were probably successful.