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September's Inter-Dominions will pit some of New Zealand's best school sailors against their Australian counterparts at the Sandringham Yacht Club in Melbourne. New Zealand won overall in 2016 and Tess Van Der Wel will spearhead the Nelson College Girl's team.
You are currently training for the Inter-Dominion Teams Racing Regatta. How are the preparations going just a few months out from the event?
This time of the year it's not easy to get enough training in since the days are so short. The lack of wind during the winter season in Nelson makes it a bigger challenge. These factors limit our training hours on the water but there are always other things to improve on such as fitness, which might be hard to believe but is very important in sailing. Having a limited amount of time also puts pressure on the parents and the team getting enough funds raised to pay for our trip. We are really looking forward to the Marlborough Boys team coming over to train with us as well as when [national umpire and coach] Hamish Hey comes down from Auckland to give us some specialist training. However, luckily for us, we have an amazing team of parents supporting us sailors.
You are the only year 13 student in the team so do you think your approach to your first international regatta will be different to the other members?
Yes and no. I feel all of us are enjoying the experience and aim to enhance our knowledge and skill to prepare us for a successful regatta. However, since this is my last year at school, I might push a bit harder for this opportunity. I'm very much aware of this being my last chance. In the meantime, I'm committed to helping the school to achieve in sports results and giving sailing a bigger exposure within our school and the wider community. I work hard to support each of my team members to achieve their best. With passion and dedication, the unthinkable becomes possible. You only have to look at Team New Zealand. Since my teammates have 2-3 more years at school, this opportunity will help their sailing skills. There is no reason why this team can't be sailing in the Interdoms next year which might even be hosted in Nelson.
It will cost around $16,000 to send the crew, coach and manager over to Australia so how can people support the team's fundraising efforts?
One way to support our team is to give our Facebook page a like (NCG Team Sailing) and follow us on Instagram (Ncg_team_sailing). Our Facebook page gets updated regularly about our progress. Beside offering local businesses a sponsorship package, we have some brilliant fundraisers coming up. One of our fundraisers is a pancake day (lunch and dinner) at the Boat House on July 29 - there's savoury and sweet pancakes with even an unlimited pancake eating option. We do have some great raffles, including a two-day/three-nights fully catered sailing trip for four to Abel Tasman National Park and a weekend away in a Golden Bay bach.
How long have you been sailing for and what are your earliest memories of sailing?
My family have owned a beautiful 42 foot Beneteau since I was eight. We have lived on board in the North Island for half a year. My sister and I were home schooled at the time. I remember sailing from bay to bay, going snorkelling, running around on the beach, making campfires and of course my favourite memories of all is being at the bow of the boat with dolphins gliding beneath me. When I turned 11 I got a wooden Optimist for my birthday. Unfortunately, I didn't use her much - she wasn't the fastest of dinghies.
Do you play any other sports and why has sailing emerged as your favourite?
Coming from a small rural town in North Canterbury, Nelson opened the door to many new sports which I tried many of, from underwater hockey to netball, rock climbing, hockey, running, classical ballet - the list does not stop there. As I got older I started dropping a few sports to focus more on school, but always kept sailing. One day my coach took us out sailing on a windier day than usual. While waiting for the winds to drop to proceed the racing everyone was zipping around at a phenomenal speed. When I finally had the guts to take the helm myself I was hooked forever. Planing these boats gives the ultimate sense of freedom and adrenaline rush. This is why sailing is my favourite sport.
