11 Races – Placed 5th Overall

After 11 races in a wide array of conditions and wind directions each day, the Clearwater North American Championships wrapped up Sunday.

We had some very specific goals we wanted to accomplish this regatta and we walk away happy with our overall improvement, our performances in numerous races and how we fought till the bitter end.

Going into the last race it was almost a 3 way tie for 2nd, and we had moments of podium potential.

We finished a very close 5th overall in the end, were the top North American Team, thus being Crowned North American Champions!!!

Thanks to coach Ian, who was with us every step of the way and making sure that each step we take is in the right direction.

Clearwater has been super cold this past week – morning temperatures around 7 degrees and it didn’t warm up too much during the day with the wind chill. Brrrr….

I guess we’re getting ready for Europe whether we like it or not!  The first day of racing was cancelled due to a combination of too much wind and big waves.

Because the bay here is very shallow the waves become very steep quickly and the race committee was worried about safety of the 49er and Nacra fleets because of the high potential of big crashes.

Needless to say, the beautiful windy day didn’t go to a waste as Nikola got to do some RSX windsurfing. Crazy how it can be dangerous in the boats but such a blast on a board!

The next 3 days Clearwater delivered great conditions, everything from big wind and big waves to an offshore shifty breeze getting in 11 races.

The days were very long but we battled through them as a team and showed we have what it takes to win, taking a bullet in race 7 and 3 second place finishes.

This next week we stay in Clearwater to train and Ian has some specific drills and is going to “put us through the ringer” (his words) to get us prepared for the European season.

Should be great fun!

Thanks to Nikola for the info.