Team Racing Nationals

24 teams entered in this weekend's event at Bough Beech Sailing Club

A full house of 24 teams will converge on Bough Beech Sailing Club this weekend (14-15 March) to try to outwit and outmanoeuvre their rivals to land the 2009 RYA National Team Racing Championship title.

The event will pit teams of six sailors in three two-person Firefly dinghies against each other meaning more than 140 sailors will take to the water in Kent in a bid to claim the Prince Philip Trophy.

With Spinnaker All Stars, champions for the past three years, not defending their crown this year, a host of the country’s leading school, university and club outfits will be clamouring to get their hands on the top prize.

Among the leading contenders will be West Kirby Hawks, who took the runners-up spot last year and have recently returned from representing RYA Team GBR at the ISAF Team Racing World Championships in Perth, Australia.

The Lions team, comprising many of the sailors who made up the GBR1 team at the Worlds plus Skandia Team GBR 49er sailor Paul Campbell-James, will also be keen to make their mark as will the Hilbre Highlanders team from West Kirby who feature two sailors that were part of the GBR3 team that won U21Worlds bronze in Perth.

Hosted with full support from home club Bough Beech and with the boats supplied by Sevenoaks School, the 2009 RYA National Team Racing Championships see a change from the traditional format of regional qualifiers to being a National Open event.

With the UK’s top team racers all lined up to attend, the Championships mark another milestone in the RYA’s ongoing commitment to team racing development.

No fewer than 74 sailors attended RYA Team Racing Development Training at Bough Beech in December with 24 of these sailors now attending selected training to provide for future GBR teams.

Meanwhile, having attracted around 300 youngsters last November, the Twiname/RYA Junior & Youth Team Racing Championships are set to once again capture the imagination when the event returns to Oxford in October.