Oct. 17, 2005
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- This past weekend, the intercollegiate sailing team competed in three regattas, coming home with wins in five divisions.
The women's team headed to Yale for the Yale Women's Intersectional. Twenty-two teams from around the country competed in 420's. Saturday, the sailors were met with the end on the torrential downpour that Connecticut had seen for the past eight days. By the second set of the regatta the rain had subsided and the breeze continued. The breeze was 8-15 knots from the NNW all day. Four and five-leg windward-leeward courses were run. Six races were completed in both divisions. On Sunday, the forecast for strong winds from the WSW held true. Two races in each division were completed in 20+ knots and 2-4 foot swells coming from Long Island Sound. Katie Whitman and Cat Long finished ninth in A division. Charlotte Hill with Maggie Reynolds (races 1-6) and Andrea White (races 7-8) won the B division with 38 points. The team finished fourth overall (Yale 84 pts, St. Mary's 89 pts, Brown 108 pts, Navy 121).
The co-ed team hosted and competed in the Navy Fall Intersectional. Twenty teams from around the country competed in the four-division regatta. Saturday the sailors were met with 15-25 knots blowing from Hospital Point. Twelve trapezoids were sailed in each division directly off of the sailing center in the river. On Sunday, six more trapezoids were sailed before the breeze was too much for the sailors and equipment to handle, with puffs reaching 35 knots. The team finished fourth overall. Navy's doublehanded divisions sailed both 420's and FJ's. John Keith (races 1-4) and Garth Fasano (races 5-18) skippered with Slava Haywas (races 1-2, 7-12) and Andrew Hotchkiss (races 3-6, 13-18) in A division and finished 11th. Gary Grimes sailed with Kristen Sproat (races 1-5, 9-12), Mike Mullee (races 6-8, 13-16) and Dave Parker (races 17-18) for a win in the B division. Mac Fletcher (races 1-8, 10-18) and Jeff Sharp (race 9) finished 13th in C division sailing Laser Full Rigs. Lastly, team captain Chuck Fulmer won the D division sailing Laser Radials. The team finished fifth overall (KP 494 pts, St, Mary's 495 pts, Hobart 538 pts, Yale 551, Navy 564).
USNA also hosted the Navy Fall Intersectional Dinghy Regatta. Twenty colleges participated in this breezy regatta held just off Trident Point. Winds and seas were exceptionally strong making challenging and envigorating conditions for sailing. Against strong competition, Navy won two of the four divisions of the regatta. Sailing 420s and FJs in both "A" and "B" divisions, Navy ended up 11th in "A" Division sailed by skippers John Keith and Garth Fasano and their crews, Slava Haywas and Andrew Hotchkiss. Showing great tenacity, Gary Grimes won "B" Division sailing with crews, Kristen Sproat, Mike Mullee and Dave Parker. Sailing "C" Division in Laser Full Rigs was Jeff Sharp and, making his debut in college sailing, Mac Fletcher. Together they finished 13th. Dominating the "D" Division in Laser Radials was team captain Chuck Fulmer. Battling the competition and the elements, Fulmer won first place in his division and led his team to their overall successful fifth place finish in the 2005 Navy Fall Intersectional Regatta.
For more information, contact Varsity Intercollegiate Dinghy Coach, Gavin O'Hare, ohare@usna.edu.
# GO NAVY #
