Dear MSSF,
Thank you so much for your help in funding my entry to the 2018 Advanced Youth Match Race Clinic coached by Dave Perry and Mike Pinckney. The bar was set high for the event by the high level of experience everyone had and we certainly took advantage of the opportunity. My crew, Kerri Luttrell, Ben Brough, Jack Martin, and I sailed for the first time together and sailed superbly. On Friday, we practiced boat handling and established a good line of communication. This would serve us well on Saturday, which focused all on prestart strategy and drills. After a morning of lectures and physical demonstrations using old spars as boats to simulate plays, we hit the water and practiced them for ourselves. Again, although our first time as a team and my first formal experience driving, we dialed up, backed, circled, lead, and pushed marvelously. Not without mistakes of course, my team and I learned an incredible amount of material by talking out our roles before and after each scenario to see what went right and what could have gone better.
The weekend didn’t stop there though! Although this crew was unavailable to sail Sunday, I was fortunate to sail with experienced racers from San Diego. This whole weekend seemed to operate this way: no matter your age, club, or sailing background, teams were talking to each other, discussing plays, and fully taking advantage of the opportunity to learn as a community of rising match racers. My new team and I were no exception on Sunday. After working out some boat handling kinks, we competitively practiced our “downwind game” and penalty kills, two topics rarely practiced on the water at ordinary match race clinics. By the end of the day, we too were doing full prestarts and races, each leg chalked full with match racing action. Overall, a fabulous three days with my crews, the teams attending, and our coaches. MSSF’s support truly went a long way to making it possible for us to be a part of it all. Thank you!
Sincerely,
Harrison Vandervort