Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Truxtun Umsted Invitational

The weekend of March 16th, seven members of the team headed to Annapolis for a weekend of sailing at the Naval Academy. They arrived in Annapolis and were housed by the family of a former teammate. Four divisions made up our team: A fleet, Matt Graham and Kirsten Corneliussen, B fleet, Ryan Seago and Karinne Smolenyak, C fleet, Lawrence Jau, and D fleet, Ellen Dubois, with Connor Shope as an alternate.

Saturday morning greeted us with light winds and a little fog. They sent us out on time and got two full rotations, 4 races, completed in each fleet. The race committee sent us in for lunch and the wind died, never filling back in. We spent our Saturday afternoon studying on shore and playing ultimate frisbee with the other teams. After the first day, Michigan was in 16th out of 18.

Sunday morning greeted us with even more fog and even lighter winds. The race committee postponed us on shore for an hour and then postponed us on the water for another hour or so. Around 1 pm the wind finally filled in enough to sail, but just barely. We only got in 2 races on Sunday in light, frustrating conditions. Our team ended up in 17th out of 18 at the end of the regatta. The weekend, though light and frustrating, was a good time for all that were there.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

LAYC presents Harbor Cup 2012


Last weekend, seven members of the Michigan Sailing Team traveled to Los Angeles, California to sail in the 2012 Harbor Cup regatta hosted by LAYC and California Maritime.  David Oliver, Ansley Semack, Liz Smith, Kathryn Burt, Tanner Depriest, Vittorio Bichucher, and Chris Oliver flew out of Detroit on Thursday morning ready for some sailing in the sunshine with 9 other teams.

Friday, we set out on the Catalina 37s into sunny skies and great wind.  First race, Michigan led the fleet around the windward mark.  The two races on Friday resulted in a 3rd and 9th.

Saturday began with a postponement where our winter wolverines were happy to jump in and swim around the Pacific while the rest of the teams thought we were crazy.  Wind filled in slightly and we raced 4 races which resulted in  6, 10, 10, and 7.

Saturday night we ate a delicious dinner at the Yacht Club and listened to Stan Honey, co-founder of Sport Vision and the director of technology for the 34th America's Cup give an incredible presentation about the technology he has created for the America's Cup.

Sunday we began with one race which we finished in 9th.  After a brief postponement we finished up the day with another 9th and a 7th.  Finishing 9th overall, we cannot thank the Los Angeles Yacht Club enough for a truly amazing weekend, the accommodations, food and sailing were fantastic.  I know that I speak on behalf of the rest of the sailors that attended when I say we all had an incredible weekend and hope to be back next year!!

Monday, March 05, 2012

Spring Recruitment Week!

This week the Sailing Team will be hosting a variety of events this week to raise awareness for our Mass Meeting! (MONDAY MARCH 12TH at 8 PM 3460 MASON HALL)

Tuesday-BOAT ON THE DIAG! Check the team out showing off a dinghy on the diag in spiffy sailing attire. Meet team members and get more info on the team.

Thursday-Bake Sale! The team is hosting its first bake sale full of yummy cookies, brownies, and more. Raising money and awareness in Mason Hall from 10-3 PM!

Again, the MASS MEETING is MONDAY March 12 at 8PM at 3460 Mason Hall. 


Friday, March 02, 2012

McIntyre Team Race at Stanford

This weekend, the sailing team will be competing in our first team race event of the spring. The Jeremy McIntyre team race is hosted by Stanford and will include the following teams:
  • Northwestern
  • Michigan
  • Oregon
  • Western Washington
  • Stanford
  • UC Irvine
  • UCLA
  • UCSB
  • Hawaii
  • USC
Our sailors are Matt Graham, Kirsten Corneliussen, Ryan Seago, Evelyn Hull, Will Cyr, Karinne Smolenyak, Liz Wallace and Amanda Baker. Most of the group has spent the better part of this week practicing on San Francisco Bay and enjoying the west coast for spring break. The scoring will be done live on a Google doc, here and make sure to follow us on Twitter @UMichSailing for updates from the team!