Over my Thanksgiving break I flew out to Miami to train and race in the US Sailing Olympic Development Clinic. I arrived on Monday and spent the week preparing for the weekend event. Tuesday through Thursday I trained out of Key Biscayne Yacht Club with some of the top youth competitors. The coaching staff was the best I had ever seen. We had Nick Thompson and Steve Mitchell, both Brits who have medaled in the Olympics. We also had Pedro Mascrehenas and Maru Urban, two professional Brazilian coaches. Every day we went out and trained in champagne conditions. I learned so much from the coaches and my training partners.
By the time the ODP Clinic at Miami Yacht Club came around, I was ready for some racing. There were large fleets of 29ers, Nacras, and i420s, however the Radial fleet was the strongest with about 54 boats. The coaching staff was incredible. We had coaches like Morgan Reeser, Ed Baird, Erica Reinke, Erik Bowers, and my coaches from Key Biscayne. The event started on Friday and ran through Sunday. Each day, we went out for a couple hours of pre-race homework, and then the race committee ran two long races. The purpose of the clinic was to simulate ISAF Youth Worlds for the sailors who are representing the United States in Oman this month.
The conditions over the three days were about 6-8 knots and shifty. I happen to enjoy these conditions. I ended up winning the event and surprised myself. My goal for the event was to finish in the top ten. I have not put a significant amount of time into the Laser, relative to the other racers and my goal was to see how much I could improve during the course of the weekend. I managed to win and learn a lot of lessons, which is an unusual occurrence.
Overall, this was one of the best weeks of training I’ve ever had. Leandro Spina, Bill Ruh, and Paul Cayard have done an excellent job at expanding our Olympic program and giving youth sailors like me the opportunity to train at such a high level. I am looking forward to the next couple months on the water developing my Laser skills, and I am truly grateful to have had this experience. Thank you to the BYCMSSF for supporting my effort.