By Jeff Doubek
As a young sailor, literally wet behind the ears, my first lesson came the hard way: Learn your boat’s language.
This happened one fateful day when my skipper said “Here we go!” and turned over the helm, leaving me pinned behind the jib. My naïve mind thought skippers always asked “Ready about?” first.
That one missed cue meant the difference between taking the win and taking a swim.
Does your team need better communication? Consider the following tips:
1) Improve your body language
A better communication plan begins with the words that aren’t said. This is what I call your team’s body language. Meaning, everyone knows what to do without having to talk about it.
The best sailing crews know the exact moves they take through the boat during maneuvers, and rarely vary. Who moves first during a tack. Who sits where during a set. Where your feet are positioned at all times.
I even sailed on a team where particular tasks were assigned during pre-race rigging. We took all movements seriously and it reduced the amount of errors made.
When everyone knows their job and position in the boat during all maneuvers there’s no need to have conversation. I once heard it called “economy of movement,” meaning there is no wasted motion or chatter in the boat.
I once had a crew who could recite each and every exact move he made during every maneuver, down to his arm positions. It was impressive, if not wonderfully boring.
2) Have disaster recover plans
The best teams have an arsenal of disaster recovery plans. Before they happen.
I’ll never forget the time I joined a J-24 team for a regatta and came out of a tack with everybody yelling “A**hole!” Once I got over the hurt feelings, I learned it wasn’t an insult aimed at me but rather a term referring to a knot or snag in the windward jib sheet. When shouted, it was an instruction for everyone to check the sheet in his or her immediate area.
It’s important to have a set series of steps and phrases that alert your team to solve your common emergencies such as sheet snags, figure-8s during spinnaker sets, and knockdowns.
I frequently race on bilge-boarded scows, and when a board doesn’t fully drop during a tack it’s standard practice to yell “Gimme 1-2-3,” which means on the count of 3 the skipper jerks the helm so that the leeward board can be fully extended.
That is the type of jargon every team must employ to improve their disaster recovery.
How do you develop this? Hold a regular post-race debrief session. It’s a great way to improve your emergency recovery plans because it offers a calmer setting for your team to discuss what happened on the racecourse.
3) Cut out the noise
The final rule of communication on your boat is to cut down the chatter. You don’t need people speculating, complaining, or spectating during your race. The fewer words on a boat the better the team focus.
You can achieve this by creating a set of consistent commands for your team. For example, saying “Breeze soft in 5” doesn’t just mean you’re heading into a lull, it is also a signal for the crew to: 1) ease off controls, 2) lighten sail trim, and 3) move weight to leeward.
Commands like this should be discussed and routinely practiced.
Too many words on a boat can be a huge distraction to an entire team. Cut the noise by minimizing words and having set routines. Here’s an example of a post-start routine:
Skipper: “Okay, give me information…”
Crew: “Half the fleet tacked, half on your board – fresh breeze middle-right.”
Skipper: “Who’s to leeward?”
Crew: “26. Nose out, bow down.”
Skipper: “Above me?”
Crew: “8 on your hip. Match angle, match speed.”
Skipper: “Tell me when we have a lane to starboard.”
The skipper and crew each know exactly what the other is asking and telling. Efficient, consistent communication is vital. There is no one universal language – I’ve found it varies from boat-to-boat – the key is to have your team speaking the same language, with minimal chatter.
Better team rapport can play a vital part in your boat’s improvement in the fleet standings. If you haven’t considered it before, make a point of using the three steps above to improve your skipper and crew communication.
These are some of my tried-and-true hints… please share yours in the comments.
Coach’s Locker Room: One Great Way to Handle Over-Zealous Sailing Parents
By Jeff Doubek (optimist/Submarine photo courtesy of our friends at Sailing Anarchy)
Three quick stories, one solid lesson:
Story 1: Dad who rigged his son’s Opti every morning.
I’m the first to admit, setting up an International Optimist Dinghy properly is a major pain. It’s an even bigger challenge for an 8 year old. But, it’s an important lesson that one sailing father felt his son didn’t need to learn.
Well, by now you’ve probably already guessed what happens next: during a major regatta the kid had an on-the-water breakdown he didn’t know how to fix. It was during sequence so coaches couldn’t help him. His dad couldn’t help him. No one could do more than watch as the boy helplessly flailed off the starting area like a wounded duck. He was helpless.
Of course, I felt mixed feelings here: sorrow for the child and “YES! I told you so!” toward his father.
Story 2: Dad who drove his powerboat through my instructor’s drills, coaching his son.
An exasperated coach radioed ashore to inform me an obnoxious father was running his even more obnoxious powerboat through the middle of the lesson zone, shouting instructions at his son. The advice I gave my coach was to keep the kids safe and I’ll handle the Dad in private.
On shore, the father acted all innocent like “what? I’m coaching my son” but as I explained to him the program rules and expectations, and offered the amusing scenario if every parent ran powerboats through the drill zone it’d be nautical Mad Max. He knew I was right, but was just pushing the situation.
Story 3: Mom who screamed at my friend Art while her son was in peril.
My friend Art once ran a fairly successful racing program. One day, after he canceled racing due to too much wind, he was met by an angry sailing mom who didn’t agree with his decision. (Apparently, the race cancelation affected her son’s place in the season standings.)
Art recalls, quite humorously, that in the middle of her berating him he looked over this mom’s finger shaking shoulder and saw the woman’s two sons rapidly floating by in a capsized and swamped dinghy – desperately needing rescue.
Shouldn’t her time have been better spent as a safety boat? Help. Don’t hinder.
The Big Lesson I promised you:
The way to handle parents is by setting EXPECTATIONS.
After all, they have a bunch of things they expect from you, and which you’ve already likely outlined for them in detail. You’ll offer a safe place to learn, the best coaching and skills training, and some fun along the way.
But what you need is a set of expectations, written out, set in stone, of what you expect from them as parents. They must obey the safety rules of your program. They must respect the authority of the coaches they hire. They must not attempt to question your training methods because sometimes the idea isn’t always clear from the outside view.
How about…
- No outside coaching is permitted during lesson/racing. Please maintain a 100-foot safety perimeter of the racecourse or lesson zone.
- Please allow your child to rig his/her own boat. It is a primary step in advancing their skill.
- Racing will be canceled when factors of wind speed/water temperature/air temperature are deemed unsafe, and if other conditions dictate. Race official has final say.
“These rules are meant to promote a safe, educational, and enjoyable learning environment for your child’s experience in my program.
Have a nice day!”
Oh, and by the way, I’m sure you’re asking what to do with that parent who won’t follow your expectations because they are some bigshot. You make it clear you can give them their money back if they don’t like your program rules.
There will always be what we call the “2 Percenters,” the 2% of parents who will give you problems. They attack the foundation of your program like angry termites… you don’t need them.
Expectations. Write them down. Hand them out. Hang ‘em on the wall.
These are some of my tried-and-true tips, please share yours in the comments.
Free State Team Race Around the Corner
The Free State Team Race is right around the corner! Check it out!!!
http://www.annapolisyc.com/default.aspx?p=.NETEventView&ID=3765676&qfilter=&type=0&ssid=307802&chgs=
Read More about the Sail1Design TR Grand Prix
Sail1Design is once again very excited to promote a few great team race events as part of our annual grand prix series. This is a big year as it’s the first without any V15 events but features the return of one of, if not the best, team races in the world. The Free State Team Race is a grassroots event put on by the dedicated sailors at Severn Sailing Association. Like the CRO, it’s based on the motto of great competitive team racing and great fun off the water. During its first year in 2014 the event filled to capacity and promises to do the same this year. Details for the FSTR are still in the works. Last year it was sailed in provided club 420s but I’m told this year Zim Sailing is working to bring down their fleet of Zim 15s, the official boat of the US Team Racing Championships(The Hinman). This event will be a great tune-up for the Hinman, hosted in the same location in Zim 15s later this fall.
Outside Asymmetric Jibes Revisited
By Andrew Kerr
While racing in the Round Block Island Race with a J122 team recently, we saw the value of an outside Jibe when it was blowing 25 to 33 knots plus with big waves. The wind built steadily and a required a jibe at the corner of the Island in a building following sea. We set up for an outside jibe ,the spinnaker sheets were long enough to go outside the sail and the lazy spinnaker sheet sat on the “Jibulator” soft baton that was sown into the sail just above the tack .
To change to the outside Jibe simply meant putting the tack line underneath the sheet when rigging the spinnaker, enabling the lazy sheet to be outside the sail.
With most of the crew in the back of the boat, the trimmers in position and the middle person ready on the vang to possibly release it once the jibe was completed in case the boat heeled excessively to leeward for one reason or another, we were ready.
We looked to jibe on the top of a wave to take the pressure off the sails, the mainsail was brought in 3/ 4 of the way to reduce the amount of distance the boat had to be steered (with the traveler centered and cleated on both sides). With the crew in position with everyone as aft as possible, we started the jibe as the stern lifted with buoyancy of the wave, as the boat was nearing a run the spinnaker sheet was released and the spinnaker flagged in front of the boat, the mainsail was jibed and then smoked out and having taken the slack out of the weather spinnaker sheet prior to the Jibe , the trimmer then sheeted in the sail with all the crew in position, the spinnaker filled and off we went with the boat close to 19 knots of boat speed.
So what is the value of the outside Jibe in heavy air?
- It takes the sense of urgency out of the jibe, the main is jibed, the spinnaker flagged and then once the boat is well balanced the spinnaker is sheeted in.
- It avoids a broach – the inside jibe requires the spinnaker to be temporarily over sheeted which puts an immediate urgency on flattening the boat, bearing away, smoking the sheet out and very often dumping the vang – the outside jibe for the most part does not require those elements.
- It enables the crew to all stay aft and in racing position to maximize the draft of the rudder to maximize steerage and helps prevent the bow from submarining as crew are not needed to be forward pulling the spinnaker around like on an inside Jibe.
- It also helps lower the team’s collective blood pressure as in challenging conditions the adrenaline and exhilaration levels are high!
So what are the tradeoffs of outside Jibes?
- 1) You need longer spinnaker sheets which adds to the spaghetti Junction in the cockpit.
- 2) There is a performance trade off as the spinnaker flags in front of the boat and can take longer to fill and get going.
- 3) If you do not have a” Jibulator” baton on the sail, and also very often a baton on the end of the bowsprit and also do not take in the slack of the weather sheet there is a risk of trapping the lazy (soon to be loaded sheet) under the bow.
In summary with all these factors taken into account the bottom line is it makes for a safer Jibe in heavy air and particularly off shore with big waves where it is important to maintain balance and control in the waves once the Jibe is completed.
I would encourage teams who do not currently do outside Jibe’s to look at this technique and see if they can incorporate it into their boat handling repertoire for their specific design of boat, particularly if sailing offshore.
COLLEGE SAILING ANNOUNCES 2014-15 ALL-AMERICAN TEAM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 23, 2015
Contact: Jen Vandemoer Mitchell | Toile à Voile for ICSA | media@collegesailing.org | 763-234-8286 m.
COLLEGE SAILING ANNOUNCES 2014-15 ALL-AMERICAN TEAM IN AWARDS SHOW
NEWPORT, R.I. (June 23, 2015) – In an online awards show this evening, produced by Gary Jobson and Mitch Brindley with video footage from Gary Jobson and Chris Love Productions and still photography from Rob Migliaccio, the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) announced the 2014-15 All-American Team for the second time in this format. Fifty-three sailors were awarded this great honor. The names of the winners will be added to the ICSA Hall of Fame display located in the Robert Crown Center at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
A committee of representatives from the seven conferences in the ICSA selects the ICSA All-American Team. To select an All-American skipper, the committee evaluates a competitor based on their competitive record in inter-conference competition as well as conference and national championships. The committee analyzes how this record compares to fellow competitors, the quality of the competition the record was achieved in, the span of the record over the fall and spring seasons, results achieved with different crews, and how the record compares to previous All-American winners in past years.
For All-American crew selections, the committee uses criteria similar to skipper selection, but also considers: demonstrated leadership (may consider seniority), outstanding body mechanics and boat handling skills as well as proven ability to improve the results of the skipper(s) with whom he or she sails.
Here are the names of the members of the 2014-15 All-American Team.
ICSA Honorable Mention Coed All-American Skippers:
Joseph Mitchell Kiss (Holland, Mich.), Yale University ‘17
Deirdre Lambert (Cumberland, Maine), Dartmouth College ‘15
Malcolm Lamphere (Lake Forest, Ill.), Yale University ‘18
Pearson Potts (Newport, R.I.), Brown University ‘16
Charles Dodge Rees (Pensacola, Fla.), College of Charleston ‘16
Erika Reineke (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Boston College ‘16
Antoine Screve (Kentfield, Calif.), Stanford University ‘16
Charles Sinks (San Diego, Calif.), Boston College ‘18
ICSA Coed All-American Skippers:
William Bailey (St. Thomas, USVI), Boston College ‘15
Ian Barrows (St. Thomas, USVI), Yale University ‘17
Kieran Chung (Newport Beach, Calif.), Stanford University ‘15*
Alexander Curtiss (Lake Bluff, Ill.), St. Mary’s College of Maryland ‘16
Avery Fanning (Isle of Palms, S.C.), U.S. Coast Guard Academy ‘16
Esteban Forrer (Tucson, Ariz.), Old Dominion University ‘16
Graham Landy (Norfolk, Va.), Yale University ’15*
William Tyler MacDonald (Newport Beach, Calif.), Roger Williams University ‘15
Jake Reynolds (San Diego, Calif.), College of Charleston ‘16
Raul Rios (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico), Boston College ‘16
Alejandro Ruiz-Ramon (Tampa Fla.), Tufts University ‘15
Nevin Snow (San Diego, Calif.), Georgetown University ’16*
ICSA All-American Crews:
Breanne Baldino (Carlsbad, Calif.), Roger Williams University ‘16
Elizabeth Barnard (Newport Beach, Calif.), Boston College ‘15
Charlotte Belling (Newport Beach, Calif.), Yale University ‘16
Alicia Blumenthal (Bellport, N.Y.), College of Charleston ‘15
Katia DaSilva (East Greenwich, R.I.), Georgetown University ‘15
Natalya Doris (Miami, Fla.), Yale University ‘17
Tierney Driscoll (Bayport, N.Y.), College of Charleston ‘15
Emma Ferris (Fairfax, Va.), U.S. Naval Academy ‘15
Katherine Gaumond (Mill Valley, Calif.), Yale University ’15
Sydney Karnovsky (Brookline, Mass.), Harvard University ‘16
Haley Kirk (Long Beach, Calif.), Stanford University ‘15
Mariah Leffingwell (Easton, Md.), St. Mary’s College of Maryland ‘16
Sam Madden (Milton, Mass.), Tufts University ‘15
Bridget Murphy (Dartmouth, Mass.), University of Vermont ‘15
Abby Preston (Newport, R.I.), Roger Williams University ‘15
Isabelle Ruiz De Luzuriaga (Charleston, S.C.), Georgetown University ‘16
Gabriel Smith (Annapolis, Md.), Old Dominion University ‘17
Robert Turley (Sturbridge Mass.), U.S. Coast Guard Academy ‘16
Lydia Whiteford (Severna Park, Md.), Brown University ‘15
Katherine Wysocki (Annapolis, Md.), Boston College ‘15
ICSA Honorable Mention Women’s All-American Skippers:
Allyson Donahue (Brigantine, N.J.), Boston College ‘17
Megan Grapengeter-Rudnick (Darien, Conn.), Brown University ‘17
Nancy Hagood (Charleston, S.C.), Georgetown University ‘15
Melany Johnson (Berwyn, Pa.), Eckerd College ‘15
Lily Katz (Brooklyn, N.Y.), Stanford University ‘17
Deirdre Lambert (Cumberland, Maine), Dartmouth College ’15
Dana Rohde (Richmond Hill, Ga.), U.S. Coast Guard Academy ‘18
ICSA Women’s All-American Skippers:
Nikole Barnes (St. Thomas, VI), U.S. Coast Guard Academy ‘17
Rachel Bryery (Jamestown, R.I.), University of Rhode Island ‘17
Clerc Cooper (New Orleans, La.), College of Charleston ‘15
Mary Hall (Seminole, Fla.), U.S. Naval Academy ’15*
Morgan Kiss (Holland, Mich.), Yale University ’15*
Erika Reineke (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.), Boston College ’16*
Robert Hobbs Trophy for Sportsman of the Year:
Finalist and runner-up, Mary Hall ’15, United States Naval Academy
Winner, Kieran Chung ’15, Stanford University
Quantum Women’s Sailor of the Year:
Finalist and runner-up, Ericka Reineke ’16, Boston College
Winner, Morgan Kiss ’15, Yale University
Marlow Ropes Sailor of the Year:
Finalist and runner-up, Graham Landy ’15, Yale University
Winner, Nevin Snow ’16, Georgetown University
The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) is the governing authority for sailing competition at colleges and universities throughout the United States and in some parts of Canada. Visit www.collegesailing.org to learn more.
The ICSA sponsors and partners through the 2014-2015 are: LaserPerformance (www.laserperformance.com), title sponsor of “LaserPerformance Men’s and Women’s Singlehanded National Championship”, title sponsor of “LaserPerformance College Sailing Team Race National Championship” and Official Boat Supplier of the ICSA Spring National Championships. Sperry (www.sperry.com), title sponsor of the “Sperry College Sailing Women’s National Championship”. Gill North American (gillna.com), title sponsor of “The Gill College Sailing National Championship”. Quantum Sail Design Group (www.quantumsails.com), official sponsor of the “Quantum Women’s College Sailor of the Year”. Marlow Ropes (www.marlowropes.com), presenting Sponsor of the “Marlow Ropes College Sailor of the Year Award” and “Official Rope of College Sailing”. Beneteau (www.beneteau.com), “Sponsor of the College Sailing Scoreboard”. North Sails (www.northsails.com), “Supporting Sponsor of the ICSA National Championships”. US Sailing (www.ussailing.org), “Supporting Sponsor of the ICSA National Championship Semi-finals”.
Sail1Design Becomes Official Marketplace of USODA & C420 Class Associations
June 22, 2015, Annapolis, MD – Sail1Design is pleased to announce that our integrated, free, by-owner Classified Marketplace has been chosen by both the US Optimist Class Association, and the US Club 420 Class Association, to be the official marketplace and classified ad supplier. These ads are free to post and place, and there are no hidden fees, anywhere, ever. Each class now has its own sub-category, and will appear also in the section for boats under 25′. Here are links to the class-specific Marketplace pages:
Club 420 Class
Optimist Class 
ABOUT Sail1Design
Sail1Design is a grassroots organization, by sailors for sailors, dedicated to the one-design, youth, high school, college, and one-design sailing communities. Born in 2007, Sail1Design has grown considerably, and reaches out to all sailors wishing to enjoy and learn more about our sport. We have three main areas of business:
SAILING/MARINE INDUSTRY CAREER CENTER & JOB BOARD
We offer sailing’s #1 Career Center and Job Board, always chock full of incredible sailing job opportunities. Our comprehensive career center also offers job seekers the ability to create their own web page, highlighting their experience and posting their resume. Likewise, employers can search our resume database to find the right match for that open position. Sail1Design is proud also to be the official job board of the Intercollegiate Sailing Association (ICSA), the US High School Sailing Association (ISSA), and US Sailing.
MARKETPLACE & PROFESSIONAL BROKERAGE
Unique to the industry, Sail1Design hosts and manages an active private, by-owner marketplace, focusing on performance and one-design sailboats & gear. For all boats under 25′, our ads are free. What makes us different is that we also provide, side-by-side, professional brokerage services as well. We have had great success helping our sailing clients market and sell their boats, using our powerful client base, social media, and the brokerage industries multiple listing service to ensure your boat gets noticed.
AIRWAVES NEWS & CALENDAR
S1D also hosts Airwaves, an interactive, user fed Sailing Calendar and informative Sailing News, Articles, tips, & more. Airwaves has developed a great niche in the sailing publication world, and now boasts a seven-member staff of dedicated sailors, all contributing to our varied content.
2015 505 Wickford Regatta Results & Report
By Craig Thompson – Eleven teams made their way to the first Region 1 regatta of the season. The Wickford Regatta takes place annually at the start of the season and never disappoints with great sailing, great race management, and great food. This year, the 505’s were sharing the Bravo course with the F18 catamarans. It was a great opportunity for sailors to shake off the rust from the long New England winter and get back out on the race course.
To learn more about the 505, and see this article there, go to http://www.505tanktalk.com/ )
Day 1 greeted sailors with a strong Northerly breeze, which is very atypical for this venue. 4 races were sailed in winds ranging from 8-14 knots. The wind was strongest in the first race of the day and moderated slightly in races 2-4 of the series. The forecast was for a much stronger breeze than what we saw on the racecourse. 505 newcomer Tracy Smith, sailing with Drew Buttner had a strong day, making great tactical decisions and showing good speed around the course. Craig Thompson and Mike Curtin had good speed, especially in the higher end of the wind range, but could not stay in front of the Smith and Buttner toward the end of the day. Tom Kivney and Gordon Russell ended the day with a strong 2nd place finish.
Day 2 started with a brief postponement on shore as the southerly thermal began to develop. 3 races were sailed in moderate seabreeze ranging from 10-14 knots. Drew Buttner had a new skipper for Sunday, but the same results; 505 legend Tim Collins made a guest appearance back in the boat and the team posted a strong 1-1-3 scoreline to seal the regatta win. Tom and Gordon posted the second best score of the day to challenge Craig and Mike for the second place position. The displaced Irishmen Peter Scannell and John Dunlea showed great downwind speed and were always in the mix.
Day 1 greeted sailors with a strong Northerly breeze, which is very atypical for this venue. 4 races were sailed in winds ranging from 8-14 knots. The wind was strongest in the first race of the day and moderated slightly in races 2-4 of the series. The forecast was for a much stronger breeze than what we saw on the racecourse. 505 newcomer Tracy Smith, sailing with Drew Buttner had a strong day, making great tactical decisions and showing good speed around the course. Craig Thompson and Mike Curtin had good speed, especially in the higher end of the wind range, but could not stay in front of the Smith and Buttner toward the end of the day. Tom Kivney and Gordon Russell ended the day with a strong 2nd place finish.The dinner on Saturday night was excellent and included barbecue chicken with all the fixin’s and homemade ice cream sandwiches for dessert. Wickford Yacht Club does an excellent job with running this regatta with a great support group of members and volunteers. Please consider attending this event next year if you have not done it yet; you will not be disappointed.
Day 2 started with a brief postponement on shore as the southerly thermal began to develop. 3 races were sailed in moderate seabreeze ranging from 10-14 knots. Drew Buttner had a new skipper for Sunday, but the same results; 505 legend Tim Collins made a guest appearance back in the boat and the team posted a strong 1-1-3 scoreline to seal the regatta win. Tom and Gordon posted the second best score of the day to challenge Craig and Mike for the second place position. The displaced Irishmen Peter Scannell and John Dunlea showed great downwind speed and were always in the mix.The next Region 1 event is the Newport Regatta July 11-12. The schedule for this season in Region 1 is fantastic so please be sure to consider making the effort to come enjoy the great sailing New England has to offer in July and August!
All photos copyright Cate Brown Photography. l Fulgallery: http://www.catebrownphoto.com/#!/portfolio/C0000LDcwxFmyyag/G0000qdA837ouzkw
Event Website: http://wickford.sailspace.net/
Final Results:
Pos, Sail, Skipper/Crew, Results, Total Points
1. 8830, Tracy Smith/Tim Collins/Andrew Buttner, 2-1-1-1-1-1-[3]- ; 7
2. 8854, Craig Thompson/Michael Curtin, 1-2-2-3-[4]-3-2- ; 13
3. 9005, Thomas Kivney/Gordon Russell, 3-3-[4]-2-2-4-1- ; 15
4. 8987, Peter Scannell/John Dunlea, [12/DNC]-7-3-5-3-2-5- ; 25
5. 8821, Michael Komar/Carson Turowski, 4-5-5-[7]-5-5-6- ; 30
6. 8808, Ben Greenfield/John Ingalls, [12/DNC]-4-10-6-8-6-4- ; 38
7. 7773, Duane Delfosse/Sol Marini , 6-6-6-[8]-6-8-8- ; 40
8. 6985, Michael Breton/Unknown, 7-[9]-9-9-7-7-7- ; 46
9. 8184, Whit Duncan/Unknown, 5-[10]-8-10-9-9-9- ; 50
10. 8939, John Wyles/Gareth Fletcher, [12/DNC]-11-7-4-10-10-10- ; 52
11. 8767, Dylan Breton/Kelly Shea, 8-8-[12/DNC]-12/DNC-12/DNC-12/DNC-12/DNC- ; 64
Pos, Sail, Skipper/Crew, Results, Total Points
1. 8830, Tracy Smith/Tim Collins/Andrew Buttner, 2-1-1-1-1-1-[3]- ; 7
2. 8854, Craig Thompson/Michael Curtin, 1-2-2-3-[4]-3-2- ; 13
3. 9005, Thomas Kivney/Gordon Russell, 3-3-[4]-2-2-4-1- ; 15
4. 8987, Peter Scannell/John Dunlea, [12/DNC]-7-3-5-3-2-5- ; 25
5. 8821, Michael Komar/Carson Turowski, 4-5-5-[7]-5-5-6- ; 30
6. 8808, Ben Greenfield/John Ingalls, [12/DNC]-4-10-6-8-6-4- ; 38
7. 7773, Duane Delfosse/Sol Marini , 6-6-6-[8]-6-8-8- ; 40
8. 6985, Michael Breton/Unknown, 7-[9]-9-9-7-7-7- ; 46
9. 8184, Whit Duncan/Unknown, 5-[10]-8-10-9-9-9- ; 50
10. 8939, John Wyles/Gareth Fletcher, [12/DNC]-11-7-4-10-10-10- ; 52
11. 8767, Dylan Breton/Kelly Shea, 8-8-[12/DNC]-12/DNC-12/DNC-12/DNC-12/DNC- ; 64
The Genesis of One Design Success: Planting Seeds for the Future
This past weekend, Severn Sailing Association & the Annapolis Vanguard 15 fleet hosted the 2015 Mid-Atlantic Championship. In years past, one would expect V-15’s to arrive en masse, on car tops, on trailers, all filled with college-age & post-college sailors, ready to do battle, and ready to have fun.
The Vanguard 15 became a very successful one design sailboat, primarily with the collegiate/post-collegiate sailing crowd. V-15 Midwinters, team races, and summer events often attracted 50+ boats, and incredible competition. These events had a summer open-air Woodstock feel; fun and excitement on the water was surpassed only by the fun off of it. This Bob Ames design was a hit; the V-15 is a great boat, which fit the crowd perfectly; simple to rig & maintain, keeping costs as low as possible, open, easy cockpit, boats even in speed, and they sail really well, planing in 10 knots and above. Good times.
Sadly, the class, as it was conceived, has all-but evaporated, as the new boat assembly line, and parts and sails, stopped production. But that’s another topic. To learn more about the history of the class, and what happened, visit this article “Elegy for the V-15: Good Things Do End, But That’s OK”.
So what to do with all of these V-15 hulls, and better yet, memories of great events? The 2015 V-15 Mid-Atlantics, then, one might think, would be dead on arrival. No interest, no one traveling, and, no regatta.
Not so fast. In comes Severn Sailing Association, and the Annapolis V-15 Fleet. Their response, led by new Fleet Captain Tim Herzog, and his wife Jennifer, was not only to keep this great boat alive, but re-invent the events. Times change. You see, many of those collegiate and post-collegiate sailors, who enjoyed the class and the boat in younger, carefree 20-something days, well, they got married, and had kids. Life gets in the way, there’s less time for sailing, have to find babysitters, it’s easy to say goodbye to weekend sailing…. unless….
Wait! Why not bring them along?? In fact, why not make the kids, who represent the future of the sport, the focus? Seems the venerable V-15, so perfect for team racing, and tight one-design racing among college stars, also fits a lot of kids, comfortably!!
Bingo! So this year’s event featured several former standout college sailors, along with their wives/husbands, and kids: Matt Schubert (Kings Point), Ian Burman (Georgetown), Julie Younger Sitzmann (US Naval Academy), Lori Plumb Schubert (U. New Hamsphire), Tim Herzog (St. Mary’s College). Along with a few “normal” teams, the event also attracted a few current college sailors, all from the US Naval Academy: Alex Asuncion, Mike Popp, and Gary Prieto.
With age ranges out there from 4 to 10, the “future stars” of sailing enjoyed a perfect day on the water. Smiles were everywhere on the course, which featured 7-14 knots and beautifully sunny skies. A few marks, to top it off, were equipped with candy. So, in this race, hitting a mark was a sugar-filled bonus!
Afterward, the fleet convened and awarded trophies for A, B, and C Divisions. This creative (and brilliant) scoring system allowed everyone to feel like they made a difference out on the water.
A Division: Open
B Division: Crew skippers this division
C Division: Must have someone under 12 driving the boat
Near the end of a long, sunny day of racing, as most of the kid-filled boats had happily sailed in to prepare for the planned scavenger hunt (designed by Jennifer Herzog) and the fleet dinner party, it was down to 3 boats remaining for the last race. In a nice sign for the future, a 10 year old skipper won it*; a perfect way to end the day.
*The editor did notice that the other two boats in this last race, skippered by US Naval Academy sailors, with no kids aboard, ran into rather interesting problems (lost sunglasses on one boat, and hitting a mark on another) during the race, which allowed the 10 year old to pass, and win. This was a subtle act, but a very thoughtful gesture that gave a young sailor a great thrill, and fit the philosophy of the event perfectly.
Great going to Severn Sailing Association, The Annapolis V-15 Fleet, and Fleet Captains Tim & Jennifer Herzog. It could have been easy to walk away from the V-15, and let the boat fade away with its younger, rowdy memories. Instead, the boat has new life, in a new format, and with proud parents looking on and engaged, the Vanguard 15 is making new sailors fall in love with our sport. I can’t imagine a better fate for a one design class.
I was able to catch up with Fleet Captain Tim Herzog, and get his take on the event:
- How was this event conceived?
It evolved from an idea that Alon Finkelstein had this winter to “rebrand” the fleet as a family fleet. Acknowledging that many of us who sailed the boat in the past now have young families (and a different lifestyle), it seemed we needed to make our monthly scored events non-weekend events (now Tuesday nights). And we thought we could still be ambitious with one weekend event, but after conducting a survey… it seemed one day would be much more feasible than two.
We toyed with ideas of team-racing, or A/B division events. We got excited about maybe having separate teams sail A division, so that kids could have breaks and play together on land, but we abandoned that idea for this first go at it. Logistically, it would have been hard, since we have to sail out a little ways in Annapolis to stay clear of motor boat traffic.
- How would you rate its success?
I think it was a success! I think we balanced giving good sailors an opportunity to have strong (but low-key) competition with opportunities for kids to have a taste of racing that didn’t feel extreme or intimidating.
- Do you think this event will happen again for the V15 fleet next year?
I imagine we’ll do something similar again. I’d love for everyone to put on their thinking caps and give feedback or ideas. I could envision having a rotation boat or two, so that kids could have breaks.
- Would you recommend this type of event for other one-design classes?
I would definitely recommend this format for other classes. Keep it simple and fun. Be realistic with everyone’s capabilities. And remember some of your biggest goals…like having kids walk away from the experience as psyched or more psyched about sailing.
SSA Vanguard 15 Fleet
Vanguard 15 Class Association
Chalk Talk Video: ICSA Season Wrap Up at Nationals
2015 MARLOW ROPES COLLEGE SAILOR OF THE YEAR AND OTHER HONORS AWARDED
NEWPORT, R.I. (June 4, 2015) – At an awards ceremony following racing for the Gill Coed National Championship at the Sail Newport Waterfront Center at Fort Adams and New York Yacht Club, the honors for the Marlow Ropes College Sailor of the Year, Robert H. Hobbs Sportsmanship Award and the Leonard M. Fowle Trophy for the Best Overall Team were presented. The names of the winners will be added to the ICSA Hall of Fame display located in the Robert Crown Center at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
The Everett B. Morris Trophy is awarded annually to the Marlow Ropes College Sailor of the Year for outstanding performance at the highest level of sailing in the collegiate year. The trophy is named in memory of a distinguished journalist who spent more than 30 years, as a yachting writer and editor. This year there were two finalists for the prestigious award: Nevin Snow (San Diego, Calif.), a junior at Georgetown University and Graham Landy (Norfolk, Va.), a senior at Yale University.
Although both sailors have had incredible years, the winner, calculated by the numbers is Nevin Snow. Snow placed first with his team at the Match Race National Championship, fifth at the Men’s Singlehanded National Championship, fifth overall and third in A-division with his team at the 2015 Gill Coed National Championship. He also finished fifth with his team at the 2015 LaserPerformance Team Race National Championship.
Snow was named an All-American for the 2013 season, his freshman year at Georgetown and also for the 2014 season. Snow has already had an impressive collegiate sailing career as a junior.
“I am ecstatic – a little surprised – but relieved,” says Snow of the award. “It [college sailor of the year] is something that I have thought about, after being a finalist last year,” he says. “But it has not been on my mind over the last days of competition,” he continues, “Especially after the other finalist, Graham Landy, has sailed so well.”
Snow credits his coaches, Mike Callahan and Janel Zarkowsky, with being his biggest supporters.
“It’s a long year in college sailing,” says Mike Callahan, “Everyone thinks of the spring championships as the big events, but there are six championships and Nevin has done well in all of them,” says Callahan. “What makes him great is his ability to excel in all types of boats and all types of conditions,” says Callahan.
Georgetown has had numerous College Sailors of the Year over the last few years. “We have done a good job of having our good sailors impart their wisdom and abilities down to the next generation of sailors,” he says.
Snow grew up sailing in San Diego and says that his parents got him into the sport. “My Dad works for North Sails and my Mom did an Olympic campaign in the 470,” he says. It’s in his blood.
Snow is studying physics and math at Georgetown and will graduate next spring. In the meantime he has one more year of college sailing.
“I can’t wait for next year,” Snow says. “We have a lot of new freshman coming in and as sad as we are to lose our seniors, we are excited for what’s new and next,” he says.
The winner of the Leonard M. Fowle Trophy for best overall collegiate team is College of Charleston. Georgetown University was second and Boston College was third in line for the trophy. The team with the most Fowle points, which are compiled results of the ICSA Women’s Singlehanded, Men’s Singlehanded, Match Racing, Coed Semi-Finals, Women’s, Team Racing, and Coed National Championships, determines the Fowle trophy.
Charleston had a successful competitive year including placing 8th place at the Women’s Singlehanded National Championship, first at the Men’s Singlehanded National Championship, fifth at the Match Race Nationals, fifth at the 2015 Sperry Women’s National Championship, fourth at the 2015 LaserPerformance Team Race National Championship, first in the 2015 Eastern Gill Coed Semi-Finals and 4th at the 2015 Gill Coed National Championship.
The Robert H. Hobbs Sportsmanship Award is awarded annually to the Sportsman of the Year. The trophy honors Robert Hobbs (MIT ’64), past Executive Vice President of ICSA, past President of U.S. Sailing (1992-1994), and former chair of the U.S. Sailing Olympic Committee.
This year’s finalists are Kieran Chung (Newport Beach, Calif.) a senior at Stanford University and Mary Hall (Seminole, Fla.), a senior at the U.S. Naval Academy, both of whom have shown outstanding sportsmanship during their collegiate sailing career. This year’s winner is Kieran Chung.
“This is a huge surprise,” says Chung, “I never thought I would receive it,” he says. “It is humbling to be named with past recipients of this award – especially Adam Roberts who was a coach at Stanford – it is a unique award and I am really proud,” says Chung.
Chung grew up sailing in Newport Beach, Calif. at Newport Harbor Yacht Club after his grandparents suggested he give it a try at age 13.
In addition to Chung’s excellent college sailing record, he was named an All-American in 2014. Chung will graduate on June 14th from Stanford with a major in Biomechanical Engineering and plans to apply to medical school.
“I definitely want to continue to sail,” says Chung. “I will be team racing this summer domestically and in England and hope to pick up another class that will be fun to sail in the future,” he says.
The Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association (ICSA) is the governing authority for sailing competition at colleges and universities throughout the United States and in some parts of Canada. Visit www.collegesailing.org to learn more.
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YALE SWEEPS ALL 3 NATIONALS, & WINS GILL COED NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!
NEWPORT, R.I. (June 4, 2015) – Today was the last day of the Gill Coed Dinghy National Championship, co-hosted by Brown University, Salve Regina University and New York Yacht Club. This is the last of three high caliber spring college sailing national championships that were run out of the Sail Newport Waterfront Center at Fort Adams. After four days of intense competition Yale University has won the national title and the Henry A. Morss Memorial Trophy.
The sailors hit the water to begin racing this morning, but the winds were too light and the current was too strong, so racing was postponed for a couple of hours. By 11:15 a.m. racing began. A steady southeasterly breeze filled in and built to around 8-12 knots with higher gusts this afternoon. The sun was out and temperatures stayed around 60 degrees.
The race committee was able to complete nine races today in both divisions for a total of 18 races for the regatta. A-division sailed in Z420s and B-division sailed in FJs today. The sailors competed on windward-leeward four leg courses.
Yale finished 68 points ahead of second place overall and won the Henry A. Morss Memorial Trophy, which was donated by a group of nationally known yachtsmen as a memorial to Henry A. Morss, a Boston yachtsman and 1907 Bermuda Race winner, as well as an MIT alumnus and benefactor.
“It feels amazing,” says Bill Healy, assistant coach for Yale of their win. Yale swept the 2015 series of spring national championships, something that has not been done since 1991 when the U.S. Naval Academy won the women’s, team race and coed events. It is also the second year in a row that Yale won this coed dinghy championship.
“We had the same skippers last year and then got to practice with this team, including the women’s team, all year – and had great, great practices,” Healy says. “It’s been an amazing year,” he says.
“Today we had a pretty good gap between second place, so we were pretty calm,” Healy says. “The only bit of stress was that Graham [Landy] and Katherine [Gaumond] were probably a little overpowered in the Z420 today, but they were comfortable to stay together,” he says.
“Everyone is really ecstatic and we have a lot of parents here celebrating too,” Healy says, “Brown and Salve ran an awesome event.”
Sailing for Yale: Graham Landy ’15 with Katherine Gaumond ’15 and Charlotte Belling ’16 in A-division and Ian Barrows ’17 with Meredith Megarry ’17 and Clara Robertson ‘17 in B-division.
U.S. Coast Guard Academy held onto second place after yesterday and finished 10 points ahead of third place overall and won the Oxford University Trophy. It has been many years since Coast Guard has been on the podium for this event.
The Oxford University Trophy is awarded to the second place team in the Gill Coed Dinghy National Championship. The Oxford University Yacht Club team and its captain Jeremy Thomas presented this trophy in 1954 on the occasion of the first of a continuing series of college regattas between British and North American teams held alternately in the United States and Great Britain every two years.
“We are thrilled – it’s been decades since the school has been on the podium,” says Brian Swingly, head coach for Coast Guard. “We were comfortable in the conditions and especially this afternoon, the conditions were similar to our New England championships a few weeks ago,” Swingly says.
“We were calm today because we knew we had time to get races in and that the wind would fill – we were antsy to get going,” Swingly explains.
“We have a pretty young team and are happy with how things came together at the end of this season and are excited to continue and improve next year,” he says.
Sailing for Coast Guard: Avery Fanning ’16 with Robert Turley ’16 and Hannah Herring ’18 in A-division and Nikole Barnes ’17 with Jennifer Lane ’15 and Andrew Britton ’16 in B-division.
Boston College finished in third place, for the second year in a row, winning the Metropolitan Sailing League Trophy, which was first presented in 1971. Boston College had an incredible day today and climbed up the scoreboard to third from finishing yesterday in ninth place.
“We didn’t talk about doing anything special today other than to do what we practice,” says Greg Wilkinson, head coach for Boston College. “The difference between today and yesterday, is that yesterday we didn’t do that,” Wilkinson says.
“It was a great fleet, very strong and it was a game of inches – one third of a boat length could make a huge difference on the starting line,” Wilkinson says.
“As proud as I am of my team, the story is Yale, who accomplished what a lot of teams set out to accomplish every year and it’s something that hasn’t been done in over 20 years,” he says.
Sailing for Boston College: Raul Rios ’16 with Allison Ferraris ’17 and Alex Palfrey ‘17 in A-division and William Bailey ’15 with Katherine Wysocki ’15 in B-division.
The Robert Allan, Sr. and Robert Allan, Jr. Trophies are awarded to the low point “A” and “B” teams, respectively, in the Gill Coed Dinghy National Championship. Graham Landy ’15 with Katherine Gaumond ’15 and Charlotte Belling ’16 from Yale won A-division with 104 points, six points ahead of second place. Ian Barrows ’17 with Meredith Megarry ’17 and Clara Robertson ’17, also from Yale, won B-division with 82 points, 49 points ahead of second place.
FINAL OVERALL RESULTS
1. Yale University, 186
2. U.S. Coast Guard Academy, 255
3. Boston College, 265
4. College of Charleston, 299
5. Georgetown University, 314
6. St. Mary’s College of Maryland, 319
7. Roger Williams University, 324
8. U.S. Naval Academy, 325
9. Tufts University, 339
10. Old Dominion University, 340
11. Stanford University, 344
12. USMMA Kings Point, 355
13. Brown University, 387
14. Fordham University, 392
15. Harvard University, 415
16. Bowdoin College, 426
17. SUNY Maritime, 430
18. University of Wisconsin, 442
To learn more about the teams competing in all of the events and to follow the racing and results visit the event website: http://2015nationals.collegesailing.org/.
