| UK. Young power boaters from across the UK set new records |
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| Thursday, 22 June 2006 | |
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Helen Jeffreys: Perfect weather conditions for the start of the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship 2006 made sure that the first three events in June got off to a record breaking start. The Irish regional final set a new record with more clubs represented than ever before - seventeen youngsters from a record eight sailing clubs took part. The Channel Islands regional final has been growing every year and this year set a new record with 19 entries, and youngsters from 12 clubs across Scotland took to the water to battle it out for Scottish glory. Competition was fierce at the Scottish regional final, held at Strathclyde Country Park Watersports Centre, especially within the youngest age group (8-12 years), as only 3 seconds separated the top three spots. Craig Johnston, 16, from Royal Tay Yacht Club and Simon Thornton, 12, from East Kilbride Sea Cadets were crowned Scottish regional champions, winning the 8–12 and 13–16 age groups respectively. With all competitors putting in impressive performances, the standard of driving was very impressive, as Andrew Norton, RYA Motor Cruising Events Manager commented: “The first event of the year is always a little nerve wracking but the day was a great successful for everyone involved. The competition was very tight with just a few seconds separating those between at the top. It was clear to see that a lot of practice has been put in and I’m sure Craig and Simon will be putting in a lot more hours on the water, perfecting their skills, before the final in September.” Local school children also got involved in the action as an open day of powerboating for local schools took place on Friday 2 June. To qualify for a place on a RIB, children had to draw a picture of the best powerboat in the world – the entries were very impressive. All the winning youngsters were very excited as they had never driven a powerboat before. It was great to see a mix of competitors with the fastest three powerboaters all girls. The second Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship event took place a week later at Royal Ulster Yacht Club, Bangor Harbour, Northern Ireland. Again, the competition was fierce with just seven seconds separating the first three in the 8-12 class, whilst an even tighter 2.5 seconds separated the first three in the 12-16 group. Emma Sandford, 11, from Quoile Yacht Club and David Furney, 15, of Ballyholme Yacht Club won the 8–12 and 13–16 age groups respectively. It was a case of third time lucky for David, as he called upon his past Championship and vast powerboating experience to win the 2006 event. David has been involved in watersports since an early age and has qualifications - Powerboat Lever 2 - prove his competence. Emma has been sailing with her parents for a long time and is crew in a Squib class day boat with her father. She hopes to back up her win be gaining formal qualifications, either a level 1 and 2 Powerboat certificate soon. Emma is the first female regional winner so far and will be competing against Simon Thornton, who qualified from Scotland earlier this month, at the National final. The following weekend, a record breaking 19 youngsters took to the water to compete in the Channel Islands regional final. The lucky winners are Abigail Tanguy, 12, and Alistaire Higgins, 15, both from Guernsey, in the 8-12 and 13-16 age groups respectively. Abigail drew on her experience of competing in her second final to post the winning time of 2.02.45 minutes. She fought of tough competition from ten other young powerboaters, including two sets of siblings, to take the regional title. Alistaire posted a winning time of 1.22.01 minutes, beating seven other competitors in the process. Alistaire first started driving ribs over five years ago and over the years has competed at most of the Championship’s Channel Islands regional finals. He has already represented the Channel Islands at the final and is looking forward to returning to Southampton to try again at bringing the overall title home. All winners will go onto represent their regions at the National Final to be held later in the year at Southampton International Boat Show. Open to youngsters aged 8 – 16 years old, the Championship puts boat handling skills from young RIBsters to the test with a time trial around a set of marks. Although it is the winning time that is all important, competitors also have to demonstrate safety skills such as man over board and reversing around a buoy with ease. Competitors are split into two age groups: 8-12 and 13-16, and complete timed runs of the course with the goal of winning a 4.8m Ribcraft RIB with a Honda 50hp engine on an Indespension trailer for their club. The Championship forms part of the RYA’s new Youth Awareness Campaign to attract a new generation of children into boating. The Championship allows youngsters to prove themselves as expert boat handlers and improve their skills in a safe, controlled environment. Each RYA Club holds its own heats to select the member who will represent the club at the regional final, and the regional winners all qualify to compete at the international final which takes place at the Southampton Boat Show during September. There are 16 regional finals in total. The Championship is sponsored by Honda, Ribcraft and Indespension Trailers. The next regional final of the Honda RYA Youth RIB Championship will take place this weekend (Friday 23 – Sunday 25 June) at the Isle Of Man Yacht Club, Port St Mary, Isle Of Man. An estimated half a million people in the UK get afloat in sportsboats and RIBs and research indicates that this figure is rising steadily. The Championship complements the RYA Powerboat training scheme by providing a platform for parents to encourage their children to get behind the helm, knowing they are being overseen by professional RYA instructors in an environment that conforms to established safety standards. www.rya.org.uk |
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 22 June 2006 ) |
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