A quote from Ed Adams

A recent article in Sailing World quoted multi-class National, World and Olympic champion Ed Adams. When asked by parents "How can I make my kid be the next Olympian, the next gold medalist?," his reply was that "...doing well in sailing is probably 25 percent athletic ability. And it's probably 25 percent preparation: taking the kid to regattas, getting him good equipment, hiring him some good coaches. And it's 50 percent ambition and drive, which is not something you can purchase."

The quote struck me as something our team needs to focus on. No, we will probably not be producing Olympians. Look instead at the quote as a roadmap on how to get better. Yes, there are some physical aspects of dinghy sailing that are advantageous: flexibility in drifters,  light weight in moderate conditions, height and upper body/ hand strength when it blows. The "good equipment" comment is pretty much a non-issue for high school sailing since we rotate boats, but at least now we have our own equipment. It's the 50 percent "ambition and drive" that will allow us to have the greatest improvement and that's on you.

As winter approaches, sailing small boats winds down, but if you have the will you can still improve. First, keep up with all school work. Then keep in shape physically. Excess weight is seldom useful. Cross training with other sports is advised. Study the Racing Rules. Read articles on techniques specific to small boats. Think sailing. Look for opportunities to sail (it would be on a keel boat, or in a mid-winters regatta in Florida.)

We will get on the water again in the late spring/early summer!

Cross Posting from the Rowing team blog

For those who might be interested in "big boats," i.e., not dinghies, I'm cross posting from the rowing blog. Jay O'Brien is the assistant coach of the school's rowing team. In addition to his skill in teaching  and coaching rowing he has lots of experience in sailing onboard a Swan 44 out of New York. Recently he competed in the Rolex Middle Sea race in the Mediterranean Sea. I posted about his adventures, reproduced below.

Congrats to Coach O'Brien!

Coach O'Brien is the navigator on Triple Lindy, a Swan 44. The crew just won their division in the esteemed Rolex Middle Sea Race in the Mediterranean Sea. This year's race had conditions that were called "gnarly" by one website and on the Triple Lindy team blog the crew reported "dropping off a 30 foot wave."

Triple Lindy, with a dark blue hull and carbon sails, nailed the leeward end of the start for her class, shown at 2:14 in this video and at 0:28 in this one, and then went on to defeat 21 other IRC Class 5 yachts. She finished 10th overall of 70 starters in (ORC - Offshore Racing Congress) and 13th overall of 91 starters (in IRC.).

 Since the owner is retiring this boat, it was the last race for the boat with this crew.

The picture below show Triple Lindy entering Malta Harbor five minutes from the finish. Coach O'Brien is on the rail wearing the yellow trous.

Here is the link to the team blog. Congrats to the whole crew!

JV Championships

On Saturday, November 4th, Zach, Gus and Tyler braved some cool and brisk conditions on Mill Creek and competed in an eighteen boat JV Championships. The aeronometer at the Willoughby degaussing station recorded breezes 15-20 during the racing. The bay water temperature had dropped to 68 degrees, the coolest we've seen all season.

Here is the summary report from the regatta organizers:

Saturday, November 4:

Eighteen teams from 11 VISA schools met on the coast of Mill Creek at historic Fort Monroe for the final JV regatta of the season. Overcast and damp but not raining, at a raw 60 degrees F, seas were lumpy, an winds held at NE 10-12 mph with higher gusts and minor oscillations. JV sailors competed aggressively, many continuing competition in good spirits well after they were drenched by righting their vessels.

Six W-4 races were completed in a single division allowing for sailors to rotate in as needed every 2 races. One protest by Norfolk Academy in Race 3 resulted in a DSQ For Grafton Team 1 for failing to honor a starboard tacker.

Congratulations to Norfolk Academy for finishing in first place, followed by Poquoson Team 2 in second, and Hampton High School in third place.

A number of boats capsized and retired, but Zach and crew stayed upright and finished every race. Our finishes were  9-12-11-12-12-11 placing us 12th of 18, our highest overall finish of the year.

Thanks to Mr. Suhr who acted as "coach" and adult representative

 and to Mrs. Bromley for the pictures.

VISA Fleet Championships

Our three seniors -  A Sabrina between two Matts...

The last regatta of the season was held at Fort Monroe on a warm fall day. Here is the summary from the race organizers:

Wind built all day from the south to 10 knots with gusts to 12. Sunny, with 0.5 ft waves. There were 18 boats on the water representing 15 schools. The top three overall winners (in order) are: Norfolk Collegiate; Christ Church School; Norfolk Collegiate. The top three finishes in A Division are: Norfolk Collegiate; Christ Church School; and Nansemond Suffolk Academy. The top three finishes in B Division are: Christ Church School; Norfolk Collegiate; and Norfolk Collegiate. A total of 9 races were sailed in each division.

Here are our results, first in A division,

 then in B Division:

Note that, in general, our finishes got better as the day wore on, with Josh's 6th in the last race as the best of the day.

Pics from the day:

Scrimmage at Fort Monroe

We sailed nine races in light winds. I was the Principal Race Officer and tried to set start lines that were long enough for each boat to get a front row start. The wind dropped out during the first race and many boats gave up and paddled back resulting in DNF scores. We sailed in four boats (of the 18 racing.) Our finishes are below:

The top boat:

Our 2nd highest boat:

Our 3rd highest boat:

Our 4th boat:

Our next races will be this coming weekend: The VISA Fleet champs on Saturday morning at Fort Monroe and the VISA JV Champs on Sunday afternoon, again at Fort Monroe. We will be given only one A/B pair for the Fleet Champs and only one boat for the JV Champs.  Specific skipper/crew combinations are to be determined.

A Fleeting Moment

Friday after lunch Susan, my wife, and I drove up to Cape Cod where two 420s were for sale about 10 miles apart. A third was in Mystic, CT. I floated three checks to make the buys. We drove back with a fleet of three: one on the roof with three masts and two on a trailer that was included with one of the boats. After swapping out tires and futzing with trailer lights in the rain we got on the road about 2:00 pm Saturday. We got back home at 3:30 am on Sunday.

Also included in the purchases were dollies, four suits of sails, an extra centerboard and rudder, and trapeze/spinnaker gear. I'll spend the winter getting each standardized and next season, assuming we find water access, we'll be able to write our own practice schedule.

JV Regatta at Poquoson

Saturday October 7th saw most of the varsity members unavailable to compete, so we took the 9th and 10th graders to a dedicated JV regatta. Zach had our highest finishes of the year (a 4th and a 5th). He and Gus traded places at the helm and when one of them wasn't act as a crew we had Tyler pulling the jib sheet. Here is the commentary from the regatta organizers and the overall placings:

A seasonally warm 85 degree day greeted 12 Junior Varsity teams from 10 schools with morning winds at 5-10mph with lulls, clocking to due east at 8-12mph with higher gusts by the time racing concluded at 1:30. Sailors completed 8 races on a W4 course.

Norfolk Academy took first place, followed by Walsingham Academy in second place, and Grafton High School in third place.

We extend great thanks to the Poquoson and Walsingham teams for hosting, to Charlie Brewer for serving as PRO, and especially to the Poquoson Fire Department for allowing the use of their fire boat as the committee boat.

More pics from Mrs Bromley:

The shot below was by Suzanne Krieger from Poquoson. Thanks, Suzanne!

Regatta Results from 30 Sept at NYCC

We sailed at NYCC in more much breeze than we've had there all season. Due to death rolls downwind and the gusty conditions, there were at least a half dozen capsizes, but all of our boats stayed upright. Here is the description of the conditions from the regatta organizers:

     Another perfect regatta day on the Lafayette River brought blue skies, lumpy seas, and winds 10-16 mph with gusts higher out of the NNW clocking to NNE with minor oscillations.

     On the varsity course 27 teams representing 15 schools completed 7 races in each of 2 divisions on a W4/W3 with gate course. Norfolk Collegiate Team 1 captured first place, followed by Nansemond-Suffolk Academy in second, and Norfolk Academy in third place.

Below are the results, first from Crusaders 1 (the juniors and seniors) :

Skipper/Crew combinations and finishes. There were 27 boats.

A1-4 Charlie/Mark 25, 22, 23, 25

B1-4 Matt/Maggie 21, 17, 20, 26

A5-6 Jake/Mark 25, 25

B5-6 Maggie/Matt 25, 23

A7 Jake/Charlie 11

B7 Matt/Maggie 10

Note that our best finishes were at the end of the day.

Here are the finishes from Crusaders 2 (the freshmen and sophomores.) There were 27 boats.

Again, the skipper/crew combinations and finishes:

A1-4 Josh/Tyler 24, 25, 26, 21

B1-7 Zach/Oliver 26, 22, 25, 27, 24, 25, 21

A5-7 Josh/Gus 24, 24, 21

Note again that our best finishes were at the end of the day.

23 September regatta results

Were were again at NYCC for a fleet regatta. Here is the description of the conditions from the regatta organizers: 

    Sailors arrived to another perfect sunny day on the Lafayette River with gentle seas and winds of 10-12 mph out of the N to NNS with minor oscillations.

    On the varsity course, 26 teams representing 15 schools completed 6 W4/W3 races in each division. Christchurch School Team 1 took first place, followed by Christchurch School Team 2 in second, and Norfolk Collegiate School Team 1 in third place.

We entered four boats. Here are the results for Crusaders1:

Our skipper/crew combinations with their finishes were (26 boats racing):

A1-6 Charlie/Mark 24, 20, 22, 24, 21, 23

B1-6 Jake/Matt M. 18, 24, 8, 19, 23, 16

Here are the results for Crusaders2:

Our skipper/crew combinations with their finishes were (26 boats racing):

A1 Maggie/Zack 26

A2 Zack/Maggie 18

A3-4 Zach/Tyler 25, 25

A5-6 Maggie/Tyler 26, 25

B1-6 Josh/Oliver 16, 17, 21, 22, 18, 25

Regatta results 16 September

Sailing at NYCC for the first fleet race this year, we entered one varsity A/B pair and one JV boat in the regatta. Here is the report from the regatta organizers:

    Sailors were met with a beautiful clear day on the Lafayette River with temperatures in the 70's. Breezes were NNE 10-15 mph with gusts higher and some oscillations to the east.

    On the varsity course, twenty-four teams from 15 schools completed 5 W4/W3 races in each division. Norfolk Collegiate Team 1 took first place, followed by Christchurch School Team 1 in second place, Christchurch School Team 2 in third place and Nansemond-Suffolk Academy in fourth place.

    The JV competition saw twelve teams from 9 schools complete 6 W4 races. Norfolk Academy Team 1 took first place, followed by Norfolk Academy Team 2 in second place, Poquoson High School Team 1 in third place, and Walsingham Academy in fourth place.

Here are our varsity results:

Our A/B pairs and their finishes (out of 24 boats) were:

A1-2, 5 Jake/Mark 24, 24, 23

A3-4 Matt L./ Matt M. 23, 22

B1-2 Maggie/Sabrina 23, DNF

B3-4 Charlie/Sabrina 8, 13

B5 Charlie/Maggie 15

Charlie's 8th out of 24 was the highest place we've had all season.

In the JV fleet of 12 we entered one boat. Here are the results:

Races 1-2, 5-6 Zach/Tyler 11, 11, 12, 12 

Races 3-4 Gus/Oliver 12, DNF

As the day wore on we were definitely getting closer to the pack. The JV racing ended at 1:00 p.m.

CCS regatta report 9 September

We had eight team members race at Christchurch on Saturday September 9th. The conditions started around 10-12 knots but by the time racing concluded had built to 15-20. This was certainly more wind than we had sailed in all season and our technique was sloppy at times (including a couple of capsizes.)  The results were less than spectacular. Below are the scores for Crusaders 1 (the juniors and seniors).

The skipper/crew combinations and finishes (of the 11 boats)  were:



A1-6 Jake/Mark DSQ, 8, 4, 5, 5, 8
B1-2 Matt/Gus 4, 8
B3-6 Josh/Gus DSQ, DSQ, DNS, DNS

Note that Jake's DSQ was for not passing through the leeward gate. Josh's scores were counted as DNS/DNQ due to having Matt leave early for the retreat. Sailors cannot compete on different "teams" and Josh was sailing in A division for Crusaders1

Here are the finishes for Crusaders2 (the sophomores and freshmen):

The skipper/crew combinations and finishes (of the 11 boats)  were:

A1-6 Josh/Oliver 7, DSQ, 11, 9, 7, DNF
B1-6 Maggie/Tyler 11, 10, 9, 9, 8, 10

Stop and go drill

We're still working on boat handling and seamanship skills. One skill needed when racing, especially before the start in fleet racing and at turning marks in team racing is the stop and go drill. Key points are identified in the video:

1. The safety position is about 60-70 degrees off the wind (if you point straight into the wind to slow you need to bear off before the boat stops.)
2. Make sure both sails are luffing completely. If the boom is hitting the shroud you're too far off the wind -- head up until the boom comes off the shroud.
3. Get going again by trimming. If you stay 60-70 degrees off the wind you are only close reaching (not beating) and the sail should not be all of the way in. If you come up to a beat both sheets need to come in tight.
4. If the hiking stick seems too long you need to slide forward and out. Your tailbone should be on the rail and your "front" leg should be against the traveler bar. The skipper should tell the crew to place their weight to balance the boat. In light air they should be sitting to leeward.
5. Trim the main using both hands. swing the hiking stick (not the tiller) as you trim in. Keep the sheet under the hiking stick so that the excess falls between your legs. Your "aft" hand is always on the hiking stick and your forward hand is on the sheet.
6. When on the other tack the forward hand still has the sheet and the aft hand has the hiking stick. Make sure you switch hands when tacking and jibing. You need to become ambidextrous!

First session at the Sailing Center

We finally got to attend a session at the Naval Station Sailing Center. Unfortunately, Thor had other ideas. In fact, as we were getting off the bus the siren went off. We spent the session as a "chalk talk" in the classroom primarily discussing team racing. Thanks to Mr. Suhr for acting as our escort.

We expect to get some water time tomorrow!

Light air mothing

We had a short session with Maggie, Zach, and Matt back in some classic moths. I shot some short clips with the goPro. The first clip shows all three sailing downwind in 3-5 knots of wind.

The second clip (in two parts) shows each gybing and the importance of sailing any boat on her lines.

The third shows each reaching. Sail trim and weight placement make a huge difference in light air!

Try outs for skippers

On Monday August 14th, six students demonstrated their skills in classic moth boats. The breeze was light and shifty but when weight was correctly positions the lightweight boats responded well. Each student also performed a capsize and recovery. As the session was ending, the wind stopped, the rain started and we all stayed a bit damp!

Organization meeting for the 2017 fall season

On Thursday, May 18th, we had a short organizational meeting for the upcoming fall sailing season. The following points were emphasized:

(1) All team members need to have completed a school physical. Physicals are being given today at 3:30 as have been advertised for the past few weeks. A pre-physical is required. See the trainer.
(2) All team members must be academically eligible (GPA>2.0). Also note that team membership is very time intensive with ~20 hour/week occupied with practice and regattas. You need to carefully manage studies and extracurriculars.
(3) All team members must be able to commit to the regatta schedule. The schedule has not been published for 2017 yet, but should be similar to last fall's schedule, i.e., most weekends beginning the Saturday after Memorial Day and running through the first weekend in November. If we only have two skippers and one is unable to make s scheduled regatta the team will forfeit participating that week. Yes, I do hope to have more than two skippers so we can have a reserve or two.
(4) All team members must provide a personal flotation device, preferable a Type III.
(5) The team is not a learn-to-sail opportunity. All skippers should be experienced dinghy helmsmen. "Experience" should include participating in fleet races. Boats can be anything from Optis, Sunfish, Lasers, or double-handed dinghies (420s, FJs, etc.) Experience in keel boats only is less useful. Crews should have experience, but it is not absolutely required.
(6) Potential team members should take advantage of summer junior or open regattas to hone skills. Local regattas include Fishing Bay Yacht Club junior regatta on June 24/25, Hampton Yacht Club junior regatta on June 29, and Norfolk Yacht & CC regatta on June30/July 1. Club races (Wednesday night races, for example) are also good. Even one on one match racing can be beneficial.
(7) The anticipated dates of try-outs are August 14, 15 with practice starting on August 16th. Practice last year was M-F from 4:00-6:00. While the exact dates, times, and location are not firm for this coming year, we hopefully will be able to follow a similar schedule.

A roster of students who are expected to participate is:

Sabrina Savage
Jake Kiggans
Matt Lassalle
Matt Marsh
Gus Gustavo
Oliver Hudson
Tyler Kurtz
Charlie Schoening