At the first clinic, twenty junior sailors learned the ins and outs of the i420 covering topics such as mast bend, sail shape, proper trapeze technique as well as downwind spinnaker sailing.  As a precursor to the second clinic, all sailors got a chance to rotate through two 29ers, where they had one-on-one time with a coach to get their first taste of skiff sailing.

The second clinic weekend saw a sold out crowd of twenty six sailors trying out the fast and often tipsy 29er. Incorporating the use of hands-on drills while on land helped these sailors learn the foot and hand work that was needed before they even hit the water. Chalk talks throughout the weekend included the intricacies of skiff sailing, the use of the asymmetrical spinnaker, as well as the importance of communication between the crew and skipper especially in fast paced boats like the 29er. Their skills were tested as the weekend progressed with near perfect conditions to rip around the bay and get a real sense for the excitement of the boat.

This summer I competed in the Chubb U.S. Junior Championships. It was held at North Cape Yacht Club in LaSalle, Michigan. This regatta was sailed on Lake Erie and was generally very light.  The race was sort of a clinic and a regatta where we all had the same coaches and had big team meetings after everyday of sailing. It was warm in LaSalle but nothing compared to Texas or North Carolina, where I raced earlier in the summer.  It was one of the funnest regattas that I have ever sailed with the combination of very competitive sailing and fun after sailing activities.

Over this past July I did a lot of traveling around the country to sail on each coast - Gorge Skiff Regatta at the Columbia River Gorge outside of Portland and Buzzard’s Bay in Massachusetts for the 29er National Championship.

My family began our road trip to the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon just after Fourth of July. When we arrived to the sailing venue I was overwhelmed by the immense beauty of the Gorge. We later enjoyed a wonderful practice day in 10-15 knots and familiarized ourselves with the venue. 

This year, Brook Wood and I had the privilege of traveling to Mentor, Ohio for the 2018 US Sailing Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship, otherwise known as Ida Lewis. This regatta is in memoriam of Thomas Clagett’s late wife, named after a women who had bravery like no other, Ida Lewis. She was known for saving the lives of many people who would pass by her father’s lighthouse in distress. The US Sailing Women's Doublehanded Championship featured 80 girls (40 teams) which was the highest participation number in years! There were teams from California, New York, New Jersey and Alabama, just to name a few. Getting to know the girls from across the country was one of Brook’s and my favorite parts!

To begin the month of August Jack Plavan and I (Jack Egan), boarded a JetBlue flight out to Boston, where we would then drive from to arrive at New Bedford, on the cape of Massachusetts where the C420 North American Championship would be held in the coming days. We were very excited to experience Buzzards Bay, which is notorious for its great wind. At the venue, we were greeted by an old military fort dating back to the Civil War, and a brand new Zim charter boat. The next four days had a range of conditions, with 20+ knots on the first day and then a little less wind each coming day getting to as low as 6 knots on the last day with a day of no racing in between for rain and wind. It was a new experience for Jack and I to sail in a 180 boat fleet with a middle start boat and to have that windy of conditions but still get 30°+ wind shifts and 10 knot wind differences on the course. By the end of our regatta, we found ourselves in sixth place. There was not much time to rest as we flew out the next morning to Detroit to head to the CHUBB Junior Championship (Bemis).

Ida Lewis was one of our first regattas outside of California without parents, so we weren’t sure what to expect. I traveled along side SDYC coach Beka Schiff and my teammate Sammie Gardner. Sammie and I have just recently entered the world of double handed sailing, experimenting in C420s, 29ers CFJs and most recently I420s. We took off Tuesday July 24, very early in the morning and after 5 hours in the air we arrived in Cleveland, Ohio.

The 2018 Junior Sabot Nationals at Long Beach Yacht Club wrapped up a great season for SDYC. The week was very tricky with some extreme currents and fog during the start of the second and third days causing some crazy wind shifts. First, second, and fifth in gold fleet, Team SDYC put in a ton of effort this year leading up to the event. Practice every day during the summer and a clinic with other clubs from our area ensured we were prepared.

This year the Youth Champs Regatta was located in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina.  It was four days with many kinds of boats including the Laser Full Rig, Laser Radial, i420, 29ner, Nacra, and windsurfers.  I was sailing Laser Radials, but it was great seeing friends from all of the other fleets as well as mine.  It made it difficult though when we started because of how the Radials needed to wait for the i420s and the Full Rigs to start before us.