Volvo

It was another tough day but we raced really well today and did a really good job. We got a fifth in our first and we were doing really well in the second but we caught a bad break when the wind shut down and we got swallowed up by the pack. It’s been a similar story all week but today we really sailed well today and we will come away from Skandia Sail for Gold feeling positive.

We are disappointed we didn’t make it to the medal races and we are a little off where we wanted to finish this week, but in terms of the bigger picture we are right where we wanted to be this summer. Sarah [Ayton] is new to the 470 class but she has adjusted to it so quickly, it’s amazing. The big goal is obviously the Olympics. When we started sailing together we set out a timeline of what we wanted to achieve and when we needed to do it by to be on track, and we are hitting those targets.

We are going to carry on sailing next week while some of the foreign competitors are still here. We need to make the most of them being here and get in as much training as possible. I think it is important to feel comfortable at the Olympic venue and that’s one great thing we have got from this event, that we have actually come a long way here.

The week has been pretty mixed for us; we’ve had some great races and some shockers! We have made some massive comedy mistakes! A capsize here, an OCS there, and a few pile-ups thrown in! But seriously, you need regattas like this and it has been an invaluable week for us. We have learnt some of our mains strength this week, and without giving too much away we know that when we have the space we can really use it to our advantage. Towards the end of the week we were picking through the places and making up spots on the water.

Tomorrow, me and Sarah will be here supporting the rest of Skandia Team GBR who qualified for the medal races, good luck to all of them!

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