2018 LILAC REGATTA

Laser fleet start

Chilling at the coach boat with OST Coach Chris Cowan.

Another local regatta is in the books! Royal Hamilton Yacht Club was our host for the Lilac Regatta.  After no racing on Saturday due to no wind, we sailed five races in marginal hiking to light wind on Sunday. Racing was extremely close, and consistency was the name of the game. I managed to secure the win after finishing in the top 4 every race. I stayed focused on my starts and upwind technique, and this placed me consistently in a good place at the first windward and allowed me to stay in the game every race. Racing in such a small fleet has its own unique challenges but I consider it good practice for the future when I look forward to racing in some medal races.

Honoured to share the Haida Cup Award with fellow Ontario Sailing Teammate Clara Gravely.

2018 LILAC REGATTA RESULTS
REGATTA PHOTOS

2018 ICE BREAKER REGATTA

The local regatta season kicked off on the May long weekend with the Ice Breaker Regatta at Toronto Sailing & Canoe Club. We sailed for two days on Humber Bay in varying conditions. The first day brought plenty of wind from the east at around 12-17 knots and waves. I focused on my downwinds and starts in more breeze. I was happy with how I executed these and sailed very well. I sat in 2nd out of a fleet of 12 after the first day.

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The second day brought fluctuating wind strength and direction from the north-west. These unsettled conditions lead to exciting racing with such a small fleet. I fell to 4th place and one point off the podium after a difficult second day. Big thanks to everyone who braved the cold to make this regatta happen. And my mom (Elle Bruce) who was out and took some great photos!

2018 ICE BREAKER RESULTS
REGATTA PHOTOS
 

2017 LILAC REGATTA

For the second weekend in a row I raced a regatta in laser standard. This time it was at RHYC in Hamilton for the Lilac Regatta. Hamilton Harbour brought medium to light winds and on the second day, dense fog. It made for some interesting racing!

LIAM BRUCE - 2017 LILAC REGATTA from Elle Bruce on Vimeo.

Off the start and heading upwind - hopefully towards the mark.

Going into the final race I was in a 3-way tie on points for first place but a 4th saw me finish in 3rd out of 12. My consistent results showed that I can keep up with the top group and I look forward to training with them in the fall. 

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2017 LILAC REGATTA RESULTS

REGATTA PHOTOS

2017 ICEBREAKER REGATTA

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Icebreakers Regatta was held this year at TSCC on the weekend of May 20-21. Despite high water levels the organizing officials pushed ahead with the event. Local systems brought 2 days of medium to high winds in the 15 knot range out of the east. I raced this event in the laser standard to test myself against those I will be racing against from the fall onward. I placed a respectable 7th place out of 14 with consistent results in the top ten. My best finish was 3rd in the final race. I look forward to competing at this event next year.

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2017 ICEBREAKER REGATTA RESULTS

REGATTA PHOTOS

PRACTISE, PRACTISE, PRACTISE...

VIDEO CREDIT:  Chris Hewson, Ontario Sailing Team Coach.

Boat time is key and I'm  happy to get as much practise time in the boat as possible.  

In the early Spring months while school was still in, our team trained out of Toronto Sailing and Canoe Club and we aimed to be on the water 4 times a week - usually two evenings after school and both days of the weekend.  Once summer hit we moved to a Monday-Friday full day training schedule.

For the next few weeks we will be based in Kingston to take advantage of more consistent and heavier thermal wind conditions.  

No matter the location, one of the side benefits of being out on the water is being treated to fantastic views.  The trick is not to let them distract you :)

ICEBREAKER REGATTA 2016

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON TEAM ROOSTER SAILING GEAR BLOG

This past weekend I had the opportunity to sail at the TSCC Icebreaker Regatta in Toronto, Ontario. Perhaps the best description of this regatta is the one found on their website;

The Toronto Sailing and Canoe Club Icebreaker Regatta is a long standing tradition in the local sailing scene and a proving ground for many young sailors.  This is one of the first big regattas of the season and can be a test of skills as the weather can be a range of all types, but one thing is for sure, the water is cold!
TSCC ICEBREAKER WEBSITE

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My team, the Ontario Sailing Team, trains out of TSCC regularly and hosted a 2-day pre-regatta tune up camp with the development team to prep for the conditions. We put a lot of work into our down speed boat maneuvers to be used on a start line. This was very helpful especially when starting in close quarters with other sailors.

Racing ran Saturday and Sunday with a healthy turnout in 3 fleets - 29ers, laser standard and laser radial - despite it being a holiday weekend.  Most are local sailors, although we were fortunate to have some top notch competition make the trip from the province of Quebec to join us.  Twenty-one boats attended this year's event in the Laser Radial fleet.

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Toronto is notorious for it’s light wind and shifty conditions.  The best example of this being the 3rd race on day two, when after the laser radial’s first upwind the race committee wisely abandoned when wind readings at the top and bottom of the course were drastically conflicting. But the well experienced race committee did a great job of keeping things fair and managed to get off 5 races.

My results over both days were very consistent and I ended up with 15 points. After the drop I had 9 points which placed me in 2nd. Great starts and excellent boat speed along with staying in phase with the fleet kept me at the top of the fleet and resulted in consistently good placings including my first win of the season. I managed to exceed my goal of top 5 so I am very happy with my event.

This is a nice improvement on my showing last year of 9th place although due to light wind on two of three days of racing the race committee only managed to get 3 races off in total that year.

Next year my goal will be to take this a step further and hopefully win the regatta.

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Overall a great start to the local regatta season here in Ontario and big thanks to all who supported, volunteered, coached and competed!  

TSCC ICEBREAKER REGATTA 2016 RESULTS

SPRING TRAINING HAS BEGUN

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON TEAM ROOSTER SAILING GEAR BLOG

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The 2016 sailing season on Lake Ontario has finally kicked off for myself and the Ontario Sailing Team. Anticipation had been building as a mild winter teased us into expecting an early spring, only then to be followed by several weeks of unusually cold and stormy weather. On our first planned training date – Friday April 15th – the conditions on the water were excellent. It was a sunny day with air temperatures reaching 13°C, winds around 10 knots gusting 12 and water temperature near 1°C.
 

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Not only was I looking forward to getting back in the boat, but my new kit from Rooster had arrived a couple weeks ago and this was the first opportunity to try it out. I was particularly looking forward to putting it to the test in spring’s cooler conditions.

As many of you may know, sailing Lasers results in you getting soaked when sailing on a reach or upwind. Of course in cooler spring weather this becomes a problem as without the summer sun to warm you up when you get wet, you get cold and stay cold. I was happy to discover that the Pro Aquafleece top and Supertherm Longjohn were an excellent combination that kept me very warm. Later into the training session, my teammates were getting fatigued because of the cold. My new kit helped me stay warm for longer and allowed me to put my extra energy towards hiking. In fact, those two pieces on top of my usual summer kit kept me warm enough that I chose to wear a visor instead of a beanie which I have worn in past seasons on early spring days.

Sailing in the cold adds another layer to an already challenging sport. Proper preparation to stay warm is very important to maximizing performance. I’m thrilled to be adding Rooster’s comfortable and super warm pieces to my spring gear line up.
 

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GREATLY IMPROVED RESULTS AT MIDWINTERS EAST REGATTA 2016

This February I had the opportunity to sail at the North American Midwinter East Regatta in Clearwater Florida.  

The Ontario Sailing Team arrived a few days prior to the start of the regatta to train and prep for the local conditions.

With 100 boats in the fleet we sailed 6 races to split the fleet and this year I was pleased to meet my goal of qualifying for the gold fleet (the top half of the fleet).  In the final round the gold fleet sailed 4 more races where I finished up 37th overall (100 boats total), with my best race being an 11th place finish.

Overall a great experience and I am very pleased with my progress over last year's placing of 42/59 in Silver Fleet or 101st (118 boats total).

LASER MIDWINTERS EAST REGATTA 2016 RESULTS