Local sailors remain in contention

The camaraderie was high, and so was the intensity at the conclusion

of Day 2 in the U.S. junior sailing championships Thursday at Newport

Harbor Yacht Club.

With two races remaining, the excitement grew as the scores got

tighter.

And two local entries, both sitting in third place after

Thursday’s competition, remain in the hunt for the ultimate prize in

their respective divisions.

At the Doublehanded level, which is closer than most anticipated,

the Bemis trophy could be won by any of the top five teams, while in

the Singlehanded races, there is a two-point difference between first

and second place.

Conditions were similar to Wednesday, with light winds picking up

in the afternoon, as Thomas Barrows from Pleon Yacht Club in

Marblehead, Mass., and Cameron Cullman from American Yacht Club lead

the Singlehanded division with a score of 14 and 16 respectively.

“I try to not worry about the wind conditions because I can’t

control it,” said Barrows. “I had good boat speed and good clean

starts, so I’m going to try to do the same tomorrow.”

Cullman, in his second year of the event, was equally pleased with

his performance.

“I feel really great,” he said. “The boats are so much fun --

they’re really physical and they go really fast. I’m just going to

try to stay with Thomas and stay in clean air.”

In the Doublehanded races, Jonathan Bernbaum and Scott Scott

Szawlowski from Colombia Yacht Club in Chicago, Ill., who, after the

first day of competition were in fifth place, climbed to the No. 1

spot with a score of 28. The team, which is led by Coach Evan

Thompson, winner of the Bemis Trophy in 1998 for the same club, is on

a quest for a similar finish.

“We’re pretty excited because I didn’t even think we could get

here,” said 14-year-old Szawlowski, who has been sailing for six

years. “But we knew if we worked really hard we could.”

Jeff Knowles and Caila Johnson from Rhode Island-based Sail

Newport finished two points behind with 30, while Newport Harbor’s

Cole Hatton and Blair Belling remain steady in third place with 35.

In the Triplehanded races, hosted by Balboa Yacht Club, Christian

Emsiek, Wade Buxton and Perry Emsiek of BYC kept a tight grip on

third place as first Mississippi-based Bay Waveland Yacht Club

finished the day on top with Jackson Benvenutti, Gary Taylor and

Davis Bolyard won first place in five of eight races, and second in

two.

While the event brings a high level of competition, the

Singlehanded and Doublehanded competitors are brought together in

activities aside from sailing, such as eating breakfast and dining

together, watching movies, attending dances, and, on Tuesday, the

athletes took the Balboa ferry to BYC to dine with the Triplehanded

sailors.

“It’s the sailing culture,” said Jenn Lancaster, NHYC youth racing

director. “The kids are social even when they’re on the water. It’s

fun but it’s still serious. The kids are really pushing themselves. A

lot of them are so far from home, so they all really support each

other.”

While most sailors are meeting for the first time, several have

met on other occasions, but the intensity still remains.

Barrows, who has known Cy Thompson of St. Thomas Yacht Club since

they were in the second grade.