The thrill of the SailGP! By James Tudball
Guest User
Last week Double Bay Sailing Club members were invited to participate in a number of activities as part of the SailGP Adopt A Club program. Our club was partnered with Team Canada, which saw nearly 30 members visit Team Canada's base in the lead up to the regatta. On Wednesday we were lucky to see the (safe!) launch of Team Canada's brand new boat and we were taken on an in depth tour to see the boats and wings up close and learn about the physics of the F50s. Phil Robertson, driver of Team Canada, also facilitated a Q&A with us and Alistair Sutherland asked the burning question of whether Phil would be as aggressive as always on the start line! Phil didn't really answer the question, but judging by his laughter we assumed the answer to be 'yes'.
We were also treated to a VIP spectator flag for the regatta as part of the program and we extend a huge thank you to Luke Parker who hosted DBSC members on board his rib on Saturday with a prime position for the racing.
Sadly, as we all know, the SailGP base (and Team Canada in particular) suffered catastrophic damage on Saturday afternoon post-racing, with guests of 45 knots hitting the fleet. Team Canada's boat and wing were damaged terribly. Click to view the carnage, but TRIGGER WARNING, it's quite painful to watch!! The damage to the fleet resulted in racing being cancelled on the Sunday. 3 x races on the Saturday still constituted a series, so the French Team, driven by Quentin Delapierre, were the clear victors of SailGP Sydney, recording a hat trick of wins.
We would also like to congratulate Mina Ferguson and Evie Saunders, who competed as part of the SailGP Inspire Regatta, competing in the Waszps. The Inspire program run by SailGP is designed to build pathways for youth sailors to transition through foiling classes, to hopefully sail on an F50 one day!