This week on the SDYC Sailcast, host and SDYC Director Alli Bell welcomes brothers Noah and Ian Nyenhuis to talk about their background in sailing and their recent successes including 29er Nationals, 29er Youth World Qualifiers, and 29er Worlds in Spain.
“I can’t really remember a time when sailing hasn’t been a part of my life,” said Noah. Noah tells us about the way that he and his brother grew up around the water, especially with their mother and former Olympian, Giselle (Camet) Nyenhuis.
Going into 2020, the Nyenhuis brothers had a big plan for their sailing career including the 2020 Europeans and the 2020 Worlds. With the world shutting down, those plans were of course put on hold. As everything opened back up slowly, the brothers were at an advantage being of the “same household.” The two were able to continue practicing together during the pandemic. The brothers explain how they kept training in anticipation for the 29er Nationals, which also doubled as and Youth Worlds Qualifier in the beginning of Summer 2021. The Youth Worlds went exceptionally well for them, winning 7 out of 10 races.
The brothers talked about the idea of going to the 29er Worlds and how encouraged they were to participate. Ian and Noah hopped on a plane to Spain and found themselves competing after getting the details together fairly quickly. SDYC team Peter Joslin and Anton Schmid also competed, coming in 8th place, along with more SDYC teams in the top 25.
Ian and Noah just recently got back from 2021 US Sailing Youth Championship in North Carolina and have the Youth Worlds coming up in Oman. The brothers talk about how the Youth Worlds compares to the Open Worlds.
They talk about how they are really focused on the “small stuff” like starts, going upwind and racing the racecourse.
Noah talks to host Alli Bell about their first World Champs, when they had only been sailing in the 29er for a little over a year. The Open Worlds were in Long Beach that same year and they always wanted to participate in that event, but they were hesitant because they were smaller and just getting started.
The brothers traded off speaking about the course, the details of the race, and some key moments that changed the history of the Worlds for the future.
Ian and Noah explain to Alli how they are maxing out their weight for the 29er. They have been sailing the boat for over 6 years, since they started so young.
When asked what is next for their careers, Ian mentions big boats and said, “We want to learn and sail on whatever boats we can.”
To finish the episode, Ian and Noah tell us what it’s like sailing as brothers and give advice on how others can get involved in the same type of sailing that they have been doing.