Wageningse studenten Dobber vereniging (Nestor Winterseries 2)

Did you know that in English there are no separate words for sailing (with sail) or sailing (in motorboat)? Well today during the second Nestor race in Rotterdam we did neither. The best Dutch word would have been ‘dobberen’, but I have yet to find a good translation for that. Wind/jokes aside, we had another great day in the winterseries. We managed to get a full team (!) of (old)-aqua members to battle for the eventual wintercup. And an epic, slow battle it was! This time against R.S.Z.V., Broach and Blauwe Schuit.

What a fun day we had: we gathered around 11.30 to have a little briefing and course explanation. Aqua was yet again the final team to board the ships, so we had a little break. Rodin and Miguel spend this time in a very productive manner by exchanging strategies and tactics, the rest of us prepared mentally by chilling in the sun.

When it was time to board the ships there was a wind force of four knots, very scary. The first match was still really fun! There was just enough wind to sail, and we were actively batting our opponents. We got 3rd and 4th again, but it was actually pretty close. For the second lap I decided to put my Strava on and well, you can see the picture above.... After thirty minutes of ‘dobberen’, whilst not even reaching the other side of the course, following matches were cancelled. Some teams decided to pump their way to the harbour (team Miguel), but some of us (team Rodin) were enjoying the sun too much and ‘dobberd’ till we got rescued by the motorboats.

When we reached land again after the intense sailing, we unrigged the boat and could rest whilst having some broodje knak and very strong hot chocolate until the final briefing.

All in all, it was yet again a very fun day. It definitely didn’t feel like ‘winter’sailing as we all got a nice tan. It was nice to meet other sailors from different associations and get a(nother) small taste of competitive sailing!

If this sounds fun to you as well, feel free to come along during the final race on the 28th of February. You can join the groupchat (Nestor winterserie) by sending a message to one of the board members (even if you are not sure whether you can make it or not). It is only €15, lunch is provided and everything is finished before dark. Perhaps we will even get some wind next time!

~Elena

*Team Miguel with Maaike, Olaf and Janne

*Team Rodin with Jette, Javy and Elena