On Tuesday 17 October, the Senior Royal Navy Cadets took to the waters of Sonning for an internal regatta at Reading Sailing Club to practice the skills and tactics they have been developing on Tuesday afternoons.
The Combined Cadet Force is an integral aspect of life at Shiplake College and is sponsored by the Ministry of Defence. The aim is to provide a disciplined organisation within the school so that pupils can develop leadership skills by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self-reliance, resourcefulness, endurance and perseverance.
After a briefing on format and race rules from Sailing Instructor Mr Pettifer, the cadets set off in Toppers and a Pico. The racing proved challenging as wind conditions were poor but the competition was close, only a few points separated the cadets after the morning’s rounds, but Rory Abery had the lead, winning two races.
After a break for lunch, boats and crew were swapped over before round two got underway with unfortunately even lighter winds than the morning session, so racing was slow and the two-man Pico crew struggled. However, after the final races, Ben Brockway, Ed Gilbert-Blay and Marcus Colter were tied for 4th place, Freddie Tracey third, Rory Abery second and the overall winner was Daniel Anstey.
