Spring Time is the Best Time for New Gear!

What better way to say goodbye to cold and hello to sunshine and sailing than by upgrading your wardrobe with a new Michigan Sailing shirt? Shirts come in short and long sleeve, perfect for changing April temperatures, with sizes that range from Youth Large to XXL for nearly every design. Head over to the apparel page to support the team and get your gear today!

Lynn Marchiando Team Race

The team sent seven sailors to Boston last weekend for the highly competitive Lynn Marchiando team race regatta, hosted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  After 12 hours of driving on Friday, we made it to teammate Alex Mayo's home in Needham, MA, thirty minutes away from the MIT sailing center.

Racing on Saturday started a little later than usual, as we had to wait for rowers to clear the course. With 16 teams, the regatta chairman had a 120 race round robin planned for Saturday.  We completed the round robin with no breaks.  After about seven long hours of racing the team was exhausted by it was still a great team racing experience!

On Sunday there were two round robins, one for the top half of the fleet and one for the bottom half, but racing was delayed for more than an hour due to rain and lack of wind. UofM raced the the bottom half round robin, performing much better and showing great improvement from Saturday.  

We finally left Boston around 2 PM on Sunday, and made it back at 3 AM Monday morning (just in time for class!)  All in all, it was a successful weekend for the team as we continue to work toward national qualifiers at the end of April.

Chris Cyr, '16

Jan T. Friis Trophy Team Race

Seven Michigan sailors left Ann Arbor at 2 PM on Friday, March 21st for Boston to compete in the 34th annual Jan T. Friis Trophy team race . Team members stayed with teammate Braden Engstrom's family, and upon arriving at 3 AM after a long night of driving were pleased to meet the affectionate and unbelievably soft family cat.

The regatta was originally scheduled for Tufts but relocated to Harvard due to ice covering Mystic Lake (the latest on record).  A full round robin rotation was completed on Saturday, with Michigan sailing nine races against competing teams. The wind was blowing strong and steady all day, making for some very exhausted sailors upon returning to the Engstrom's that night.  They were fed a delicious dinner and went to bed early to prepare for the next day of racing.

Sunday showed similar conditions to the day before, with winds blowing WNW steadily between 5 and 15 knots.  The team tied with the U.S. Naval Academy for ninth place, but overall the regatta was excellent practice against very competitive varsity teams.  Team members left Boston early in the afternoon and were able to make it home before midnight.

Thanks again to the Engstroms for hosting us, and Go Blue!

-Sarah Sloan, '16