2013 MCSA Co-ed Championship

Columbia Yacht Club

Over the past weekend the team participated in the 2013 MCSA Co-ed Championship hosted by the Columbia Yacht Club in Chicago’s Monroe Harbor. The regatta served as a qualifier for national semi-finals later this month, with the top five teams from the MCSA qualifying for the event. The team left Ann Arbor friday afternoon, stopped by Red Robin for burgers in Kalamazoo, and then arrived at senior Rachel Barch’s house at around midnight. The team was greeted with brownies by Ms. Barch who was a fantastic hostess all weekend for the team.

The team showed up early Saturday and hopped aboard (literally) the Columbia Yacht Club bright and early Saturday morning amidst a small snowstorm that briefly passed through the area. Saturday’s conditions featured mostly sunny skies, 40 degree temperatures, and a 5-20 knot westerly breeze, which provided tricky conditions for the sailors. The westerly breeze was exceptionally fickle because the wind had to maneuver between the skyscrapers of Chicago before it entered the race course, which provided shifty and puffy conditions in the harbor. The team started the day by winning the first race in both divisions, but fell back to second place in each division by the end of the day. A division consisted of skipper Matt Graham ’13 and crews Chris Cyr ’16 and Kirsten Corneliussen ’13. B division consisted of Ryan Seago ’14 and Elizabeth Wallace ’14. Wisconsin finished the day in 1^st overall with 26 pts., Michigan with 43, and everyone else was far behind after the first 8 races per division.    

Sunday’s conditions entailed of a more consistent breeze, coming directly from Lake Michigan. An 8-12 knot easterly breeze from the east provided much more stable conditions, while sunny skies and 55 degree temperatures where enjoyed by all. The final 3 races per division were completed quickly on Sunday and Michigan ended up staying in 2^nd place overall. Final Results were Wisconsin 1^st place, Michigan 2^nd place, Minnesota 3^rd, with Northwestern and Michigan State also qualifying for the 2013 ICSA Co-ed Semifinals, which will be hosted by Old Dominion University April 27-28. 

                                                                                 -Ryan Seago '14