For the third year in a row Sailing In The City made an appearance at the annual Aberdour Fete. Aberdour is a beautiful little village in Fife with a surprisingly large number of kids wanting to go sailing! When we arrived we were met by a helpful man from Aberdour Boat Club and he had a list full of names already booked into the 4 taster sessions we would be running that day, plus a few reserves just in case someone couldn’t make it.

The weather was perfect – sunny, not too hot and a gentle breeze, just what you need for your first go at sailing. With no time to waste we got started with the first group of the day. Sailing from a sandy beach meant wet feet for everyone but no-one really seemed to mind that much. After a quick go at paddling and getting the hang of the steering we got the sails up and made the most of the wind. With an onshore breeze and the tide still coming in there were quite a few boats grounding on the beach and struggling a little to stay out on the water. However with a push back out again from an instructor on the shore everyone got the chance to enjoy the water tig that was being played (with a very wet spongy ball!).

As the day went on it became gradually hotter and the kids became keener to get a little more than just their feet wet…and by the end of the third session there were certainly no fewer than 4 “accidental” falls out of the boats or capsizes! The kids had a brilliant time, playing tig, dancing in their boats while trying not to fall over, learning a bit about making the boat go faster…and of course swimming! All in all the day was perfect and many kids were desperate to come back next year to have another go which is brilliant. On that note, I’d like to thank Aberdour Boat Club for their enthusiasm and for organising this event.