Happy Fourth of July from the Junior Club!

Week 2 Wrap-Up

First session down!  Our second week of sailing saw some more great conditions – great wind, blue skies, and only a whisper of storm threats.  (We have, unfortunately, had to cancel this year’s Junior-Senior Challenge because of Hurricane Arthur’s predicted track.)  The classes have all progressed impressively quickly and the young sailors are begging for more time on the water!  We hope you all have a great holiday weekend and look forward to seeing many familiar faces next session.  For a more detailed review of what each class learned this week, see below.

Beginner Opti Class

The beginners made lots of headway this week.  Monday started off a bit slow with the enthusiastic sailors jumping in for the swim test.  The sailors successfully learned to tie both the 8 knot and the square knot, rig and de-rig almost seamlessly, and sail nicely on a reach.  The group struggled in the heavy wind, but we are confident that by the end of the summer, they’ll be able to tackle any conditions that Mother Nature throws their way.  This week was filled with copious laughs, healthy competitive spirit, and lots of fun.  We are looking forward to having the crazy bunch of sailors next week!

Intermediate Opti Class

In the intermediate class, we worked on establishing the base of the Optimist pyramid, which starts with boat handling, then boat speed, and at the very top, tactics.  Monday through Wednesday we focused on boat handling, placing the most emphasis on good tacks and gybes.  We also incorporated several aspects of boat speed by focusing on proper sail trim and how to read telltales while sailing upwind.  On Wednesday, it was too windy for the intermediates to sail, so we had an instructor race that was a lot of fun!  On Thursday, the intermediates joined the racers for some rabbit starts and races.  It was great to see that all the intermediates were able to start and sail around the race course!

Opti Race Team

At the start of the week, we concerned ourselves mainly with upwind and downwind boat speed, with a focus on mainsheet trimming and boat trim.  Initially, the group struggled with the heavy winds mid-week, but the longer we stayed out, the more competent we became.  KB and I (Jamie) hopped into some Optis and raced the kids to show them how the old breed race.  The final day, we had a fun morning swimming due to a lack of wind.  In the afternoon, we got rolling starts and races going for a solid three hours.  Roll tacks, hiking, and recognizing start line bias were introduced this week.

Club 420/Pixel Class

This week the 420s got some more work in trapeze conditions.  We were blown out on multiple days, but the kids had some fun in the big breeze.  Later on in the week, we joined up with the Laser class and practiced for the McIntyre Team Race.  On Wednesday and Thursday, we met up with The WaterFront Center, who will be racing with us next week.  Good luck to Frank, Jack, Bennett, and Justin!

Laser Class

This week, our Laser sailors were practicing in 420s because they are competing in the McIntyre Team Race next week.  They joined up with the 420 class at the start of the week and practiced team racing starts.  Towards the second half of the week, we worked on boat handling and tactics.  We joined up with a 420 from The WaterFront Center, who is competing with Seawanhaka next week.  We wish Jack, Bennett, Frank, and Justin the best of luck at the McIntyre.