Over thirty women took to the water last weekend with our This Girl Can events. The weather can only be described as perfect! We had sunshine, just the right amount of breeze, nice flat water and it was warm too. The ladies signed up for Powerboat and Sailing Taster Sessions were in for a real treat and we all enjoyed the best that the Isle of Man has to offer.
The idea to get 7th Wave signed up to run a This Girl Can event came from former Manx Youth Sailing Squad member, Izzy Sharpe. Izzy finished 2nd girl at the RS Tera World Championship in 2010. Since then she has worked as a Dinghy Instructor at 7th Wave, Centre Parcs and now on Lake Windermere. She says “Jen was a fantastic female role model for me growing up, so I love coming back to do #ThisGirlCan with 7th Wave now.”
The original brief was to encourage more girls into dinghy racing and to grow the number of girls in the Manx Youth Sailing Squad. For the last three years Georgia Harding has been the only female member of the squad, this year the balance tipped ever so slightly when Daisy Cope joined, now two of the twelve squad members are female…
Izzy led a This Girl Can Start Racing weekend and we were delighted to have ten junior girls sign up for the weekend. The course started with race training and boat-handling exercises culminating in a three race regatta on Sunday afternoon, before the wind died completely and the session ended with capsizing games and some cooling off in the water. All ten girls were awarded the RYA Start Racing certificate and we have found ourselves some new talent for the 2019 Manx Youth Sailing Squad.
The concept grew to extend the This Girl Can weekend to encourage more women on to the water and with Foraging Vintners on our doorstep we combined powerboat and sailing Taster Sessions on the water with a taste of pink fizz in the sunshine afterwards.
Sailing sessions were really popular and of course on such a glorious day, our instructors were keen to get on board and have a sail too. Ladies were treated to a lap of the bay while they got feel for the ropes and by the end of each hour long session everyone had taken the helm too.
We couldn’t have asked for better conditions for powerboating and there was plenty of smiles and laughter as we opened the throttle up and started planing out to Bradda Head, slowing at the mines round the back of Bradda to take in the stunning scenery, dramatic coastline and the abundance of seabirds and wildlife. “I arrived on the island by ferry seven years ago and I haven’t been in a boat since”. Twenty minutes later Lisa Salinardi was at the helm of the RIB, blasting toward Niarbyl wearing the biggest of smiles!
Powerboat and Sailing Taster Sessions continue all through the summer and it’s not just for the girls. #Everyonecan!