Piper Holthus, junior sailor and SDYC’s Junior Commodore, joins us on the Sailcast to talk about her recent successes and future plans in sailing!
The conversation begins with Piper talking about some of her favorite boats to sail, what it means to be the Junior Commodore and what some of her responsibilities in that role are. Recently, Piper was honored with the SDAYC Paul J. Hartley award, which takes into account integrity, citizenship, and how you support junior sailing. She touches on some of the excitement that came with that award.
Piper talks about how she grew up in sabots, and then went on to high school sailing in FJ’s and C420s, also experimenting with Laser Radials and the 29er Fleet. She talks about what it’s like being on the ocean in a smaller boat. Piper moves on to describe what high school sailing is like and some of her big regattas coming up like Golden Bear and Gaucho. She mentions that the big goal for the Bishops team is going to Nationals.
The episode shifts towards the Ida Lewis Regatta and the CFJ Nationals, two regattas that Piper recently sailed in. “It was so fun hanging out with everyone around the country,” she said. She explains her experience at the two regattas and the difference between the venues. From there, Piper talks about what it’s like to get prepare for the regattas. “It’s being able to practice a lot and get the repetition to know that you can do well and have the confidence on the line,” she explained.
After talking about communication on the boat, boat speed and tactics, Piper talks about her decision to stick with the dinghies although her family is committed to big boat sailing. She discusses her future plans including college sailing and finishes up talking about what she’s doing when she isn’t on the water.