Up and down the English Channel

Last spring, the final season of the ROST II program kicked off. In the previous article we looked at the events and planning for the upcoming season. At this time the first races have been sailed and there are results on the board. Time to give an update on the road to the European Championship for the Van Uden Ker46.

 For the first event, the RORC Easter Challenge, the boat was sailed to the Solent in the south of England. This was the first time of the season but certainly not the last time the van Uden Ker46 crossed the Channel. Half of the team took the team bus via the car train from France to England, then took the ferry to Cowes, while the other half were delivering the boat. Fortunately, the weather was exceptionally warm and calm for April, so with no wind and the engine on, the other side was easily reached. After the crew was reunited, the boat was prepared for the races on the Solent. The RORC Easter Challenge is a unique event and very helpful at the start of the season as coaches were provided on the water. This is almost never the case with larger boats and for the whole of ROST II it was the first time that the coach was not only present on board in the form of Gerd-Jan Poortman, but also with a coach in a dinghy surrounding the boat.

Full action at the bottom mark during the RORC Easter Challenge

 The concept of this event was already conceived a few years ago, but due to Covid-19 it was only until this year that the event was held. The coaches, Andrew Palfrey (Professional Sailing Coach), Jermy Smart of North Sails and Tim Thubron of the RORC drove drones and cameras around the marks and behind the boats to get a good image of the trim. At the end of each day, the footage was reviewed with the entire fleet at the Royal Ocean Racing Clubhouse in Cowes. On the images at the marks, the maneuvers were clearly visible, and it was a very easy to compare different boats. Small things such as crew members who are out of the rail too early clearly visible on these images. With bigger mistakes, such as an incorrect hoist, it was easy to see where the mistake started. For the bowmen (Finn Kribbe and Bouwe van der Weijden) and the pit (Pieter Henken and Laurien Waller) of the team, these were the images that were most learned from, but off course we tried to make as less mistakes as possible. You learn a lot from seeing a wrong set, but of course we prefer to sail flawlessly. For the trimmers (Ole van der Vorm, Floris Lampe, Max Wilmink and Shivam Ramdas), the images of the different trim settings on the boats were interesting. It is very easy to see the shape and setting of the jib compared to the mainsail from behind. The images gave the trimmers the chance to compare their own set up with those on other boats. As a result, there was a clear increase in upwind boatspeed as the event progressed. The tactician and navigator (Lars van Stekelenborg and Stan Schouten) were in turn able to make good use of the images at the start. While most boats were still well below the line at the first starts, we were bang on the line at the gun on the last day. Overall, this growth resulted in second place for ROST II, ​​only beaten by the GP42 Dark 'n Stormy, a semi-professional team with tactician Ian Walker (Volvo Ocean Race winner). It was a great with medium to light winds, clear skies and pretty warm temperatures for this time of the year. All in all, a great start to the season in which we learned a lot.

Trim and setup analysis during the RORC Easter Challenge

The Van Uden Ker46 during the Van Uden Reco Regatta on the Haringvliet

 After the RORC Easter Challenge, the boat was sailed back across the Channel for the home event of the boat: the Van Uden Reco in Stellendam. This event is an excellent opportunity for ROST to train maneuverability, because the water at Stellendam is relatively small and therefore the up- and downwind legs are short. It is therefore a difficult match to win, because in races lasting only 45 minutes, at least 12 minutes must be won at number two to beat them on rating. Because the legs are relatively small for the Ker46 and the wind was blowing strong, at 20 knots during the entire event, it is hectic and sometimes stressful for the team. However, after two days of sailing, we were in 1st in IRC 1 and 2nd in ORC 1, which we were very satisfied with. Unfortunately, the Ker46 was unable to sail on the last day because of a damage to the boat. Still, everyone from the team was able to join other boats, such as a Dehler36, an X-43 and three of the team helped the race committee on the starting ship. In the end, no prize could be taken home, but fortunately the season is not over yet.

The Ker46 had been in Dutch waters long enough again, so we set up for the next crossing to England. It was time for the Vuurschepenrace and we were joined by a special guest; Koen Lockefeer from Eclectic, one of the ROST partners. The 113 nm race to Harwich started in the evening a couple of hours before sunset in Scheveningen with a short upwind leg to an inflatable mark. After rounding the topmark, we hoisted the gennaker for a short 45 minutes downwind leg, north along the coast. After this the crossing to Harwich really started. From that moment on we only sailed VMG upwind to the finish without too many maneuvers. Besides a couple of tacks, our tactical options were limited by the angle of the wind and a Traffic Separation Sceme (TSS). We had a bit of bad luck with the wind as the smaller boats behind us got a more favored wind shift a couple of hours behind us. Due to this wind shift, we were only able to achieve the line honors, despite the correct tactical choices and the hard sailing. After just over twenty hours of sailing, the finish was at the harbor entrance of Harwich with gusts of 30 knots. The team then sailed on to Ipswich, where we enjoyed the traditional Pinn Mill lunch at the legendary Butt & Oyster restaurant the day after the finish. The rest of the time was used getting the boat fully ready for the North Sea Race two days later.

The Van Uden Ker46 just after the start of the Vuurschepen

The North Sea Race is the race from Harwich back to the Netherlands. The IRC1/ORC1 starting group was filled up by a couple English yachts, including the faster and bigger CF520 Oystercatcher XXXV which provided close racing at the start and a boat on the horizon to try and overtake. It was unclear for a long time how the weather would develop for this race. A transition patch was forecasted in which we didn’t really know what the wind was going to do. It turned out to be a difficult section in which the wind turned 720° degrees since the start in the afternoon. The team made it through these transitions quite quickly and we were much closer to the Oyster catcher then we would normally be. From the Smith’s Knoll mark, it was still 60nm downwind towards IJmuiden. We hoisted the kite at 1am in the pitch-black dark. With 25 knots of wind on our tail and nice waves to surf on it was gift for every sailing enthusiast and specifically for teammate Max's birthday. We finished at 9am just of the coast of Scheveningen. Tired but happy with the race, the cleaned the boat and went home for a good sleep. On Sunday afternoon the price giving ceremony was held at the Scheveningen Yacht club. We received prices for 1st IRC 0, 1st ORC 1, 3rd ORC overall and 2 IRC overall. A successful crossing of the Channel!

The North Sea Regatta traditionally starts with two offshore races to conclude one week later with inshore races. We are fully ready to have a great ending to this event. If we continue the upward trend, great titles can still be won here. After the NSR, you guessed it, the team will cross the Channel again for the UK Nationals and the Round the Isle race. Keep an eye on the website and social media channeld for an update on the results!

Laurien Waller

Preview 2022 season with ROST

(Article from February 2022)

2022 will be a special year for ROST. In principle, this will be the final year of the project. With the European Championship IRC in Breskens at the end of August set as the main event, we have an ambitious but good goal for the season, becoming European champions! In this article we’ll take a look at the upcoming season.

As you all know, the ROST project started in 2017. After three successful seasons, a restart was made with a new generation of sailors, ROST II. With great expectations and even higher objectives than the previous ROST, we started work in the winter of 2019/2020, with the main goal set for the Fastnet in 2021. However, where ROST I was ‘sailing along the favoured winds’, with ROST II we faced a bit more difficulties. When we wanted to start our training program in the spring of 2020, our 'dear aunt corona’ came into our lives. The rest is history. We could not start training until the summer and almost all regattas were cancelled. 2021, the year when it was all supposed to happen at the Fastenet, also didn't turn out the way we expected. We started the year in a lockdown again, so had to wait to train. Again, most of the events were cancelled. In the end we were able to start the Fastnet in august, but after a turbulent start from the Solent with winds above 30 knots, we sustained damage to the boat at the Needles, which forced us to stop the race early. At the start of ROST II, ​​the project was planned to last two years. Fortunately, thanks to all these setbacks, another year had been added, thanks to our sponsors. 2022 will really be our year! There is no Fastnet scheduled for this year, so we have chosen the IRC European Championships as the peak event. This year this event will be sailed off the coast of Breskens. There we will try to achieve the best possible result to properly close the ROST program.

At this moment the boat is high and dry at the Yagra boatyard in Hellevoetsluis where we are busy getting the Ker46 van Uden fully ready for the coming season. That was different this year than usual because our boat captain, Pieter Henken, was on an internship on a crane vessel on the other side of the world. As a result, the team had to pick up the job without him. A tight schedule was therefore made, so that the boat is ready in time for the next season. The boat has been completely sanded and antifouled again around Christmas. We are also replacing our rudder for a smaller one, as this is one is more favourable for our rating. In addition, standard jobs are performed such as servicing the winches and replacing or repairing broken items. The winter is used to finish the list of smaller jobs for which there is less time in the summer. The weekend of February 12th is dedicated to servicing all our sails and the week of February 21st the boat will be craned into the water so that we can start our training.

In addition to maintaining the boat, we have been busy working on our team bond. In November we had a team weekend in Friesland. We started off with fun and did nice activities. In addition, we had good conversations with each other about how we can perform better as a team and everyone’s personal role. It has been a useful weekend in which we have grown together. As a result, we have laid a good foundation for the coming season. In mid-January we had a session at the top of the DutchSail team base. Ruud van der Stroom, our sailing chairman, was present to kick off the season. During this session we talked about the plans for the coming season and new strategies to outpace the competition next year. We also have a weekly zoom call with each other to provide an update on the current job status and other matters.

When we go on the water in the week of February 21, we will bring the boat to Scheveningen as soon as possible to start training there. The IRC European Championship is inshore, which means that we sail two to four short races of approximately 60 to 90 minutes per day. This means a lot of boat handling such as markroundings, tacks and gybes. These manoeuvres are central to our first training sessions of the new year. In preparation for the Europeans, we will take the boat to the Solent three times next season to sail competitions there. At Easter the RORC easter challenge is sailed, in June the IRC nationals and in July Cowes Week. We’ll also sail on our own water in the Netherlands, such as the Van Uden Reco in Stellendam in April. The full schedule for upcoming season is as follows:  

-       February 26, First training, Scheveningen (NED)

-       April 15-17, RORC Easter Challenge, Cowes (UK)

-       April 22-24, Van Uden Reco Regatta, Stellendam (NED)

-       May 24-25, Vuurschepen race, Scheveningen (NED) – Harwich (UK)

-       May 27-28, North Sea Race, Harwich (UK) – Scheveningen (NED)

-       June 4-6, North Sea Regatta, Scheveningen (NED)

-       June 10-12, UK IRC Nationals, Cowes (UK)

-       June 25, Round the Island, Cowes (UK)

-       July 16-18, CAM Race, Lauwersoog (NED) – Larvik (NOR)

-       July 30 – August 5, Cowes Week, Cowes (UK)

-       August 22-28, IRC Europeans, Breskens (NED)

We are all motivated to close the ROST project well despite the setbacks of recent years. We have a wonderful schedule for the coming season with great events in which we can show what an awesome project ROST is and make our sponsors proud. We are eager to achieve a good result in Breskens at the end of August! Keep following us via the social media channels and the website!

Collect, accept and continue

Now that the sports summer of 2021 has come to an end, there is time for reflection on how it went. This is no different for ROST II. Last article, we looked ahead with the team at the matches that were planned during the summer holidays. The summer holidays are now over and the races have been sailed. It wasn’t always the smooth sailing we hoped for though.

At the beginning of the summer, it turned out that the Corona virus was not yet done with throwing a spanner in the works. Unfortunately, the team was unable to participate in the Round the Island match and Cowes – st. Malo due to the Corona measures that the United Kingdom was using at the time. These events were planned as training for the Fastnet. This made it impossible to sail in advance on the water where the key event of ROST II was to take place. Instead of sailing the van Uden Ker46 to England, the boat stayed in Scheveningen. However, the Rotterdam offshore sailing team would not be called Rotterdam if we sat down, so a new schedule was soon made. An extra offshore training has been planned, and because Frans Hinfelaar was on board, the team was able to learn a lot in the field of trim. The peels (changes of the headsails) could be practiced again, the waiting system was perfected and experiments were conducted with what kind of food to take on board during an offshore. After this, the countdown for the Rolex Fastnet race began.

At the beginning of August, ROST II departed with the van Uden Ker46 for Cherbourg in France, to sail from there to Cowes for the start of the Fastnet. The route of the Fastnet race has changed this year for the first time in a long time; the finish has been moved to Cherbourg in France instead of Plymouth, United Kingdom. On the way to France, the team was in good spirits until all meters on the boat went out. Once in France, figuring out what was the cause of this became the priority, and the first days could therefore not be trained. Fortunately, the point where the short circuit originated was discovered, and training could then be given to dot the i's and cross the t's. ROST II purchased a number of new sails from North Sails this year and these were tested one last time to decide which sails to take on board to England. However, the setbacks were not over yet, because the day before sailing to England, it turned out that a teammate could not come along. Fortunately, the reserve crew of ROST II was ready on the jetties of Cherbourgh and with this last-minute team change, they sailed to England for the start of the race.

On the day of arrival at the Isle of Wright off the English coast, relaxation in the United Kingdom's Corona measures took place. As a result, the evening before the start, there was just time to walk around Cowes. The options of the route were discussed and a last good night's sleep was enjoyed. The next day was the start. In the Solent, the water between the English mainland and Cowes, more than 400 boats were ready for the start. Remarkably, the first part of the race was with the current and the wind. This is remarkable because usually the current is against it when sailing out of the Solent. Due to the wind forecast, the start for the larger classes had been moved forward, which meant that there was a current far out of the Solent. With 30 knots of headwinds, the conditions were tough, and the forecast was that these winds would certainly last for the first 24 hours of the race. ROST II started in the IRC Z class, as the smallest boat in the fleet. The Ker46 was on the starting line along with impressive other boats, such as the Skorpios (ClubSwan 125ft), the Rambler 88 (Canting keel Sloop), I love Poland (a Volvo 70) and Sailing Poland (a Volvo 65). In addition, a separate starting group with IMOCA 60 boats and trimarans started for the IRC Z class. For sailing enthusiasts, these are more than enough beautiful boats to get distracted. As the smallest of the fleet, the starting plan was simple: stay away from the bigger boats and start slowly. At the last minute, however, there was a gap on the starting line. Due to the quick action of the team, the Ker46 could just be maneuvered between them. This resulted in a world start, being the first across the line with only one boat, the Rambler 88, nearby.

Start of the Rolex Fastnet Race with the van Uden ker46 right at the front - picture by Paul Wyeth

After the start, the crossing started. The Fastnet's route runs out of the Solent, under the coast of England to the west, past the Isles of Scilly, around Fastnet Rock below the Irish coast and then back along the Isles of Scilly to Chebourgh, France. In total this is about 700 NM, and with the wind forecast at that time it was expected that ROST II would take just over four days, of which at least the first 24 hours would be crossed upwind. When ROST II arrived at the very tip of England, the forecast was that the wind would turn and abate. Before that point would be reached, a great distance would have to be sailed. Unfortunately, the word 'would' is used here for a reason. Whether ROST II would have sailed the route in this way remains to be seen. Only four hours after the start, with a current position of second place, we were forced out of the race. When leaving the Solent, all boats have to pass the formidable Needles. This piece is characterized by the fact that it functions as a funnel. Wind and waves are squeezed together from the open sea by a small passage, creating strong gusts and large waves. On one side of this funnel are high white cliffs and on the other a shoal, leaving little room to manoeuvre. The chosen route was a good line straight out of the Solent and into open water, only on the way to the open water did the boat encounter high waves. These waves proved disastrous for the shock absorber in the bow of the boat. After an extraordinarily high and steep wave, it became detached from the frame of the boat. The team tried to sail on for a while, but with 24 hours of sailing to go, it was not safe to continue sailing. The difficult decision was made to stop the race and get the boat and crew to safety. With the orange storm sails hoisted, the boat turned and ROST II sailed back to the harbor at Cherbourg.

Pricegiving ceremony at Breskens Sailing Week

Back in Cherbourg it was important to ensure that the Ker46 could be made ready to sail again as soon as possible. The season was not over yet. With a good planning, the Breskens Sailing week and the Kieler woche could still be sailed. Some time was taken to process the matter together, through good conversations with ice-cold refreshments well into the night. The team then returned to action. After two evenings, the wind and swell decreased. The Ker46 could thus be brought safely to Breskens, where Meeusen van Meeusen Composites was already ready to work on the boat. In a week and a half the boat had to be repaired for the Dutch championship in Breskens. We worked hard, and luckily the boat was ready just in time. Thursday, August 26, training took place, so that everyone could get used to their inshore positions, and Friday, August 27, Breskens sailing week started with the coastal competition. The coastal track was only announced half an hour before the start, and was a challenging course with stretches lasting as little as 10 minutes. As a tactician, the team had Lobke Berkhout as a guest, fresh from the Olympic Games in Tokyo. Slowly but surely, ROST II got into a competition rhythm for the first time since the start of the project. This is reflected in the upward trend of the results. On the last day of the event, two first places were sailed, making the final score good for a second place in the overall standings.

After the event in Breskens there was just enough time to pack clean clothes at home and get a good night's sleep before the boat had to be detoured to Germany again. The trip went smoothly and it was even possible to sail around the German Wadden Islands. In Kiel, the team was reinforced by another Olympic sailor, Pim van Vugt. To let him get used to the boat and to explore the competition course, a practice round was sailed the day before the start of the first competition. During this lap it turned out that the team hadn't had enough bad luck yet, when suddenly with a loud bang one of the two runners broke out of the mast in the last downwind. The runners are the stern stays of the mast and are used to bend the top of the mast to allow better trim of the mainsail. Up to five tons of tension can be applied to the runner. In addition to trimming the mainsail better, the runners keep the mast of the boat in position. You cannot sail without a runner. The round trip ended immediately and once back in Kiel harbor the team set to work to find a carbon and rigging specialist, with the hope that the mast could be made in time for the event. The other sailing teams in Kiel were helpful and a wharf was found just behind the locks of the Kieler Canal to help. On the day of the first competitions, the boat was taken to Knierim Yachtbau. The mast has been hoisted out of the boat and all day long they have been busy repairing it as quickly as possible. As a bit of luck in an accident, there was not enough wind that day to sail competitions, so no competitions were missed. Thanks to the efforts of the yard and the team, it was possible to start the next day, with a repaired mast. During the rest of the event there was little wind, so four games were sailed. Overall, ROST II finished in second place, behind the German competitor Halbtrocken and also world champion, a Mills 45.

After this eventful summer, the van Uden Ker46 was brought home safely to the port of Scheveningen. Some sailing days with sponsors are planned for late summer, after which the boat goes to Hellevoetsluis for the winter months. This gives the team the time to give the boat the necessary love and to refurbish it for the coming year. Much has been learned this summer about trimming, navigating, tactics, the team and competition in competitive fields. But above all, we have learned to take setbacks, accept them and keep going. Material bad luck is simply part of the sport, but dealing with it and not giving up is also. Despite the setbacks, ROST II has had a good summer. The two second places show that the team is on the right track, but we are not there yet. Now first do a winter job and process the knowledge gained, then we can drag in the win next season!

Start of the Rolex Fastnet Race - picture by Paul Wyeth

Fastnet 2021, here we come!

In March, relaxations were finally announced allowing sailors under the age of 25 to train as a team again. This gave ROST II the go-ahead to start sailing again. Since then, the boat has been in Scheveningen, where it has been sailing for quite a few weekends. Step by step, our key event, the Rolex Fastnet 2021, is getting closer.

photo by Twirre Bogaard

The first training sessions after the extra long winter maintenance, we were immediately shaken awake by coach Gerd-Jan Poortman, to see if the level was at the same level as last October during the last training before the winter. During the first training sessions, short up-down laps were therefore sailed, so that various maneuvers could be practiced at high speed. Soon the team was running like a well-oiled machine again; luckily we didn't forget. Because a number of sailors were still injured, former ROST I sailors Floris van Hemert and Hans van Dam sailed along to help on the foredeck or with steering. To promote grooming knowledge, professional sailor Frans Hinfelaar stepped on board during one of the training days. After each training there is a digital discussion via Teams, in which the navigator Stan Schouten has processed all numbers and data in clear graphs. In this way, everyone can learn to deal with the boat's performance data, while new information about how it sails emerges. This debriefing came in handy for the training with Frans Hinfelaar. Because of his focus on the trim of the sails, after that training it could be clearly seen in the measurement data what does and does not help to get the boat speed up.

After miraculously fast recovery of the injured, thanks to the Maas network, the first offshore training sessions have been sailed. Because competitions such as the North Sea Regatta have been canceled this year due to Covid-19, the team has planned two offshore training weekends for this. The training sessions concern two rounds of approximately 150 NM around the wind farms off the coast of Scheveningen. If there is a bit of wind, the van Uden Ker46 can easily fly around it within 24 hours. This makes it a good offshore training course. In this way you can practice with a waiting system, bringing food and drinks for 14 people, and different sails are used than during an inshore. Due to the watch system, the crew changes positions more often, so that everyone tries different positions than their 'fixed' position. The first of these two training sessions had an average of 11 knots of wind, with a maximum of 15 knots. The boat started on Tuesday evening, May 11 at 19:00, after which the boat was back in the harbor of Scheveningen on Wednesday around 13:00. Sails were changed several times, positions were changed and the team was able to experience again what it is like to sail in the dark. The second practice started the following Friday afternoon, with a start at 12:00. During the second round there was unfortunately little wind, so that the engine was started at about eleven on Saturday morning, so that the boat was back in the Scheveningen harbor at 13:00. This second lap was good training to keep trying to get the boat going at maximum speed, even though the water is as flat as a transom.

In addition to training on the water, the team is also preparing for the Rolex Fastnet in August in other ways. For example, 10 crew members jointly followed the Offshore Personal Safety training in March. During this training they practiced with extinguishing fires, the operation of a safety raft and giving first aid. In addition, online meetings about safety, the competition rules and the Fastnet track are followed. The team continues to try new things at the moment, in terms of power, trim and even sail drop systems. This acquired knowledge and experiments can be tested extensively before we start on the Rolex Fastnet in August. There are a number of other offshore training courses planned. While Coach Gerd-Jan Poortman and Tactician Lars van Stekelenborg sail with The Ocean Race Europe in team Childhood I (including former ROST I sailors Max Deckers and Laura van Veen), the van Uden Ker46 is being brought back into top condition. On the weekend of June 18, an offshore training will be done under the direction of Frans Hinfelaar, after which the boat will sail to England at the end of June for training in Cowes, the Round The Island competition and Cowes – St. Malo. After this, the event that has been worked towards for two years will then be sailed: the Rolex Fastnet 2021. The aim of the event is to sail this as well as possible and to show everything we have learned over the past two years. Do you want to follow us on the way to the Fastnet? Follow us on instagram/facebook/LinkedIn!

photo by Twirre Bogaard

Steps of 1,5 meters to next season

Now that it is known that the lockdown will last longer and therefore the hours on the water will be even more limited, the team is looking for new ways to be in better shape when the lockdown is finally lifted.

There is still regular work on the boat, temperatures of -8 and snow don't stop us, even then the party continues! In addition, zoom/teams calls are regularly held to maintain contact with each other and exchange ideas.

The PR team is taking advantage of the curfew, while we're all at home after 9:00 pm, to give ROST social media a breath of fresh air. We have recently been added to LinkedIn, and behind the scenes we are working on a series of video updates. This way we keep our social media channels warm, so that when the rules regarding Covid-19 relax, everyone can enjoy cool videos again where we crash over the waves with full sails and a boatspeed of 25kts downwind. In the meantime, everyone contributes to raising funding to make our plans for the future come true. To be able to participate at the top level, new materials are occasionally needed, and of course these cost money. As a team, we are raising funds for this together, so that with ROST II we can continue the tradition of ROST I of filling the trophy cabinet at the society. An example of this is the team's collaboration with TNG watches, creating a limited edition Maas watch line, with a portion of the proceeds going to ROST II. On the watch is a small icon of the well-known Van Uden Ker47 and the flag of KR & ZV de Maas. What are those future plans? What have we been preparing for for over half a year now? All motivation for the aforementioned initiatives stems from the major plans that have been made for the coming year. The team wants to get the most out of 2021, despite the weird times we live in. The planning for the coming year is therefore as follows for ROST II:

-          Van Uden Reco 23-25 April

-          Cervantes Trophy 1 May

-          Cowes – Le Havre 160NM

-          Vuurschepen Race 11 May

-          Scheveningen – Harwich 110 NM

-          North Sea Race 11 May

-          Harwich – Scheveningen 180NM

-          North Sea Regatta inshore 21-24 May

-          La Trinite – Cowes 4 July 350NM

-          Cowes – st. Malo race 9 July 150NM

-          Rolex Fastnet Race 8 August 695NM

-          Breskens Sailing Week NK September

With such a year ahead, we can hardly wait to start training again. Until then, unfortunately, it will remain with zoom calls and the cross trainer at home.

Next season in sight!

It's been a year since we started the selection of ROST II. While last year (the pre-Corona era) seems centuries ago, this year has flown by again. The year has presented many challenges in sport and daily life. But as they say: 'you have to row with what you have', and we certainly did.

At the start of the ROST II route, a lot of work was done on the Van Uden Ker46 during the winter months. When the boat went into the water in February, the selection was not yet finalized, so the first training sessions were changed a lot to arrive at a basic team. Then everyone got the chance to try different positions in the boat. When the lockdown was announced on March 12 due to the first wave of Corona infections, a long time followed without sailing training. During this period, the thread was quickly picked up virtually by means of sports sessions and informative zoom lectures with ROST I. In June we were able to get back on the water and the selection process was completed. As soon as the selection was finalized and the ROST II team was in place, the long-term goal could be worked on: to perform as well as possible at the Rolex Fastnet race in 2021. Last summer, as much training as possible was done to make up for the missed training sessions in March, April and may catch up. At the end of August it was finally time and we gained our first offshore experiences as a team. In the end it was possible to test the progress during the Kielerwoche and the Bruinebank race. Although we look back with satisfaction on the results of these events, it has become clear that there is still a long way to go before the desired result can be achieved during the Fastnet.

The sailing season of 2020 has now ended (early). The boat was recently brought from Scheveningen to Hellevoetsluis, where it was taken out of the water by Yagra Jachtservice. The necessary winter maintenance will again be carried out here. Compared to last year, it is unfortunately not possible this year to do odd jobs with the team, so the job days are divided into groups of three. Again, the time we are not on the water is well used. Our boat captain Pieter, for example, has done his own heating system for the boat during his sail-less Sundays. The website and social media accounts are updated and zoom sessions are held to align with the team and set personal goals. We took the time to let the sails dry in an unusual place and sort them out. Since the catering industry is closed, the halls of the Delftsche Studenten Societeit 'Phoenix' and the student discotheque 'Lorre' in the heart of Delft could be used for this. The new Corona measures of October offer other opportunities in that regard.

Now that the second peak of Corona infections in the Netherlands is behind us, we can start looking at the coming year. With a view to the second season of ROST II, ​​preparations are in full swing so that as much as possible can be learned and we will appear with the best possible team at the start of the Fastnet in August. Offshore survival courses are planned, new data analysis software such as KND tested, the 2021 budget is drawn up and possible training events are sorted out. We cannot of course predict what the situation will look like in February, so it remains exciting which events can ultimately be sailed. For now we focus on the future and we try to prepare as best as possible within the restrictions of the virus. We are looking forward to getting back on the water and now we are pulling out all the stops to start next year at full steam!

Flying over the start in Kiel, the first offshore of the ROST II

The world has not stood still since the last post. The rules regarding team sports and Corona have been relaxed from July. Fortunately, we have effectively used the lockdown with the Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Team, so we were fully prepared to start immediately on 1 July. After a short consultation with our sponsors, we threw the ropes loose to make up for the missed training hours on the water.

It was clear that the team had missed sailing, because from July on, a full crew trained for at least two days a week. Fortunately, our coach Gerd-Jan Poortman had missed sailing at least as much, because without a coach we can't go on the water. Because of these many training days, we had a steep learning curve as a team, and the progress was visible in every training. Everyone got to know their position in the boat better and better, and in addition, the crew of ROST I visited often enough (through the cockpit?) to share their expertise with regard to the boat, the Van Uden Ker46. In addition to Gerd-Jan's professional knowledge, Simeon Tienpont participated in a training course to give us tips. In this way, the team took steps again every training session, and the core team was formed. After all those training hours, you as a team want nothing more than to measure where you stand compared to the competition. At the time of 'social distancing', this is more difficult than before, because the safety and health of the various sailing teams is paramount and 1.5 meters away must be possible. This resulted in a search for what kind of event was possible, with N.K.'s that went ahead or not, events where an incomplete team had to be started, and events in Germany or England. In the end, the bullet was through, and thanks to Gill, the team was able to appear at the start of the Kielerwoche fully in team clothing, including a mouth cap. At the beginning of September, the boat left for Kiel to compete against twelve other boats in the ORC class for the German championship. For many of the crew this was their first offshore experience. We were introduced to sailing in the dark, a four-hour-on/four-hour wait system, freeze-dried adventure food and taking care of each other, the boat and yourself. After the first night had been survived and we had left the Kiel Canal behind us, we trained another night on the Baltic Sea.

Secret Sailing

In Kiel, the open German championship started with a welcome race of 28 nm. Our race started with a 'perfect start' according to the Kielerwoche race organizers. Unfortunately, due to a technical error, we lost sight of our comparable opponent, a German team on a mills 45, right after the start. In the end we completed the race in 6 hours 29 minutes 28 seconds. For the next three days we conduct three inshore races a day. The German team was a nice competitor here, because you don't come across many other carbon racing monsters and this resulted in a nice battle on the water. On the relatively small track of the inshore races we pushed ourselves and the boat hard and pushed the limits. A total of nine races were sailed, with the best result being second place and finishing in seventh place in total. Due to the different weather conditions from 8 knots to 28 knots, we learned a lot as a team. We got to know each other better, among other things through the evening sessions of 'we by me' led by Gerd-Jan. In addition, we also got to know the boat better and it has become clear to us that even though we have come a long way, we still need to train a lot to get that first place in the future.

The instructive experience of the trip to Kiel and the four competition days had not yet ended when we left headlong back to the Netherlands to arrive in Scheveningen on Friday 11 September at 06:00. After all, on the same Friday at 19:00 we would start again at the Bruine Bank race. The much-needed hours of sleep had to wait for a while, because after arrival the boat had to be emptied and cleaned, before loading the new ration. The mood was still good after those two weeks on the boat together, and at 17:30 we sailed out of the harbor again on our way to the start. The Bruine Bank race is a 100 nm race and is one of the oldest sailing races in the Netherlands. Each boat can choose whether the course is sailed clockwise or counterclockwise and on the instructions of our navigator we decided to sail the course clockwise. After a good start, a short upwind followed, followed by a reach in which we led away from the group with our fractional code zero. Throughout the night we sailed the boat with fourteen men. The conditions were ideal, with 16 knots of wind and mild temperatures. From the rail you could see the luminous algae splashing off the boat, and because there was not a cloud in the sky, countless stars could be seen. After 10 hours 7 minutes and 17 seconds we rumbled across the finish line with a boat speed of 16 knots at first light of the morning. We learned later that day during the virtual award ceremony that all our training hours had not been in vain. Our first prize was finally in! We are extremely happy and proud to have taken first place, breaking the track record that had been set since 2009. The past summer months have flown by at lightning speed. We have grown a lot with ROST II in sailing, in boat knowledge and as a team. From the offshore experience and the results in Germany, we know that we still have a lot to learn before we can achieve our goal of winning the Fastnet. We will continue to train in the coming winter months, so that we are stronger next summer. We would like to thank our sponsors and our coach Gerd-Jan Poortman for the opportunities that the Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Team offers us. Until the next match!

Foto by Twirre Bogaard

From starting offshore sailers to online training experts

The first Corona measures are now slowly but surely being lifted. The first sailboats are going back on the water, so the countdown until we can train again as ROST II at the Ker46 VanUden. Important training months have been lost for many sailors, from young to older, in any Class. With ROST II we tried to learn as much as possible about the boat, sailing, about and from each other during this period when we couldn't sail. As a starting team, where we just got to know each other at the end of 2019, it was important to at least stay in touch. Several team members came up with creative and fun alternative ideas to keep improving our team:

“At the end of February, after a lot of work on the boat, it was finally time to go sailing. Quite early in the season, but deliberately planned so as to be able to train with the new team. The first matches were already planned in April. Before the Corona measures were in force, we were able to make a few more training days. Some of the team members had never sailed a really big boat before. That is why we changed positions on board a lot during these training sessions. Everyone has tried multiple tasks. We received clear explanations from Gerd-Jan and Jaap, but you also received tips and tricks from the people who had done your task before. That is why it was noticeable every training session that things were getting better and that the team was already getting attuned to each other. Doing odd jobs in the winter also contributed to this because there was a common goal, namely to get the boat perfectly in order to start sailing as quickly as possible. When we couldn't train because of a storm (which was quite common at the beginning of this year), we often decided to go to the boat and do the last few chores. The boat is now dry again, but is completely ready when we can sail again.” - Merle

“When it turned out that we could no longer sail on the boat for the time being, I asked the group to exercise online together twice a week. Since then I have made a program every Monday and Thursday with simple, sailing-specific sports exercises that everyone can do at home. Femke has now taken over the Thursday training with a cardio program. Occasionally we would come up with a physical challenge, such as balancing on your head for a minute or a handstand, which provided good entertainment for the team. These virtual sports sessions led to a large number of new initiatives, as a result of which ROST I and ROST II now come together every Wednesday in a zoom meeting to exchange knowledge and experience through Q&A sessions, competition analyzes and meteo lessons. In one of the first zoom sessions, we sailed a virtual sailing race, with ROST I taking us through what they had to do on their job during the different maneuvers of the race. This way we can still form a picture of how things are going on the Ker46 during a competition. All these initiatives come from a very clear credo: 'Standstill is regression'.”

- Bouwe

“For a while now, we have been scheduling cardio on Thursdays. It is important in this time not only to do strength training, but also to train cardio, especially now that everyone is at home a lot. The cardio exercises are a good alternative to running or cycling. The exercises are to Spanish Zumba music, and the training lasts an hour in total. Now and then Gerd-Jan's children also participate, who really enjoy "dancing". Because of this we will be fit enough when we are allowed to sail again. Let's hope that is allowed again soon, because that boat has to get off dry land!" - Femke

“On a Tuesday in May we were able to borrow a number of SUP boards. This allowed us to go on the water together 1,5 meters away from each other, despite the Corona. This was a fun and safe way to do a sporting activity together. Whether it was really sporty is doubtful, because at the end of the day everyone had a wet suit. For Pieter it was the first time on a SUP board, but luckily he was a very natural talent. Gerd-Jan showed that he is at home in many markets by using his many years of skateboarding experience to do an Ollie over a tree trunk with the SUP! It was a super fun and enjoyable afternoon with the team. Good for team building!” - Lars

“During the intelligent lockdown, it was decided to return the boat, which was actually just in the water after our winter maintenance, from Scheveningen to Hellevoetsluis. In Hellevoetsluis, the boat could be taken out of the water and stored on the side. In this way, the quality of the winter maintenance carried out is maintained longer and better. There were still a few small jobs open, such as sanding and applying antifouling under the stamps. After consultation with the yard, it was decided that we could work on the boat with a maximum of three people at the same time 1.5 meters away. We have gratefully made use of this. Many of the team regarded this as a nice day outside, after a long period of sitting inside. The end result of this is that the boat is now completely ready, and when the rules relax we can sail again. The boat is in top shape and ready to go.” - Pieter

To ensure that our sailing skills remain in order, a day of Laser sailing has been planned. The K.R.&Z.V. has a number of Lasers on the Kralingse Plas for Members, which can be rented for a small fee. We have used this as a team. Because everyone sails in their own Laser, 1.5 meters can be kept neatly. With this nice sailing weather it is of course great pleasure to float over the lake in a boat. But in the end, nothing beats sailing on the Ker46.

- Laurien

So it turns out that despite Corona, there are a lot of creative solutions to stay in touch with each other and water sports. Sailors keep busy with the wind, weather and water or in short with sails, even if the boat is standing still for a while. We hope everyone gets through this difficult time well, and keeps moving. Hopefully we'll see each other again soon on the water!

ROST II, ready for a new sailing year

The first months of the new year have only just passed, and the new ROST is ready to sail in the van Uden KER 46. After more than 25 new sailors signed up for a chance to win the ROST II, ​​the November to get the KER back in top shape. To get to know the new batch of sailors better, a kick-off was organized on December 7, after the butter letter. During this kick-off, match-race competitions were sailed in the two MaxFun 25 boats of our own association. The Elsa competed against the Sixties in several small competitions. The day was arranged in such a way that everyone would sail with as many different sailors as possible, so the teams changed all the time. Anyone who has ever sailed a match-race sailing competition knows that these are very competitive one-on-one competitions, with the sailors constantly challenging each other and sharp buoy curves and starts are disastrous. These situations require good boat handling, which can be tricky when a team is sailing together for the first time. Because there was a good wind of between 15 and 20 knots that day, this resulted in exciting situations and there was a hard battle for the win.

After the kick-off, attention was again focused on the winter maintenance of the KER 46. The winches were disassembled and cleaned and greased again, the mast stripped and resprayed, the bottom of the boat was sanded and put back in the antifouwling . With the help of Niek, the carbon specialist, it has been ensured that the carbon in and on the boat is in good condition. The engine has actually been serviced for 1000 hours and on a Friday part of the team spent a whole day in Belgium in a North Sails shed to get all the sails race-ready again. Fortunately, many hands make heavy work light, which meant that the KER could go back into the water in the week of February 7th. On February 15, the first training session was already planned with a view to the first game of the season, the Van Uden Reco on April 18 and 19. On to a good sailing year, the KER is ready, and so is the new ROST II.

Van Uden Reco 2018

Na een succesvolle seizoensopening van het Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Team op 5 april 2018 bij de sociëteit van de Maas, was het vorig weekend tijd voor de eerste grote wedstrijd van het seizoen: de Van Uden Reco Stellendam Regatta. Omdat het WK team sinds deze seizoensopening voor het eerst vast stond, was de Van Uden Reco de eerste wedstrijd dat we in deze opstelling aan de start stonden.

De zondagen voor de Van Uden Reco waren voor deze teamopstelling de dagen om op elkaar ingespeeld te raken en de manoeuvres in de vingers te krijgen. Het opbouwen van ritme in boathandling stond hierbij centraal, waarbij eindeloos spinnakerhoists en drops geoefend werden.

Afgelopen weekend was het - na een laatste training op vrijdag - tijd voor de Van Uden Reco; een mooi moment om te kijken waar we als team staan. Met dank aan onze sponsoren was de boot tiptop in orde; inclusief nieuwe zeilen en nieuwe kleding. Het was ook het moment om voor het eerst met deze nieuwe zeilen te varen, een extra uitdaging!

De weersvoorspelling voor het weekend was licht. Een zwakke en draaiende wind zou het terugkerend thema van het weekend worden. Op zaterdag begon de dag met een afgebroken race: grote windshift naar rechts. Met een soms compleet wegvallende, shiftende en onstabiele bries wist het comité er deze dag uiteindelijk drie wedstrijden uit te persen. Over de uitvoering van de manoeuvres waren we zeer tevreden; hierin hebben we vrijwel niks laten liggen en maken we steeds grotere stappen! Na de eerste dag stonden we eerste in de IRC1 klasse en derde in de ORC1 klasse.

De zondag was wederom een moeilijke dag qua wind; een draaiing van oost naar zuidwest was voorspeld. Onder invloed van langstrekkende onweersbuien bleef de wind instabiel en draaierig. Na een eerste wedstrijd met wind uit oostelijke richting waarbij de wind compleet wegviel en de klein boten helaas wind kregen nadat wij gefinisht waren, werd de tweede wedstrijd afgebroken door een sterke winddraai naar rechts. Een uur wachten later was de wind gestabiliseerd uit het zuidwesten en kon met een toenemende wind de laatste wedstrijd van het evenement worden gevaren. De tweede dag heeft ons helaas plaatsen teruggezet in het klassement en uiteindelijk is een derde plaats in IRC1 en een vijfde plaats in ORC1 klasse het resultaat.

Al met al kijken wij heel tevreden terug op dit evenement. De wisselende omstandigheden en korte baan maakten het moeilijk om hoger in het klassement te eindigen, maar toch zijn we erg blij met hoe we gezeild hebben. De trainingen werpen duidelijk hun vruchten af! Nu zien wij uit naar de Vuurschepenrace en de North Sea Race in begin mei met daaropvolgend de North Sea Regatta in Scheveningen; tot dan!

GILL MARINE PARTNERS WITH ROTTERDAM OFFSHORE SAILING TEAM

The world’s leading technical sailing supplier supports the next generation of young offshore racing talent in the Netherlands

Gill Marine, the leading global brand for technical sailing apparel, is delighted to partner with the exciting Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Team (ROST). The team, formed to enable talented young Dutch sailors to develop themselves in the international offshore sailing world, will be wearing the latest Gill products including its innovative new Race Fusion system – offering the highest level of breathability within its race range.

The team currently consists of promising sailors from the Rotterdam Region (aged 17 to 30 years), sailing on a Ker 46 provided by the Royal Maas Yacht Club. Led by three-time Volvo Ocean Race veteran Gerd-Jan Poortman, Gill believes that this partnership will give the product team a unique insight into how product is used and importantly, giving real life feedback to ensure that every item is performing to its ultimate potential. The team has already competed for the first time in the iconic Rolex Fastnet Race in 2017, and this year the team will compete in the 2018 Offshore Worlds before returning to improve on their performance in the Rolex Fastnet 2019.

Gerd-Jan Poortman from ROST commented: “We are delighted to have a brand like Gill come on board with ROST. Our focus is on bringing a group of like-minded companies together to help make this Team the success that we know they can be. A huge part of that is making sure they stay warm and dry in what will, at times, be very challenging conditions. And through the world class products from Gill, we know that the team can focus on their sailing performance with confidence in their offshore clothing.”

Dominic McCarthy, Commercial Director, Gill Marine commented: “We are really excited to be bringing the Rotterdam Offshore Sailing Team into the Gill family. The added insight we can gain from working so closely with them will support our continued efforts to better understand our consumer, and the requirements of offshore sailing.  This is paramount to the process of innovation and producing fantastic product. This partnership also further underpins our strategy to support promising talent in sailing and we are sure the team will go on to record some fantastic results. We wish them the best of luck for the season ahead.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

Gill was an idea first born on British waters in 1975 by founder Nick Gill, a keen sailor who wanted to create a range of sailing product without compromise; the best fabrics, the best features, the best quality.

Now trusted for over 40 years, Gill has grown into an established technical apparel brand meeting consumer needs both on and off the water and continues to combine innovative design with the latest fabric technology to increase the performance of its range.

Distributed around the world to 37 countries and more recently through a global Ecommerce platform Gill remains the number one marine glove brand and its comprehensive product range driven by the well-known Race Ocean jacket (0C1) as well as global best seller the Offshore jacket (0S2) continue to set it apart.

www.gillmarine.com

Rolex Fastnet Race 2017

After a successful start of the season with many relatively short races, it was time for the most important race of the year: the Rolex Fastnet Race 2017. This race is held every two years and is seen as one of the most prestigious offshore sailing races in the world. With a length of 605 nautical miles, 385 participating yachts and over 2700 competing sailors the Fastnet Race is definitely a highlight in the career of most of us, being young ROST sailors.

Our main goal for the Fastnet Race 2017: learn. How does a watch system work? How will the tasks be divided? How do make sure we perform optimally? Although learning was the main goal, the race was also a good way to compare with other teams. We shared the starting line with strong competitors, among others the Lady Mariposa (also a Ker 46), several maxis (of over 100 feet) and the complete Volvo Ocean Race fleet. We were determined to show what we are capable of as a young team.

After careful preparations the moment was there: the start in Cowes, UK. Under perfect circumstances the fleet departed and sailed upwind out of the Solent, witnessed by the crowd that observed the start from the shore. The start was impressive as well as hectic, tacking between imposing yachts while considering depth, tide and wind shifts. Despite the excitement we managed to sail our way to the front and arriving at the Needles – out of the Solent – we were in a very good position. Now it was time to get into the cycle of watches, distribution of tasks and work as a team to keep pushing the boat all the time. The entire leg to the Fastnet Rock – the rock in front Ireland that has to be rounded – was upwind. This led to some tough strategic decisions, which together with a difficult swell made challenging circumstances.

It took us 60 hours of upwind sailing to arrive at the Fastnet Rock in twilight. At this point we were not happy with our position: 10th in our class and 145th overall. Despite this the morals were high, the ship was still in perfect condition and we were determined to start the pursuit. The circumstances were also starting to be in our favour; the wind was increasing and came from astern! When the night fell we were surfing one wave after the other, and in the middle of the night – with loads of water over (and inside) the boat while the bow pierced the waves – we reached our top speed of over 26 knots.

After a downwind blast during which time flew by we already had the UK in sight again. It turned out we did well during the night, and considering the relatively short time left we had ‘all hands on deck’ during these last eight hours. A few hours later we arrived – tired but pleased – at the finishing line in Plymouth with a strongly improved position: 6th in our class and 19th overall.

The Rolex Fastnet Race 2017 was a fantastic experience for the team. We did a good job, but there are plenty of points that can be improved. Next stops: Offshore Worlds in 2018 and of course the Fastnet Race 2019!