Mirrors have been an integral part of Restronguet Junior training for years. Sailors start off in the "Learn to Sail" sessions on a Sunday morning broadly equal to the RYA Level 1 and Level 2 course of the RYA Youth Sailing Scheme.
Once they are a good level 2 or higher they graduate onto the "Introduction to racing" sessions. These sessions teach sailors the basics of racing and enough to take part in Pirate races, which are simple races run during standard club races. There is a coach boat to support the less experienced sailors and provide them with top tips to help them sail the course faster. After a few Pirate races sailors are generally ready to take part in normal club racing and move to the Race squad who train on a Friday evening during the spring and summer.
You can download some more details on Mirror Training at the club. To sign up for the weekly Mirror training e-mail, contact Martin Egan. Lots more information about Mirrors on the Mirror Class Association website.
After Mirrors
Many of our Mirror sailors sail in Mirrors until the age of 13 - 15 and then start to transition to larger boats, such as Lasers or RS200s. Generally they sail both Mirrors and the larger boats over one or more seasons in this transition period.