CNU Sailing

Every season is an adventure, each decidedly different from any previous season. This season could be called “The Season of the Tides.” More than any other, we found ourselves sailing where the tidal currents were a major factor with which we had to deal. It all started in Charleston where the currents can send a fleet out toward the ocean and racing becomes impossible. The America Regatta was sailed at New York Maritime, located on the infamous East River off the Bronx. We sailed the ARMY 2on2 on the Hudson River at West Point where the flow can reach well over 5 knots, and it came close on the weekend we sailed there. The James River, where William & Mary sails, is known to run a bit. But the experience we gained in dealing with these conditions will pay off later.

To put the season in perspective it is important to understand that, unlike other sports, the entire team doesn’t go to every event. Road teams of from four to six are pretty typical for us and we will have our “A” team, “B” team, and even at times a “C” team. What may be a poor finish for the “A” team may be a real triumph for the “B” team.

When our “A” team finished 17th out of 18 at the College of Charleston Spring, we knew we were in for a tough season. We did better at the ODU Spring Regatta finishing 5th out of 14 and our “B” team placed 3rd out of eight at our CNU Invitational. The next week we took second at our own CNU 2on2 Regatta.

At the MAISA/SAISA Regatta at Hampton University our “B” team placed 6th of twelve. The following weekend we returned to Hampton for the Spring Qualifier for the America Trophy Regatta, our MAISA Conference Championship. There, Ben France, Jessica Thal, Lynn Ball, and Tyler Million placed 2nd, six points behind Maryland. Clearly, the “A” team was coming up to speed and at the Ocean County 2on2 at Toms River, New Jersey they easily won the event with a score of 13 wins and one loss.

We knew going the Buckeye Open, to be sailed on Lake Erie, that tidal currents wouldn’t be problem. But we were concerned about sailing on the open waters of the lake at a time of the year when the water temperature and the air temperature were in the low 40s. The 180 degrees of open water proved to be bad news with 30+ knots out of the North and racing was impossible on Saturday. Sunday was better, but the race management wasn’t. Still we initially placed 5th out of 14, but this finish improved to 3rd several days later when two teams failed to properly complete their paper work.

At the America Trophy Regatta we went back to figuring out how to deal with current, as the East River was its usual self. Light winds and strong currents ruled. But still, our “A” team placed 12th out of 18, the same finish we posted at the War Memorial in the fall. But this time we were just two points out of 11th whereas in the fall the margin was 9 points, and we beat our good friends from Maryland by seven points.

At the Colony Cup, hosted by William & Mary, the tides and light wind again determined the racing and whether to sail or not. But our “C” team sailed well, giving us a 4th in the regatta, with Taylor Gray and Lynn Ball winning the A Division.

This was the second year we visited the U.S. Military Academy for the ARMY 2on2. This time it was our “B” team of Maxwell Plarr, Meghan Magee, Brennan Russell, and Tyler Myers who had to deal with the difficult conditions. The winds were as light and as fluky as I have ever seen ANYWHERE. This was combined with a strong tidal flow and difficult courses where the water depths of over 150 feet made setting and maintaining courses very difficult. Still, our 4th place finish was quite good for some of our new sailors.

We finished up the season with the Engineer’s Cup at Webb Institute on the south shore of Long Island Sound. Jessica and Lynn, sailing in A Division, won their division with a ten- point margin. Maxwell, Meghan and Taylor Morgan placed 4th in B Division giving the team second place for the event.

I find myself saying every year, “This is the best team yet.” It certainly can’t always be true, but it seems so and I always end up with regrets that not all will be back for the next season. This fall, all of our key players will be retuning. So, we have a lot to look forward to in the coming season.

Ben, Jessica, Tyler (Henry) Million, and Lynn Ball with Maxwell serving as a backup and heavy weather crew sailed well for us with improvement every time out. Newcomer Tyler Myers (still trying to figure out the difference between sailing with two hulls and one) improved rapidly all spring. Brennan Russell improved dramatically all season. Meghan Magee was a most welcome and pleasant surprise. She, Brennan, and Taylor Morgan were the diamonds in the rough that brightened my spring. They are all going to be of great value to the team next fall.

Taylor Gray wasn’t able to practice regularly due to class scheduling but we called on him to sail at W&M and he performed well. Katlin Kitchen and Dara Gruber were never ready for competition, but they were of incredible value at practice. While not all go to every event, all contribute to the team’s success by making our practices challenging. Katlin was our top academic athlete. Dara will not be able to sail in the fall. Another departing team member is Evan Miller who will be transferring to Ohio State University. Evan is a great guy and a genuine team player. We will miss him. Happily, everyone else on the team will be back in the fall and we have at least five very good prospects who can bump us up in the Middle Atlantic InterCollegiate Sailing Association rankings.

Finally, a word of thanks to our two assistant coaches, Matt Lythgoe and Kate McClintock, is due. They made my job a lot easier and made the team much better. Their value to the team couldn’t be adequately expressed.

The best team ever? Perhaps not, but I wouldn’t have missed this season for anything.

Dan Winters, Coach

Saturday morning arrived with a thick fog, and a light but encouraging breeze despite it.  Preparations were made and racing began at 10:10 am in five knots of breeze from the east (off-shore) and flat seas.  The wind built slightly through the day but remained offshore.  Courses for the day were windward-leewards, twice around.  Racing ended at about 2:30 or 3:00 when a changing weather system instigated a 180 degree shift which left the waters off Webb in a bit of a swirling hole of little to no wind.

Sunday was quite a different day, weather-wise.  Breeze was from the north/north-west (on-shore) at 17-18 knots, creating some challenging wave conditions.  B-fleet started the day up at 10:20 sailing a fast two-lap modified-triangle course.  The wind let up through the morning and courses sailed for the rest of the day were modified Olympics.  Racing ended at 2:30 pm after 10 races per division over the course of the two days.  
Boats sailed both days were 420’s.  No protests were filed.  No breakdowns.

The Engineer’s Cup at Web Institute wrapped up the Spring 2009 season for CNU. Since Jessica and Lynn will be doing some sailing together this summer, we elected to give them this event to tune up for the summer. We were also able to give Maxwell and Meghan some more experience in competition and to give another of our new team members, Taylor Morgan, some valuable sailing time. Both Taylor and Meghan were additions to the team this spring that we coaches view as most fortunate discoveries and they are both going to be valuable players in the coming years. This was our second year sailing in this event and, as with last year, we placed second, not a bad finish and Jessica and Lynn’s first place finish in A Division by a ten point margin was a great prediction of what we should expect for the Fall.

This event was one we enjoyed tremendously last year. But this year it featured conditions that were, honestly, worse than any I have ever seen in 50 years of sailing. The combination of strong tides and light extremely variable winds was incredible. The Army sailing site is great for launching, viewing and team rotations. But located deep in the Hudson River gorge, when the winds are anything but fresh and blowing directly north or south, the shifts and changing velocities can produce some of the most demanding conditions imaginable.

That said, the Army folks are fantastic hosts and we again found this to be a most enjoyable and instructive event. When Monmouth and Drexel no showed, we had six teams and this called for 15 races to complete the full round robin in which each team would sail against each of the others. At the outset, there was hope that we might do two round robins, but the light winds made that an impossibility. The attending teams were Army, CNU, Columbia, Webb Institute, Maryland, and the Royal Military College of Canada.

One of the great things about 2on2 racing is that even with a smaller number of teams, since the racing is one team against another, the actual races do not suffer, although we sail against fewer teams. While Army struggled last year to win a single race, this year they were the class of the fleet. But, going into the last two races of the day on Saturday, if Webb won both (against Columbia and RMC) they would win the regatta. Otherwise Army had the event with four wins. Their only loss was to Webb. Webb beat Columbia and was leading the Royal Military College right to the last mark of the last race. But a penalty 360 cost them the race and the regatta. Army was the very popular winner.

IMAGE: Max and Meghan in #3 and Tyler and Brennan in #1.

The CNU team had its high points and low points, but the tides and the winds did us in. Actually, just running the event was difficult. With tides that can run well over five knots and depths that were over 150 feet, setting marks was a major endeavor. With the amount of scope needed to anchor, we got a major surprise in one race when the tide changed during the race and the committee boat moved nearly 50 yards as it swung from the outgoing tide to the incoming tide! Like all events, win or lose, we learn and for Maxwell Plarr, Meghan Magee, Tyler Myers and Brennan Russell this was a major learning experience. With regard to our tactics and race planning, we did quite well, winning almost every start. But, again, the currents and winds were our undoing and we finished with two wins and 4th place.

Maryland won the tie breaker with a win over Webb and CNU won the tie breaker over RMC by beating them in the race between them.

With the entire round robin completed on Saturday, dire predictions for the weather on Sunday, and exams starting for many of the schools this week, it was decided to call it an event after one day’s racing. After a good night’s sleep we made the long drive back on Sunday.

IMAGE: Sorry, we couldn’t resist doing the team picture in front of this bit of Army ambition.

We extend our most sincere thanks to MAJ Justin Platt and the entire Army Sailing Team for a lot of hard work setting marks, lunch on Saturday, a van tour of the Academy, and the friendly competition that made the whole weekend great fun.