MSC at the 2021 ISSA Great Oaks Invitational
By John Weissert
On November 20 and 21, Wyatt and Lorenzo from Saint Paul Academy (SPA) spent two days sailing Lake Pontchartrain at the 2021 ISSA Great Oaks Invitational. We were hosted by the Southern Yacht Club of New Orleans who organized and ran the regatta.
In September, Wyatt and Lorenzo sailed a very competitive event in Pontiac, Michigan to qualify for this Great Oaks. Placing 4th in the qualifier was high enough to propel them to this phenomenal regatta in Louisiana. SPA was joined by 28 other teams from around the country who also qualified to compete in the event.
Wyatt and Lorenzo between rotations. Coach John is wearing a party hat.
What a treat it was. New Orleans is a city unlike anywhere else in the world. It is beautiful and rotten; magical and destitute; a city that defies the laws of nature to simply exist yet fails to maintain its streets in even a passable condition. Mark Twain once stated that there were three cities in the United States: New York, San Francisco, and New Orleans. Everywhere else is Cleveland.
New Orleans is also one of the few places in the world where you can walk the streets and commission a poem. Given our sailing team’s collective love of poetry, I requested one. Out of the Doldrums was written in the middle of Frenchman Street the Friday before the event, inspired by some hints that I provided.
“Out of the Doldrums” captures MSC’s devotion to imagery and creative writing.
New Orleans is also filled with sentimentality for me personally. More than a decade ago, I lived on my 27 ft boat down there for 8 months. I worked in a boatyard that gave me free dockage and generally had an uproarious albeit challenging time. Whilst driving around the tangled streets, I reflexively narrated my limited understanding of various neighborhoods to whoever was listening (probably no one). I drove by the old yard where I toiled. It was empty – save the crane and workhouse. The independent sail loft remained above the yard house, and I could see the makers were busy upstairs. I walked up. I re-introduced myself and asked what happened to Mike Myers Yacht Yard. Before Chris, the owner could answer, one of his employees – still stitching a sail and without turning around – growled, “What, does he still owe you money?” Both women look up while their hands work, eyes peering above their glasses and flash devilish grins without responding. He was no easier to work for even a decade ago.
A look down the inner harbor entrance alongside the Southern Yacht Club.
Following the channel towards the lake, we arrive at the grand Southern Yacht Club. Entirely rebuilt following Katrina, it was completed in 2011. Standing high on pilings, the club reaches 4 stories above the water on the harbor entrance on the last spit of land before the lake. Decks wrap around the club on the second and third levels with great viewing lines out to the lake. We arrived Saturday morning to a large tent on the front lawn along the break wall. Grits and eggs, bacon, and coffee were all served. Southern hospitality at its finest.
The Southern Yacht Club facing Lake Pontchartrain.
The wind was light but steady off the lake. The sun was strong, and the air was warm and humid.
On day one, the fleet was divided in two. If you finished in the top half of your fleet on day one, you were regrouped with the top half of the opposing group to form a “gold fleet.” The bottom half of each group on day one was combined on day two into a “silver fleet.” The goal was to get in the top half to try and propel ourselves into the gold fleet for day two. We were nervous, energetic, and excited to start sailing.
The first two races saw a relatively inauspicious start – buried off the line. But with fantastic boat speed - particularly downwind - and steady tactics, SPA took it in stride. Each race saw them gaining boats on every leg of the race. There was no panic, just methodical sailing. We finished the first rotation mid-fleet, in 5th, just inside the 7th place cutoff for gold fleet. Racing was tight throughout the day and we bounced around mid-fleet all day.
The wind being so light, the race committee opted for one lap races that lasted around 15 minutes each. The challenge in such short races is to ensure a clean lane and good power-up right off the line. These also happened to be our Achilles heel not only on Saturday but for the entire event. On our final race after a long day of racing, we fell out of the top 7 to eighth place, putting us in “silver fleet” for Sunday. We were disappointed, but copacetic. The truth is, to have mid-fleet or better results when we were consistently buried off the line or worse was the best possible outcome. It takes great determination and grit to constantly be looking up at the entire fleet and battle back – every single race.
Day two was very similar. The sun was bright and warm, the wind light. We came in much less nervous and ready to be more aggressive at the line. It paid off. On day 2, we bounced around in the top four, consistently leading the fleet. With two races to go SPA was in first place. Alas, in the final two races our Achilles heel came back to bite us. We had two races where we couldn’t get a clean lane off the start line and we fell back to fourth place.
I am very proud to coach such a great hard-working and resilient team. From the whole of Minneapolis Sailing Center – congratulations to Wyatt and Lorenzo! You represented MSC well at Great Oaks!