On Christmas day, my crew Rebecca McElvain and I traveled to Miami Florida to compete in the 2013 Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta. This was our first major regatta sailing together in C420s, so we were excited to test our skills against the country. When we arrived to Florida we were welcomed by heavy rain, and strong breeze.
Day one was 10-15 knots with increasing wind speeds throughout the day, with random storm cells rolling through the race course throughout the day. Three races were completed. After Scoring all single digits, we were able to go back to our hotel content. The old saying, "you can't win a regatta on the first day, but you can lose it" was replaying in my head, and we were not out of the regatta after day one, which is all we could ask for.
Day two set out to be a similar day as the first. The wind was stronger, the waves were bigger, and there was more rain, but very similar to the previous day. Boat speed seemed to be the key to success. Four races were completed. After another consistent day, and with the regatta over half way over we were sitting in a respectable 2nd place, out of 102 boats.
Day three seemed to be the lightest day of racing. Less rain, and a warmer day was the foundation for four solid races. After a tricky day, and good day, we
found ourselves 3 points out of the lead going into the last race on the final day. Unfortunately that race could never be sailed due to lack of wind. We finished our first Orange bowl as a team in a respectable 2nd place out of 102 boats!
Thank you so much to SDYC and the competition fund. Without the support, this amazing regatta, and the memorable experiences would never be possible.