Sailing Magazine
pic by Trevor Wilkins
There is no more worthy team than the ZVYC team who have turned heads and had everyone talking about their performance this week.
This is a young team that has shown immense commitment to sailing through the Royal Cape Yacht Club sailing academy. The team is a very diverse bunch who have jelled into a formidable crew – and now have pushed some of the best sailors in the country right out of their comfort zones.
In the two weeks prior to the Lipton Cup they lost their helmsman due to work commitments. Fortunately Sieraj Jacobs filled that slot and complemented the team and embraced their philosophy. This setback may have upset the equilibrium of other teams, but with these guys it appears to have strengthened their resolve for a top spot.
Some of the crew started sailing at the Zeekoe Vlei YC sailing academy in Optimists, two came through the SailPro schools programme and one from the Imperial Yacht Club youth programme. So what is exciting is to see so many different sailing programmes feeding in to the sailing scene and bring good results.
Their build up to the event included competing in the MSC Regatta in Durban where they finished the KZN Provincial champs as runners-up. That event was the first time Daniel Agulhas was skipper in a yacht race. Since then the team have matured and focussed having a better idea as to what they are capable of.
They have spent every possible minute on the water sailing – more latterly alongside Greg Davis and his Lipton team. This was valuable experience and many lessons were learnt. More importantly Davis imparted some of his vast knowledge of L26s to them – and this has stood them in good stead.
It is always exciting to see young teams come to the fore. It’s also good for our sport. Well done to everyone involved in giving these guys an opportunity, and to the crew for doing so well and creating the excitement they did during this year’s event.
The team is:
Daniel Agulhas – skipper
Sieraj Jacobs – helmsman
Nick Faraday – bowman
Mike Hardy – downwind trimmer
Shane Hendrickse – upwind trimmer
Rhino Lawson – halyards
