Please select your home edition
Edition
Armstrong 728x90 - Wing FG Board Range - TOP

A Q&A with Jennifer Truscott and Diane Kampf on the 2023 Flying Scot Women's NA Championship

by David Schmidt 11 Jul 2023 08:00 PDT July 14-16, 2023
Flying Scot North American Championship at Pensacola Yacht Club on Pensacola Bay. Day 1, the qualifying series © Talbot Wilson

1958 might be some moons ago, but go-fast designers already had a strong grasp on the fundamental design attributes that create a quick and fun boat. Case-in-point: The Flying Scot. This capable One Design 19-foot dinghy was drawn by Sandy Douglas, who had already achieved fame by designing the Thistle and the Highlander, and the new boat (established 1958) quickly showed her penchant for hopping up onto a plane when sailing off-the-breeze angles.

Not surprisingly, the Flying Scot quickly gained a strong following amongst performance-minded sailors, and now, decades later, some 6,300 boats have been built, and the class enjoys solid leadership courtesy of the Flying Scot Sailing Association (FSSA).

Flash forward to 2023, and national-level Flying Scot regattas continue to attract dozens of boats. Better still, there's long been groundswell support for all-women's racing within the class, including for all-women's championship titles.

Take, for example, the 2023 Flying Scot Women's North American Championship, which is being organized by the FSSA and the Westhampton Yacht Squadron (WYS), and which is being hosted by the WYS, in Remsenburg, New York, from July 14-16. The regatta will be contested on the waters of Moriches Bay, and is open to all women sailors who are active-, life-, junior-, club-, or family-level FSSA members.

I checked in with Jennifer Truscott, Westhampton Yacht Squadron's director and regatta chair, and Diane Kampf, FSSA's past president and current web editor, via email, to learn more about this championship-level women's One Design regatta.

The Flying Scot is a great design, but it's not new. Can you please tell us a bit about the state of the class, its current culture, and its competition levels?

The class is 66 years old and still going strong with about 900 members.

The 2023 North American Championship had a roster of 60 boats, 2022 Women's North American Championship registered 18 boats, the 2022 Wife-Husband Championship sported 20 boats, and the 2023 Midwinter Championship fleet was 40 boats, and we are modifying our Junior Championship for 2023.

We have District Series and Championships around the country and many local fleet racing programs. We have world-class sailors, including Jeff and Amy Smith Linton, participating in our class events.

How many boats are you expecting on the starting line(s) of this year's regatta?

We have had 10-25 boats for the Women's Championship, so we are hoping to continue that tradition.

It's a bit unusual for a class to hold a women's-only North American Championship regatta. Has the Flying Scot class always done this? Can you shed some light on this history?

The Women's Championship used to be a one-day event on the day before the North American Championship (NAC). With more and more women participating in the NAC, it was hard to add another whole day of competition to the week-long event, and we found that we were not seeing the participation we wanted.

A committee was formed and [they] proposed the separate, full weekend, event. The goal is to encourage more female skippers and crew in the sport of sailing.

Building on that last question, do you expect that most sailors who are competing in the Flying Scot Women's North American Championship will have also competed in the Flying Scot North American Championship (June 3-8, 2023)? Or, do the two events tend to attract different sailors?

Yes, many of the women participate in both events, which is a primary reason for the birth of the Women's North American Championship. With that said, we want to lift women up and encourage all level sailors to participate, which is why we have Championship and Challenger [fleets].

Generally speaking, what kinds of conditions can sailors expect on the waters of Moriches Bay in mid-July?

Warm water, typically a south wind off the ocean, blowing between [8-10 knots]. It is an active bay with sail and motor boats. With our vast number of volunteers, we will have command of the bay and expect many supporters and observers.

Do you see local knowledge playing a big or small role in the regatta's outcome? Can you please explain?

I'm sure there is always a hometown advantage, especially since we race every weekend. Moriches Bay changes annually with new channels and sandbars [that pose] an exciting adventure for all!

If you could offer one piece of advice to visiting (and local) sailors, what would it be?

Come early and take advantage of our volunteers who will take you to the race area and familiarize you with the water and race course. Leverage this event as a chance to enjoy each other's company after great competition on the water.

Can you please tell us about any efforts that the regatta has made to green-up the event and generally lower its environmental wake?

Biodegradable plates and silverware will be used for meals. We are also encouraging our participants to bring reusable water bottles to [reduce] the use of plastic.

Is there anything else that you'd like to add, for the record?

The Westhampton Yacht Squadron is honored to host the Flying Scot Women's North American Championship. This weekend is about camaraderie, [and] encouraging and celebrating women in the sport of sailing, and we are thrilled that three nationwide companies are lending their support for this event—Aetna, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Salesforce, along with two local businesses, Hulme & Kelly Attorney at Law, and Luna Mesa Day Spa.

Related Articles

The power of tech
What is the cost of safety? How do you measure it? More importantly, how do you appreciate it? What is the cost of safety? How do you measure it? More importantly, how do you appreciate it? Posted on 2 Jul
Some thoughts on provisioning for distance sailing
A new perspective on provisioning and time spent at sea One of the great joys of distance racing unfurls the moment that the dock lines are untied. Suddenly, the myriad packing lists that inevitably define most trip-planning efforts become about as relevant as a tax return from eight years ago. Posted on 1 Jul
Bill Guilfoyle on the 2025 Transpacific Yacht Race
Bill Guilfoyle discusses the 2025 Transpacific Yacht Race When it comes to offshore sailing in the United States, the biennial Transpacific Yacht Race reigns supreme for its distance and promise of off-the-breeze sailing angles. Posted on 1 Jul
Jazz Turner completes Project FEAR
Drama right to the end in her non-stop, solo, unassisted navigation of the British Isles Jazz Turner has completed Project FEAR, her non-stop, solo, unassisted navigation of the British Isles in her Albin 27 yacht. A flotilla of supporters met her in Seaford Bay, which grew and grew the closer they came to Brighton Marina. Posted on 1 Jul
One thing. One big, very fast boat
One thing that opened the door, another made us enquire some more - 50 knots! Yes. It was one thing that opened the door, as it were. One thing that piqued the curiosity enough to go, ‘I'll take a look at that!' One thing that when you're trying to crack in excess of 50 knots... Posted on 30 Jun
A brief history of marine instrument networks
Hugh Agnew has been involved since the outset, and continues to develop at the cutting edge One man who has been involved since the outset, and continues to develop at the cutting edge, is Hugh Agnew, the Cambridge-educated mathematician who is one of the founders of A+T Instruments in Lymington, so I spoke to him to find out more... Posted on 25 Jun
Harald Findlay on the 2025 Edgartown Race Weekend
A Q&A with Harald Findlay on the 2025 Edgartown Race Weekend When it comes to racing sailboats on the East Coast of the United States in the summer months, few places are as classic as the waters surrounding Martha's Vineyard's northwestern flank. Posted on 18 Jun
Sailing and the summer solstice
Celebrating sailing and the longest day of the year If you love long evenings and early mornings, this is one of the best times of the whole year, as the summer solstice (Friday, June 20) and the entire rich expanse of summer are about to burst into bloom. Posted on 17 Jun
Video Review: The Amazing Cure 55
Composite Construction meets Cruising Convenience It was two years ago at the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show that I talked to Dave Biggar about his ideas and plans for the Cure 55. At the 2025 show I got to step on board the yacht and see how his ideas became reality. Posted on 17 Jun
The Big Bash
Every summer the tournament rolls into town. A short format of the game. Fun and excitement abound. Every summer the tournament rolls into town. Local and international players. A short format of the game, run over a relatively compact six-week season. Posted on 15 Jun
V-DRY-XSea Sure 2025C-Tech 2021 (Spars-QFX Racer) 728x90 BOTTOM