CNU Sailing

Saturday morning started off with a light breeze that increased into the afternoon and brought heavy rains. 10 races were completed. There was little wind Sunday morning and 2 (incredibly) slow races were completed. Trophies were awarded to top three schools and to the top three teams in both A and B divisions.

IMAGE: Taylor & Amy

One might say we are snake bit for this event. We have several times been close to winning the Buckeye, but we never quite make it. One of the most challenging features of this event is the condition of the boats. We once came back from a break to find ours sinking. Nowhere in MAISA would you find a fleet like this with old boats, newer boats, blown out sails, new sails, disintegrating rigging and fiberglass patches all over the place. Boats come from several teams and the condition varies wildly. Since they never can get through a complete rotation of the boats, the luck of the draw may give a team all good boats, all bad boats and a mix. We got the mix this year and led the event after Saturday which ended leaving two B Division races to be sailed in order for he last two A Division races to be scored. Sunday’s wind never got over two (2) knots and without a minimum wind rule as MAISA has (3 knots or there is no start), the committee decided to race regardless. Our misfortune was that the team we had to beat got the fastest boat in the fleet and we got a poor one. Still we could have pulled it off, but our heavier crew of Taylor and Amy just couldn’t do it in the worst drifting conditions I have ever seen in a collegiate regatta.

IMAGE: Matt & Lynn

Still, we had a great time and all the sailors in the top three palled around and the competition was close but always friendly. We really couldn’t say enough about the great hospitality we always receive at OSU, both from the colleges and from the folks at the Hoover Sailing Club. Our trip was made even better with an exceptional Saturday evening dinner at Ben France’s parents house. Ben is currently serving as the team manager, but he’ll be back on the tiller in the fall. Bob and Diane France were terrific hosts – many, many thanks to them.

It was also a good sign of the balance of our team that they placed second in both divisions and overall.

IMAGE: Our team at the Buckeye

With none of the “big teams” stepping up to run this event, John Griffin of William & Mary volunteered. Knowing that the facilities there were not the best for the time of the year, CNU offered to run the event with William Mary’s help and the combination worked well. Saturday was very windy but well handled by most sailors. Winds were from 10 and up to unsailable from the south southwest. We had ten capsizes, five on the way in from the course in the afternoon when the wind went off the scale and the Race Chairman threw in the towel. Six races were completed in A Division and five in B. The course used was the CNU Box (windward, broad reach, windward, beam reach and run). Sunday gave us light winds that didn’t stabilize until after 10 AM. But 11 races were completed, five in A Division and six in B Division, using a heavily modified triangle. Winds settled in from the south southwest and some very close racing resulted. Congratulations to Monmouth University for winning the 2008 Leroy Grant, the first regatta win for one of the newest teams in MAISA.

Special thanks go to all those who helped make the regatta a success. From William & Mary: Coach, John Griffin, Adam Rosen, Beau Blumberg, Bri Paxton, Priscilla Pinckney, Nicholas Kantor, and Jim Donecker. From CNU: Ben France, Taylor Gray, Lynn Ball and Johanna Faroe.

Our most sincere thanks go to Eddie Hornick of Virginia Road and Bridge Supply who funded T shirts for the participants and through William & Mary, the Southern Cross Adaptive Maritime Program and Gary Bodie of U.S. Sailing for providing Saturday’s lunch.

IMAGE: There is nothing wilder than a capsize on the finish line in a blow, but Ben doesn’t seem excited about it at all as he calls the finishes.

On Saturday 8 races in both divisions were completed.  Racing started in an 8kts southerly, which during the day clocked to the north and reached 20kts. Sunday had 6 races completed in both divisions, for a total of 14.  The racing took place in a North Breeze at 6 to 12 kts.

Lots of thanks go out to our guest PRO, Jeff Sullivan, our three judges and all the HWS sailors who helped with the event.

IMAGES: Amy, Matt, and Scott

While we would certainly have liked to post a better finish, to have placed 16th and just 5 points behind our local rival, Hampton University, was a very respectable accomplishment for a team that was quite thin as compared to last year when we also placed 16th. The good news is that all the sailors we lost to class schedule conflicts will be back and we expect to add at least six good prospects. But the season isn’t over yet. We will be sailing at Ohio State next weekend and we still have the 2-on-2 regatta at Army and the Engineers Cup at Webb Institute remaining.

IMAGES: Kate, Max, and Becca