The team of 14 WNS sailors arrived at Santander airport at 5pm Sunday evening for many, fresh from recent World and National competition.  Time for a different type of racing as only 2 competitors selected from each region can enter the event. 

Over 500 competitors in sailing, rowing, surfing, surf rescue, along with a cultural feast of stalls, gastronomy and celtic Entertainment, along the shore to sample flavours from each Atlantic region!

The sailing competitors are in accommodation together, travel between competitor school (army barracks but we’re not complaining) and the sailing venue each day, with competitor dinner for 500 served at 9pm on team tables before buses back at 10:30 pm... The Breton regional French sailing team have scored the highest style marks arriving fresh from Largs and the British Optimist Nationals (oppie collection) with a HGV for boats and luxury coach for competitors... IBI 1940 trailer doesn’t look quite the same!!

On the water – it’s tough – day 2 has seen around a dozen protests come in as the overall standings take shape... The British National Champion (AKA the really fast girl from Spain) managed only a 4th and 9th yesterday... leaving little chance of recovery if a mistake is made in the Optimist fleet.  In the Lasers, 420’s and 4.7’s the Welsh team is scoring well and tonight the 420 girls have a rule 69 team racing protest lodged to re-claim a justified 1st place today ... We think Wales are there or there abouts once the results come out!!

Anyway... dinner isn’t until 9pm in the worlds largest marquee so it’s the beach for the evening, because the next competitor bus is at 10:30 pm!!

Wales Team
Optimist
Will Creaven, Alex Cole, Dan Whitely, Hatty Morsley
Laser 4.7
Dyfan Williams, Daivd Pain,
Laser Radial
Hannah Tilley, Jack Preece
420 Boys
Toby Morsley, Tim Thomas, Tom Pain, Sacha Bruml
420 Girls
Sara Doust, Eleni Morus