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Saltcats Head to Texas!

After a highly successful regatta in Newport last spring, the team was chomping at the bit to get back out on the water after another long Maine winter. Last year, the team capped off an exciting season at Club Team Nationals. This regatta was co-hosted by Bates, UNH, and Mass Maritime and was motivated by an idea from Bates sailing alum Jack Valentino ‘22.5.

Immediately following last spring, many curious Saltcats could not help but wonder where this year's regatta would take place. Could one of the many California schools host? Or what about the Midwest, could a college in Illinois or Wisconsin serve as a logical central spot for a race? When it finally was made public that the highly anticipated regatta would be in Texas, the Bates sailing team knew they must do everything in their power to get there.

In mid-April, Bates received an email notifying the team that they received one of three in-conference berths to compete in Texas. This was a huge accomplishment! While the team was somewhat prepared and beyond pumped, with just days to finalize our travel plans, we admittedly scrambled to cobble together the non-refundable hotels, plane tickets, rental cars, and tons, I mean tons of sunscreen. Unlike other regattas, we were no longer afforded the same luxury of travelling by car and were greeted with an early wake-up to catch a flight out of Boston.

The team that travelled down included Colby Green ‘25, Greta Shuster ‘25, Maggie Forger ‘25, and Harry Stevenson ‘24. We were excited to have the opportunity to sail in a non-frigid environment and were pumped to explore Austin. Overall, nine teams from across the country travelled to compete in this event. These included the University of Texas, Northeastern University, University of New Hampshire, Fairfield University, Bates College, Columbia University, University of North Texas, University of Delaware, and the University of California San Diego. This two-day event could not have had a wider range of conditions. Day one consisted of blustery conditions while day two was slowed up by very little pressure. After a gutsy two-day effort, Bates ultimately lost the tiebreaker for fourth finishing in fifth overall.

Between the 39-knot rip-roaring winds and the beyond-excellent Mexican food the trip was a blast. The opportunity to represent Bates in a unique environment was something none of us took for granted and was truthfully indicative of the hard work of the thirty-plus sailors who have competed in regattas and in practice this year.

Without the dedication and passion of the team to grow and improve, this event would never have been plausible. Cheers to a great regatta and one of next year’s many goals of competing in the now third-annual National Invitational. Harry Stevenson ‘24 - Treasurer

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Saltcats Start the Season Strong at the Tufts Icebreaker Invitational!

On Sunday, March 12, four saltcats traveled from Bates College down to Boston for a one-day event at Tufts University’s sailing facility on Mystic Lake. The lineup for this event was the following: 

Harry Stevenson (‘24) and Maggie Forger (‘25) in A division 

Greta Shuster (‘25) and John Hull (‘26) in B division 

Having stayed in a nearby hotel the night before, Maggie, Greta, and Harry were feeling well-rested after a good night’s sleep away from the twin XL. Running on Bates Sailing Time, the trio hurried to make it to the venue in time for the skipper’s meeting. It was a brisk morning when they arrived, with good breeze on the lake that looked like it would hold for the duration of the competition. Fueled by the best bagels that the Dunkin’ Donuts of Medford had to offer, Maggie, Harry, and Greta were excited to get back into Larks for the day after having success in them at the Regional Teams National Invite last spring. After relearning the complicated rigging system of the Larks, Greta and John wished Maggie and Harry luck as they left the docks for their first set. Considering the tough competition and lack of practice thus far this season, Maggie and Harry had a good first set. After they came back in, they gave good advice to Greta and John for navigating the conditions, and the B division went out on the water. 

After a sub-par second row start to their first race, Greta and John were relieved that the race got abandoned due to an unfairly skewed course after they rounded the windward mark in second to last. However, after shaking out the cobwebs, Greta and John had a great official first race, coming in third. The two were excited as they came back to the docks, having secured a fourth in their second race. 

Maggie and Harry then went back out on the water for A division’s second set, securing an awesome fifth place in their third race of the day. Greta and John also finished their day on a high note, with another third place in the last race. After helping the Tufts team with their derigging process, including destepping the masts and putting all the boats into their boathouse, the four sailors headed back up to Maine for the Sunday Sundae bar at Commons. It was a great day to be a Bobcat!

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Bobcats End Spring Season With Debut at Regional Teams National Invitational

Leave it to the Bobcats to go out with a bang! For the final regatta of the 2021-2022 season, the Bobcats traveled to Newport, RI to sail in the inaugural Regional Teams National Invitational. Co-hosted by the University of New Hampshire, Mass Maritime Academy, and the Bates Bobcats, this event targetted the top student-run programs in the country and brought them together to compete in the first culminating event of its kind. 

This regatta was the product of months of preparation by so many team members, and it truly showed. The regatta went off without a hitch(!), but only as a result of the efforts of so many Bobcats who volunteered their time to host the event:

Ethan Baker ‘24: Our on-water EMT and team dad

Mia Gates ‘22: Mark set legend and chief snacks officer

Lauren Georgeou ‘25: Cinematographer extraordinaire and czar of interviews

Ryan Standaert ‘24: Land operations lead and beloved rigging companion

Emily DeLossa ‘24: Friend to the race committee but a stranger to sunscreen

A special shoutout to Courtney Tally ‘23, who couldn’t be there in person (abroad in Denmark) but whose dedication as our social media chair helped us share in the action with our alumni, families, and friends. In addition to the work the Bobcats had committed to doing to host the event, the team also had qualified to sail in it and chose to send its saltiest delegation to battle it out on the line:

(S) Jack Valentino ‘22: Procrastinator of finals, breaker of boats

(S) Harry Stevenson ‘24: Lark charmer, Frary repeller

(S) Cameron Frary ‘24: Cowboy on the line, philosophizer with words divine

(C) Claudia Mabley ‘24: Chronic smiler, queen of the (overly respectful) burn

(C) Maggie Forger ‘25: Fueled by gummy bears, challenged by alarm clocks

(C) Greta Shuster ‘25: Sponsored by Dave’s Marketplace, banned by Mass Maritime Academy

We started Friday off with some unfortunate news that Captain Ted Lutton ‘24 had tested positive for COVID. His powerhouse sailing in the Spring played a significant role in qualifying the Bobcats for this regatta, and we (this author especially) owe a debt of gratitude to him for his leadership and grit through this Spring. A big shoutout also goes to Cam, who came down on 48-hour notice to take over for the ill Ted; his dedication to the team is forever appreciated. With that in mind and with the new team assembled, the Bobcats hit the water to do Ted proud. 

Day 1 started breezy with a strong adverse current which gradually turned off as the day went on. Harry and Maggie popped off with top finishes in the Larks, while Jack/Greta struggled in A-division initially to find their groove in the FJs. But after a productive lunch break, the Bobcats felt recharged, A-division found their groove, and B-division kept kicking butt! Going into the second half of the day, the breeze died off, the current slowed down, and it gave all the Saltcats the Taylor Pond vibes they needed to finish the day in 10th overall with the dynamic duo of Harry/Maggie sitting in 6th overall in the Lark fleet.

At night, the ‘Cats retreated to Greta’s house in Warwick, ordered some pasta, and regrouped for the second day. There was some strategy exchanged, some inspirational phone calls with Maggie’s grandpa, and overall excitement for Day 2.

Sunday morning, Ethan and Mia left at the ripe hour of 6:30 to prep the venue for competitor arrival (and be absolute angels in picking up some Ally’s Donuts for the team). The rest of the Bobcats stopped at Dave’s Marketplace to pick up lunch supplies and Dunkin to pick up breakfast before arriving at Salve Regina’s sailing center. With the forecast scheduled to be light, the Bobcats figured they could slow roll breakfast amidst a likely postponement. But alas, the PRO ushed everyone immediately onto the water!

Cam/Claudia started off Sunday rigging the FJs in the southern basin and Jack/Greta got a ride with their new friends from UNH up to the northern basin to rig up the Larks. After launching, the wind officially flatlined so a floating party ensued. With the help of a speaker from the Tom and Parker (UNH) on the media boat and Jordan (Mass Maritime) on the mark boat, teams from Texas, California, Ohio, Delaware, New York, and everywhere in between got groovy with it to classics like Beautiful Girl by Sean Kingston and Only Girl by Rihanna. The ‘Cats got to chat with competitors, float around, and even introduce them to the Saltcat national anthem (Losin’ It! by Fisher).

Around 1PM, the sea breeze filled in, the mark boat reset the course, and the AP flag came down. With Fisher on their minds, the ‘Cats were voracious. Cam and Claudia got off the line quickly and tacked on shifts all the way up the course, consistently rounding in the top five. With only three races permitted before the 3PM cutoff, Cam and Claudia recorded an impressive 4-5-6 to finish off tied in 5th place amidst a very competitive B-division. Despite a rocky first day, Jack and Greta came into day two fired up. The two of them put the hammer down and punched out to the left side of the course, rounding the windward mark in the top 3 for each race. After a third in race 11 and a bullet in race 12, the two went into the last race ready to finish strong. In what would be Jack’s last collegiate race, the pair won the pin end and powered out to the left. They rounded the windward mark in first with a 10-second lead but would finish the race with what we can best estimate to be a 30-second lead. The two sailed aggressively through the outer loop trapezoid course and hiked the Lark hard in the 18-20 knot breeze. Triumphant and proud, the two were met with a round of applause from the coach boat and an emotional moment of celebration with their teammates Maggie, Harry, Ethan, and Mia aboard the mark boat.

Sailing under the historic Newport Bridge at a venue considered a Mecca in the sailing world was an unbelievable experience. The weekend was a resounding success, and the team came together in a way that none of us will ever forget. This was an undertaking that was conceived by Batesies, put on by Batesies, and executed well by Batesies -- so the team is very proud of their 7th place finish at this inaugural national championship for student-led teams. We owe a big thank you to all the Bobcats that came down to help host the event, Salve Regina for the use of their facility, and all the friendly competitors from near and far that made the trip! The journey begins again… now the team gets ready to put on a strong showing next year and qualify for next year’s national regatta!

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4 ‘Cats Brave Early Season Sailing at Tufts

Early on Saturday, March 12, four apprehensive Saltcats: Laura, Claudia, Owen, and Otto headed out to Mystic Lake for the aptly named Tufts Icebreaker Invitational. The sailors awoke from their car naps (not the driver, of course) to thick fog blanketing the racecourse and not a mark in sight. The forecast for the day was a balmy 40 degrees, with winds building throughout and the promise of rain becoming snow as temperatures dropped. At the pre-race meeting, they learned that they would be sailing a triangle course they hadn’t heard of before and would do as many races as possible before everyone started unintentionally swimming.

With dry suits on, Laura and Claudia headed out for an enjoyable first two races, where they started well and finished fine. Winds began to pick up, making for a treacherous landing at the dock. 

Now in pouring rain with high winds, Owen and Otto launched into their first career regatta. They sailed to their heart’s content, even if they didn’t make it around every mark. 

Laura and Claudia made it out for one final race in worsening conditions. Unfortunately, it concluded with a dramatic capsize across the finish line and a drift to the dock, Laura clinging to the centerboard and Claudia flailing in her wake. The regatta was called early, and the freezing sailors aided in a lengthy de-rigging process. They stopped for a warm-up at Claudia’s house, where they were greeted with hot chocolate and a very excitable Black Lab and made it back to Bates in time for dinner at Commons.

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'Cats look hungry going into the Spring!

The Bobcats end a historic season on a high note and look to carry that momentum into the Spring. Notably this Fall, the ‘Cats:

Finished ranked 10th/107 student-led teams in the nation

Defended their home waters by winning both of their two home regattas

Took some impressive top-5 finishes at the Chris Loder, Peak Foliage, Ross Trophy, Fairfield Cup, and New England Dinghy Tournament

Finished with their highest conference ranking since 2013

Competed in their most expansive schedule to date 

Boasted one of their deepest rosters in history (32 unique sailors competing, active roster of 40 for practice)

Check out the 2022 Schedule tab to see where the ‘Cats will be this Spring.  Many of these locations boast spectator-style race courses close to land and we’d love to see family, friends, and alumni throughout the Spring!

Until then, the team will be taking a well-earned holiday break and then starting up in January with some team race meetings, team activities and, the always important, team dinner in Commons.

Scratch ‘em up, Cats!

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A BU-tiful day to be a Bobcat

This past Saturday a four-strong squad of Saltcats drove down to Boston to represent Bates Sailing at the Boston University Invite on the Charles River. Dubbed “Team Fisher,” this charismatic quartet was well prepared to take on the grim weather forecast and the promise of stiff competition that the tournament offered.

Team Fisher:

Claudia “The Hammer” Mabley (Crew): Designated Bates Sailing Concord Coach Lines Ambassador, racking up miles since 2020. The Luca Brasi to Valentino’s Don Corleone, the Oddjob to Fischman’s Goldfinger

“Cowboy” Cam Frary (Skipper): Traded in his Andover diploma for a life of crime after realizing school was for chumps and Lax players

Harry “Went in there” Stevenson (Skipper): Plans on staying in Burke basement for the Thanksgiving holidays. The festive atmosphere in West Hartford is nice but it just doesn’t compare

Ryan “I hate these jib sheets” Standaert (Crew): Actually a 22-year-old technical writer from Bloomington, Indiana, Ryan owns six sweaters and a sock and spends time drinking various herbal teas

Saturday morning began not-too bright and much-too early, as our team had to leave Bates by around 6:30 AM in order to reach Tufts University boathouse by 9:30 AM to drop off a group of freshmen for the Nickerson Trophy. Under threat of an unpleasant wake-up call from Cowboy Cam, the team shuffled over to Commons at the appointed time and we were off on the two-hour drive to Boston. After stopping at Dunkin’ for a quick drive-through breakfast we relaxed the rest of the way with some laid back tunes. 

Arriving at Tufts at 9:45, we made a quick luggage swap and left the freshmen to their fate, which, judging from the constant drizzle of rain and the mirror-like surface of Upper Mystic Lake, was not one to be envied. A quick fifteen minutes took us into Boston and along the Charles to our intended parking destination, which was unfortunately barred by a gate and an unmanned guardhouse. Fruitlessly looking for signage to no avail, Team Fisher began to grow desperate; it was now 10:20, and with only ten minutes before the skipper’s meeting things were looking grim. Cowboy Cam spotted a small intercom box next to the guardhouse with a push button and boldly strode forward to press it. In a twist of fate that could only be described as horrific, the button did nothing; we all turned away in despair until, suddenly and jarringly, the intercom crackled to life. 

“Can I help you?” came the tinny Bostonian voice from within the recesses of the little box.

Unfortunately, we didn’t have a parking pass, but luckily Harry was able to talk his way out of our predicament with what is now known in the business as a “Stevenson,” and the person manning the gate was only too happy to let us park there “just this once.” I guess it never hurts to ask, right?

By the time we got the car parked, moved all of our gear from the trunk to our arms, and began the mildly arduous walk to the BU sailing pavilion, it was 10:35 and we had already missed the skipper’s meeting. As luck would have it, the BU folks were a little behind as well, which gave us time to set our stuff down and get to rigging as fast as we could to make the 11:15 race start. As we began tacking up the Charles from the boathouse to the wider part of the river where the races would be held, it began to rain in earnest, with the wind coming in heavy puffs around 15 knots around the fog-wreathed buildings of downtown Boston. The Race Committee announced that we would be sailing ten races with no intermission and began the first sequence. Harry and Ryan placed a respectable 6th in the first race, but the gritty conditions and extremely stiff competition quickly began to test the saltcats’ mettle. Cowboy Cam and Claudia reeled it back in races six and eight with 10th and 12th place finishes, and we pushed through what turned out to be a long day of tough racing. While we all agreed it was not entirely satisfying, Day 1 at BU had some great starts and upwind/downwind legs, and we were able to put Bates on the map at a challenging event. 

After hoofing all our gear back to the car, we picked up the Nickerson group at Tufts and then headed to Claudia’s house, where we met our awesome hosts for the weekend, Amy and Eric Mabley and their dog Pepper. Our dinner destination on Saturday evening was an establishment entitled The Spot, which turned out to be a winner: by all accounts the food was excellent. Back at the Mabley’s, Ollie from Goons LLC waged all out war at the ping pong table, going undefeated against both Harry and Ryan. Claudia “The Hammer” took on the Cowboy in foosball, but unfortunately Bates’ resident bronco-buster had an ace up his sleeve. With the triumph of victory and the agony of defeat fresh in our minds, we turned in for the night and tried to grab some sleep before our 9:30 Sunday report time.

Sunday morning began for Cam and Ryan at the crack of 7:00 AM. Claudia arrived soon after, but one BU saltcat was conspicuously missing. After spending a few minutes enjoying the breakfast Amy had kindly offered to make, we decided it was time to wake the solitary somnolent, and Cowboy Cam took the opportunity to score the photo-op of a lifetime: a wild H. Stevensus emerging from hibernation. With all our gear loaded up, we headed out again for the BU boathouse, this time arriving before the skippers meeting and having plenty of time to get to rigging before the first race sequence. 

Day 2 of racing was as competitive as Day 1, and the conditions were just as challenging: although the rain had morphed into a beautiful, sunny fall day, the wind was blowing 7-10 knots and gusting to a strong 20. Harry and Ryan scored a nice 12th place in race thirteen, and Claudia and Cam kept up a streak of 14th, 15th, and then 14th places in races thirteen through fifteen. Of particular note were some of Harry and Ryan’s good starts on the line and Claudia and Cam’s strong downwind legs. Team Fisher left Day 2 feeling that they had sailed hard and while the Charles presented a slew of new challenges, it was a great experience and we are looking forward to fighting our way back next year!

The team didn’t take any photos that weekend, they were too busy collecting teeth. So we’ve elected to use this in it’s place:

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We Let the First-Years go to a Regatta alone... Send Prayers!

This weekend, Bates sent the finest bobkittens they had to offer to the NEISA Freshman Championship in the form of Alex Provasnik, Colby Green, Maple Buescher, and the (self-proclaimed) goon squad, Gray Dinsel and Ollie Rhee. Following a week of uncertainty surrounding transportation to the regatta, the team found a ride with another Bates team going to BU. The two teams left campus around 7 and settled in for the ~2 1/2 hour ride (including requisite Dunkin’ stops). After arriving at the Tufts sailing venue the BU team left the Tufts team with words of good luck and an excessive number of Commons turkey sandwiches. 

The first day of racing was overcast and drizzly, leading to some thoroughly soaked ‘cats by the time racing began. Bates started strong, taking first place in the first race, but followed it up with less than ideal second and third races before the B division switched in. Only one set was sailed in each division before races were cancelled for the day due to dying wind. Colby was happy to fill the time with an ever growing number of complaints about Larks. The rest of the team eagerly joined in after struggling for nearly fifteen minutes to understand how the heck to de-rig the boat.

Once the BU team arrived from their own competition both teams headed to Claudia’s house, their home base for the night. The search for dinner unfortunately did not find them Flatbread but did land them at a great local restaurant ‘The Spot’. Naturally the next stop in 35-degree weather was a local ice cream shop, whose employees kindly pretended not to be annoyed by the gaggle of college students. The remainder of the night was occupied by sleep for most of the exhausted sailors, and (mostly unsuccessful) sports betting for the rest.

The plan was to be on the road by 8am, so of course in proper Bates Sailing tradition they rolled out promptly at 8:15. Sunday was much sunnier and more pleasant, and each division managed to sail 5 races. The Saltcats felt more comfortable than the previous day and sailed well, at least on the upwind stretches. Each division got in two sets of races and learned to switch boats much more competently. The BU team arrived in time to see the B division’s final races, which they kindly pretended to be interested in. It was a race against the clock to see if the teams would get a third rotation in, and everyone was not-so-secretly grateful when they did not. 

Finally everyone piled back into the two cars for an unofficial race back to campus. Half the team almost abandoned the other half to visit a casino, but kindly remembered they were carrying everyone else’s things. After a half-asleep unpacking session in the Adams parking lot, the team staggered off for dinners and showers.

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‘Cats defend team-high 19th place rank with a Second place finish at NE Dinghy Tournament!

Over Halloweekend, the cats traveled down to Barrington, NH to take on the New England Dinghy Tournament. Colloquially referred to as the Club Team conference championship, “The Tourney” brings together teams ranked 19th through 36th for a culminating Fall regatta. After an outstanding Fall season, the Bobcats were going into this regatta ranked 19th (the team’s highest rank since 2013). Couple that with the fact that they would be coached at this event by former Captain Dylan Whitcraft ’19 who was in the area after his recent second place finish at the Star Sailors League Gold Cup, the Bobcats were poised for a great time. Representing the Black and Garnet were: 

Jack Valentino ‘22: our resident “visor Chad” and in-house sea lawyer Ted Lutton ‘24: the team’s firmest hand-shaker and shifty-condition extraordinaire Greta Shuster ‘25: our Texas Roadhouse-sponsored athlete and Ocean State Job Lot hype woman Maggie Forger ’25: the certified problem child of the pool but Queen of lobby transportation

After meeting outside Commons around 8AM, the team set off for Mendum’s Pond ready to defend their top ranking. After no more than 13 seconds of being in Tedford’s comfortable Subaru Deluxe, his three passengers were out like a light. Once they awoke, the team quickly realized the theme for the week was going to be one word, “wet.” The team set foot out of the car, with Greta and Jack wearing their cleanest white low-top sneakers, and directly into 2 inches of mud caking the parking lot. They realized the best move was to change into sailing clothes early to navigate the perilous conditions. 

After a brief skipper’s meeting and some DELICIOUS Wildcat Cider provided by the home team, Jack and Greta headed off for the first start. After recording a bullet in the opening race, the pair was confident they had tapped into the secret sauce and were excited to keep grinding. Race 2 didn’t go as well after they got stuck in a pile up at the boat end and they finished with a fourth, but Race 3 they redeemed themselves by going from fifth around the windward mark to first at the finish and recording their second bullet of the set. They then traded off with Ted and Maggie, who dug deep and secured 3-2-1 finishes in the deteriorating conditions to end the day. The teams were sent back to shore after the wind died and the rain built with instructions that racing would resume the next day early. 

The team appreciated their newly-found time off and rewarded themselves with some time in the hotel pool, a trip to the Ocean State Job Lot parking lot, and a LONG-awaited celebratory dinner at Texas Roadhouse. The team was inspired to take on the Texas Roadhouse challenge of how many of the famous, complimentary cinnamon-butter warm rolls they could eat but discovered quickly that beating the record of 212 rolls in one sitting was going to be more difficult than they expected. They finished their delicious meal, resigned to the hotel, and settled into bed with some homework and the new Ted Bundy movie.

 The second day started off with equally as, if not more, mud but less rain and better wind conditions. Jack and Greta hit the water to record a hard-fought 2-3-2 thanks to the calming, sage words of Coach Whitcraft. Trailing Mass Maritime by a sparce 4 points, Jack and Greta looked on with their new friends from Mass Maritime’s A-division and the always amazing Shuster parents (who drove all the way up from Warwick!) to watch how our shifty-condition experts, Tedford and Magdaline, would fare. In nail-biting fashion, the ‘Cats sealed a 2-3-2 in the last set to secure second in the regatta – which was enough to defend Bates’ 19th place rank over Mass Maritime overall in the NEISA standings! 

Although it was a bittersweet regatta for this author being his last Fall regatta as a Bobcat and potentially his last college fleet racing regatta as we go into the Spring team race season, there was no way he’d rather go out than being coached by his mentor and sailing alongside his Ross Bosses (as Maggie dubbed the foursome after their time at UVM together). The Bobcats saw some tight competition, made some new friends, had a fantastic dinner, and sang Sean Kingston the whole time (even when it made us lose track of the starting sequence in Race 2 😬). 

With the Fall Champs in the rearview mirror, the ‘Cats are transitioning to refining their team racing knowledge and look forward to the Spring team race season starting in Mid-March! To quote Cowboy Cam (Frary ’24), “Yee Haw!”

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2021 Gear Order!

Click on the link below to place orders in the 2021 Bates Sailing gear order!

All proceeds go back to the team and all orders ship individually.

Store closes 11/14 and items are expected to ship by Thanksgiving.

https://pws.atlanticsportswear.com/product-cat/bates-sailing-grey-black-cardinal-white-2021/

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Saucy and Sendy: Adventures at the 2021 Larchmont IOR

You could argue that the 2021 Storm Trysail Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta was a failure. We drove fourteen hours round-trip to not set off on a single race. But as our seven-strong team arrived back on campus on Sunday afternoon, no one thought the trip had been a waste.

Representing Bates at the 2021 Larchmont IOR:

Dylan DiSunno ‘22: Expert at trimming spinnakers and using fancy Japanese toilets.

Jack Valentino ‘22: Skipper extraordinaire, loud snorer, and Indy 500 van driver (shake n’ bake).

Courtney Tally ‘23: Queen of the halyards, professional morale officer, and team DJ.

Ethan Baker ‘24: Fearless on the foredeck, Team EMT, and sixteenth generation Mass-hole.

Ted Lutton ‘24: Main trimmer/tactician who says “ope” when he almost breaks your boom in half.

Lucy Edmunds ‘25: USDA Grade A rail meat and Westchester County’s best tour guide.

Greta Shuster ‘25: Pit boss and inexplicably attached to Ronstan-brand sailing gloves.

Our Larchmont hajj commenced with Jack and Ethan picking our rental van up from Larry’s U-Save of Lisbon, ME (sponsor us?). Following a delayed departure from campus (after loading the van with Courtney’s full assortment of makeup), we set off for Larchmont, New York. Ethan, the certified ambulance driver, drove expertly through Friday afternoon traffic in Massachusetts to the tune of “Losing It” by Fisher, yielding the van the ambiance of a sweaty Bardwell basement party on a Friday evening. After we abandoned the first McDonald’s we stopped at because of its absurdly long line (thanks to Ethan’s perennial foe, capitalism) there was inevitably another set of Golden Arches fifteen minutes down the road that was more to our liking. Though he’d had just a fifteen-minute van driving lesson from David Chick, Ted was confident he could handle driving Larry’s van the rest of the way to New York. Thankfully, no one was killed.

Earlier, Courtney had sent the team a one-star TripAdvisor review of the Mamaroneck Motel, our home for the weekend, entitled “ROACH CITY! DISGUSTING!” The review outlined (in great detail) one customer’s somewhat less-than-satisfactory stay:

“I went here a few nights ago and as soon as I went into the bathroom of my room I saw a ROACH right in plain sight on the floor in the corner. As soon as I got out of the bathroom and went into the main room, I see ANOTHER ROACH on the wall closest to the bathroom...Worst motel experience I’ve ever had. BEWARE!!”

Arriving into the dimly lit motel parking lot at 10:30 PM, we felt understandably apathetic about the rest of the night. After venturing to the Stop & Shop to buy some two-in-one shampoo/conditioner (Jack and Dylan regretted their $1.49 choice), we prayed for an uneventful evening and calm seas for our first day. We were only granted one of our two wishes.

At the unfavorable hour of 6:45 AM, the team set off for Starbucks and then Larchmont Yacht Club. When we got to the club, we noted that: 

We were the only team to yet have arrived.

It was really freaking windy, particularly for our team who’d never sailed together on a keelboat.

We proceeded to eat the complementary Dunkin’ donuts, buy our regatta memorabilia, and put on our toughest foul weather gear. Before heading to rig, we met Cory Eaves, who generously hosted the Bates team on his stunning J/109 (a thirty-five-foot keelboat) named “Freedom” for this year’s Larchmont IOR. We truly can’t thank Cory enough for his hospitality and for having us on Freedom for the weekend.

After a lengthy rigging process (due to our naiveté), we set out of Larchmont Harbor into Long Island Sound. The winds were fierce–seventeen knots with gusts above twenty-five–and the wind was out of the northwest, which meant that the waves had plenty of runway to build before reaching Larchmont. We spent about an hour putzing around trying to get a feel for the boat in the conditions, but it was challenging to control the boat in the big breeze and seas. The author’s highlight was hitting 17.6 knots while surfing a wave downwind. On our first jibe, the stopper knot at the end of the mainsheet pulled through the bottom block, and we had to re-run the mainsheet purchase just before our starting sequence. However, as we headed to the start line, the race committee displayed code flags N over A, abandoning all racing for the day. All of the available EMTs on support boats were responding to injuries on other boats, so the race committee decided that it was unsafe to continue racing.

We made it back to the harbor, but our tribulations weren’t over: as the boat approached the mooring, the keel became wrapped around the mooring line. After fifteen minutes of fruitless effort to free ourselves, a support boat came, spun us off our mooring line, and freed Freedom. Somewhat relieved to be back on land (and very tired considering we hadn’t done a single race), we headed to the motel and Lucy’s house to rest. We reconvened at 4:00 PM to return to Larchmont Yacht Club to hear a mystery guest speaker, whose voice we quickly recognized from the America’s Cup. After listening to Gary Jobson’s speech and a fantastic free dinner, the legendary Larchmont IOR party began. The Bates Sailing team, famous throughout the Greater Lewiston/Auburn Metro Area for our fly dance moves, gave the dance floor our best. Most of us decamped to Lucy’s house for the rest of the night, fearful of what another night at the Mamaroneck Motel might entail, except for the ever-ambitious Courtney who decided to go on an adventure to New York City.

The following morning we returned to the Larchmont Yacht Club, hopeful of getting a race off but also fearful since the on-the-water conditions had only worsened since Saturday. We put on our gear, still wet and salty from the day prior, but soon after that, the race committee again raised an “N over A,” abandoning Sunday’s racing. We said our goodbyes to Cory and started our drive back to Maine, thankful that we’d be arriving mid-afternoon as opposed to after ten o’clock if we’d gone racing the whole day. We stopped at the Chipotle Mexican Grill of Worcester for lunch (despite fierce protest from Greta and Courtney, who wanted to go to Texas Roadhouse) and later did some quick tax-free shopping in New Hampshire. After berating Jack for taking exit seventy-five instead of exit eighty on the Maine Turnpike to take us back to Bates (what kind of person takes exit seventy-five?), we each took a turn reviewing the weekend. The resounding consensus was that we’d had a five-star weekend, proving that even though the racing had been a let-down, our time together as a team was just as, if not more, valuable.

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Cats take an impressive fifth at UVM’s Ross Trophy

This past weekend, the fabulous squad of Maggie Forger, Ted Lutton, Jack Valentino, Greta Shuster, their wonderful alternate Laura Colgan, and special guest Owen Ferguson made the trip to the groovy U Vee (UVM) to compete in the prestigious Ross Trophy. As the crew trekked their way up to the fabulous city of Burlington, they admired the White Mountains, stopped for some gas station milkshakes, and jammed to only the best that 2008 had to offer. 

The team was very prepared upon arrival on Saturday, and took in the scenery of the Burlington Community Sailing Center. Lake Champlain provided lovely scenery and clear skies, but a very light breeze with a good amount of chop. The team rigged up Boat 7 for the first rotation, and sent Jack and Greta out to represent the Bobcats. Not first after debating the “meggings” look Ted was rocking and making a quick TikTok, the A-division pair endured a very long first race, and had their second race postponed while they were in a stellar second place. The course was then moved out to past the lighthouse into less obstructed water, and they completed their second race. The dynamic Lutton/Forger duo then took their turn to rotate in after a (far too long) wait ashore. The two made it through their set without a postponement, and swapped back out for the second set. The wind began to pick up a bit, and the second set went better for the team overall as the conditions changed. Aided by professional sea lawyers Valentino, Lutton and associates, the Bobcats acted as witnesses to a successful protest on Saturday and would later defend themselves against one on Sunday. 

The team arrived early on Sunday morning, Maggie admired some fabulous skater boys right across from the sailing center, and Greta finished her ritualistic belting of “Fire Burning” by Sean Kingston. The conditions were very similar to the previous day, but with a steadier NW breeze. Both teams sailed their first set without a hitch. But the breeze died and as A division went back out after lunch to begin the final set, the race committee abandoned for the day and sent teams home early. While Saturday’s lighter breeze favored the famous Valentino/Shuster patience, Sunday belonged to the quick-thinking B-division of Ted and Maggie. The pair recorded four clutch top-5 finishes (5, 3, 5, 3) in the final sets to break the three way tie and secure fifth place overall for the Bobcats. It was a great weekend to be a Bobcat all around and the group was very proud of their result at the challenging upper-level event.

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Salts take RWU at the Mt. Hope Invite

This weekend, Bates Sailing sent a team of five down to Rhode Island for the Mount Hope Invite at Roger Williams. Junior Captain Alli Fischman drove, joined by sophomores Emily DeLossa, Harry Stevenson, and Ryan Standaert, and the saltiest new addition, first-year Greta Shuster. After some unanticipated delays, the Mt. Hope squad left campus at about 3 PM, picking up Harry from the Hacker House porch he’d been sitting on for the past hour.

Despite some rush hour traffic, the 4-hour ride to the team’s home base for the weekend in Newport was smooth and pleasant. Emily queued up a diverse selection of music, including some Bo Burnham at Ryan’s request and the entirety of the 2020 Tomorrowland Festival setlist. While the Bohemian Rhapsody / We Will Rock You mashup was met with contempt, the team found a new love in the Gimme! Gimmie! Gimmie! (A Man After Midnight) remix.

Arriving in Newport, the Saltcats pulled up to a 1727 Captain’s house, wondering if they had gotten lost. After double-checking the address on the front, Alli pulled into the driveway, and the ‘Cats were greeted by Louis, a very sweet dog who is too interested in cars, especially ones trying to park. Lisa and Bart Dunbar, parents of Peter Dunbar ‘23 and the team’s hosts for the weekend, introduced themselves and showed the five to the apartment where they would be staying. After settling in, the sailors had a lovely pizza dinner on the patio with Bart, Lisa, Peter’s twin brother, and his friend. The team was given a tour of the beautiful historic house, then returned to the apartment where Ryan introduced them to the show “Archer” before turning in for the night.

The ‘Cats woke up bright and early Saturday morning, with Alli attempting to rally the troops but instead finding Harry covered head to toe in blankets and Ryan awake and still shivering. The team enjoyed a breakfast of bagels provided by Commons and coffees (and a bubble tea for Emily) from local coffee shop Empire (at Lisa’s recommendation). Harry, disappointed that Empire had run out of orange juice, ventured to try the canned juices from Commons and discovered they were (apparently) delicious, while Emily spit-balled tapioca pearls toward Harry’s back, much to his dismay. The team then loaded into the car to drive the half-hour back up to Bristol.

The first race day was off to a bit of a rocky start with a canceled skippers’ meeting whose failure to be announced led to our dream team Harry and Ryan still stuck on the dock at 11AM rigging their FJ as the other teams started across the line. With a main down four inches, Harry and Ryan made a great recovery for the second race of the set. The breeze was light in the first set, with current picking up to about 1.5-2 knots by the end of the day. 15-20 degree shifts made for an interesting first day of races. Greta and Alli began their race day to find the boat they were rotating into was not sailed in the A Division, so they rigged quickly and got their boat in the water to get to the starting line on time. By 2 PM, the breeze was blowing 12-15 knots, as the Salts navigated the waves. Emily rotated in for Alli for the second of three B Division sets. Though many boats capsized, the Saltcats managed to stay dry. However, Harry and Ryan were caught in a protest, which we were told would be heard in the morning.

With hungry stomachs, the Salts headed directly to downtown Newport to get dinner at beloved local haunt, Brick Alley Pub. After eating A LOT of food, the team set out to explore Thames street, as Alli remembered an exotic jerky store down the street she had to show everyone. Emily bought a bright yellow windbreaker, Ryan got some fudge for later, the ‘Cats floated the idea of a sponsorship at the Helly Hansen store, Alli went to the North Sails shop to complain about our new sails being delayed only to find it closed, and everyone got ice cream at Kilwin’s, despite being full already from a delicious dinner. Having left their mark on Newport, the team headed back to the Dunbar’s house to get to bed for a morning protest at an unknown time.

Sunday morning, the Saltcats left to arrive in Bristol half an hour early for the protest, Passion Tango teas in hand, only to find the whiteboard said the protest would be heard at 9:35, five minutes after the regular report time. After Harry and Ryan gave their statements to RWU coach Amanda Callahan and our dear friend from New Hampshire, Diana Weidenbacker, Harry and Emily set off for their first race of the day, mainsheet all the way up and starting on time. The breeze blew hard from the SSW, never dropping below 14 knots and midday getting up to 19, with gusts throughout the day in the low to mid-twenties. Harry and Emily had a couple of minor capsizes, and Harry and Ryan in the second A Division set of the day stayed dry. Greta and Alli made it through their first two sets without going over, but Alli, unfortunately, lost a bailer in the Mt. Hope Bay at the end of the second. In their last set, Greta and Alli did capsize, but a quick recovery made for an all-in-all successful race day, and the two returned to shore to find Harry and Ryan had been exonerated of the protest against them.

After some of our Saltcats rinsed the salt off in the RWU sailing pavilion, the team loaded into the car to head back to Bates. There were talks of Chipotle, but ultimately the ‘Cats decided they would rather make it back to campus at a decent hour to enjoy cheesy garlic bread with marinara from the pasta bar. Coming in at 11/14 teams, the team had a solid weekend of racing, practicing sailing in chop up to about 4 ft. (possibly bigger). For everyone except Alli, this was their first collegiate regatta experience. MVP goes to Greta Shuster, sailing queen who navigated the waters of her home state of RI with ease, and who made the weekend that much more enjoyable. The team is walking away having had a great experience, with many inside jokes and salt still crusted on their gear. Thanks to RWU, Diana, and the nice people from Coast Guard who helped Greta and Alli lower their boat before their first race! We’ll see you again soon, Rhode Island!

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Bobcats get sendy at the Harman Cup

Bates Sailing sent it’s toothiest squad up to Castine this weekend to compete for the Harman Trophy. This is the first time we’ve sent a team up to the historic event and we hope to do it again next year led by the team’s seasoned sophomore, Ted Lutton. Joining Ted were seniors Sam Gilman, Dylan DiSunno, and Jack Valentino. The four, determined to move one step closer to a qualification to Match Race Nationals in November, set off early Saturday morning in Ted’s sparkling Subaru for beautiful Castine, ME.

Along the way, they were met by the most patriotic of parades led by the Boy Scouts of Orland. There were fire trucks, mini go-carts, and tow trucks being towed by other tow trucks. Overall, a great start to the morning that broke the nerves the crew had for the tough competition ahead. Once they arrived, they checked-in, put on their gear, and drew for boats. For the first day, the Bobcats drew the Mary Lou S and sail number one. After a small hiccup missing the launch out to the moorings, the team was fortunate to get a ride from a kind MMA sailor named, Finn, who was happy to share some local knowledge about the boats and chat a bit about the beauty of Castine harbor.

Once on board, the team rigged up and started out of the harbor but were thwarted by the extreme tides of coastal Maine. The adverse current ripped so hard that lobster pots and navigational aids were being sucked under the water. After the race committee realized the day shouldn’t be wasted just trying to get out of the harbor, they towed all the competitors out past Dysons Point for the start.

The racing started in a light WSW breeze and strong left-to-right current. The team was given not one but two faulty VHFs, but was gifted with the personal radio of Maine Maritime Coach Taylor Martin (thanks, Taylor). Eventually, the sea breeze filled in the afternoon and it became a heavy southerly. After adjusting the tuning on their backstay, traveler, and vang to account for the 2-3 foot swells, the Cats were off. Racing continued with Ted as tactician, Dylan trimming jib, Jack on the helm, and Sam sliding around on the foredeck. Highlighting the day was a second place rounding at the windward mark, a few jokes exchanged on the downwind with Mass Maritime, and a nice blanket of “surprises” left by a malicious bird on Ted’s car.

The team departed the venue and drove to their beautiful accommodations for the night, the house of Rachel Pederson ’14 and her parents, Jeanie and Tom. Upon arrival, the team was greeted by their adorable golden retriever named Piper, told to wash up, and were prepared a delicious dinner of lobster, caprese salad, and homemade fruit tart to celebrate Jeanie’s birthday. After local “big, strong man” Sam Gilman broke a lobster cracker with his brute strength, the team bid goodnight to their hosts and stopped at a local market for some light fare to snack on. After picking up their refreshments and ice cream, the squad meandered over to famed local nightlife spot, Danny Murphy’s. But the owner must have smelled Batesies afoot  and was afraid they would raise the roof a little too hard, so he told them he was “closing 45 minutes early” and locked the door. Suspicious, but not out of the ordinary for a town known to harbor ex-CIA spies living out a remote retirement.

The second day started out with delicious breakfast sandwiches on homemade English muffins and Hawaiian iced teas from a cafe recommended by Jeanie the night before. With sandwiches in hand, the team headed back across the street to the waterfront, rigged up their Colgate 26 (this time the “Bonnie T”) and were on the starting line by 11 AM. While the team now had a working radio, they also had a broken winch handle which made it mighty hard to trim in the 18-knot breeze. After swapping for a working handle, the team took to the line. With the wind blowing squarely off the ocean and the morning flood tide, wave heights averaged four feet but reached six and potentially even seven feet at the top of the tide. The gusts coming down the course at almost 23 knots, the team had a roller coaster of a time climbing over the waves off the start and pumping on waves with the spinnaker down to the finish. The second day featured a man overboard drill to recover a dropped winch handle on the starting line, a spinnaker rigged with the head at the bottom and the tacks at the top, and (as this writer later learned) two crew members “sneaky yakking” over the side.

Although the team didn’t walk away with a bid to the next round of Nationals qualifications, Ted walked away with a less sparkly car, Jack walked away with a photo shoot at Danny Murphy’s, Dylan walked away without his Sour Cream and Onion chips, and Sam walked away with a strange affinity for “Diet Coke.” This salty squad excelled on the upwind legs routinely cutting distances by half and extending distances by two-fold. A little more time practicing spinnaker delegation and the team would have been able to maintain those upwind gains. The Seniors are excited to see the team that Ted brings back next year to the event and wishes him luck! Although everyone executed their roles very well, the MVP award of the weekend has to go to Sam Gilman. Gilman fearlessly crawled around the slippery bow to douse the sails, set the pole, protected Ted and Jack from the waves like a human shield, checked the tapes on the kite and overall pulled the team out of the variety of foredeck tangles they found themselves in.

Until next time, Castine!

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Alumni Regatta 2021

We’re excited to announce that we’ll be welcoming back alumni for our annual regatta and BBQ on September 18, 2021. 

930 Breakfast 1000 Skippers Meeting  1030 First Warning 1600 Last Race *BBQ and Awards to follow ashore*

More details on the event to be shared as we get closer, but for now head to the alumni tab to RSVP! 

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Our end-of-year newsletter is hot off the press! Check it out to see what the Saltcats are up to!

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We’ve joined YouTube!

We needed somewhere to drop all our salty videos, so we’ve started the official Bates Sailing Team Youtube account! For now, there are just links to our off-season seminars and zoom discussions and also some slideshows with photographs from this season. But in the future, watch out for videos of races, drills, and regatta experiences. Click below to check us out!

https://youtube.com/channel/UCk_kMR9gewC475YUBskMK1Q