Miami Snipe Invitational - McLaughlin on podium

by Sail Canada on 8 Jan 2014 CST sailors Rob Davis (Kingston) and Evert McLaughlin (Toronto) competed in the third annual Miami Snipe Invitational (MSI). Twenty-eight teams representing seven nations participated in this year's Invite. Davis and McLaughlin were introduced to the Pan American Games double-handed class when they were invited to the 2013 event by two-time Snipe World Champion Augie Diaz. The aim of the MSI is to recruit high level sailors under the age of thirty to the Snipe Class. The format of the event is a two-day clinic followed by a two day regatta. New teams are provided with a boat, sails, coaching, and in the case of Davis and McLaughlin, experienced Snipe crews.

Davis, who won the new team division in the 2013 Invite, showed incredible speed in the windy conditions. He started off the regatta well with a third place finish, but was handicapped by an OCS and lighter winds in later races. McLaughlin, who went on to compete in the 2013 Canadian Snipe Nationals and New England Championship, proved that time in the boat pays off. Consistent finishes in the Top 10 were enough to secure a third place finish in the deep fleet. Raul Rios of Puerto Rico won the event and Nick Voss of Miami finished the regatta ahead of McLaughlin in second.

Both Davis and McLaughlin are hoping to earn a Canadian Team spot in the Snipe Class for the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto, filling an absence of Canadian presence in previous Games.

Full results: click here