Spartan sailors claim third place

The Spartan sailing team battled winds gusting over 40 mph in a regatta that recently brought together all the high school teams in the Pacific Northwest.

March 26, 2016 3:21 pm
Skipper Elizabeth Rolfes and crew Lizi Dauber put distance between themselves and their competition in last week’s regatta at Sand Point.
Skipper Elizabeth Rolfes and crew Lizi Dauber put distance between themselves and their competition in last week’s regatta at Sand Point.

SEATTLE – The Spartan sailing team battled winds gusting over 40 mph in a regatta that recently brought together all the high school teams in the Pacific Northwest.

The fleet race was held at Sand Point on Lake Washington, and more than 15 schools participated in races of 40 double-handed boats.

The racing started in light wind conditions on Saturday morning and built to very blustery and shifting winds by late afternoon with many of the weekend’s sailors compelled to focus more on remaining upright than the actual racing performance.

A short-lived calm allowed the regatta organizers to complete two more races Sunday morning before the howling winds picked up again out of the south and brought to an end the weekend’s races.

Bainbridge’s Blake Bentzen with alternating crew Quinn Ring, Nicole Sanford and Harry Saliba tied for third of the 40 boats in the Gold fleet, with two first-place finishes in the last of the weekend’s six races.

Co-Captain Caelan Juckniess with alternating crew Sophie Crandell and Sophia Kasper placed ninth.

Co-Captain Karl Anderson, with alternating crew Kat Smith and Elizabeth Rolfes, also braved the stiff conditions and placed solidly in the Gold division. Also trying their hand as skippers in the demanding conditions were Nicole Sanford, Elizabeth Rolfes, Harry Saliba and Sophia Kasper, assisted by crew Lizi Dauber and Jack Sobeck.