Two weekends ago, the Chicago Yacht Club hosted the 2013 Great Lakes Championship. New Trier’s sailing team was slated to be a top contender in the event. However, despite a strong season, things did not go as planned.
Saturday, Nov. 16, was warm and sunny with temperatures near the mid 60s in Chicago. Winds were up to 30 miles an hour, and it was a rough day. Waves on Lake Michigan peaked at heights of 5 feet. Even the strongest of sailors would’ve struggled, and that is what happened to the team New Trier sent.
Scoring for a regatta takes place via three divisions. “A” division is the most competitive, and the best sailors from every team compete in it. “B” division is also very competitive; sailors are just shy of “A” level skill. “C” is the third division; one sailor drives a boat, called a laser. To determine a winning team, scores from the three divisions are added up, and the team with the lowest score wins.
New Trier did not fare well in the first set of races. With a fleet of twenty boats in each division, sailors Madelyn Wakenight and Colin Richards placed fifth and tenth place in A division, which was respectable for the competitive fleet.
However, it was not where the sailors wanted to finish. In B division, the Trevian sailors placed 13th in the first race. They weren’t able to finish the second race due to a capsize that landed one sailor in the ER with 9 stitches. In the C division, Senior Jackson Hamilton had a strong showing, finishing first in both races.
During the second set, New Trier continued their streak of average finishes. Richards and Wakenight of A division placed 11th and 9th place. Alternate Senior Mason Chrabaszcz was rotated in after the B division capsize, but the sailors continued to come in mid fleet finishing 11th and 12th. Once again, Hamilton finished 1st and 2nd in the laser fleet.
As the day continued, the breeze built to puffs of 37 knots, which is dangerous for all but the best sailors. Once again, New Trier’s A division finished 9th for both races, and the B boat finished in 11th. Hamilton had another great showing, with a 1st and a 5th win.
Head coach and New Trier Alum Stephanie Hudson said, “So far we’ve dominated in the laser Fleet, but in the other divisions we were unable to capitalize on opportunities that would’ve help lead us to a victory.”
As the day came to an end, all of the sailors looked forward to better performances on Sunday. Unfortunately, due to high winds and risky conditions, the sailors weren’t allowed to sail on the 17th. Richards said, “We had a good shot at a top three finish with our team at full health. After the first set, we had an injury taking our B sailor out which not only physically hurt the team, but mentally threw the squad through a loop.” Richards heaped praise on Hamilton who “crushed it” in the laser fleet, but expressed disappointment with his own 9th place finish.
The team contended that this year was one of the most competitive for The Midwest InterScholastic Sailing Association, and a tough year to sail A Fleet. Still, the team remains optimistic. “We will learn from our mistakes and come out swinging in the spring. Hopefully, we can move our Midwest interScholastic Sailing Association ranking up from 7th to top three,” Richards concluded.