Following a short break over the holidays, two of my Canadian Sailing Development Squad teammates and I safely arranged a productive training block in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, with an international training group. Training needed to continue for us to be ready if the full competition calendar in Europe proceeded this spring, beginning with Palma in March. A reasonable hope given this is the lead-up to the summer Olympics. We spent five weeks strictly maintaining our bubble, wearing masks, social distancing and refraining from entering any public buildings (grocery delivery has been a lifesaver) and getting valuable boat time.
We had some great training conditions. I’m on the right side of the screen in this video - sail number 215019.
We got the opportunity to compete at the US Open Sailing Series Ft. Lauderdale during our training. Noting the organizer's commitment to safety protocols, I registered for my first taste of semi-international competition in nearly a year. A combination of shifty conditions plus rusty large fleet tactics and strategy skills resulted in a disappointing finish 17th of 42. My thanks to all who worked so hard to organize a safe regatta.
Throughout this training block, I got the opportunity to experience some new things. Without support for coaching from Sail Canada right now, along with my fellow Canadian Teammates Luke and Fillah, I joined forces with the Argentine Olympic selection Francisco Guaragna and his coach Nico for the duration of the block. It was a great experience to get exposed to some new ideas and ways to approach the sport. Along with this, we got to train every day with three other Olympic selections from the US, Guatemala, and Chile. It was fantastic to show up to sailing each day and line up with guys who sail at the front of the fleet. It certainly gave me a new appreciation for the years of practice for technique accuracy and balance that these guys possess. Still have my work cut out for me, but every little step I feel is moving me towards my goal.
