The week of July 15-30, 2014 33 girls in laser radials swarmed Mission Bay Yacht Club for the 2014 U.S Junior Women's Singlehanded Championship for the Nancy Leiter Clagget Memorial Trophy. For my final year of this event I was really excited that it was taking place so close to home without plane rides, charter boats, and hopefully with home water advantage.
Six national coaches provided by US Sailing met us here to guide us through the week. The regatta began with a two day regatta prior to the three days of racing. The clinic days we far from easy, I had been put in to the best of the three groups of girls and had to really step it up to be competitive, I improved greatly and even won a few little practice races against many of the girls who would make up the top ten in results.
When the race days came around I was excited, I knew how to sail in the typical conditions in Southern California oceans, but of course the proved to not be the case. As Southern California sailors we learn as soon as we get to the ocean if the wind builds go right and if it dies go left. Well Mission Bay proved to have a little more up its sleeve than just that. The shifts oscillated even as the wind picked up adding to the importance of always being on the correct tack. Though eventually I caught on to all of this, I began the regatta a little too set in my idea of what I though would happen and I suffered a few bad races because of not being able to adjust and get past that idea, well that and having to go back after the start. But it also helped me to learn. Everything is not always going to be what you expect so you have to learn how to recognize your plan isn't working and adjust. If you have an opportunity to sail around some of the best sailors at any event take advantage of it, ask questions analyze their set up and try to get up to their level. And perhaps the biggest thing in sailing is that it is unpredictable, from a 15 year old girl who had never sailed the event before winning, to one of the top contenders mast snapping as she's winning a race sailing is not predictable but it full of learning experiences that I am confident will help me transition from my last Leiter to my first season of high school sailing.
I placed 12th in this regatta and I am proud of how I did, I am always looking to improve and over three years of sailing Leiter my results, attitude, and experience improved each year. I strongly recommend this even to all girls in radials, it is an opportunity of a lifetime and I sincerely thank the San Diego Yacht Club for giving me this opportunity.