Mastering the wind and making waves
Nineteen hours on a plane and an exhausting drive from Cape Town later and Knysna sailor Dave Shilton is back home after a successful bout against international sailors at his first ever Sailing World Championships.
Photo: Robert Deaves (Supplied by Dave Shilton)
The former 28-year-old navy diver made national news recently when he sailed into the fifth position in his first race of the championships against 90 Finn-class sailors from around the world – sailors whose only job it is to be the best – in Aarhus, Denmark. He also had a fourth-place finish among sailors in the Silver Fleet of the championships, but his fifth place overall still takes the proverbial cake for this intrepid sailor.
Click here for a photo gallery.
“What a great feeling it was to place fifth, but I just couldn’t keep up with the pros throughout the rest of the championships. Those guys sail all day and have coaches helping them step by step. My first experience receiving official coaching was as part of the two-week Emerging Nations Programme before competing in the championships, and what a noticeable difference that made – my speed was definitely on par with the rest.”
The programme involved sailors from Bermuda, Cuba, Iran, Hong Kong, Serbia, Namibia and Venezuela.
Shilton added that he was quite chuffed with his overall position of 56th after the championships, as he thought he would place much lower in the field. “I even beat some guys who were at the championships in an attempt to qualify for their respective countries’ 2020 Olympic prospects – there is only one entry per country in the Olympic Finn class,” he said. This effectively placed him in 11th position in the Silver Fleet.
The former 28-year-old navy diver made national news recently when he sailed into the fifth position in his first race of the championships against 90 Finn-class sailors from around the world.
What’s next for Knysna’s next sailing hope is focusing on the national championships at the Vaal Dam from 21 to 24 September. “I’ve only ever finished second there and the plan is now, after the wealth of experience I got from the world championships, to win! I would be super stoked if I could do that,” he said.
‘We bring you the latest Knysna | Garden Route news’