Felpham sailing club has a thriving Cadet section with over 90 members enjoying and participating in this excellent and healthy activity.
The aim of the Cadet section is twofold; firstly to enable children and young people to experience the thrill and fun of sailing in a safe and friendly environment and secondly to develop talent and bring on a competitive racing fleet.
The Cadets range from 8 to 18 and we expect our older Cadets to take some responsibility for and look after the younger ones.
You will find the club has a very friendly, community feel. We have young people from many of the local schools and from much further afield.
These sessions predominantly take part on Friday evenings from 4:45-9.00pm, followed by a hot meal and some social time. We actively encourage parent participation.
Helping at Cadet Sailing
The following guide has been produced to assist parents and helpers whilst cadet sailing/training sessions are taking place.
Friday Sessions
Friday sessions are split into two groups;
The Training Group
This group focusses on learning the sport of Sailing under the guidance of RYA Instructors and Senior Instructors. Some of these Instructors are the older Cadets themselves who have qualified to take groups on the water. The ability of this group ranges from complete beginners to quite experienced sailors who want to focus on developing their skills or want to progress to Instructor level. Club boats are usually available to use and the cadets will be carefully grouped to ensure they are safe and have fun. These sessions comprise of skill based activities, free sailing and mini games and races.
The Racing Group
This group comprises of the more experienced sailors and these follow a carefully designed race program thorough the season. They are overseen by an experienced group of keen adult racers who pass on tips and techniques throughout the sessions. Many of these sailors have come through the training group and now are very skilled and competitive racers. Many of the training group join in the racing when the conditions are fine. Many of these sailors have their own boats but the club does have RS Fevas that can sometimes be used for these sessions. The club has an excellent racing record and we have been winners of the West Sussex Schools Sailing trophy for four out of the last five years. Many of these sailors regularly race at the weekends with the adults and do very well.
Other opportunities open to Cadets
Felpham Sailing Club Performance Squad
This is open by invitation to our youth sailors who have been identified as having the potential to progress towards a high skill level. This squad has allocated training days run by RYA coaches and organised fleet sailing events throughout the South of England.
Skill Saturdays
The club offers more sailing on Saturdays for the Cadets and their families with a carefully designed Skills based approach to sailing on Saturday afternoons. These sessions are designed to encourage family sailing and club boats may be hired.
Youth Regatta
We run a very popular Regatta of racing and training in the summer holidays. This is always a fun and well attended week.