At the end of the season, eight teams compete in the Youth Foiling Gold Cup (YFGC) Grand Final to win the overall season title. With an event win in Torbole, we had earned a spot to race at this season’s Grand Final.
We had two back-to-back events in Barcelona. First up: Act 3 of the YFGC the week before the Grand Final. The team put in a solid performance at this first event, staying in the top two for the majority of the time. Following this, the team was excited to get into racing at the last event of the season.
Our line-up for these events included Cas Van Dongen on the helm, Zac Blomeley on the main trimming, and Sophie Otter and Hebe Hemming sharing the load on flight control. The other teams alongside us at the Grand Final were Team Antigua Barbuda, DutchSail, Enzedder, Orient Express L’Oreal Racing Team, Alps Racing Team, Clean Sailors Youth Racing Team and Groupe Atlantic.
With only three days to recover between events, some of the team were hit by illness and spent the days sleeping and in full recovery mode. This was not originally part of the plan.
The forecast for the week was ever-changing, but one thing remained consistent: it was going to be windy. Knowing this, the race committee brought everyone together early on and slightly changed the rules. They decided that all the points from all the races we do will go into the overall score for the event – this meant there would be no knock-out rounds to warm up.
Day one was finally here and the team went down to the marina to rig the boat, warm up and prepare for a day on the water. However, just one look at the sea state and the team knew there would be no sailing. Shortly after, our suspicions were confirmed by the race committee. The 35mph winds and two-metre waves would have made for some exciting sailing…
Day two brought the same conditions: lots of wind and big waves. Despite this, the race committee were feeling optimistic and decided to send us out to race. The team were ready and raring to go, but once we were out there we quickly realised it was full survival mode. For these conditions, we had clear goals: no penalties, simple racing, and no silly mistakes.
We finished the only race of the day in 3rd overall. Considering that two boats didn’t finish the race, we were happy. Less so when we realised we’d picked up some penalty points from some silly mistakes – again, not part of the plan. Getting back onshore, the team really needed to pull together and sharpen up going into day three.
Day three delivered a much more promising forecast. The wind was scheduled to start off at 8mph building to 24mph in the afternoon. For the sailors, this meant a big day on the water. Going into day three, we knew that day four was looking unsailable. This increased the pressure on us and all the other teams, knowing that we had to perform today. As a team, we really struggled to find our groove and delivered a sub-par performance. We didn’t show what we were capable of. However, we had one day left to go.
That evening, the 69F class treated us to a big meal, bringing all the teams together to celebrate a fantastic season. Bringing the teams together is always special; when we’re racing, tensions grow and everyone is so focused on performing, so stepping away from that environment is refreshing. It’s always great to spend time with the other competitors and actually get to know each other.
The final day was upon us, and although our chance at a podium spot was gone, the process never changed for us. Review, rest and reset for the next race. Unfortunately, the final day’s forecast was spot on. Storm Kiaran was definitely delivering on its promises with another day of 35mph. The race committee again was pushing hard for racing, asking for help from the harbour master, trying to find a calm area for racing, and monitoring the wind every 30 minutes. A long day of waiting turned into a cancelled day of racing. Hearing this, the celebrations for Orient Express L’Oreal Racing Team, Clean Sailors Youth Racing Team and Enzedder Racing, as they made up the podium. Huge congratulations to them for some great racing.
Congratulations to the winning teams for sailing so well and congratulations to all the other teams for really stepping up the standard this year! After a long season, I’m very proud of our team and the values we hold.
As usual, huge thanks to 69F for the events, Scipio for his coaching, ForwardWIP for our helmets, Exile Sportswear for our shoreside kit, and everyone back home supporting us.
A full season review blog will be out soon, but for now, time to rest.
Zac
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