Final Project 3-4 Series Regatta Race

The View of the Central Coast from the Harbor. Photo by: Michael Anderson

            The elements of nature joined forces for the CSULB Sailing clubs end of the year 3-4 Series Regatta Race that took place on Saturday, April 9 in the beautiful harbor of Santa Barbara. The event that started at 9:30 a.m. brought together thirty different schools for one exciting day of sail races. Students and sailors from all over the coast showed up to take part in the event and cheer on their fellow classmates participating in the races. The event also brought with it sunshine, warm weather and great fun for the locals relaxing in the sand.

            The collaboration of all the schools made for a diverse, competitive and fun filled day with booths and tents set up and down the beach. Music, food and beach activities were all available for the students and the public, making it a great atmosphere for a Saturday afternoon at the beach. The audience was a great turn out and came with ecstatic energy, letting people know that in the midst of all the fun they still had pride for their school and it was still a competition.

            All nine members from California State University, Long Beach sailing team showed up healthy and ready to finish out the year with a strong race. When at home in the waters of Long Beach its no time for play, the team trains four times a week for three hours a day, making odds for competition tough. “This is the end of the year contest for all the marbles, we train all year for this.” Said Laura Newton, a second year student and President of the sailing club at California Sate University, Long Beach. “We are like a family, sailing takes team work and for a successful team you have to develop a strong bond and relationship with your crew” Newton said that winning isn’t always about being the best sailors but communicating and understanding the team like a family is key to a strong race.

            The event consisted of multiple races called “sets” where the first division of four club members sail around five inflatable buoys and back to the finish line, where the second division of five members jump in the boat and lap the buoys twice until heading back to the finish line. The contest is made up of points, if you place first in division one, that’s one point, if you place second or third that’s two or three points. The team with the lowest points is how you win big races. “Our fist division really started us off strong placing second.” Said Shane young a third year student and vice president of the sailing club at California State University, Long Beach. “They really put division two in a great position to get ahead start on their next two laps, but as the day progressed so did the conditions.” Young said that even know they were in a good spot for the lead, Mother Nature can take over anytime and cause difficulties. “We got hit with a strong flooding current that was pulling us away from the direction we were trying to go.”

            Though the team got hit with Mother Nature doing what she does best, they still placed fifth in division two, leaving them with an overall score of seventh out of thirty schools. “I am so pleased with the results of our team, seven out of thirty schools is awesome” Said Dustin Durant a fourth year senior and skipper of the sailing club at California State University, Long beach. “We worked harder than ever training for this event, dedicating time and money to practice and making sure our gear was ready for any type of conditions.” Durant said that dedication and teamwork really played a huge roll in this race and everyone on the beach could tell how focused the CSULB team was. “People that we didn’t even know came up to congratulated us, it was crazy people even told us how organized and focused we looked, I was honored to hear comments like that.”            

California State University, Long Beach Sailing club Graphic 1. Graphic Designer: Laura Newton

CSULB Sailing Club Graphic 2: Graphic Designer: Laura Newton

            Overall the event couldn’t of gone any better than it did. Bringing a great atmosphere and vibes to the Santa Barbara harbor for everyone to enjoy and a fierce competition for everyone to watch and engage in. The public loved the scholarly event and word on the beach said they couldn’t wait for next years big season finisher.