By Martha Pitt
Over the past few years, match racing has really sprung up on the scene and taken the spotlight for one design sailors – the sport has been added to the Olympics on the women’s side, added to College Sailing as the Sloop Championship, and with new efforts in media promotion the America’s Cup has gained popularity. Match racing removes the factors of more money and better equipment between the competitors and comes down to boat speed, crew work, and one-on-one tactics where you either win the race or you lose. Many younger sailors are beginning to break onto the match racing scene both at the local level and worldwide.
One such sailor is Taylor Canfield, the twenty-three year old from St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Last week, Canfield and five of his crew traveled to Long Beach Yacht Club to compete with nine other teams for the 2012 Congressional Cup, one of the most prestigious match racing events in the world. This year, this Grade 1 event was host to seven skippers who are ranked in the top twenty match racers in the world, along with a four-time Congressional Cup Champion, so needless to say the competition was fierce. Canfield, ranked 27th going into the event and one of the youngest skippers there, came out looking to improve on last year’s 10th place finish, and that he did! Canfield finished 3rd at the event, and that makes him this month’s Sail1Designer of the Month.
Canfield has been sailing since he was six years old, starting in the Optimist in the islands, and soon moving up to the Club 420. He has found great success in high school sailing at the Antilles School in the Virgin Islands, and in college sailing at Boston College, leading him teams to great success and winning multiple national championships at both including the very first ICSA Match Race National Championship in 2010. At Boston College, he was also a three-time collegiate All-American and two-time nominee for the College Sailor of the Year. Now living in Chicago, IL, Canfield has committed himself to match racing – he is now the Sailing Director at the Chicago Match Race Center where he is immersed in world-class match racing.
S1D: How has working at the Chicago Match Race Center made a difference in your sailing over the past year?
TC: Working at CMRC has definitely improved my sailing in the past year. While I spend my time coaching, umpiring, training, and competing, I have surrounded myself with every aspect the sport of sailing has to offer. While I spend most of my time coaching, I have been able to see sailing from an outside perspective. Surrounding myself with the rules and coaching others has allowed me to really expand on the fundamentals that I have developed throughout my lifetime. CMRC has also provided me with sufficient time and opportunity to compete in regattas myself. In the off-season, I have been able to expand my horizons while jumping in to sail a Melges24 with CMRC’s founder Don Wilson, as well as compete in some other classes such as Melges32s and Melges20s.
S1D: How long have you been match racing and what about it has made you decide to stick with it?
TC: I have been seriously match racing for about six years, starting around 2006. I love the competitive nature that match racing has to offer. It is exciting and keeps you on your toes as you often find yourself thinking several moves ahead of the situation you are currently in. In match racing, you are forced to focus on several aspects of sailing at once: 1. controlling the other boat as you compete for control 2. boat speed…fastest boat around the course wins, and 3. short course tactical decision making.
S1D: I know that you have a pretty fluid crew from event to event. Who sailed with you at the Congressional Cup this year?
Matt Clark (Chicago, IL; Chicago Yacht Club Head Coach) – Pit/Tactics
Alden Reid (Boston, MA) – Trim
Tod Reynolds (Chicago, IL; CMRC Program Director) – Bow
Jesse Fielding (Newport, RI; Pro-Sailor) – Main Trim/Tactics
Hamish Matthew (Toronto, Canada) – Trim
Other key contributors to Canfield Match Racing: Charlie Enright, Mike Rehe, and Josh McCaffrey
S1D: What were some of the most exciting moments for you during the event?
TC: We had several races that were exciting: beating Ian Williams (2011 World Match Race Tour champion) by two feet in the 1st round robin was really exciting; taking down Gavin Brady (4-time Con. Cup champion) in RR2 also helped us secure our spot in the semi-finals; the final two races in the petite finals to clinch 3rd place over Simone Ferrarese.
S1D: Even the best match racers make mistakes in most races. When you made mistakes, how were you and your crew able to bounce back?
TC: I made LOTS of mistakes. We gave up the lead in our first race in the semi finals vs. Ian Williams. After talking about protecting the right side of the course, I gave it up which lost us the lead and the race. After every race we sat down as a crew and talked about tactical situations, boat handling, and what the breeze was doing. This helped us prepare for the next race while staying mentally in the game.
S1D: This was one of the most competitive events that you have ever sailed. Do you do anything different when you are sailing against such big names in racing, or are you able to go into every race the same?
TC: It is hard to forget the fact that you are about to sail against some of the best match racers in the world. For the time leading up to the pre-start, I find myself thinking about who the guys are but once we begin to engage in the pre-start and the race, I tend to sail them just as I would any other team in the world. It is really important to develop a routine, rules, and strategies amongst your team. If you play by your own rules and have the same routine every race, it should not matter who you are racing. I try to sail every race the same.
S1D: How did it feel finish in third place at such a competitive event?
It was a great feeling to finally break into the top three at a Grade 1 event. I believe that this was a key next step for my team and me as we look to compete on the World Match Race Tour in 2013.
Coming off such a great event to kick off the 2012 season, Canfield Match Racing has many more events lined up for the coming months, so keep your eye out for the Canfield name on the podium and climbing the world rankings. They will be competing in a number of Grade 2 events in t
he U.S. this year, including one hosted by CMRC in the beginning of June. This event is a qualifier for the WMRT event that CMRC will be hosting later in the summer. In addition, they hope to compete in the Detroit Cup, Knickerbocker Cup, the Oakcliff Invitational, the CMRC Invitational, and the Grand Slam Series this summer.
For more information on the team, Like “Canfield Match Racing” on Facebook.
2012 CRYC Opti Spring Fling
