Teen Sailor: Top 20 North American Finish
Local youth sailor Mackenzie Cooper debuted in his first Club 420 fleet racing regatta last week finishing 20th out of 109 boats at the C420 North American Championships. Mackenzie teamed up with crew Tristan Sess (Long Island, NY) for the regatta which was hosted by the Brant Beach Yacht Club in Brant Beach, New Jersey July 20 – 23rd. They were 10th in the Junior Division (under 17) with 14 total races sailed.
After meeting for the first time a day or so prior to the regatta, the new team got right to work and set up the boat for light and shifty northerly winds which were forecast for Day 1. Mackenzie and Sess finished the first day in 7th place after 3 races. The Race Committee ran a busy Day 2, completing five races. Day 3 was a four race day in 20-25 knot westerlies. An approaching full moon and ebb tide forced the Race Committee to abandon Race 3 when coaches reported boats running aground on the windward leg. The strong westerlies literally blew the water out of the bay. After an impromptu pizza party back on shore, the fleet waited a few hours for the tide in Little Egg Harbor to rise to an acceptable level. The final day had a perfect 10-15 knot SW sea breeze for the last 2 races of the series.
Overall the boys sailed well throughout the championship although the pair struggled slightly on Day 2 with two of finishes in the 30′s. Able to put that behind them, they sailed consistently over the last 2 days and enjoyed their best race, a 2nd place finish, in Race 13 on Day 4. The regatta was won by Pearson Potts and Caitlin Connerney, sailing for team FAST out of Newport , RI.
Mackenzie and Sess head to Hyannis, Massachusetts for their next regatta over the Cup Match weekend. Mackenzie sailed the C420 this past Spring for his school, Tabor Academy (Marion, Massachusetts) but in the much different Team Racing format. Mackenzie was one of the skippers that helped the Tabor Seawolves capture the 2010 New England Team Racing Championship and the runner-up position at the 2010 US National Team Racing Championships in May.
