The most competitive and pressurized US Opti regatta of the Fall is always the Spring Team Qualifier. Sailors are seeded for international events and extra National team spots based on their finishes. Every other year, the regatta occurs in New Orleans, Thanksgiving Week - making it a mecca of committed, competitive Opti sailors from all over the US, the USVI and Bermuda.
Tommy Sitzman took the event with 4 firsts in 6 races, with Jack Redmond and Gil Hackel rounding out the podium for LYC. 11 LYC sailors made the Gold fleet, giving themselves a chance to get international invites. Overall it was an outstanding result for the team after almost 3 month of training!
Event specific training is a big key to success. You have to be able to set realistic goals that inform your training schedule, plus you get a yard-stick to measure at the end. Last spring, when LYC sailors had a rock-star Team Trials it wasn't by accident: we trained 16 days on Biscayne Bay the preceding fall/spring season. Sailors showed up to the event confident in their equipment, with practiced technique in Bay conditions, and an understanding of the strategy for common conditions. For the Spring Team Qualifier, I think the combination of Bay/Ocean/Lake training plus sailing in cold in Newport and Germany helped our sailors be ready for Lake Ponditchrain - a huge lake with brackish water that is mostly fresh, and average air temps in the 50's in November. The Lauderdale Ocean is a great training venue for a lot of places and the medium air+ waves we experienced for much of the fall practices helped the sailors be fast when there was chop on the Lake. In both fresh water and waves you have to be very aware of the bow drag in the Opti.
We trained full days on the ocean the weekend of November 17-18 in Lauderdale, drove to New Orleans starting out that night, so we could sail again November 20th, and again practiced on the 21st. So by the end of the event, sailors had practiced or competed for 7 of 8 days! Thats a lot of sailing and a huge credit to their staying focused and motivated throughout. At the first practice Pilo reminded all the kids that we were there to race, not to party for Thanksgiving. There would be more than the usual distractions with family and friends over a Holiday, and they needed to prioritize what they had trained so hard and traveled for. Despite an alleged incident with some cheerleaders (just kidding!), I think the LYC Sailors and coaches were really good at getting enough sleep - a huge key to performance and not getting fatigued/frustrated under pressure.
Tuesday we practiced working on technique and sail tuning before scrimmaging with California Yacht Club and Chicago YC. The next day we got out earlier to get in the regatta timeframe, and so we could come in, go through measurement and rest! We ran one race with chosen training partners, before about 50 more boats crashed our starting line without asking for the final practice race.
While it was good to race against more boats, I would like to remind coaches that it is understood professionalism to ask the team setting the marks and running the races (us in this case) if you can sail with us! We usually say yes, but the course size and drills are designed for a specific number of boats. If everyone joins and doesn't respect the starting line, the fleet gets bad habits and its harder to coach our kids within the race. We usually plan our training partners before leaving the dock.
While it was good to race against more boats, I would like to remind coaches that it is understood professionalism to ask the team setting the marks and running the races (us in this case) if you can sail with us! We usually say yes, but the course size and drills are designed for a specific number of boats. If everyone joins and doesn't respect the starting line, the fleet gets bad habits and its harder to coach our kids within the race. We usually plan our training partners before leaving the dock.
When approaching a course/planning a joint scrimmage a coach should always ask:
1. Can my team of ___sailors practice/race with you?
2. What is the start sequence/procedure.
3. Coaching allowed during the race?
4. Video allowed during the race?
5. Coach Umpiring? (for a team race).
I have asked all of these questions of other coaches at international events before joining their course with my team, surely coaches who speak English should have no trouble asking !
Jake Homberger lays down a nice roll tack.
Another thing that benefits all the LYC sailors is having good teammates. Copying and learning from each other plays just as big a part for sailors as coaching. Tommy Sitzmann set an incredible example for our team on and off the water. His focus on careful rigging, and testing his sail, speed and angles above the line between races stood out to me. Having Tommy, a sailor who was 5th at the Worlds listening attentively in meetings helps re-inforce for the other sailors that they should be listening as well! Tommy sailed a clean, conservative event, staying positive and focused even after a yellow flag on the first day, a 10th place on the 2nd day and a bad first beat on the final day of racing. In that last race he never gave up, flew past 10 boats on the reach and run, then executed sailing to the left on the last beat to come all the way back to 3rd and win the event. A lot of our sailors like Lulu, Jack, Lucy others set an example that helps 11 year olds like Gil, Cody, Drew and Cole improve to a high level faster, and you know those older sailors too lessons from Stephan, the Callahans and others before them! Competing, learning, teaching and copying is the culture we want to have with all the sailors in our program.
The LYC Opti Race team is a somewhat "Open Interface;" not all sailors on the team live in Rio-Vista and practice 3 days a week at LYC. Tommy for example lives in Annapolis, but has sailed every major Opti regatta for well over a year with LYC. Gill lives in Pensacola and has been flying to practice as much as he can since September! I began coaching him in February at the USNT practice and at Garda last March. Jack Redmond sails every weekend for 4 years at Lauderdale, and some major events with Lucas Calabrese (husband of LYC Opti Godmother Pilar Calabrese (like The Godfather but nice) who coached this event with LYC! ). We are one big happy family dedicated to supporting all our sailors. I spoke to the sailors on one of the practice days about what I think are the 3 major characteristics of the program at Lauderdale - the philosophy we are united by:
1. Sailor Self-Sufficiency. The kids are ultimately responsible for everything - their boats & equipment, behavior and schedule. We make it clear the first day of the fall that the parent is never an excuse. Same for Strategy - the sailors have to think for themselves and make a strategy based on what they see. This gives them the advantage of the most up to date information before the start and is critical to the overall goal here: creating great sailors and thinkers!
Simone Moss checks here own sail!
2. Everything has to be Perfect. "Good-n-uff is not a sufficient goal" . The sail tuning has to be perfect for the conditions. The rigging has to be top quality and work for the sailor to adjust in a smooth way. Hulls, blades, tiller extensions, and boat set-up all receive a lot of attention by our sailors and coaches, with the goal of perfection. To achieve this, sailors need to be rigging in the correct, specific order (covered in past blogs) and have a routine!
No detail should be overlooked for the entire program - making a good schedule and sticking to it, showing up for events days early, and routinely swapping out line as it ages are all examples. Healthy food routine, sleep and hydration are all ways sailors need to take care of themselves to be in the perfect mind state.
Tommy Sitzmann takes care in cleaning his polarized sunglasses.
3. Relaxed attitude and a winning mentality. "Its all about sailing relaxed" is the famous Pilo Rocha quote. I tried it and noticed the difference at J24 Nationals, which I won earlier this fall as the trimmer. Whereas before my pre-race routine was to punch my chest, now I worked on controlling and slowing my breathing and heart rate in the moments before intense exertion and critical decisions at the start. With long events and pressure it is the best way to sail!
Relaxation comes from:
-Knowing all the details are taken care of.
-Confidence in you boatspeed and boathandeling-Knowing all you have to do is what you have practiced to do.
-Optimism that you will achieve a good outcome!
Sailing is not all about decision making; you have to feel the boat and make it go fast! Relaxation helps with feeling the boat and working the waves as well.
"Winning breeds winning" - Dennis Connor (America's Cup Winner)
"Good things happen to positive people" - Andy S.
"When your boatspeed is adequate and your strategy correct, your tactics will be logical and Obvious" - Michael Blackburn (Olympic medalist, Laser)
This 3 part operational philosophy served our team well at this regatta and we hope more yacht clubs will copy it in the future! You'll notice there isn't a lot in there about results, and putting performance anxiety in its place is key in competition. Its good for the sailors to set reachable goals for the coming season, but if you don't reach your goals, asses why in an honest way and then move on! Sailors should be thinking about what they want to achieve in the Springtime now and thinking about how they will get there! Parents can help by keeping the pressure off kids. If they put forth a good effort and conduct themselves as corinthians, then that is a lot to be proud of.
Parents play a big role in the routine of the kids, and did a lot to support the team at this regatta, from stocking the coach boats, loading and unloading the Super trailer, and in Melissa Hackel's case towing her first coachboat! Thanksgiving in New Orleans is fun if a little exotic, and I hope it was a good experience for all the families! While Burbon St, shopping, football games, and new friends can hardly be described as punishment, I hope the kids appreciate what you are sacrificing for them so they can go sailing!
Jorge and Valentina spend quality family time together!
The Day 1 Conditions started similar to the practice day with medium winds out of the North-East. The pin was generally favored by 10degrees and sailors had good races by getting off the line there and playing the pressure form the left. We had generally experienced this on the practice days as well. The level of the fleet and stable conditions were fairly unforgiving - if you did not have a good start it was difficult to come back. After 3 races for all fleets a 4th race was completed in the Purple division. Then the wind shut off completely with the other 2 fleets about to finish or on the downwind leg respectively. The RC abandoned race 4 for all fleets. The best strategy was to sail the "Golden route" on the left side, getting to small pressure increases, then consolidating back across the fleet.
'Friend of the program' Peter Barnard wonders where the wind has gone at the end of day 1.
Day 2 Conditions were decidedly less stable. In the first race the pin was favored at 5 min. It wasn't at go, and there was more wind coming and visible from the top right shoreline. Jack Redmond ducked 15 boats in escaping the pin, go to the new pressure first and rounded the windward mark with a sizable lead. There were races where the right paid, but there were also races where the left paid. When the wind went light you had to go hunt for pressure on the left, while when it came back Right is was with big puffs. The sailors were aware of this but had to look up the course and think for themselves on which phase the wind was in. Being smart and flexible on the line was key as well. Unfortunately a couple of our sailors got BFD's on General Recalled starts. There were also a few too many races where sailors started at the un-favored end of the line and had to claw back. Still at the end of the day LYC had sailors in 1,2,3 and 11 qualified for the top 3rd when the RC split the fleets into Gold/Silver A/B for the final day.
Truman Rogers goes high risk at the Pin end!
Big pile up at the pin. Lulu Hamilton (21419) seems to have a decent position.
KJ Hill (21322) works to hold his spot in the front row on the start line.
Day 3. For the 2nd straight day PRO Todd Fedezyn moved up the start time in hopes of catching an early breeze that was expected to die - a fact not lost on the Argentinan coaches hoping to watch the Boca vs Riva Soccer Finale scheduled for that afternoon. At the scheduled start time however the fleet was enveloped in fog, followed by no wind. Sailors hung out on their coach boats and tried to stay loose and prepared for the race that would come. Eventually 5.5 Kts of breeze came up out of the West and the RC began a race under U Flag- determined to get it off in the limited window! On the radio before the race the RC shared information from a wind-spotter they had positioned towards the bridge - that there was a 20 degree right shift coming. But at go the pin was favored by 8 degrees. Jack and Gil started well at the pin, and crossed half the fleet. Tommy Started in the middle and stayed just right of Jack, but missed the opportunity to work further right. Lulu started well at the boat, and when the predicted righty came, she wound up with a 2nd. It was a unforgiving race with a stacked Gold Fleet, light air, and just one shift on the first beat. As mentioned, Tommy orchestrated a furious comeback, while Gill, Jack, Cody and a number of top sailors from other clubs all sailed their throwout race. Drew Lamm sailed a great race to finish 9th to move into 29th overall! Unfortunately the Silver B fleet could not finish a race in a dying breeze, so no Silver race would count. We headed in as the soccer game was postponed due to violence by the Riva fans.
The black flag and a boat end- pile up for the silver fleet start in the New Orleans haze.
After Awards we hit the Road, arrivingrrived in Lauderdale at 10pm on Sunday with the Optis and coacheboats safely home. The kids went back to school, and I went to the US Sailing Coaching Symposium in Miami. Then Friday morning we embarked to Jensen Beach for another regatta - the Junior Olympics.
The LYC Bronze fleet sailed well at Junior Olympics, led by Luca Damiano in 63rd and Pierce Webber in 65th place out of 115 Boat - significant improvement in their first year of RWB. But for many in the Gold and Silver fleets it was a tough regatta! Here's how I think we fell short.
- Fatigue from so much racing leading up to Spring Team Qualifier. When your goals are geared towards a particular event, it takes time to re-focus afterwards on the next goal. So the fatigue was mental as well as physical. We will need to be sure to make practice fun this next weekend before gearing up for Orange Bowl.
- Missing sailors. We had a half squad for Gold and its harder when you don't have the teammates you are used to supporting you! KJ hill had a breakout STQ at 37th place overall, and usually kills it in shifty conditions - we missed him, Lucy, Lulu, Ty and others atop the leaderboard and setting the example! I realize point 2 contradicts point 1 - maybe we didn't set the most Optimal schedule. However, its important to realize that "Strength in Numbers" is important if the team wants to get a good result at an event.
-Understanding the conditions Sunday. This was a weird venue and we practice in pretty different conditions to what we experienced. Understanding how to play an extra long course was different as well. Sailors and coaches were able to pick up on the pattern Saturday, but Sunday was just lighter and weirder. We hope for some more practice in "Unstable conditions"
-Hydration. I don't see sailors drinking enough from their re-fillable water bottles on or off the water! The coaches have water coolers on our boats - the kids need to work on stepping up the drinking routine. It should be as if the "Chug Jug" (fortnight reference) is glued to your hand off the water and it should be the first thing you go to refill after the race. In some cases maybe sailors don't want to pee because its a cold event - proper pissing techniques will get addressed in practice!
- Starting!!! A lot of sailors definitely suffered in their execution on the start line. An unpredictable RC or a 115 boat fleet are just excuses - Each sailor needs to improve their boathandeling, line awareness, acceleration and time-on distance in the coming weeks. We practice starts all the time and will continue to emphasize!
Overall a lot of good lessons, and we are happy to have a good reminder regatta that winning is really difficult! We will take the success of New Orleans and keep moving forward as a team.
PHOTO Credits:
-Sailing Photos: Tom Barnard
-Boat Park candids: Tom Homberger
-Awards Photos: SYC/Midwinters Facebook page.
Cole Fanchi 6th place in White Fleet @ the STQ (10 years and under division)
Lulu behind the Wheel! Ahhh!
Jack Redmond "J-Red" holds the 2nd place red fleet half model. Super classy trophies!
Gill Hackel (left) wins the top Gulf Coast sailor award, while Drew Lamm receives a Half model in Blue Fleet.
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