Sailing Blog
UP NEXT – Melges 32 US Nationals »
June 8, 2011
A busy spring and early summer stint of traveling to regattas is about to come to and end, and after one more trip on the road at the Melges 32 Nationals this coming weekend in Rye, NY, I will be looking forward to being home and getting to spend some time with the family, and race E Scows on Lake Minnetonka with the team on M42. Taking care of our yard that has transformed into a rainforest will also be a nice thing to check off my “honey do list” as I learned that when you over fertilize the lawn in the spring and it grows 3 inches daily in 90 degree heat, it puts a premium on taking care of household chores even if it requires pulling out the lawnmower at 9pm with an early morning flight the next day.
After the 24 Worlds in May, I was able to spend the next two weekends match racing which was a new experience for me, and the A Scow season kicked off on the Tuesday prior to Memorial day with a solid 10 boat fleet on Tonka. One theme that has emerged from sailing at the 24 Worlds, Match Racing and racing 38ft Scows that travel at 9-20 kts, that losing focus for just a few seconds can prove costly, and there is a premium for everyone on the boat to pay attention and focusing on their specific jobs. The moment that someone on the team takes the focus off their job, and either starts trying to do someone else’s job, or just plain stops paying attention, mistakes are made and it is often costly. I have to remind myself of this often, but if you can trust in your teammates and know that the job will get done, things go a lot smoother, and it means you will not be missing anything that is your requirement. “Do Your Job” is an important theme in an office, operating room, or any sort of organization where several people are working towards a common goal, and it has shown itself over and over again on the racecourse.
With the 32 Worlds in Europe later this summer, many US teams have shifted their focus to spending time in the Mediterrenean leaving a much smaller fleet to battle it out for the US National title. I am fortunate enough to be hopping on with Rod Jabin’s team on Ramrod who are the 2-time defending Gold Cup Champions and have been a favorite at most events since joining the class. With Chris Larson as tactician, we should be able to take our newly formed, well seasoned team and hopefully finish on top of the 12 boat fleet. It won’t be easy as several other teams like Argo, Warpath and my good friends from the Caribbean on INTAC will be hungry for a win. I am looking forward to focusing on my job of trimming jib and spinnaker and working hard the next 4-5 days.
Racing starts on Friday, and hopefully the 103 degree record heat that we had in Minny on Tuesday does not follow us out east and squelch an already fickle Long Island Sound breeze. Stay tuned for reports from the 32 US Nationals.
Comment by sean man — June 8, 2011
good luck sammer!