The University Sailing Club ended its winter vacation with a weekend in the sun at the Rose Bowl Regatta in Long Beach, Calif., Jan. 7-8. The Ducks finished 14th out of 23 teams overall in a field including All-Americans and Olympic hopefuls. The club will now look to build on this outing as it gears up for the intensive sailing season in the spring.
Despite a warm and clear weekend in Long Beach, the regatta entrants battled the weather. The wind on both days of the events was light and, to make matters worse, variable, causing the competitors to scramble for vital gusts of air. Organizers postponed the first race of the event because of the lack of a breeze.
“A boat could go from the back of the race to the front with just one (wind) shift,” skipper Rob Dubuc said.
The Ducks chartered two boats for the regatta, entering one in each the “A” and “B” divisions of the event. In collegiate sailing, no distinction is made between varsity and club programs, so Oregon faced some of the top programs in the nation. The “A” boat – crewed by Beth Otto and skippered by Dubuc – and the “B” boat – containing Taylor Chittick and Jes Giddens – each participated in eight races, predominately sailing triangular courses that lasted about 20 minutes.
Both divisions raced as one pack. The winner from each category received one point and the last-place boat received a score of 23. The scores from the two boats from each race combined to form the overall team score. The best showing in an individual race for both Oregon boats was a ninth-place finish, the “A” boat in the first race of the event and the “B” boat in race six.
Boston College, with the lowest score of 51, claimed the top honors. Oregon’s “A” team placed ninth in its division while the “B” team earned 15th in that category. The Ducks were third best among Northwest schools, finishing one point behind Portland State and five places away from Washington. They beat Western Washington.
Although the club flew only four sailors to Long Beach, approximately 20 sailors are on the club’s roster. Sailing at the University has experienced a revival in recent years, and that increased interest widened the field of opportunity for the club.
“Three years ago we would never have been in Long Beach,” Otto said.
The Rose Bowl Regatta represented Oregon’s first major competition in two months, and though the members of the team are pleased with their performance, they acknowledge that there are some kinks to work out after the long layoff.
“We had a great regatta, but there is definitely room for improvement,” Dubuc said.
Dubuc cited the need for the team to improve its tactics in light-wind situations that are common in Northwest sailing.
The Ducks’ drive to better themselves has been complicated because their main facility, the lake at Fern Ridge, was drained because of a dam failure. The team made do with alternate accommodations, but the temporary move hindered the club’s development. Despite this setback, Oregon’s outlook for this year remains bright.
“The team is young and ambitious and everyone is positive,” Dubuc said.