In the latest round of regattas, the MSA Race Teams have continued their dominance of earlier in the season.  MSA Coaches Alex Arntsen and Billy McNamara (420s), as well as Jamie Altreuter and Kristy Landsvik (Optis) have consistently prepared their racers for success no matter where they sail.  Most importantly, whether placing high or not, the sailors have all had a blast and shown true sportsmanship on the water, none more so than Andy Creighton.

For the second regatta this summer, the first being Marblehead Race Week, Andy sacrificed his own finish to help a sailor in need.  At the Mass Bay Junior Olympics, Andy was sailing well and was competing for a top-five finish overall.  During the race that would have guaranteed him his place, another sailor had her boat swamped and was in a bit of a panic.  As the other racers sailed by her, Andy stopped, grabbed onto her boat, and helped her bail until the boat was dry and she was ready to sail again.  For his truly selfless attitude, the race committee wisely chose Andy to receive the overall Sportsmanship Award for the regatta.  The MSA is proud to have sailors like Andy with us on the water.

As for the final places in the Junior Olympics, they will be posted to our Regatta Results section soon, but some of the highlights were Nate Jermain and Walter Hunnewell taking 2nd place in the 99-boat 420 fleet, James Collins taking 2nd place in the Opti Blue Fleet, and Miranda Bakos placing 3rd in the Opti Red Fleet.  Super Kudos to the entire Opti Green Team for all placing in the top ten: Lucas Martz 1st, Courtney Holley 4th, Nicholas Mehlman 5th, Antonia Leggett 6th and Peter Mansfield 9th!

Squam Day was held on July 31st on a storm-threatening afternoon.  In fact, the Opti fleets did not race that day due to weather concerns.  The 420 fleet, however, started their racing in the morning and managed to get two races in before the weather hit, with Mimi Leggett and Brady Winn leading the MSA boats with a 4th place finish, followed by Andrew Glidden and Jacob Martz in 7th.

The Hyannis Regatta was held July 31-August 2nd and attracted not only sailors from the North and South Shores, but from all along the East Coast and even a few from the Great Lakes region.  Competition was as fierce as the wind and while the few MSA boats that made it didn't fair as well as at other regattas, all sailors returned raving about how much fun they had.  Nate Jermain and Kyle Davis led the MSA boats with a respectable 56th out of a very competitive 105-boat fleet. 

This has been a great racing season and, while the official regattas are all but completed, our teams are actively pursuing other opportunities to race against some of our neighboring programs.  They do this not so much to keep their competitive edge, but to continue to enjoy the water for as long as they can, which is exactly the attitude we want at MSA!