Winners announced for the 2022 US Sailing Association Awards

Winners announced for the 2022 US Sailing Association Awards © US Sailing

Thursday evening, winners of the 2022 US Sailing Awards were honored among family, friends, peers, and competitors at US Sailing's Sailing Leadership Forum in St. Pete Beach, Florida.

The following awards were given during an evening ceremony:

Race Administration

• Harman Hawkins Trophy - awarded to Ted Everingham (Grosse Pointe Park, MI)
• St. Petersburg Yacht Club Trophy - awarded to Christi Yacht Club (Corpus Christi, TX)

Foundation

• Kevin Burnham Memorial Award - awarded to Mark Ivey (Sausalito, CA)

Training and Education

• Virginia Long Sail Training Service & Support Award - awarded to Robert Whittredge II (Larchmont, NY)
• Timothea Larr Trophy - awarded to Larry Ledgerwood (Walnut Creek, CA)

Organizational

• Nathanael G. Herreshoff Trophy - awarded to Mitch Brindley (Smithfield, VA)

Harman Hawkins Trophy
Ted Everingham (Grosse Pointe Park, MI)

Each year, the Harman Hawkins Trophy is awarded to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the field of Race Administration. This year's awardee is Ted Everingham, a US Sailing race officer, umpire, and judge and World Sailing international judge.?Everingham has a long history with US Sailing, spanning 33 years: he has been a judge or umpire at virtually every US Sailing championship event - many more than once - a past chair of the US Sailing Judges Committee, a Race Official Instructor, a member of the review board, and was part of the team that developed the modern umpire program, one of the leading national umpire programs in the world.

Just in case that is not enough, he is also a Past Commodore of both Bayview Yacht Club and Grosse Point Yacht Club.

St. Petersburg Yacht Club Trophy
Christi Yacht Club (Corpus Christi, TX)

The St. Petersburg Yacht Club Trophy is awarded annually to a local sailing organization for exceptional race management at a specific event. This year's winner was Corpus Christi Yacht Club (Corpus Christi, TX) for the 2022 J/24 World Championship. The race committee ran 10 races for 38 boats from eight countries over five days. At the end of the event, the top four boats were separated by only four points. The Race Committee used a variety of sailor friendly practices, including giving daily competitor briefings to describe the courses and the RC's intentions and communicating regularly with sailors on the racecourse.

Competitors were highly complementary of Corpus Christi YC's and the Race Committee's work. One commented, "These guys were easily and by far the best RC my team and I have ever experienced!? The conditions were challenging and very windy, blowing up to 36 knots, with waves as big as our boat. Every race began on time and the courses were square and even!" Another said, "Corpus Christi Yacht Club put on a rock-solid regatta on all levels.?There was nothing that we could think of that could have been done to make it better.?The Race Committee, on the water team, and judges were excellent."

The Kevin Burnham Memorial Award
Mark Ivey (Sausalito, CA)

The Kevin Burnham Memorial Award is presented to a sailor who embodies the spirit of the late Olympic Silver and Gold medalist Kevin Burnham: passion, persistence, perseverance, sportsmanship on and off the water, and love of the sport and love of his or her competitors. This year's winner is Mark Ivey.

His nomination read: "Mark is both an outstanding sailor and a fantastic person. Just like Kevin. He's applied his skill and enthusiasm into coaching as well as sailing in a super impressive way.?I know Kevin was a mentor to Mark, and?I?certainly have witnessed Mark accomplishing the highest heights (including both his own awards and coaching sailors to Olympic Gold) while, like Kevin, bringing enthusiasm and sportsmanship to the table. Mark's list of regatta wins as a competitor, and as a coach, is too long to mention.??Multi time all American, college champ, keelboat champ and world and Olympic champ coach. The fact that he's everyone's favorite person to lose to says a lot about his approach to the sport, to say nothing of his sailing skills.?Just like Kevin."

Virginia Long Sail Training Service & Support Award
Robert (Bob) Whittredge II (Larchmont, NY)

Since 2005, Bob Whittredge has served as the Executive Director of the Junior Sailing Association of Long Island Sound (JSA) which coordinates sailing program activities for over 2,500 junior sailors at 43 Member Clubs.

Since becoming Executive Director, Whittredge has worked tirelessly to organize meetings and clinics for the benefit of the JSA Member Clubs, providing invaluable opportunities for JSA constituents to build the knowledge base for their junior sailing programs. He has been an effective organizer and collaborator of junior regattas on Long Island Sound and is constantly "on the lookout" for best practices around the country, bringing them back to the organization. He is often found at many of their junior regattas, always looking out for what is working and potential areas of improvement.?Whittredge's tireless dedication to the sport of junior sailing has benefited families in our area and beyond as he believes strongly in making sure our resources are available to the larger audience via blogs, websites, social media and more. In recent years individuals affiliated with the JSA have been recognized for their efforts to improve junior sailing. But in many instances these success stories have a common theme: the energetic support and passion of Bob Whittredge.

Timothea Larr Trophy
Larry Ledgerwood (Walnut Creek, CA)

In 2015, Larry Ledgerwood stepped into the role of Training Committee Chair, replacing current US Sailing Board President, Rich Jepsen. As Chair, Ledgerwood brought it all - continuity, the ability to create consensus, objectivity with the benefit of history and a fresh perspective. His ascension to Chair could not have occurred at a better time as it mirrored both a structural and philosophical shift in US Sailing's education department.?

With Ledgerwood's help, the structure of the Training Committee was adjusted, ensuring that representatives from each discipline were at the table. This included bringing in representatives from both Safety at Sea and Race Admin, both of whom had been siloed in the past.

He also worked together with the education department staff to push the organization into the digital age by taking a lead role in the creation of Teaching and Coaching Fundamentals Online. Ledgerwood recognized that the organization as a whole was moving from volunteer-led/staff-supported to staff-led/ volunteer-supported, and updated documentation and resources to support this change. This shift, while somewhat subtle, was key when the pandemic hit, as it allowed US Sailing to pivot and meet the market demand for online learning.

Nathanael G. Herreshoff Trophy
Mitch Brindley (Smithfield, VA)

After serving as president of the Intercollegiate Sailing Association for 21 years, this year's Nathanael G. Herreshoff Trophy winner, Mitch Brindley, will be stepping down in May. The Association and its member organizations host over 300 regattas a year for approximately 5,000 members. Under his leadership the Association has grown in membership, secured increased funding in the form of title sponsorships from industry partners, and increased participation in national championships.

In just the past three years, he has led the Association through significant, progressive organizational change, including the formation of a participant-led equity & diversity task force that has worked closely with US Sailing, the addition of a new Women's Team Race Championship, an overhaul of the organization's governance structure that is more representative of all stakeholders, and the hiring of the first Executive Director to run the Association's day-to-day operations. All of this was accomplished while guiding the Association through the pandemic and maintaining a racing schedule and championships under strict medical protocols.

Brindley's 28-year coaching tenure with 7 national titles at Old Dominion University is notable. Mitch was on the sailing team with All Americans Yachtsman of the year and AC sailor, Terry Hutchinson and Olympian/silver medalist Charlie Ogletree. Mitch has coached many notable sailors who have become world champions and pro sailors including Olympic gold medalist Anna Tunnicliffe Tobias, Olympians Sally Barkow and Stephanie Roble. In the words of Sally Barkow: "Mitch's strength lies in his steady commitment to building athletes with resilient character and strong commitment to the sport, who know how to harness their competitive edge."