Professional Sailor and Point Loma High School Coach Steve Hunt joins us for the second episode of the San Diego Sailcast from the Cupola. Steve talks about his life growing up on the east coast, how he ended up in San Diego, coaching the best high school team in the country, and winning Etchells World Championships from the start of his Etchells sailing careet. His coaching philosophy translates from high school sailors to adults and Steve describes how his teams teach each other from within to raise their collective bar.
At the first clinic, twenty junior sailors learned the ins and outs of the i420 covering topics such as mast bend, sail shape, proper trapeze technique as well as downwind spinnaker sailing. As a precursor to the second clinic, all sailors got a chance to rotate through two 29ers, where they had one-on-one time with a coach to get their first taste of skiff sailing.
The second clinic weekend saw a sold out crowd of twenty six sailors trying out the fast and often tipsy 29er. Incorporating the use of hands-on drills while on land helped these sailors learn the foot and hand work that was needed before they even hit the water. Chalk talks throughout the weekend included the intricacies of skiff sailing, the use of the asymmetrical spinnaker, as well as the importance of communication between the crew and skipper especially in fast paced boats like the 29er. Their skills were tested as the weekend progressed with near perfect conditions to rip around the bay and get a real sense for the excitement of the boat.
This summer I competed in the Chubb U.S. Junior Championships. It was held at North Cape Yacht Club in LaSalle, Michigan. This regatta was sailed on Lake Erie and was generally very light. The race was sort of a clinic and a regatta where we all had the same coaches and had big team meetings after everyday of sailing. It was warm in LaSalle but nothing compared to Texas or North Carolina, where I raced earlier in the summer. It was one of the funnest regattas that I have ever sailed with the combination of very competitive sailing and fun after sailing activities.
Over this past July I did a lot of traveling around the country to sail on each coast - Gorge Skiff Regatta at the Columbia River Gorge outside of Portland and Buzzard’s Bay in Massachusetts for the 29er National Championship.
My family began our road trip to the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon just after Fourth of July. When we arrived to the sailing venue I was overwhelmed by the immense beauty of the Gorge. We later enjoyed a wonderful practice day in 10-15 knots and familiarized ourselves with the venue.