FROM the wind and rain of Rhu to the sunshine of Florida, Luke Patience and Charlotte Dobson last week completed the latest leg of their sailing adventure with the Miami World Cup.

The duo were selected to represent Great Britain at the event which the first World Cup Regatta of the Year.

And after some intense competition on Biscayne Bay, Miami, both Patience and Dobson secured top 10 finishes in their respective categories.

After spending time over winter training at the Olympic venue on Guanabara Bay, Rio, Dobson joined partner Sophie Ainsworth for the Miami event, with the duo racing to sixth place overall in the 49erFX standings.

The result followed a number of promising races for Dobson who is aiming to earn an Olympic medal in Rio after narrowly missing out on selection for the 2012 Games in London.

Meanwhile Patience moved up to sixth in the world rankings following his impressive performances alongside partner Joe Glanfield which saw the duo finish eighth in Miami.

Olympic medallist, Patience, a former Hermitage Academy pupil, is bidding to better his silver medal from the London Games with a gold at Rio 2016 alongside his new partner Glanfield.

Glanfield came out of retirement to pair up with Patience and the duo are now focused on being in Olympic medal contention.

Meanwhile, the overall Great Britain sailing team, managed by another former Hermitage Academy pupil in the shape of Stephen Park, enjoyed considerable success at the Miami event, picking up 11 medals, five golds, one silver and five bronze in 10 of the events.