Sunshine and Sailing for the Musto Skiff Training Weekend at Stokes Bay Sailing Club
Report by Mark Cooper
As part of the 2023 Noble Marine Insurance sponsored training program, a second dedicated Musto Skiff class training session was held for GBR sailors over a glorious June weekend at Stokes Bay Sailing Club.
Keen to reinforce the quality support ethos that runs through the fleet, recent Musto convert and all-around sailing royalty, Alain Sign took a break from his day job as an Olympic coach to host a group of keen students for a full weekend over 10th and 11th June.
Obviously keen to make sure that we all took away the most from the weekend, we had exercise pre-reading before arrival to ensure the briefings were focused; this did more to build the excitement before we arrived than the long-range weather forecast did.
The weather was almost perfect for training; sunshine and enough wind to keep everyone wiring upwind without having to go beyond past muscle memory to keep it all in check.
Alain introduced some concepts around planning our training days and racing effectively into key activity areas; play, process and performance and being realistic in our outcomes for the day. There seemed to be light bulbs going on every time we had a discussion and a real sense that some of the knowledge was sticking.
Early exercises around station keeping and slow speed boat handling should leave those that didn’t make it in no doubt that come the next event, the start line pecking order is looking to be shaken up! What is surprising for such a powerful and light boat is how much you can move it around and keep it in control; all the sailors by the end of the weekend mastering the double tack as well as control boat speed forwards and back through body position and foot pressure.
A rolling series of very short downwind races and leeward mark rounding’s, each with little chance for a break had everyone warmed nicely before we went into rolling starts and short course racing. It wouldn’t have been a stretch to think we could have perhaps held the training at a small inland puddle and still have space left over!
Great debrief sessions and video analysis, as well as top collaboration (as has come to be expected in the class) with all the sailors sharing their notes and thoughts, this really made it one of the best coaching weekends I’ve ever been to.
Thanks to Alain Sign for the superb coaching, training sessions, and debriefs. Also, a big thank you to Josh Belben for organising the training weekend at Stokes Bay, and to all who turned up and took part. There’s been a real hunger to host these training weekends, so we hope additional dates for UK training and coaching will be announced over the coming months, with each session set to include on the water training with a qualified coach, followed by a debrief session onshore.
In addition to supporting our annual UK training program, as a sponsored class association, Noble Marine is also offering a 10% Class Association discount for all class members insuring their boat during 2023. With a Worlds in Garda this July, a good supply of second-hand Musto Skiff boats available, and a Worlds at WPNSA in 2024 with the real possibility of breaking the 100-boat barrier, there’s never been a better time to join in and be part of the GBR class.
Feature photo by Mark Cooper.
