Racing wrapped up Sunday at the Rochester Yacht Club for the Women’s, Junior, and Master Lightning North American Championships at the Rochester Yacht Club. The Masters fleet ended the series with 4 total races, while both the Women’s and the Juniors finshed theirs with 5. Two races were sailed on Friday for each championship in medium to heavy wind before storms rolled into the area for the afternoon. Saturday not a single race was ran despite the race committee’s best efforts due to a combination of unsettled breeze and more thunderstorms. On Sunday, however, the weather cooperated to allow for races 3, 4, and 5 for the Women and the Juniors, and races 3 and 4 for the masters.
Debbie Probst sailed an impressive regatta with Monica Jones and Mikayla Ward, winning the Women’s Championship by 7 points. Probst won four of the five races sailed, only letting once race slip by her thanks to a keelhauled spinnaker sheet. The Women’s Championship also had the event’s youngest skipper, Sabrina Starck (10), and the event’s youngest competitor, Jamie Starck (8).
The Junior fleet was won decisively by Doug Wake and crew Noah Bartlet and Meredith Ryan who took first place in all five races. He was followed by Ben Folds, Joe Tomzcak and Jake Folds from the Buffalo Canoe Club with 14 points and Robbie Robinson, Gunnar Grenauer and Maggie MacDonald, also from the Buffalo Canoe Club, with 16 points overall. In the Masters division, local sailor Mark Sertl and his wife Cory and daughter Katja took first place finishing the event with two firsts and two seconds. Marvin Beckmann, Steve Harris and Monica Morgan finished second and David Peck with his wife Nina and son Dave finished third just one point behind Beckmann. The fifth place Masters finisher, Tom Allen also sailed with two family members, his mother Anne and daughter Shelby.
Thank you to the Rochester Yacht Club for putting on a wonderful event and the race committee for getting races off in trying conditions. Congratulations to all the competitors!
First off, how was your experience at the Youth Worlds? What was your favorite part of the event?
Sounds like you’re head of the social committee, then! One final question for you, Doug. Do you see a difference sailing in the Lightning Class versus other classes you’ve competed in?
Greg said about the competition at this year’s NA’s.
Despite his time off the water, Greg still tied for first place at the Atlantic Coast Championships July 16th-17th.
Greg also had some great advice for teams who might be nervous about the upcoming regatta. “It’s easy to set your expectations too high and it’s easy to be disappointed. Don’t set the expectations too high and take the fun out of it, its really important to keep it all in perspective and enjoy the sailing the best you can.”
Take Erin Gregory Jordan, for example. Erin grew up sailing at the Buffalo Canoe Club and got into Lighting Sailing at a young age. “My first Lightning regatta was the Lake Erie Districts with Tom Allen Sr. when I was 16,” she recalled fondly. “I was just getting into racing and was trying to get out onto any boat I could. The Lighting was such a fun boat and the group of people who race are so amazing that I was totally hooked!” For years, Erin has crewed at various events, most notably with the class legend, “Fast” Eddie Roseberry.
We’re excited to have Erin coming out for the Women’s, as well as one of last year’s Women’s Champions, Sabrina Starck. In 2015, Sabrina and her mother Jody Starck crewed for Meghan Dieball in Tawas Bay, beating out Sarah Somes from Detroit by one point. This summer Sabrina, age 10, is ready to skipper her own boat. When asked if she thought she’d win the event Sabrina said, “I don’t know, I’m just excited to go and sail.” She is positive, however, that her boat will have the most fun of all the boats on the water. While her crew isn’t finalized yet, she’s looking forward to sailing at the Rochester Yacht Club, saying, “I’m thankful that RYC is hosting the event and working hard for us to sail.”
“Fleet 52 at Rochester YC was an active Fleet back in the 1940s but died out at some point. With several active RYC members owning Lightnings and the upcoming NAs, the fleet was re-activated this spring,” John says. Rochester has some long time Lightning sailors like Bob and Sarah King and Cory and Mark Sertl that have helped keep the class visible in the Rochester area. They were joined by John who purchased 15395 in the spring of 2015 and Jimmy Barnash, reigning World Champion, who purchased 15083 in the fall of 2015.
“In hindsight, I really wish I had tried to take advantage of the Lightning Boat Grant Program. Once I finally had some money and, most importantly, a wife that was interested in racing, I could justify buying a boat. For me some of the biggest influences to buy a Lightning were the fact that I can race it competitively with my wife, the high level of competition in the class, and all of the great people in the class that really make going to any event a pleasure.”
On shore the club is very welcoming with a great deck off the Burgee Bar to relax, a pool/snackbar, and dining options. The whole family is welcome to enjoy the facility–guests cards will be ready for you when you arrive. 
We hope you’re getting as excited as we are for the 2016 Samson Lightning North American Championships at the Rochester Yacht Club August 10-19!
There will be swimming, sailing, arts and crafts, and a field trip to the 
2016 Samson Lightning North American Championships 