Please select your home edition
Edition
PredictWind - GPS 728x90 TOP

2021 West Marine US Open Sailing Series: Fort Lauderdale - Day 3

by US Sailing 17 Jan 2021 20:01 PST January 15-18, 2021
2021 West Marine US Open Sailing Series: Fort Lauderdale - Day 3 © Ellinor Walters

The 135 sailors waited patiently on Sunday for consistent breeze by making the most of their time to work on their craft and connect with fellow athletes during a lengthy postponement. As conditions improved in the afternoon, all three Laser fleets completed one race each on Day 3 at the 2021 West Marine US Open Sailing Series - Fort Lauderdale.

Shifty winds made racing a challenge in the late morning and early afternoon hours. Later in the afternoon winds picked up reaching 8 to 12 knots with puffy and shifty gusts and relatively flat seas.

Juan Maegli (GUA) added to his lead by taking Race 4 in the Laser Full Rig fleet. He now leads Francisco Guaragna Rigonat (ARG) by 10 points. Leo Boucher (Annapolis, Md.) placed second in today's race, while Luke Ruitenberg (CAN) finished third. Charlie Buckingham (Newport Beach, Calif) is the top American entering Monday's last day of racing in fifth place.

Boucher discussed his day on the water with the Full Rigs including his second place finish. "We went out there with very little hopes of getting races off. It was pretty chilly, very cloudy, and it didn't look promising. Then around three o'clock we got a bit of breeze; just enough to get us started. The breeze never settled in and was very all over the place."

"We waited until we could get a clean start off. I ended up going right in our race on the first upwind, just waiting for a variety to take me back to the top mark. I ended up getting one and rounded the windward mark in 7th. I stayed in 7th on the reach and passed a boat or two on the first downwind. I gybed onto port and noticed that there was a bit of a lefty happening on the downwind. Right before I rounded the leeward mark, I looked upwind and saw that the first and second place boats tacked onto port and it looked like they were sailing a lefty so I wanted to make sure I got onto port tack as quickly as I could. So I rounded the course right gate so I could be on port tack immediately, and from there I was anticipating another righty after the lefty phased out. So we all tacked on the righty and I made a gain, the breeze kept winding to the right, and I had already been set up to be one of the furthest right boats. I just got to put my bow down and go fast instead of tacking repeatedly to get in the pressure that was on the right. The risk paid off and I was very happy."

Chapman Petersen (Winnetka, Ill.) had another strong performance in Race 4 with a win in the Yellow Fleet to lead the Radials by eight points over Robby Meek (Annapolis, Md.). Isabella Maegli (GUA) earned the win in the Blue Fleet. Sunday was the final qualifying round for the Radials with the fleet splitting into Gold and Silver on Monday.

Jacob Zils (Wayzata, Minn.) has a one point lead over Umi Noritake (Miami Beach, Fla.) and Conor Kellett (Miami Beach, Fla.) through four races in the 4.7 fleet after placing second in Race 4. Dorothy Mendelblatt (St. Petersburg, Fla.) won today's race and moved into fifth place overall.

Monday is the last day of racing and 2-3 races are planned. Full results ans standing available here.

Morgan Reeser, Olympic Development Program (ODP) Coach and Olympic Gold Medalist was observing the racing and was impressed with the overall talent of these young athletes. "They've all shown flashes of brilliance, which I'd much rather have than just an average performance. I'd rather see some great ones, and they've all had top four races or top six races. That's all I'd ask for at this point."

"I go back to when I was their age, there was nothing like this. So I constantly tell them they have no idea how lucky they are. They have hardworking, really smart people behind them trying to guide them, whereas I had to continually make mistakes myself and just try not to make the same mistakes twice. So we're trying to help them not make the mistake the first time."

ODP Coach, Chris Barnard said, "It's great that all these sailors at different levels are mixing it up this week. It's on us to keep pushing the level higher and over the years we will keep getting better."

Related Articles

US Sailing announces new scholarship fund
To support sailors' growth and development In an effort to make sailing more accessible and inclusive, US Sailing is proud to announce the launch of the US Sailing Scholarship Fund. Posted on 28 Apr
Charlie Enright appointed as CEO of US Sailing
An accomplished sailor and an advocate of the sport, known for his leadership skills US Sailing announced Charlie Enright, an accomplished leader in the sailing industry, as the Association's new CEO. Enright will take the helm of US Sailing, the sport's National Governing Body (NGB), following an extensive national executive search. Posted on 14 Apr
Three American teams qualify for Medal Races
At Trofeo Princesa Sofía, first Sailing Grand Slam After six days of racing on the Bay of Palma at the 54th Trofeo Princesa Sofía, three American teams finished the opening series in the top 10, qualifying for prestigious medal races at the largest Olympic classes regatta of the year. Posted on 8 Apr
Lead-up to LA28 begins with Princesa Sofía Regatta
29 athletes representing the US are now in Palma 29 athletes representing the US across eight Olympic classes will spar with over 50 other countries at the 54th edition of the Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca, considered to be the European season opener. Posted on 31 Mar
Jr. Pan American Games Sailing Team announced
Four athletes named, set to compete in Paraguay this August Four US athletes will take the water for the second ever Junior Pan American Games coming up August 9-23, 2025 in Asunción, Paraguay. Posted on 7 Mar
US Sailing Youth Team qualification update
Over half of the 72 sailors who will qualify have now earned their spot on the team Over half of the 72 sailors who will qualify for the Youth National Team in 2025 have now earned their spot on the team based on top finishes at class association Midwinter Championships. Posted on 7 Mar
US Sailing seek Sailor Athlete Council nominations
SAC is only vehicle for sailors to be heard as individuals rather than as members of an organization US Sailing's Sailor Athlete Council (SAC) maintains an avenue for American sailor athletes to voice their opinions, providing a forum and opportunity to have a meaningful impact on the future and direction of our sport. Posted on 2 Mar
US selection process for Youth Match Racing Worlds
Set to take place from July 21-27 in Gdynia, Poland US Sailing has released the athlete selection procedures for the 2025 World Sailing Youth Match Racing World Championship, set to take place from July 21-27 in Gdynia, Poland. Posted on 28 Feb
2025 Kevin Burnham Memorial Grants recipients
Three young sailors selected to receive the 2025 Kevin Burnham Memorial Grants US Sailing is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2025 Kevin Burnham Memorial Grants, made possible by the generous support of the sailing community in honor of Kevin Burnham's remarkable legacy. Posted on 27 Feb
Strength of American Skiff Movement proven
28 Athletes at 2025 49er & 49erFX US Nationals A balmy, 15 knot wind stirred the palm trees at the US Sailing Center of Miami for day three of the 2025 49er and 49erFX National Championship. Posted on 19 Feb
Hyde Sails 2024 - One DesignPredictWind - Offshore App 728x90 BOTTOMC-Tech 2020 Battens 2 728x90 BOTTOM