Special episode: Women's J105 Regatta in Annapolis!

[00:00:10] [SPEAKER_01]: Hello and welcome to Sailfaster, the number one podcast for racing sailors.

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[00:01:20] [SPEAKER_01]: Our mission at Sailfaster as you know is all about uncovering and exploring how

[00:01:24] [SPEAKER_01]: people sail their boats faster than others.

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[00:01:52] [SPEAKER_01]: And now to today's episode, which is sort of a special edition, which

[00:01:55] [SPEAKER_01]: focuses on this Sunday's women's J 105 regatta being held in Annapolis.

[00:02:01] [SPEAKER_01]: Here we go.

[00:02:07] [SPEAKER_01]: Hello, everybody, and welcome to one more episode of Sailfaster,

[00:02:10] [SPEAKER_01]: the podcast for those who obsess about sailing faster.

[00:02:14] [SPEAKER_01]: As you know, today we have a really interesting episode because it's all to do

[00:02:19] [SPEAKER_01]: with the women's regatta, the upcoming women's regatta in Annapolis

[00:02:23] [SPEAKER_01]: in a couple of weeks time.

[00:02:24] [SPEAKER_01]: And I thought this was a very sort of prescient time to bring together

[00:02:27] [SPEAKER_01]: three of the leading lights behind the women's regatta and competitors.

[00:02:32] [SPEAKER_01]: So with me, we have Molly Wilmer, who is outside having breakfast

[00:02:36] [SPEAKER_01]: in Newport, which looks and sounds good for those of you who can see the video.

[00:02:41] [SPEAKER_01]: We have Marie Klok-Krum and we have Claire Ward,

[00:02:44] [SPEAKER_01]: who neither of whom are outside having breakfast in Newport.

[00:02:47] [SPEAKER_01]: So thank you ladies.

[00:02:48] [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you very much for joining us.

[00:02:51] [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for having us.

[00:02:52] [SPEAKER_01]: So why don't we do some introductions then to kick us off?

[00:02:56] [SPEAKER_01]: Claire, do you want to start?

[00:02:57] [SPEAKER_03]: Sure. My name is Claire Ward.

[00:02:59] [SPEAKER_03]: I am one of the owners of J105 Syndicate here in Annapolis.

[00:03:03] [SPEAKER_03]: So I drive about 50 percent of the time.

[00:03:06] [SPEAKER_03]: Usually I grew up sailing in Mississippi on the Gulf Coast.

[00:03:10] [SPEAKER_03]: I moved to Annapolis 10 years ago, started sailing on J30s and J80s here.

[00:03:16] [SPEAKER_03]: And then we bought the 105 about five years ago.

[00:03:18] [SPEAKER_03]: I've been on the committee with Molly for all three of the regattas.

[00:03:23] [SPEAKER_03]: So since its inception.

[00:03:26] [SPEAKER_01]: And your day job is the director of operations at U Spirit, right?

[00:03:32] [SPEAKER_03]: That's right.

[00:03:33] [SPEAKER_03]: But also, you know, sailing adjacent to the U Spirit Foundation

[00:03:36] [SPEAKER_03]: is a nonprofit that was created in memory of Jeff Uanssen,

[00:03:40] [SPEAKER_03]: a professional sailor who lived here in Annapolis and passed away

[00:03:44] [SPEAKER_03]: four years ago at the age of 50.

[00:03:46] [SPEAKER_03]: It was very shocking.

[00:03:48] [SPEAKER_03]: He was the kind of guy his wife, Mary Uanssen,

[00:03:51] [SPEAKER_03]: likes to say you would call in an emergency.

[00:03:53] [SPEAKER_03]: So our mission is to help people in need of urgent and immediate help.

[00:03:59] [SPEAKER_03]: So we raise funds.

[00:04:00] [SPEAKER_03]: We have a regatta that usually takes place in May.

[00:04:03] [SPEAKER_03]: The U Spirit Regatta, we've had four of those or three of those.

[00:04:07] [SPEAKER_03]: So I'm around town running and sailing in regattas.

[00:04:11] [SPEAKER_01]: Wonderful. Yeah, I see you out there on Syndicate, usually ahead of us.

[00:04:16] [SPEAKER_00]: So I am Molly Hughes-Wilmer,

[00:04:17] [SPEAKER_00]: and I've been the chair of this regatta for three years.

[00:04:20] [SPEAKER_00]: And it's not the first women's regatta I've run.

[00:04:23] [SPEAKER_00]: I've run the Rolex Women's International Kielbaut Championship

[00:04:26] [SPEAKER_00]: and the Ida Lewis Double-Handed Women's Junior Double-Handed Championship.

[00:04:30] [SPEAKER_00]: And I think there's something special about women's regattas.

[00:04:34] [SPEAKER_00]: But I love sailing in general.

[00:04:36] [SPEAKER_00]: I was born and raised in Annapolis.

[00:04:37] [SPEAKER_00]: I've been sailing since I was a baby because I was born in July.

[00:04:40] [SPEAKER_00]: And I believe it's a great lifelong sport,

[00:04:43] [SPEAKER_00]: whether you're competing or just sailing for fun.

[00:04:46] [SPEAKER_00]: I've sailed dinghies.

[00:04:47] [SPEAKER_00]: I've done the women's match racing circuit.

[00:04:49] [SPEAKER_00]: I've sailed tall ships.

[00:04:50] [SPEAKER_00]: I was just racing classic boats up in Maine.

[00:04:53] [SPEAKER_00]: I'm about to team race here in Newport.

[00:04:55] [SPEAKER_00]: There are just so many different ways to explore it.

[00:04:58] [SPEAKER_00]: And I've grown so much as a person through my experiences on the water.

[00:05:03] [SPEAKER_00]: And I blog about that and write about it.

[00:05:06] [SPEAKER_00]: And hopefully we'll publish a book about that someday.

[00:05:09] [SPEAKER_00]: In my real world, I run a boutique consulting firm

[00:05:12] [SPEAKER_00]: focusing on strategy, leadership, development and marketing and sales support.

[00:05:16] [SPEAKER_00]: And so much of what I've learned on the water

[00:05:19] [SPEAKER_00]: has analogies to what I do in my real world.

[00:05:23] [SPEAKER_00]: And I am definitely a better professional because of the things I've learned.

[00:05:28] [SPEAKER_00]: Working on teams, competing,

[00:05:31] [SPEAKER_00]: dealing with the trials and tribulations that the weather and mother nature

[00:05:35] [SPEAKER_00]: bring you and the need to take care of your boat

[00:05:38] [SPEAKER_00]: so that it can take care of you.

[00:05:40] [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you, Molly. Marie, how about you?

[00:05:42] [SPEAKER_02]: Thanks for having me on this.

[00:05:44] [SPEAKER_02]: Born and raised in Denmark.

[00:05:45] [SPEAKER_02]: I've been in the US for the past 20 years or so.

[00:05:49] [SPEAKER_02]: I grew up in a sailing family and led me to be a member of the Danish

[00:05:55] [SPEAKER_02]: national team and the Olympic sailing team with lots of great experiences

[00:05:59] [SPEAKER_02]: and memories. I grew up as a match racer primarily.

[00:06:04] [SPEAKER_02]: That was my my poor discipline.

[00:06:07] [SPEAKER_02]: And as I moved to the US, I had less opportunity for that.

[00:06:10] [SPEAKER_02]: And there's a lot more just fleet racing and team race.

[00:06:15] [SPEAKER_02]: And obviously offshore racing.

[00:06:18] [SPEAKER_02]: So it's been exciting to to really try all the different disciplines of sailing.

[00:06:23] [SPEAKER_02]: In my daily life, I'm a growth executive in the tech industry

[00:06:27] [SPEAKER_02]: and the small unit leadership that sailing teaches you

[00:06:32] [SPEAKER_02]: has been just instrumental in how I am as a as a business person,

[00:06:37] [SPEAKER_02]: as an executive typically in high growth

[00:06:40] [SPEAKER_02]: organizations where everything changes all the time.

[00:06:43] [SPEAKER_02]: The only thing that's certainty is three months from now

[00:06:46] [SPEAKER_02]: is going to be very different than today.

[00:06:48] [SPEAKER_02]: And that's very much the same you see on the on the race course,

[00:06:50] [SPEAKER_02]: the weather shift, the current isn't what you thought.

[00:06:52] [SPEAKER_02]: There's an override on the jet when you tack.

[00:06:55] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, we've all been there.

[00:06:56] [SPEAKER_02]: It's lots of trials and tribulations getting around the race course.

[00:07:00] [SPEAKER_02]: So it's you don't always recognize it, but there is certainly

[00:07:04] [SPEAKER_02]: there are so many parallels and it's no coincidence that so many

[00:07:07] [SPEAKER_02]: so many phrases and sayings in business really relate back to

[00:07:11] [SPEAKER_02]: to maritime terms or sailing.

[00:07:14] [SPEAKER_01]: I love your analogy about sailing and business thing.

[00:07:17] [SPEAKER_01]: That's really it's really interesting.

[00:07:19] [SPEAKER_01]: I totally agree.

[00:07:20] [SPEAKER_01]: Sailing is about trying to peer into the future, understand

[00:07:23] [SPEAKER_01]: what's going to happen while everything around you is changing

[00:07:26] [SPEAKER_01]: the environment, the competitors, the weather is so

[00:07:30] [SPEAKER_01]: so similar to business world.

[00:07:31] [SPEAKER_01]: I love that.

[00:07:32] [SPEAKER_01]: Molly, can you kick off by talking about the women's regatta?

[00:07:36] [SPEAKER_01]: How you started it, how it's going and what's on the plan for this year?

[00:07:40] [SPEAKER_00]: Sure. Thank you, Pete.

[00:07:42] [SPEAKER_00]: So the regatta was started by the J-105 class

[00:07:45] [SPEAKER_00]: in large response to an initiative by World Sailing

[00:07:49] [SPEAKER_00]: to get more women on the water and sailboats.

[00:07:52] [SPEAKER_00]: And Nicole Brode at the time was the vice president of the J-105 class.

[00:07:57] [SPEAKER_00]: And she took that to heart and encouraged the class to encourage

[00:08:01] [SPEAKER_00]: the different fleets around North America to sponsor and support

[00:08:06] [SPEAKER_00]: events that got women on the water.

[00:08:09] [SPEAKER_00]: Toronto, the fleet in Toronto was the first one to take advantage of that.

[00:08:13] [SPEAKER_00]: And they hosted a regatta.

[00:08:16] [SPEAKER_00]: In 2021, and they had

[00:08:20] [SPEAKER_00]: 15 boats on the water, which is almost 100 percent of their whole fleet

[00:08:26] [SPEAKER_00]: on the water.

[00:08:27] [SPEAKER_00]: And so the next year, our fleet captain

[00:08:31] [SPEAKER_00]: reached out to all the owners and said, what's your interest?

[00:08:35] [SPEAKER_00]: And our owner, we have co-owners.

[00:08:38] [SPEAKER_00]: They knew that I had organized several women's regattas in the past.

[00:08:42] [SPEAKER_00]: And so very quickly, I was volunteered to be the chairperson of this regatta

[00:08:46] [SPEAKER_00]: and very happy to do so.

[00:08:48] [SPEAKER_00]: So we this has been growing every year.

[00:08:51] [SPEAKER_00]: This is going to be our third year of having the J-105 women's

[00:08:54] [SPEAKER_00]: regatta here in Annapolis.

[00:08:56] [SPEAKER_00]: Toronto still has theirs.

[00:08:57] [SPEAKER_00]: There's one in San Francisco.

[00:08:58] [SPEAKER_00]: There's one in Texas.

[00:08:59] [SPEAKER_00]: Seattle has a version.

[00:09:01] [SPEAKER_00]: There are a variety of different versions.

[00:09:02] [SPEAKER_00]: Every fleet has the right to make them look the way they want.

[00:09:06] [SPEAKER_00]: We have chosen to make ours women only in San Francisco, for example.

[00:09:11] [SPEAKER_00]: The requirement is just to have women's skippers.

[00:09:13] [SPEAKER_00]: And the goal is to get more women on J-105

[00:09:16] [SPEAKER_00]: that can be potential crew, potential drivers and potential owners.

[00:09:21] [SPEAKER_00]: So it really helps build women's interest in the sport

[00:09:24] [SPEAKER_00]: and also in this boat in particular.

[00:09:27] [SPEAKER_00]: And so we have the fleet, the support

[00:09:30] [SPEAKER_00]: of our local fleet and of the class financially

[00:09:34] [SPEAKER_00]: and in other ways with publicizing and recruiting

[00:09:37] [SPEAKER_00]: and getting volunteers and that kind of thing.

[00:09:39] [SPEAKER_00]: So it's been a lovely effort locally,

[00:09:43] [SPEAKER_00]: but also to have this North American group of women

[00:09:46] [SPEAKER_00]: that we collaborate with to brainstorm about how to make all of our regattas better.

[00:09:51] [SPEAKER_00]: And the idea is that maybe one day

[00:09:53] [SPEAKER_00]: we're able to host a North Americans Women Invitational Championship

[00:09:58] [SPEAKER_00]: where the winners of the regional regattas would go to

[00:10:03] [SPEAKER_00]: borrowed boat Invitational Championship

[00:10:06] [SPEAKER_00]: in one of the fleets that already host the regional regatta.

[00:10:09] [SPEAKER_01]: So I'm going to ask a naive question here as I tend to do that.

[00:10:13] [SPEAKER_01]: But was it the perception that there was a problem

[00:10:17] [SPEAKER_01]: that women were not becoming owners, not participating?

[00:10:21] [SPEAKER_01]: Because if I look on the water like last night's Wednesday night race

[00:10:24] [SPEAKER_01]: I bet 30, 40, 50 percent were women.

[00:10:28] [SPEAKER_01]: On my boat it's 80 percent.

[00:10:31] [SPEAKER_01]: But generally there's quite a lot of participation.

[00:10:34] [SPEAKER_00]: So, Pete, I wrote an article that was in Sailing World last November.

[00:10:38] [SPEAKER_00]: And that was an awesome episode.

[00:10:42] [SPEAKER_00]: Sorry. Awesome edition of Sailing World,

[00:10:44] [SPEAKER_00]: because it really talked about what's going on with women in sailing.

[00:10:48] [SPEAKER_00]: I had a man come to me at a grand master's regatta

[00:10:52] [SPEAKER_00]: and said he didn't understand why there were women's only events,

[00:10:55] [SPEAKER_00]: because he found out I was chairing one.

[00:10:58] [SPEAKER_00]: And I looked around and at that regatta that we were attending,

[00:11:02] [SPEAKER_00]: only 15 percent of the participants were women.

[00:11:07] [SPEAKER_00]: So there is a problem with underrepresentation of women in a sport.

[00:11:13] [SPEAKER_00]: That is a co-ed sport.

[00:11:15] [SPEAKER_00]: And it's a difficult problem

[00:11:19] [SPEAKER_00]: that people have a hard time talking about sometimes

[00:11:22] [SPEAKER_00]: because men have said to me,

[00:11:25] [SPEAKER_00]: the minute you say I'm sexist, everybody believes I'm sexist.

[00:11:29] [SPEAKER_00]: And just because I sail with all men doesn't mean I don't want to sail with women.

[00:11:34] [SPEAKER_00]: And it's a very difficult thing for some people to talk about.

[00:11:38] [SPEAKER_00]: I race on a boat where we have two women regularly.

[00:11:41] [SPEAKER_00]: But I have been since I started ocean racing, often the only woman on the boat.

[00:11:47] [SPEAKER_00]: So and there are many boats that won't even consider me to go offshore

[00:11:52] [SPEAKER_00]: because they're used to racing with all men

[00:11:54] [SPEAKER_00]: and they're uncomfortable having a woman on board.

[00:11:57] [SPEAKER_00]: So and then there's around the buoys and dinghies.

[00:11:59] [SPEAKER_00]: And so there are a lot of different kinds of sailing

[00:12:01] [SPEAKER_00]: and pretty much across the board, you will see that women are underrepresented.

[00:12:05] [SPEAKER_00]: So the idea of women's only regattas serves multiple purposes.

[00:12:10] [SPEAKER_00]: It gives women the confidence that they can do it for some women.

[00:12:14] [SPEAKER_00]: It just gives them the opportunity to shine,

[00:12:16] [SPEAKER_00]: to do what they know they're capable of.

[00:12:18] [SPEAKER_00]: It gives other people the opportunity to see what women are capable of.

[00:12:23] [SPEAKER_00]: It gives us the opportunity to create a women only vibe,

[00:12:26] [SPEAKER_00]: which is totally different than a coed vibe or male only vibe.

[00:12:30] [SPEAKER_00]: In my other life, I run a boutique consulting firm

[00:12:34] [SPEAKER_00]: and part of what we do is leadership development.

[00:12:36] [SPEAKER_00]: And right now, some of the biggest trends in leadership

[00:12:39] [SPEAKER_00]: are that the most effective leaders,

[00:12:42] [SPEAKER_00]: and this came out in the World Economic Forum in Davos in January,

[00:12:46] [SPEAKER_00]: are those that embody stereotypically feminine,

[00:12:49] [SPEAKER_00]: stereotypically masculine leadership traits.

[00:12:52] [SPEAKER_00]: And I was just at a regatta in Maine, a classic boat regatta.

[00:12:56] [SPEAKER_00]: And it's surprising to see when you live in the leadership

[00:13:00] [SPEAKER_00]: development world or other progressive worlds, supposedly progressive worlds,

[00:13:04] [SPEAKER_00]: how many people still embrace these very traditional

[00:13:09] [SPEAKER_00]: mindsets about how things should run and how things should be done.

[00:13:13] [SPEAKER_00]: So while you race on a boat that has a lot of women

[00:13:16] [SPEAKER_00]: and while I race with people that are very comfortable racing with women,

[00:13:19] [SPEAKER_00]: that is not the majority of boats out on the water

[00:13:24] [SPEAKER_00]: in almost any fleet that you'll encounter in North America.

[00:13:29] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I get that.

[00:13:30] [SPEAKER_01]: The thing that's intriguing about this event is how competitive it is.

[00:13:33] [SPEAKER_01]: I read the results and observed some of it.

[00:13:36] [SPEAKER_01]: This is very, very competitive, close racing.

[00:13:40] [SPEAKER_00]: Well, there are a lot of amazing sailors in Annapolis.

[00:13:43] [SPEAKER_00]: And we have a and when when people's owners came up to me

[00:13:46] [SPEAKER_00]: and said, I'm not sure I can get a driver, I said, let's talk about that.

[00:13:50] [SPEAKER_00]: And some people came up and said, well, why aren't you letting pros race?

[00:13:55] [SPEAKER_00]: And I said, well, the idea is to get more women

[00:13:58] [SPEAKER_00]: who can crew for you year round, not just in this regatta.

[00:14:02] [SPEAKER_00]: And there are plenty of women that aren't pros that are incredibly qualified.

[00:14:06] [SPEAKER_00]: Like Marie, like Claire, like Ashley, like

[00:14:11] [SPEAKER_00]: Nicole. I mean, there are just tons of great names in Annapolis

[00:14:14] [SPEAKER_00]: that are amazing sailors.

[00:14:15] [SPEAKER_00]: We don't need to go to pros to fill our fleet with,

[00:14:20] [SPEAKER_00]: you know, a 20 boat fleet of all women.

[00:14:23] [SPEAKER_01]: It's also in the spirit of sort of the J 105,

[00:14:26] [SPEAKER_01]: which is quite Corinthian as a class as well. Right.

[00:14:28] [SPEAKER_01]: We're very restricted on not having pros, which is which is great.

[00:14:32] [SPEAKER_01]: And so what leads me to why the J 105,

[00:14:36] [SPEAKER_01]: were you connected with the J 105 class at the time?

[00:14:40] [SPEAKER_01]: Yes. Because one of the things you talked about was, hey,

[00:14:43] [SPEAKER_01]: maybe we can encourage women to be skippers of J 105.

[00:14:47] [SPEAKER_00]: So I'm not considered a backup skipper on the boat that I race them.

[00:14:50] [SPEAKER_00]: But I have been racing on Mirage, the J 105 since 2000.

[00:14:55] [SPEAKER_00]: So we've had a pretty much same core crew for 24 seasons now.

[00:15:00] [SPEAKER_01]: You have a ton of sponsors as well,

[00:15:02] [SPEAKER_01]: which is an indication of the interest in the women's regatta.

[00:15:06] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, we have Claire knows a lot of the names better than I do,

[00:15:09] [SPEAKER_00]: but we have sponsors that come forward with food and drink in kind

[00:15:13] [SPEAKER_00]: as well as cash.

[00:15:15] [SPEAKER_00]: So we have a lot of great giveaways for the participants.

[00:15:18] [SPEAKER_00]: What, what we looked at when we went out for sponsors,

[00:15:20] [SPEAKER_00]: what makes a great regatta? So we have Sandy Groesner,

[00:15:24] [SPEAKER_00]: who just came back from the Olympics as our PRO.

[00:15:27] [SPEAKER_00]: We encourage great sailors to be on the water.

[00:15:33] [SPEAKER_01]: How do, how do women get involved in the regatta?

[00:15:36] [SPEAKER_00]: So we recruit people and people find out about it organically.

[00:15:41] [SPEAKER_00]: We've got a Facebook page and we talk about it and we spread the word

[00:15:45] [SPEAKER_00]: among all our different groups of friends.

[00:15:47] [SPEAKER_00]: We want this to be similar to the way the Rolex International

[00:15:51] [SPEAKER_00]: Women's Heel Boat Championship was years ago,

[00:15:53] [SPEAKER_00]: where we have top level competitors as well as newer sailors.

[00:15:57] [SPEAKER_00]: So we encourage really great sailors to come out and have a very competitive

[00:16:01] [SPEAKER_00]: regatta.

[00:16:02] [SPEAKER_00]: And then we also want newer sailors and younger sailors to come out and either

[00:16:06] [SPEAKER_00]: crew on boats that are more experienced or to come out and bring a boat of

[00:16:10] [SPEAKER_00]: more amateur sailors out and do the best they can.

[00:16:14] [SPEAKER_00]: So there are a couple of boats that have been practicing all season and

[00:16:17] [SPEAKER_00]: they will end up being in the bottom half of the fleet and they will be

[00:16:20] [SPEAKER_00]: absolutely delighted because they will have learned,

[00:16:22] [SPEAKER_00]: they will have had support and we welcome them and we're encouraging them

[00:16:26] [SPEAKER_00]: and we're seeing them getting better.

[00:16:27] [SPEAKER_00]: So it's a really great spirit.

[00:16:30] [SPEAKER_00]: And one thing that we've seen too is that when we look at what makes a

[00:16:35] [SPEAKER_00]: great regatta and what makes a great fleet,

[00:16:38] [SPEAKER_00]: we need to have good Titian.

[00:16:41] [SPEAKER_00]: We need to have excellent race management.

[00:16:43] [SPEAKER_00]: So we've got Sandy Grovesner who just came back from the Olympics as our

[00:16:47] [SPEAKER_00]: PRO for really good parties.

[00:16:49] [SPEAKER_00]: And then we also try to have name tags where people can actually say,

[00:16:53] [SPEAKER_00]: well, I know your face, but now I know what your name is.

[00:16:56] [SPEAKER_00]: I've been seeing you at regatta parties.

[00:16:58] [SPEAKER_00]: Some people are too shy.

[00:16:59] [SPEAKER_00]: So we've really seen this regatta break down a lot of the barriers across

[00:17:03] [SPEAKER_00]: boats within our fleet.

[00:17:05] [SPEAKER_00]: And last year's party was one of the best regatta parties of the year.

[00:17:09] [SPEAKER_00]: So, you know, between great competition, great race management and good social

[00:17:14] [SPEAKER_00]: party afterward, we've really think we've nailed the formula for making

[00:17:19] [SPEAKER_00]: an amazing women's regatta.

[00:17:20] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.

[00:17:20] [SPEAKER_01]: Wonderful.

[00:17:21] [SPEAKER_01]: Claire, you know that to me, right?

[00:17:23] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah.

[00:17:24] [SPEAKER_03]: The first of all, anyone listening and you're looking to become a sponsor

[00:17:27] [SPEAKER_03]: of the women's event, we will happily take your money and put up your banner.

[00:17:31] [SPEAKER_03]: We would love to have you support us.

[00:17:33] [SPEAKER_03]: But something that really speaks to the success that we've already had the

[00:17:35] [SPEAKER_03]: last two years is I've gotten so many messages from some acquaintances,

[00:17:39] [SPEAKER_03]: some people I know well, just sailors in Annapolis who want to do the

[00:17:43] [SPEAKER_03]: event because they've heard that it's tight racing.

[00:17:45] [SPEAKER_03]: They've heard it's a great party.

[00:17:47] [SPEAKER_03]: And I just, you know, I haven't been a part of that many events that

[00:17:49] [SPEAKER_03]: people are actively seeking out to do these days.

[00:17:53] [SPEAKER_03]: So that's pretty cool.

[00:17:54] [SPEAKER_03]: And, you know, our goal eventually is hopefully this will, like Molly said,

[00:17:58] [SPEAKER_03]: grow into something more, but, you know, if we can get a two day

[00:18:00] [SPEAKER_03]: regatta in another couple of years, I think that would be awesome too.

[00:18:03] [SPEAKER_03]: And we've also managed to increase our participation every year.

[00:18:05] [SPEAKER_03]: I think the first year we had 13 votes last year, we had 14.

[00:18:08] [SPEAKER_03]: Now we've got 15.

[00:18:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Hopefully we might even get a couple more in the next couple of weeks.

[00:18:12] [SPEAKER_01]: I did see that you had a hundred sailors last year.

[00:18:15] [SPEAKER_01]: That's a lot of, a lot of sailors on the water.

[00:18:17] [SPEAKER_01]: And I know that teams come, come from all over.

[00:18:20] [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, London calling my boat is going to be sailed by the Charleston

[00:18:23] [SPEAKER_01]: pirate princess racing team.

[00:18:25] [SPEAKER_01]: So you must have other boats coming from outside the area too, right?

[00:18:29] [SPEAKER_00]: Yes.

[00:18:29] [SPEAKER_00]: When we go to other regattas around the country, there's often discussion

[00:18:33] [SPEAKER_00]: of let's promote local women's events.

[00:18:37] [SPEAKER_00]: So Ashley Love has promoted it at the Fair Cup.

[00:18:40] [SPEAKER_00]: We promoted it at the San Diego Yacht Club's women's

[00:18:42] [SPEAKER_00]: winter and invitational regatta.

[00:18:44] [SPEAKER_00]: So it's on people's radar around the country and we get great press coverage about it.

[00:18:49] [SPEAKER_00]: So we get picked up in a lot of national media.

[00:18:51] [SPEAKER_00]: So people know about this regatta.

[00:18:54] [SPEAKER_01]: Are there any differences between sailing on a women's only team

[00:18:57] [SPEAKER_01]: versus sailing on a men's team?

[00:19:00] [SPEAKER_01]: And we've got hours if you want to talk about this, but seriously,

[00:19:05] [SPEAKER_01]: are there immediately any differences that come to mind?

[00:19:08] [SPEAKER_00]: I'll jump in first.

[00:19:10] [SPEAKER_00]: I think it's not all honey and roses.

[00:19:13] [SPEAKER_00]: Women can be just as aggressive, just as competitive and just as territorial

[00:19:18] [SPEAKER_00]: about their position on the boat and that kind of thing.

[00:19:21] [SPEAKER_00]: What I do find is that there is often, not always better

[00:19:27] [SPEAKER_00]: communication and pre-planning about it in terms of what everyone's

[00:19:33] [SPEAKER_00]: roles are going to be and the agenda and the schedule and who's bringing

[00:19:37] [SPEAKER_00]: lunches and usually that's much tighter in the beginning.

[00:19:42] [SPEAKER_00]: But what would you guys say, Claire and Marie?

[00:19:46] [SPEAKER_03]: I do agree with the communication.

[00:19:49] [SPEAKER_03]: Obviously we cannot speak in absolutes.

[00:19:51] [SPEAKER_03]: People are all people and they all have egos and opinions.

[00:19:55] [SPEAKER_03]: Both men and women that I seek to sail out and crew my boat with

[00:19:59] [SPEAKER_03]: are people that I get along with.

[00:20:00] [SPEAKER_01]: Can you describe how the communication is different?

[00:20:02] [SPEAKER_03]: We're just really clear on what we're doing.

[00:20:05] [SPEAKER_03]: We do things early.

[00:20:06] [SPEAKER_03]: We make smart decisions.

[00:20:08] [SPEAKER_03]: Whereas I think when you're a little more comfortable sometimes with people,

[00:20:11] [SPEAKER_03]: you just assume someone's going to know what you're doing and you pull the

[00:20:14] [SPEAKER_03]: trigger without having a good conversation around your plan.

[00:20:18] [SPEAKER_03]: So a little bit different, just that's kind of my personal anecdote

[00:20:22] [SPEAKER_03]: of sailing all the Wednesdays and then sailing the women's regatta.

[00:20:25] [SPEAKER_01]: How about you, Marie?

[00:20:28] [SPEAKER_02]: I've reflected on a lot over the years doing both all female and open

[00:20:32] [SPEAKER_02]: teams and also regattas where that's mixed.

[00:20:37] [SPEAKER_02]: I spent extensive periods of time competing in an all female format

[00:20:42] [SPEAKER_02]: at truly the highest level.

[00:20:44] [SPEAKER_02]: So I might have a different perspective than most other people who are trying

[00:20:48] [SPEAKER_02]: to do more female sailing and for all the reasons that there is for that.

[00:20:53] [SPEAKER_02]: When I started out match racing, we would compete against, I had an all

[00:20:57] [SPEAKER_02]: female team and we would be competing against the men.

[00:20:59] [SPEAKER_02]: There weren't many mixed teams, so to speak, either you have an all

[00:21:03] [SPEAKER_02]: female team or a man and we were the only person on the boat.

[00:21:07] [SPEAKER_02]: There were five crew on the men and a weight limit obviously.

[00:21:10] [SPEAKER_02]: And then we were allowed within the same weight limit to have six people

[00:21:13] [SPEAKER_02]: on the boat to make up for any potential physical differences.

[00:21:18] [SPEAKER_02]: Other than that, we were really out there competing against the

[00:21:21] [SPEAKER_02]: world's match racers, well, the top match racers in the world.

[00:21:25] [SPEAKER_02]: Past America's Cup skippers, current America's Cup skippers,

[00:21:28] [SPEAKER_02]: Olympic song sailors that were obviously at the time, the number of the top

[00:21:33] [SPEAKER_02]: match racers and we learned so much in that process.

[00:21:37] [SPEAKER_02]: At the same time, we were trying to get the 11th medal for the Olympics

[00:21:40] [SPEAKER_02]: to be about match racing, which we actually managed to do.

[00:21:44] [SPEAKER_02]: We got taken away in the last minute and turned into the youngling,

[00:21:47] [SPEAKER_02]: but we did have it on the program.

[00:21:49] [SPEAKER_02]: And so in that process, it was important to separate out

[00:21:52] [SPEAKER_02]: a women's ranking and that was great obviously for that purpose.

[00:21:56] [SPEAKER_02]: At the same time though, it actually excluded us from the open ranking.

[00:22:00] [SPEAKER_02]: We no longer got points on that ranking list.

[00:22:02] [SPEAKER_02]: I think in some ways the growth of those female match racers at the

[00:22:07] [SPEAKER_02]: time was sort of stifled a little bit.

[00:22:10] [SPEAKER_01]: So why was that decision made to separate the two?

[00:22:12] [SPEAKER_02]: There are all these rules that you need to have enough

[00:22:15] [SPEAKER_02]: participation across the continents, the globe and growth in the sport

[00:22:19] [SPEAKER_02]: and so forth, so for that reason, it was important to have a ranking list.

[00:22:23] [SPEAKER_02]: It's also important because you have to have certain grade level events.

[00:22:26] [SPEAKER_02]: It's not much different than when you think about tennis, etc.

[00:22:29] [SPEAKER_02]: When you have a sport that has a ranking list, you need to have

[00:22:32] [SPEAKER_02]: some kind of a ladder system for that.

[00:22:35] [SPEAKER_02]: So in female ranking list makes sense.

[00:22:38] [SPEAKER_02]: What didn't make sense is we no longer could participate

[00:22:41] [SPEAKER_02]: on the open ranking list.

[00:22:43] [SPEAKER_01]: I like this point about women can really compete against men

[00:22:46] [SPEAKER_01]: in most of the kill vote discipline.

[00:22:48] [SPEAKER_01]: It's not like swimming, track and field,

[00:22:50] [SPEAKER_01]: genetic difference players, but I know we're into

[00:22:52] [SPEAKER_01]: difficult genetic territory here in the modern world.

[00:22:57] [SPEAKER_01]: But I'd love to hear about that.

[00:23:00] [SPEAKER_02]: Well, sailing is a unique sport because women really can

[00:23:05] [SPEAKER_02]: compete against the men in most kill vote disciplines.

[00:23:09] [SPEAKER_02]: So it's not like swimming or track and field or only sports where

[00:23:14] [SPEAKER_02]: that genetic difference does play a significant part.

[00:23:18] [SPEAKER_02]: Sailing is both a physical and intellectual sport in a way where

[00:23:23] [SPEAKER_02]: the intellectual part and the analytical part is pretty

[00:23:27] [SPEAKER_02]: significant and typically also gets better with time.

[00:23:32] [SPEAKER_02]: I think we can all agree that women are just as smart as men.

[00:23:35] [SPEAKER_02]: For this event, I am actually doing it a little differently.

[00:23:39] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm passing it on to the next generation and I've assembled a

[00:23:43] [SPEAKER_02]: group of high school sailors who, along with, basically will be a

[00:23:49] [SPEAKER_02]: 50-50 mentor and high school sailors because I think young girls

[00:23:57] [SPEAKER_02]: don't necessarily get the same opportunity to jump onto a kill

[00:24:02] [SPEAKER_02]: vote with adult teams as often as young men probably do.

[00:24:07] [SPEAKER_02]: It's easy to pick a 16 year old tall strong boy and say,

[00:24:12] [SPEAKER_02]: come aboard and do mass for us or the pit or something.

[00:24:16] [SPEAKER_02]: And in that way, get introduced to a broader way of sailing than maybe

[00:24:22] [SPEAKER_02]: what you do in the junior program or high school sailing and so forth

[00:24:26] [SPEAKER_02]: in the dinghies.

[00:24:27] [SPEAKER_02]: So this was sort of the year I decided let's grab a group of

[00:24:32] [SPEAKER_02]: girls and take them out and help open their eyes a little bit because

[00:24:36] [SPEAKER_02]: there are certainly so many women that have come before me that I

[00:24:41] [SPEAKER_02]: really weren't necessarily recognized.

[00:24:44] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, on this boat with me for the women's event, as one of the

[00:24:48] [SPEAKER_02]: coach mentors is Martha Parker who is absolutely one of the very

[00:24:53] [SPEAKER_02]: best sailors in the world that I know of and she, if any, has

[00:24:57] [SPEAKER_02]: always been breaking that glass ceiling and as a fairly petite

[00:25:04] [SPEAKER_02]: person but without a doubt one of the most respected bowmen as

[00:25:11] [SPEAKER_02]: we would say, right?

[00:25:12] [SPEAKER_02]: That I know of and I'm really excited to sail with her.

[00:25:15] [SPEAKER_02]: I've only competed against her and I can't wait for these young

[00:25:19] [SPEAKER_02]: high school sailors to really get exposed to someone who's been

[00:25:22] [SPEAKER_02]: there done that for decades and in a male dominated sport.

[00:25:27] [SPEAKER_01]: Marie, have you personally witnessed or faced barriers

[00:25:31] [SPEAKER_01]: into getting into racing?

[00:25:34] [SPEAKER_02]: Sure.

[00:25:35] [SPEAKER_02]: Absolutely.

[00:25:36] [SPEAKER_02]: I think any female sailor has and those who make it through are

[00:25:40] [SPEAKER_02]: probably the most tenacious because in many cases it seems

[00:25:44] [SPEAKER_02]: like you have to prove yourself another 200%.

[00:25:52] [SPEAKER_02]: When I put together my all female team for match racing,

[00:25:56] [SPEAKER_02]: we have lots of helpful male crews trying to give us pointers

[00:26:00] [SPEAKER_02]: on how to sail that particular boat or boat handling maneuvers,

[00:26:04] [SPEAKER_02]: et cetera.

[00:26:04] [SPEAKER_02]: And it was fun to see how that almost, it didn't just

[00:26:08] [SPEAKER_02]: It came to a complete halt with this knowledge sharing the moment

[00:26:12] [SPEAKER_02]: we beat them in a regatta and it took them probably a good year

[00:26:16] [SPEAKER_02]: or so to get over that and to knowledge sharing and making

[00:26:21] [SPEAKER_02]: all of us better.

[00:26:22] [SPEAKER_02]: So I think it's often that people will be very supportive

[00:26:28] [SPEAKER_02]: of these women's thing as long as it's the kind of the

[00:26:31] [SPEAKER_02]: women's and children kind of program and all of a sudden

[00:26:34] [SPEAKER_02]: when it shows up and it becomes a peer competition,

[00:26:37] [SPEAKER_02]: it takes a little bit of adjusting.

[00:26:39] [SPEAKER_02]: And I mean, one example I have was many years ago when I was

[00:26:44] [SPEAKER_02]: going through the Prince of Wales Cup, which is the national

[00:26:47] [SPEAKER_02]: match race championship in the US.

[00:26:50] [SPEAKER_02]: And I was racing with my husband, my brother, my crew.

[00:26:53] [SPEAKER_02]: We had won our regional qualifier.

[00:26:56] [SPEAKER_02]: We won the semi-final for the whole East coast.

[00:26:59] [SPEAKER_02]: We had won every step of the way and made it to the finals

[00:27:03] [SPEAKER_02]: halfway through the round robin of the finals.

[00:27:06] [SPEAKER_02]: We're sitting around waiting for Breeze in California and one

[00:27:10] [SPEAKER_02]: of the other skippers were like, wow, you haven't really gotten

[00:27:13] [SPEAKER_02]: ahead of this other skipper.

[00:27:15] [SPEAKER_02]: You really beat them.

[00:27:16] [SPEAKER_02]: That's quite impressive.

[00:27:17] [SPEAKER_02]: He's really good.

[00:27:19] [SPEAKER_02]: I said, well, yeah, I've never lost to him before.

[00:27:22] [SPEAKER_02]: I beat him in the regionals, in the semi-finals

[00:27:25] [SPEAKER_02]: and apparently they said two, number one and number two.

[00:27:28] [SPEAKER_02]: He was number two.

[00:27:29] [SPEAKER_02]: And they were like, really?

[00:27:31] [SPEAKER_02]: And it was very clear.

[00:27:33] [SPEAKER_02]: We thought you got a wild card to me because I was the only

[00:27:36] [SPEAKER_02]: female skipper.

[00:27:37] [SPEAKER_02]: It was such an odd situation.

[00:27:41] [SPEAKER_02]: And I try not to take offense to the, how can you even

[00:27:44] [SPEAKER_02]: be here because you're a female?

[00:27:45] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think I've just gotten thick skinned.

[00:27:47] [SPEAKER_02]: You've learned that over time.

[00:27:50] [SPEAKER_01]: Really interesting, Marie.

[00:27:51] [SPEAKER_01]: Hey, Molly, what for you is the goal of the regatta?

[00:27:55] [SPEAKER_00]: The goal of this regatta is to get more people into the

[00:27:57] [SPEAKER_00]: 105 fleet as integrated into the fleet, which is why we

[00:28:01] [SPEAKER_00]: don't have pros.

[00:28:03] [SPEAKER_00]: You know, the integration is key, not just in the sport,

[00:28:07] [SPEAKER_00]: but in life.

[00:28:08] [SPEAKER_00]: Studies show that teams that are integrated in multiple

[00:28:12] [SPEAKER_00]: ways, whether it's gender diversity, age diversity,

[00:28:15] [SPEAKER_00]: backgrounds are going to perform at higher levels.

[00:28:18] [SPEAKER_00]: So it's really just taking that science that we know

[00:28:22] [SPEAKER_00]: is out there and bringing it into our sport and

[00:28:24] [SPEAKER_00]: creating opportunities for more people.

[00:28:26] [SPEAKER_00]: But at the end of the day, this regatta is a

[00:28:29] [SPEAKER_00]: means to an end.

[00:28:30] [SPEAKER_00]: And we're making it a really fun means.

[00:28:32] [SPEAKER_00]: Sometimes when people talk about the female sailor,

[00:28:35] [SPEAKER_00]: they're celebrating the other rather than the likeness.

[00:28:39] [SPEAKER_00]: And I think we want to be celebrating the great sailors

[00:28:42] [SPEAKER_00]: that are in this regatta.

[00:28:44] [SPEAKER_00]: The fact that they're women is something else.

[00:28:46] [SPEAKER_00]: When you emphasize the woman too much,

[00:28:49] [SPEAKER_00]: it becomes about the other rather than the integration

[00:28:53] [SPEAKER_00]: that we're looking for.

[00:28:54] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah.

[00:28:54] [SPEAKER_03]: I think after the first event a couple of years ago,

[00:28:57] [SPEAKER_03]: we all had to try to not be offended by this shock

[00:29:02] [SPEAKER_03]: that came from the fleet of like, wow,

[00:29:04] [SPEAKER_03]: it was so competitive.

[00:29:06] [SPEAKER_03]: I can't believe how great it was.

[00:29:07] [SPEAKER_03]: Like the racing was really tight.

[00:29:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Cause all of the women competitors were like,

[00:29:11] [SPEAKER_03]: what did you expect?

[00:29:12] [SPEAKER_03]: Especially someone like myself who drives the boat

[00:29:15] [SPEAKER_03]: all the time, you know, like, yes, thank you.

[00:29:19] [SPEAKER_03]: We're here.

[00:29:19] [SPEAKER_01]: Well, I just fell into that stereotype,

[00:29:21] [SPEAKER_01]: didn't I, by saying, I heard it was very competitive

[00:29:24] [SPEAKER_01]: and you know, I'm certainly sorry.

[00:29:25] [SPEAKER_02]: Thank you.

[00:29:28] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm just so excited that, you know,

[00:29:31] [SPEAKER_02]: the entry number of entries just keep going up.

[00:29:33] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think that's a testament to how successful it's been.

[00:29:38] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, this is just gonna be the third year.

[00:29:40] [SPEAKER_03]: And just for the J105 fleet in Annapolis anyway,

[00:29:45] [SPEAKER_03]: it's pretty amazing how it's grown.

[00:29:46] [SPEAKER_03]: I mean, we've only had our boat for five years

[00:29:48] [SPEAKER_03]: and I think there have been 10 new 105s since then.

[00:29:53] [SPEAKER_03]: Like we've got 30 boats on Wednesday night.

[00:29:56] [SPEAKER_03]: It's kind of crazy.

[00:29:57] [SPEAKER_03]: So the fact that we can have this event

[00:29:59] [SPEAKER_03]: and get all these new sailors excited about 105s,

[00:30:03] [SPEAKER_03]: you know, we don't wanna take all the credit,

[00:30:04] [SPEAKER_03]: but I think we're doing a good job

[00:30:07] [SPEAKER_03]: for doing the fleet in that way.

[00:30:10] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, for sure.

[00:30:11] [SPEAKER_01]: And by the way, Claire,

[00:30:12] [SPEAKER_01]: I hope you're going to the J105 clinic.

[00:30:14] [SPEAKER_01]: I'm not sure if you guys signed up yet.

[00:30:16] [SPEAKER_03]: The, I'll have to see amusingly,

[00:30:19] [SPEAKER_03]: our boat partners also had a baby

[00:30:21] [SPEAKER_03]: I think like the same week that we did.

[00:30:23] [SPEAKER_03]: We've got five kids between us,

[00:30:25] [SPEAKER_03]: two of which are four months old.

[00:30:27] [SPEAKER_03]: So we're a little bit busy.

[00:30:29] [SPEAKER_03]: We had really great breeze last year.

[00:30:33] [SPEAKER_03]: I think we had a solid 15 and then, you know,

[00:30:35] [SPEAKER_03]: gusts from there, which was really fun

[00:30:37] [SPEAKER_03]: and almost uncommon to what we're normally dealing with.

[00:30:42] [SPEAKER_03]: And it was steady all day.

[00:30:43] [SPEAKER_03]: So hopefully we get some similar conditions this year.

[00:30:47] [SPEAKER_03]: That would be great.

[00:30:49] [SPEAKER_01]: And then you have,

[00:30:50] [SPEAKER_01]: there's quite a lot of the teams coming together

[00:30:53] [SPEAKER_01]: for sort of using Wednesday night races

[00:30:56] [SPEAKER_01]: and using the upcoming crab regatta as practice, right?

[00:31:01] [SPEAKER_00]: One of our goals with our crew was to try to get women

[00:31:04] [SPEAKER_00]: that we didn't know that well on the boat.

[00:31:07] [SPEAKER_00]: So we've got your navigator Pete sailing with us

[00:31:11] [SPEAKER_00]: and we've got a couple other people

[00:31:13] [SPEAKER_00]: we don't know as well

[00:31:14] [SPEAKER_00]: that don't race in the 105 fleet as often.

[00:31:16] [SPEAKER_00]: So we sort of reached beyond our usual circuit

[00:31:19] [SPEAKER_00]: to try to expand, again,

[00:31:22] [SPEAKER_00]: going back to the mission of the regatta.

[00:31:25] [SPEAKER_01]: Claire, you can add something too I think.

[00:31:27] [SPEAKER_03]: Oh, just that, you know,

[00:31:28] [SPEAKER_03]: for any listeners who aren't familiar,

[00:31:31] [SPEAKER_03]: the 105 fleet has the owner driver rule.

[00:31:33] [SPEAKER_03]: And so just as far as practices,

[00:31:35] [SPEAKER_03]: the fleet worked with us to help get some dispensation

[00:31:38] [SPEAKER_03]: so that people could drive in other regattas

[00:31:40] [SPEAKER_03]: and get practice because like I said earlier,

[00:31:43] [SPEAKER_03]: it is not the majority of owners

[00:31:45] [SPEAKER_03]: who are participating in this regatta.

[00:31:49] [SPEAKER_03]: So they've been really good working with us

[00:31:52] [SPEAKER_03]: to get like the crab cup regatta,

[00:31:55] [SPEAKER_03]: that rule has been eliminated so that crews can practice

[00:31:58] [SPEAKER_03]: like Friday night beer cans,

[00:32:00] [SPEAKER_03]: people are using that as practice.

[00:32:02] [SPEAKER_03]: So we've gotten good support from the fleet for that.

[00:32:05] [SPEAKER_00]: And the Saturday labor day regatta

[00:32:07] [SPEAKER_00]: can also be waived that owner driver rule.

[00:32:09] [SPEAKER_01]: So Claire, before we finish,

[00:32:10] [SPEAKER_01]: you've had perhaps a potential future crew member

[00:32:13] [SPEAKER_01]: just joined you there in the-

[00:32:15] [SPEAKER_03]: Not potential, he's already made it out on the water

[00:32:18] [SPEAKER_03]: a few times.

[00:32:19] [SPEAKER_03]: He did a Friday night race with us.

[00:32:22] [SPEAKER_03]: I was pregnant with him during the last women's regatta.

[00:32:26] [SPEAKER_03]: So yeah, this is Harrison,

[00:32:28] [SPEAKER_03]: he's already got his sea legs.

[00:32:30] [SPEAKER_01]: He is four months?

[00:32:32] [SPEAKER_03]: Four months.

[00:32:33] [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, lovely.

[00:32:34] [SPEAKER_01]: I remember that.

[00:32:35] [SPEAKER_01]: Amazing.

[00:32:36] [SPEAKER_01]: So Molly, Marie, Claire and Harrison,

[00:32:39] [SPEAKER_01]: thank you so much for joining us.

[00:32:41] [SPEAKER_01]: I really appreciate the time.

[00:32:42] [SPEAKER_01]: I know you're very busy.

[00:32:43] [SPEAKER_01]: I can't wait for the women's regatta.

[00:32:45] [SPEAKER_01]: Go London calling, come on Pirates Princess race team.

[00:32:47] [SPEAKER_01]: I wanna see at least they can win

[00:32:49] [SPEAKER_01]: some sort of trophy for our boat.

[00:32:51] [SPEAKER_01]: That would be delightful.

[00:32:53] [SPEAKER_01]: But really looking forward to the regatta

[00:32:55] [SPEAKER_01]: and congratulations in making it all happen.

[00:32:58] [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you very much for being on the show.

[00:33:01] [SPEAKER_02]: Thank you very much.

[00:33:10] [SPEAKER_01]: A final sad note,

[00:33:11] [SPEAKER_01]: we recorded this episode over two sessions.

[00:33:14] [SPEAKER_01]: In between, we learned the awful news

[00:33:17] [SPEAKER_01]: of Maggie Flanagan's sudden and unexpected passing.

[00:33:21] [SPEAKER_01]: Maggie was the heart of my boat London calling.

[00:33:24] [SPEAKER_01]: She'd sail with me pretty much every race and practice

[00:33:27] [SPEAKER_01]: since I brought the boat to Annapolis

[00:33:29] [SPEAKER_01]: a couple of years ago.

[00:33:31] [SPEAKER_01]: She made the role of pit her own

[00:33:33] [SPEAKER_01]: and this is essentially the center of a J-105

[00:33:36] [SPEAKER_01]: and through which everything flows,

[00:33:38] [SPEAKER_01]: whether we're going upwind, downwind

[00:33:40] [SPEAKER_01]: or in some cases round in circles.

[00:33:42] [SPEAKER_01]: And this role suited Maggie perfectly.

[00:33:46] [SPEAKER_01]: She could see everything was happening on our boat

[00:33:49] [SPEAKER_01]: and on the water around us

[00:33:50] [SPEAKER_01]: and she could relay and sometimes modify

[00:33:53] [SPEAKER_01]: bow to stern communications.

[00:33:55] [SPEAKER_01]: She could pick up body language and vibe

[00:33:58] [SPEAKER_01]: before any of us realized it.

[00:33:59] [SPEAKER_01]: She could see mistakes before they happened.

[00:34:02] [SPEAKER_01]: She could see patterns playing out among competitors.

[00:34:05] [SPEAKER_01]: She could find us clear attacking lanes,

[00:34:06] [SPEAKER_01]: wars of conflicts, gusts, whatever it was all

[00:34:09] [SPEAKER_01]: while spinning winches and reading lines at top speed.

[00:34:14] [SPEAKER_01]: And this is where I think she wanted to be

[00:34:16] [SPEAKER_01]: in the middle of the action,

[00:34:18] [SPEAKER_01]: wearing the biggest smile I've ever seen on anybody.

[00:34:22] [SPEAKER_01]: As well as being the center of the boat,

[00:34:24] [SPEAKER_01]: as I said, she was the heart of the boat.

[00:34:26] [SPEAKER_01]: It felt sometimes that she and I actually shared

[00:34:29] [SPEAKER_01]: ownership of the boat.

[00:34:31] [SPEAKER_01]: She'd take things off and she would fix them

[00:34:33] [SPEAKER_01]: in her own time.

[00:34:34] [SPEAKER_01]: She'd pump out the boat after heavy rains.

[00:34:36] [SPEAKER_01]: She'd recruit crew and on days of rough weather,

[00:34:40] [SPEAKER_01]: she pretty much made a call on whether we go out or not.

[00:34:43] [SPEAKER_01]: She'd just give me the nod or shake her head

[00:34:45] [SPEAKER_01]: and she was always right.

[00:34:47] [SPEAKER_01]: And no matter how badly I screwed things up

[00:34:49] [SPEAKER_01]: from the back of the boat,

[00:34:50] [SPEAKER_01]: she'd always find a list of positives to comfort us.

[00:34:55] [SPEAKER_01]: So Maggie will be dreadfully missed by so many.

[00:34:59] [SPEAKER_01]: I know our boat will be less colorful,

[00:35:01] [SPEAKER_01]: less vibrant, less loved

[00:35:02] [SPEAKER_01]: without her deepest condolences to her family

[00:35:06] [SPEAKER_01]: and many friends.