North Germany
Activities:
Yacht sailing, racing
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| Exercise
Blue Odin III |
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| The Army Sail Training Centre at The British Kiel Yacht Club (BKYC) in Northern Germany played host this Summer to one of the most hotly contested competitions in the University Officers Training Corps calendar. Now in its third year, Exercise Blue Odin pits OCdts from four OTCs against one another in a series of long and short distance sail races using the BKYCs much admired fleet of 35 foot comfortinas. The OCdts crewing the yachts this year were of mixed ability, some having taken part in previous Blue Odin exercises; although for many, this was their first opportunity to experience sailing and racing in open water, and even to gain some valuable sailing qualifications. Departing England for Germany from Stansted Airport, the four UOTCs got their first chance to size up the competition and show off the unit sailing tops that many of the contingents were sporting – looking good being the first rule of good sailing. Some previous Blue Odin team members took the opportunity to catch up with old friends and reminisce, swapping sailing stories and seasickness remedies throughout the trip to Kiel via Hamburg Lubeck. Arriving at the BKYC, the OCdts took little time in taking over the boats and going for a jaunt in the breezy waterways around Kiel, getting a feel for the boats they would be calling home for the best part of a week. As with the previous two Blue Odins, Lieutenant-Colonel Giles Baxter – former Commanding Officer of Oxford UOTC – is to be thanked for organising the trip, and great things were expected after the success of the previous two regatta; he did not disappoint. he exercise itself was to take place over seven days and take the flotilla of yachts on a tour of the seaports around the Kieler Bucht – an enclave of the Baltic Sea surrounded by the German coast and the Danish Islands of Odense and Sjaelland. The competition was decided on the outcome of short ‘around the can’ races and long ‘passage’ races, each crew attaining points on the leader board according to their finish position. Being the UOTC leading the first Blue Odin exercises, Oxford have traditionally been the team to beat, and this year, more than ever, Southampton, London and East Midlands UOTCs have been keen to leave their mark upon the Regatta Cup.
By dawn on the first morning, the crews were already stirring in their yachts and preparing for the day ahead and the first race of the regatta – a passage race that would take the yacht sail train into Danish waters. From the off, the defending champions aboard the “Pretrel”, found that holding onto the cup was not going to be all plain sailing with stiff competition from the well practiced East Midlands “Curlew” and the London crewed “Skua”. |
The sailing over the week took in the ports of Sonderborg and Fahborg, as well as racing to the aptly named town of Damp. Although the competition was primarily for the Regatta Cup, one event was given over to the crew race: a chance for the skippers to take a back seat and let the crew practice their new skills competing against the other boats. However, the friendly rivalry between crews was put aside as the yachts made their way into harbour at the end of each day, and the teams honoured the UOTC spirit in getting together for drinks after a hard day’s racing and even found time for a Pimms Party in Svendborg.
As the end of the sail training week approached, each race seemed to make the results on the scoreboard closer still between the top four yachts, promising a tense battle for the finish on the last day’s racing. After a bluster and closely-fought final day at sea, the yacht sail train made its way slowly back to the BKYC. The final scores on the board were a closely kept secret by the race committee aboard the Baltic Swift, and the crews awaited the result in great anticipation.
With the boats safely back in their moorings and handed-back to the BKYC, Lieutenant-Colonel Baxter presented the awards for the week after the closing barbecue and wished the new holders of the Regatta Cup, the University of London Officers Training Corps good luck for Exercise Blue Odin IV in 2005. The rest of the evening was spent on a night out in Kiel town sampling the local hostelries and celebrating a great trip. Hence, it was a very tired, but happy coach party that made the hour and a half journey back to the Hamburg Lubeck Airport – even if they weren’t all going home with silverware, everyone was taking with them the lessons they’d learned, the skills they’d mastered and friends they’d made along the way. OCdt Jim Morris
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