Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Davis Cup

A group of fine, young Michigan sailors journeyed west to the state of Iowa this weekend to compete in the Davis Cup.  Mitch Kimball, Zach Nerod, James Hewitt, Nick Lipinski, Delaney Hodge, Benji Jepsen, and Sydney Thompson made the trek to Iowa and arrived late Friday night.  After getting a late start Saturday morning due to a miscommunication in the address of the lake, Zachary Nerod and Nicholas Lipinski kicked off A fleet. However, they were sent back to the docks because of the absence of wind. As time progressed and the wind reached a whopping, and very shifty, five knots, the races resumed. The team sailed hard, watched football on the docks, studied at night, and returned to the lake Sunday morning—this time on schedule. But again, there was no wind and the remainder of the regatta was called off. Because of the eight races held on Saturday, the Wolverines returned to Ann Arbor with a third place trophy. (It goes without saying that this trophy eased the pain of an embarrassing loss in the Big House a day prior). 


-Nicholas Lipinski '17

Hood Trophy Regatta

Six Michigan sailors made the 12 hour drive out to Tufts to compete in the 32nd Professor Stedman Hood Trophy Regatta last weekend. Alex Ramos, Tom Etheridge, Emily Gazall, Meredith Wiles, Lane Tobin, and Mason Wolters arrived early Saturday morning at the Engstrom’s house in beautiful Marblehead, MA. After dealing with some van issues upon arriving, the team crashed in the basement and got a full four hours of sleep before leaving for racing the next morning.

The forecast for wind Saturday was dismal, and the reality was even worse. After trying to get a race off in little to no wind, the lake turned to glass and remained that way for the rest of the day. With no races finished, the team was sent home around 2. The team returned to the Engstrom’s home to watch the football team lose and get some homework done. Mr. and Mrs. Engstrom made an awesome meal for us Saturday night and then even took us out for ice cream!

The team awoke Sunday morning to an awesome breakfast once again and took off for the boat house. There was slightly more wind Saturday, with 4 races being completed in each division. The team battled light and extremely shifty winds, which made for a frustrating day, and ended up 13th out of 21 very competitive teams.

Huge thanks to the Engstrom family for their amazing hospitality!


-Mason Wolters, ’18

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Regatta Report: Pine Trophy at Coast Guard

Five Michigan sailors traveled to the Coast Guard Academy last weekend to compete in the Pine Trophy Regatta. Alex Ramos, DJ Litts, Jason Doyle, Max Odena, and Kirsten Boelkins left Friday morning for Connecticut to race Colgate 26's. Six races were completed Saturday in 70 degree weather under partially cloudy skies. The first day of racing proved very challenging, but the team managed to finish 5th for the day. The team returned home exhausted and after finishing homework went to bed early in order to get ready for the next day of racing. 

Weather conditions on Sunday were similar to Saturday, with the wind picking up in the morning but subsiding slightly in the afternoon. The team fought hard and finished fourth overall, returning home to Ann Arbor early Monday morning. 

Monday, September 15, 2014

Commodore Barbour Recap

A huge thanks to everyone that came out to the second annual Commodore Barbour Memorial Regatta at Bayview Yacht Club on September 7th! Thirty-five juniors sailors (nearly twice as many as last year) and fourteen boats participated in the race, with Pandora taking first, Epic second, and Majic Star coming in third.
Congratulations to all competitors, and a huge thank you to everyone involved and our sponsors!