june/ july/ august 2025
a summer of racing
JUNE – Kieler Woche Grand Slam, Swedish training camps
JULY – Swedish training camps, British summer camp
AUGUST – European Championships!
KIEL, GERMANY.
P11 FINISH!
Kiel Grand Slam was another great PB for the year, only two points off the final medal race which is huge step forwards. Taking the disappoint from the World Champs I set out to ensure that I took as many learnings as possible and with a week of two days of super light winds followed by two days of big breeze, putting together a consistent series fired me up the rankings. Of particular highlight was the final race of qualifying where I scored a 2nd, my highest finish in an individual race in a major championship.
Kiel is always a funny event because north German summer conditions are notoriously temperamental. This year was no exception, with no wind and 34 degrees on day 0 followed by a massive drop to 15 degrees and mega breeze on the final day with Noah Ark inviting rain squalls. Luckily this year we managed to find some accommodation rather than camping as per the year before which was a relief because camping and sailing really does test the mental strength of anyone! Another good news scenario was that we didn’t get the van and trailer stuck in the mud in the trailer park and we didn’t have an ants nest in our covers, so really, Kiel was probably the best event of the year!
TRAINING CAMPS
With just under two months between the last grand slam I could attend and the European championships, July was a great opportunity to get in a solid bloc of training with some new training partners. My usual training partners this
year, the British team girls were on a scouting mission to LA to check out the new Olympic venue and race at the final grand slam out there, but as the sole member of the British squad I went to join up with the Danish national team in
Sweden to keep the ball rolling. The logistics of this were the primary dictators of timing and location but in case you’re interested, this is how my share of the summer logistics worked:
16th June: load trailer in Portland, UK to drive to Harwich (6hrs) for overnight ferry (8hrs)
17th June: drive van and trailer from Hook of Holland to Kiel (8hrs) 29th June: drive from Kiel to Rostock (3hrs) to get day ferry that leaves at 7am to Trelleborg (6hrs) then drive (2hrs)
4th July: take train from Ystad (1hr) to Malmo then change train to get to Copenhagen airport (1hr), fly to Heathrow (2hrs), take train (1hr) to T Wells, then drive (4hrs) to Portland
13th July: opposite journey to collect van and trailer, then drive (7hrs) to north of Gothenburg to Marstrand Island
22nd July: drive to Gothenburg airport (1hr) and fly to Gatwick (2hrs), then train to T Wells (1hr) and drive to Portland (4hrs)
4th August: drive to Stansted (3hrs), fly to Gothenburg (2hrs) and drive to Marstrand (1hr)
17th August: opposite journey to get back to T Wells
22nd August: drive to Southampton (3hrs) to unload trailer and van to immediately repack into another van for next training camp in Dublin then drive to Portland (3hrs) (never doing that on a bank holiday ever again)
So, if you ever need a logistics manager or a van/ truck driver I’m technically proficient but reluctant!
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS, MARSTRAND, SWEDEN.
Having had a very productive few training camps in Sweden and then a specialised starting camp in Portland before the Europeans I felt well prepared for the final event of the year. I’d taken part in a coach’s regatta (less formal but long course racing) in the Europeans venue and finished 2nd overall against a strong fleet of 40 sailors including most of the world top 15 which was another great confidence boost, but I guess I just peaked a little too early and never really got settled into the actual regatta. A mixed first day of a 30th and a 6th kind of set the tone and an ill-timed yellow flag (penalty) meant that I missed the qualification cut for gold finals by 0.5 points. This felt like a pretty major blow given the progress I’ve made this year but given the higher than usual number of yellow flags given within qualification, the standard of the silver fleet was much higher than usual, so the racing was to the same standard of qualification… every cloud and all that. Given that situation I spent the final two days of racing really pushing to improve certain aspects of my sailing that had let me down in qualification and I was proud of my resilience and ultimately finished 1st in the final race of the European championships which felt like a fitting end. Overall, 50th and 39th European was absolutely not what I went to Sweden for, but really it highlighted the major parts of my performance to fix for next season, and I couldn’t be more excited to do that!
AND NOW?
Rest! It’s been a long season and although it’s been a great one, taking a step away from the boat for a few weeks has been exactly what I’ve needed. Of course, I haven’t been far from the water after a week coaching the younger generations and I’ve also been learning to wing foil down here in Portland. This week is all about planning and getting the 2025/6 season off to the best start possible. So the only thing planned so far is a three-week trip to Dublin to train in the 2026 World Championship venue, exactly a year ahead of the regatta. It’s all about the prep, and I couldn’t be more grateful for your support! Thank you, as ever.