A longstanding tradition at Southport Yacht Club is the swim test for new sailors on Monday mornings. Ella Watts, Alexander Heil, Charlotte Dull, Lucy Dull, and Sam Houghton successfully jumped off the junior dock on the foggy morning as parents and instructors cheered, finishing with a warm cup of hot chocolate.

420 sailors represented SYC at the Junior Olympics, hosted by the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club on July 9, 10 and 11. Seven 420s were towed over to participate in the regatta of nearly 60 boats in this three day event. The first day started with light wind but it picked up as the afternoon went on. The following days had very light wind and only a few races were completed. Dane Phippen and Abby Thress ended in 15th place, Nate Rideout and Jenna Peterson earned 19th place, Charlie Apolinsky and Abbie Peterson got 20th place. Not far behind were: Martha Rand and Sara Morrison, Bryce Jacobs and Lily Quinn, Tia Freund and Elsa Bates, and Nathan Chatterton and Brian Goldsmith. Congratulations to all of our 420 sailors!

The Optis also went to Junior Olympics at BHYC on Thursday and Friday of last week. There was beautiful weather on both days for all of the 57 Optis sailing in the event. SYC sailors finished as follows: Ryan Peterson, 15th, Connor McWhan, 16th, Blake Donnellan, 22nd, Oliver Grant, 23rd, Sean Morrison, 26th, Sawyer Bates, 41st, and Luke Donnellan, 42nd. More important than winning, the race committee boat commended the entire fleet of sailors, citing their appreciative thank yous and overall respect and camaraderie, and said they were the best group of sailors they had met.

The morning class had a special “Friday Fun Day” this week. All the kids were put in five different motor boats and rode over to Boothbay Harbor to cheer on the sailors racing in the competition. As the motor boats passed the seven 420 competitors from SYC, each morning class student gave the advanced sailors a high five. It was a thrill to see our 420 sailors participating in this competition.

Ten SYC sailors had an amazing opportunity to sail on the Navy´s TP52 offshore sailboat, Hooligan, this past Saturday. The TP52 is a 52-foot racing machine. SYC sailors learned a wide variety of skills on the boat including Pit, A-bow, trimming, and some even got the chance to drive the boat. Even in the small breeze, the boat moved at incredible speeds. We thank the Annapolis Naval Academy for providing this special day on the water.

The first ice cream social of the season will be taking place Thursday, July 19. Ice cream will cost 4 dollars per bowl and 1 dollar for refills. We hope to see everyone there!