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Yachting New Zealand has delivered a series of training and development opportunities for coaches and race officials over the past fortnight, aimed at building capability in the sport ahead of the new season.
Last weekend's combined race management conference at Milford Cruising Club attracted 40 participants, bringing together judges, match and teams racing umpires, and race officials for a day of workshops, case studies and practical problem-solving. The event also reached beyond the room, with several participants joining online, including presentations by Doug Wake, marketing director at Vakaros, and Nick Olson, business development manager for PredictWind.
"Doug delivered a fascinating update on the technology that can let individual boats know if they are over the start line, and that can also be used in the protest room, because of GPS coordinates that help judges understand which boat was where and who was at fault," said Yachting New Zealand's coach and race official development manager, Kirsten Moratz. "Nick shared valuable insights about how to read the forecast and account for currents, how to predict the trends and what forecasting tools to use."
Moratz also provided updates from Yachting New Zealand and World Sailing before participants split into discipline-specific breakout groups to discuss their own challenges in more depth. "The conference not only delivered valuable learning but also provided officials the chance to share feedback on how Yachting New Zealand can better support these officials in their roles," she said.
Forty people attended the combined race management conference at Milford Cruising Club last weekend. Photos / Kirsten Moratz
A week earlier, the focus was on coaching, with a small but enthusiastic forum at Murrays Bay Sailing Club. Four coaches from across Auckland took part in an interactive session covering creativity in training and season planning. "We challenged coaches to come up with new games and activities," Moratz said. "One of these was actually trialled the very next day with great success."
The group also explored long-term planning with Yachting New Zealand's regional development and coaching manager, Jenny Armstrong, who has designed a visual model to help coaches map out their seasons. Similar forums are planned for the South Island later this year.
That creativity carried through into the first in-person race coach course in several years, held at Kohimarama Yacht Club the following day. Six coaches, ranging from learn-to-sail instructors to youth and keelboat specialists, took part in a hands-on programme that included delivering their own on-water sessions in Optimists. The coaches experimented with new techniques, exchanged feedback, and refined one of the games devised at the earlier forum.
"One of the most valuable aspects was seeing different coaching styles in action and realising there are always new approaches to try," Moratz said. Each participant also received one-on-one guidance to map out their next development steps, whether that meant further training, new resources or connections to other coaches.
Meanwhile, planning is underway for a second intake of Yachting New Zealand's online coach course, following strong demand for the first course, which began last week. Spaces are still available for upcoming in-person courses in Hamilton and Nelson, and Moratz encouraged anyone interested to register promptly.
"It's fantastic to see such strong demand for these opportunities. The more we can equip our coaches and officials, the stronger our sport will be," she said.
Click here for the full course calendar.
