Gibson Island Regatta
Junior Fleet Staff
Laser Team
Cole Canuel and Alex Adams had a great day sailing Lasers at Gibson Island on Wednesday! The AYC lasers towed up to Gibson Island on Wednesday morning for a gorgeous ride up the bay. We had a beautiful sea breeze that built throughout the day, allowing our sailors to work hard toward nice finishes. Both Alex and Cole did a nice job of hiking their boats flat and keeping their strategies simple in an oscillating wind. They also managed to stay fast through some current and chop on the upwinds, and used it to their advantage on the downwinds. Alex excelled in his starts and his fleet management, and he was able to win two races. Cole, who is newer to the laser, has been improving his starts and boat speed. He is starting to consistently finish among the top boats! Alex placed 2nd, and Cole placed 9th in a fleet of 20.
420 Race Team
Gibson Island was a great experience for the sailors who attended. Chase Conway and Zoe Hoctor came away with the win, nearly a picket fence save for one race. Beckett Kumler and Orion Adelman had a strong showing with a second place finish. Ava Cornell and Madeline Amthor had their best regatta of the summer, including nearly winning race four! A great experience all around with a challenging tow home to end the day.
420 Chesapeake Race Team
This past week, the Chessy 420 team competed in Gibson Island Yacht Squadron's Junior Regatta. The team had 11 boats sailing the event out of a 26 boat fleet. Conditions were excellent with a strong breeze from the south all day, starting off around 10 knots and continuing to build up to 15 knots by the end of racing. Five races were completed before the cutoff time. George Carty / Ryan Tatelbaum were the top Chessy boat finishing in 11th place, followed by Blake Vogel / Raam Fox in 13th, and Max Penders / Alex Brenia in 14th.
Opti Race Team
The Gibson Island event was an amazing learning opportunity for AYC's RWB Opti racing team. The team had an extended tow over to the Island on Tuesday, with calm waters in the morning. An afternoon practice allowed us to explore the local waters and work on boat handling with AYC's Green Fleet sailors. The day of racing brought winds building from 6 knots up to 15 from the north. The RWB course location brought very tricky current patterns swirling off the river and into the Bay. Our sailors steadily improved as they learned about current laylines and starting in current. AYC's sailor Kyle Reineke earned 1st place overall in RWB, and Christopher Draper earned 2nd in Blue Fleet. Thanks for all of the great logistic effort and support along the way, with a special shout out to Mr. Draper and Mrs. Wilmer (and her sidekick!) for keeping an eye on AYC's return to home amid tough seas!
Opti Green Fleet
Despite a few breakdowns, the eight AYC Green Fleeters had a blast as the breeze built at the annual Gibson Island regatta. The sailors began the day with a pleasant six knots out of the northwest, but held their own as the breeze built to a sustained 10 with gusts up to 15. Ben Gendell took home fourth place, while Will Mohler took home a fifth. Sailors Charlotte Hugo, Daniel Draper, Halsey Carter, and Sofia Forsberg all had strong finishes and achieved personal bests in the competitive fleet.
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