This past weekend the UCSD Sailing Team took 15th place at the Peter Wenner Rainbow Invite, an event hosted by the University of Hawaii in Honolulu, Hawaii. Over the two days, our sailors took turns racing, with half the team competing one day while the other half had the chance to explore Oahu, visit Waikiki and Pearl Harbor. On Saturday, the regatta started out with fairly light winds that shifted often, causing racing to be postponed and courses to be moved throughout most of the afternoon. After a long postponement late into the day, the wind picked up to over ten knots, allowing our sailors to get in some more exciting racing. Saturday ended with an excellent barbeque dinner provided by the UH team, alumni, and Wenner family.
On Sunday the wind was completely different. Unlike the stagnant air of Saturday, around 11AM a nice breeze of 15 knots started to fill in and soon races were graced with sizable puffs and small white caps. Adding to the challenge were shifty winds, necessitating small adjustments throughout each race. Congratulations to the University of Hawaii for placing 1st in this competitive regatta! We would also like to give a big thanks to the Wenner family for Saturday’s BBQ and the University of Hawaii for hosting such a fun regatta.
This regatta is such a fun experience for those sailors that are able to go. Since it is so far, so expensive, and during a busy part of the quarter, it is limited in size to eight members of the team. About half of those who were accepted to attend this regatta were new members to the team as of fall quarter! This is one of the best events all year for team bonding and a great chance for the younger members to sail in a higher-level varsity regatta. From the sights, to the sailing, and all the hilarity in between, this is definitely a team favorite regatta and we look forward to attending again next year!
-Laura Furtado and Jerod Flores