Expedition Dragon Trident, organised by Kyle Munt and Logan Roots, was a 12-day adventurous training exercise where 10 Officer Cadets from East Midlands University Officer Training Corps – completed a sailing trip. The main aim of the expedition was to provide OCdts with sailing experience, that they could take forward in their logbooks for future courses.
Trip overview
Day 1 – Crew 1, composed of 5 OCdts, collected the yacht and had a safety brief from JSASTC, we then left Haslar and began to learn how to sail the boat, putting up the main sail and the Genoa. We arrived at Shepards marina in Cowes and learned how to raft onto another boat and the etiquette behind it.
Day 2 – We learned what Man Overboard drills were and practiced them with a bucket and fender to allow us to simulate tacking the boat toward the casualty and how we would recover them from the water. The comp crew on the boat also helped teach the other crew members how to tack and jibe the boat into and out of wind in order to change direction. After anchoring in Osbourne Bay for lunch we moored in Town Quay marina for the night.
Day 3 – We had to learn basic boat maintenance skills along the duration of our trip, learning to refill the water tank, attaching to the mains electricity, and refuelling when necessary. Leaving the marina in the morning, we warped the boat 180 degrees displaying great teamwork skills and with great weather were able to sail the whole day anchoring just outside Newton Creek for lunch then heading to Lymington to moor for the evening.
Day 4 – The day started with light rain showers, but after turning on the engine and raising the main sail we were able to learn more about motor sailing and raising the motor cone, so that other boats in the area knew how we were sailing. That evening we came alongside in Cowes and were able to explore the town.
Day 5 – We completed some light wind sailing and motor sailing from Cowes to Port Solent. We also learned how to make a pilotage plan and follow it so that we stayed in water deep enough for the hull of the boat and to help map our route into the marina.
Day 6 – After leaving Port Solent, we watched HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier depart, which was incredible, as we got to see it get tugged out of the Solent and the crew parading on deck whilst the ship was being prepared. We arrived back at JSASTC that afternoon and began to prepare the boat for the crew changeover on day 7.
On Day 7, the crew changed over to the next 5 OCdts and from then till day 12 the second crew completed a similar route around the Solent, with stops in East Cowes and other marinas such as Port Hamble and Yarmouth, that the first crew didn’t stop at to help create some variation.
“I enjoyed learning new skills on the trip. Sailing was something I haven’t had the chance to do before and wouldn’t have thought of doing but the opportunity given by the Ulysses trust and OTC has meant I got to learn a lot about how to navigate through busy waters and knot tying skills. I really enjoyed the whole trip and would love the opportunity to go again in the future.”
OCdt Andrew Bonnick
“I really enjoyed how quickly you can learn how to operate the boat and how your crew can become independent and work together within a matter of days. The Ulysses trust helped by easing our financial stress of the trip to make it more accessible to officer cadets and ensure we could cook good quality meals on the boat so were properly fuelled for the trip.”
OCdt Kyle Munt
“I really enjoyed the sailing trip as I had only ever sailed smaller dinghies, so I loved learning how operating a 34ft yacht was different and what similarities there were. It was a great opportunity to bond with my friends and learn new things together as well as make new friends with officer cadets in other years who I had previously not spoken to before.”
OCdt Aislinn Cumming
Challenges and benefits of the expedition
- We became a stronger team learning to work together to run the boat efficiently
- We gained sailing experience which we likely would have never got had we not been in the unit and allowed to go on AT, the logbook miles gained from expedition dragon trident, will be invaluable for future comp crew and day skipper courses as it has provided a solid base of knowledge and experience.
- The navigation to Port Solent was challenging as the water was shallow due to the timings of the tide so we had to be careful and pay particular attention not to damage the hull of the boat and ensure we didn’t accidently ‘beach’ the boat.
Impact of the expedition on the unit and the participants
The expedition has and will continue to play a vital role for the unit as it gave 7 officer cadets who had never sailed before nautical miles for their logbook, to make future expeditions and applications for competent crew courses more accessible. For the 3 officer cadets who already had competent crew, the logbook miles gained from this expedition will help with future day skipper courses where a minimum mileage is required to pass the course. It will be important for the unit that people now have comp crew and experience with sailing as it means that future expeditions can run more easily as we will have the crew required for a boat within our unit and won’t have to rely as much on outside help.
