Boothbay RHS sailors travelled to Portland’s SailMaine May 20 for the Southern Maine (SoME) Open.

Teams from Cheverus, Portland, Yarmouth, Cape Elizabeth, Southern Maine, and Boothbay sailed in a 7 race fleet regatta with both A and B divisions racing simultaneously. Racing took place in 8-14 knots of westerly wind on flat water close to shore with good spectating opportunities. Warm air but cloudy skies made the choice of drysuits, a staple during spring dinghy sailing in New England, optional.

Boothbay’s three sailors: Ella Beauregard, Hamilton Barclay, and Senior Co-Captain Nate Graves picked up a fourth sailor from host Southern Maine. Beauregard skippered her first varsity event with Graves crewing and did quite well with all but 2 top half finishes with a best finish of second. They were especially effective when they had good starts in races 2, 3, 5, and 7.

Barclay and the Southern Maine sailor as crew demonstrated good starts and a plucky ability to find clear air upwind. One maneuver, on a downwind leg, two quick jibes, was done so quickly and efficiently, the team that was the target fell away drawing comments from several coaches observing the races. Barclay’s A boat won 3 races out of 7 finishing out of the top 3 only once.

Their combined scores saw Boothbay with just over 30 points and second place Cape Elizabeth more than 10 points back in second.

The full high school squad travels to MDI this weekend for the Great Harbor Regatta hosted by MDI High School. This event will be the finale of the 2018 Spring Pen-Bay Series. After two regattas, Boothbay is half a point behind Islesboro for the series win. However, a recent change to eligibility rules for the Great Harbor Regatta may change the competitive dynamic for the Pen-Bay Series

Boothbay RHS Sailing team is supported by a grant from the BHYC Junior Program Foundation, the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club, and the Boothbay RHS.