This past weekend the Michigan Tech Sailing Club sailed in their last regatta for the fall at Hope College in Holland, Michigan. Joined by 14 other teams, they sailed a fleet of 420s, which are small, two-person boats. Inside each boat, there is a skipper who steers and controls the mainsail, and there is a crew member who is in charge of the jib and balancing out the boat. Small dinghies, such as the 420, are easy to capsize when there are strong winds. To level out the boat and keep it upright, the sailors have to hike out, or basically lean way off the side of the boat. Sometimes, the winds are so strong that the sailors have to lean into the water just to keep their boat upright. No matter what kind of boat the crew sails, they’re bound to get wet at some point. Thankfully, the Sailing Club owns a variety of dry suits to keep dry. When it is warm outside, getting splashed is no big deal; however, the temperature was around 40 degrees in Holland, making getting wet undesirable. The weather was cold enough on Saturday that the sailors had to scrape the snow and ice off their boats before launching them off the docks.
When participating in a big boat regatta, the whole team can fit on board and work together to sail the one boat, but in small dinghy races, only two teammates can go at a time. Because of this, the regatta is split into two classes, an “A” class and a “B” class. As soon as they get back to the docks, everyone switches boats and the next class heads off again. It can get very fast paced, but no one complains once they fall into the swing of the schedule. By the end of the regatta everybody is sore and exhausted. The only good part of Michigan Tech being so far north is that the members of the Sailing Club can sleep for a while during the nine hour drive back home before having to switch drivers. Sailing might not be for everyone, but for some people, it’s everything. The smell of the water draws them near, and the sound of the waves hitting the boats and the sails flapping in the wind makes them stay. They don’t notice how their hands form blisters from the ropes or how their shins have turned purple with bruises. They’ll do anything to get on a boat, no matter how cold or windy it might be. Michigan Tech’s Sailing Club might be small, but the dedication and love the members have for the sport is huge.
