With so many regattas this weekend and many Badger sailors traveling across the nation, Wisconsin sent a small, yet strong, team of four to compete at Cary Price in Michigan. The team consisted of skipper Jake Macdonald (‘23) and crew Dylan Gorman (‘25) in A as well as skipper Jack Schweda (‘24) and crew Kerstin Hyer (‘25) in B. Our team expected to find light and shifty conditions on the very small Baseline Lake and we were correct in our prediction.
Saturday morning was postponed as we waited for the wind to fill in. After lunch we were finally able to launch boats and get off our first races. Even with less than 5 knots of wind, Jake Macdonald was able to get off to a great start and win race one. He followed that race up with a 3 and that left him tied for first in A with Michigan. The shifty conditions forced the race committee to move the course for the B races. Jack Schweda was able to take advantage of great starts and managed to stay ahead of most of the competition, even with the unexplainable puffs, to get a 2, 3 in his first set. With rain getting nearer and wind getting lighter, the race committee sent the A sailors back out for one more race on the day. Jake and Dylan’s good start and saucy roll tacks allowed them to get out to an early lead and they never looked back (except on the downwind legs of course). They were able to get the 1 and take sole lead in A.
When our team showed up on Sunday morning, we saw glass on the lake. After some on-land postponement, the race committee sent out the B sailors in no wind to attempt to finish the set to constitute the regatta. The wind was extremely minimal but the short course and fair wind direction allowed the race committee to start the race. Jack and Kerstin had another great start and used their roll tacks to position themselves wonderfully for the puffs that would come down the lake. They got out to an early lead and continued to frequently roll tack and gybe to get to the puffs and stay ahead of their competition. They were able to finish with a 1 and take the sole lead of the B division.
The Badgers were able to sweep the regatta by finishing first in A, B, and overall. Thank you to the University of Michigan for running a great regatta in less than ideal conditions, and to our host Mary Johanson for the tasty meals and gracious hospitality!
