Doble and Ziskind Win Ida Lewis Trophy; Leonard and Ivancich Earn 29er Title
SAN DIEGO, Calif. (July 24, 2019) – The two events competing at the 2019 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship, hosted by San Diego Yacht Club, came down to an exciting finale on Wednesday afternoon.
The racing was exceptionally tight in the Club 420 fleet for the Ida Lewis Trophy. The team of Katharine Doble (Pacific Palisades, Calif.) and Zoey Ziskind (Goleta, Calif.) had a tie-breaker edge for the lead entering Wednesday’s final three races over Jessica Smith (Palmetto, Fla.) and Laurel Tyson (Key Largo, Fla.). They held on for the victory to win the Ida Lewis Trophy by one point.
“Our starts were very good and our downwinds were fast,” said Doble. “We had good wind pretty much throughout the weekend. The upwind strategy was a major part of the regatta because of the course configuration, which our coaches talked to us about and worked with us on like keeping more in the center of the course especially when the marks are skewed to the right side. We made a lot of gains in the downwind too for the most part. Good speed all around.”
“The clinic was a great experience because we haven’t been in many big boat fleets yet. Learning the starts with more boats in the 420 was very helpful for us. The coaches gave very good advice and it was interesting working with them each day. We gained a lot of knowledge from them.”
“We had really fun dinners. We got to know some people we had already known better and made new friends with people we hadn’t known yet.”
Svenja Leonard (Carpinteria, Fla.) and Adra Ivancich (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) earned the first-ever 29er event at the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship. Placing second and seven points behind the winners was Alice Schmid (San Diego, Calif.) and Samantha Gardner (San Diego, Calif.).
Ivancich was excited about the win and opportunity to sail. “This is our first Ida Lewis. We haven’t sailed in light wind together before, but it ended up working. We mostly played it safe, especially on the upwinds, and didn’t take too many risks once we established our position.”
“The clinics were really helpful and the coaches did a great job. We mostly worked on boat speed and we’ve been trying to work on communication or a while, so it was good to be more in sync.”
The wind dropped to from 8 to 5 knots after Race 2 today in the 29er fleet signaling the end of the Championship just 1:30 pm PST.
Day 2 – Moving day for the Club 420 and 29er Fleets
Conditions
Ocean course was calm, with small waves but steady wind all day with 9 to 12 knots. Heavy rain in the morning prior to racing. There was a 15 degree wind shift in the third race today that impacted the leaderboard. Sailors participated in a Burger Bash and Pool Party with raffles and they joined the San Diego Yacht Club festivities at family night at the Pavilion.
Club 420 Notes
The Club 420 fleet completed three more races on Tuesday and six total for the regatta. Katharine Doble and Zoey Ziskind (3-2-3-[12}-3-1) held on to their lead from Monday by the narrowest of margins. They have a slight tie-breaker edge over Jessica Smith and Laurel Tyson (1-7-1-4-4-[11]) going into Wednesday’s final day of racing.
29er Notes
The 29er fleet completed four more races on Tuesday and seven total for the regatta. Svenja Leonard and Adra Ivancich (1-2-3-1-1-1-[5]) have a five point lead over Alice Schmid and Samantha Garnder ([4]-1-1-4-3-3-1).
Wednesday is the final day of racing for the Championship.
Day 1 – Racing Begins for Club 420 and 29er Events
Monday, July 22
Conditions
8-12 knots; flat waters
29er Notes
The six teams competing in the 29er event completed three races on Monday. Svenja Leonard and Adra Ivancich from Santa Barbara Yacht Club have a one-point lead following a 1-2-3 scoring line to begin the Championship. They are trailed by Alice Schmid and Samantha Garnder (4-1-1) of the San Diego Yacht Club.
“Our last two races were great,” said Schmid. “We sailed fast the whole day, caught up with them and came in first. It was pretty light and flat, which Sam and I are pretty good in. We’re used to the San Diego conditions and sail in this type of weather often.”
Club 420 Notes
The 32 teams in competition in the Club 420 fleet also finished three races. Katharine Doble and Zoey Ziskind (3-2-3) have a one point lead over Jessica Smith and Laurel Tyson (1-7-1) of Sarasota Youth Sailing.
Observations from Molly Pleskus, Head Coach of the San Diego Yacht Club
The clinic consisted of two days (Saturday and Sunday, July 20-21) of “champagne” sailing conditions in San Diego, with nice swells and 10 to 15 knots. With a focus on prepping for the event, there was plenty of speed tuning, boat handling, and starting practice. The clinic days serve as a good time for new and experienced racers to work out all the rigging issues and work on perfecting boat speed and boat handling. The practice shows in the first day of competitive of racing today. Tonight the girls are headed to Mission Bay Yacht Club for a beach barbecue before meeting back at the yacht club at 8:00 am tomorrow morning for race day 2. The regatta will wrap up on Wednesday with the final day of racing and the awards ceremony to follow. The Ida Lewis is a great opportunity for girls to improve their sailing and meet and learn from new friends and old from across the country. Despite an exhausting three days the girls continue to push them selves and work hard.
Having fun hosting the US Junior Women’s Sailing Championship! 80 young women having fun sailing! #USSailing #IdaLewis19 pic.twitter.com/TcOA1lZLuG
— Mary Brigden (@mabrigden) July 20, 2019
Southport sailors qualify for US Sailing Doublehanded National Championship https://t.co/Qi8lNElgOz via @BBRegister > #bospoli #mapoli #Wianno @ussailing
— Dan Currie (@poeboston) July 22, 2019
Championship Preview
SAN DIEGO, Calif. (July 19, 2019) – US Sailing has made an important addition to the racing at the 2019 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship for the Ida Lewis Trophy, hosted by the San Diego Yacht Club. For the first time in event history, the Championship will feature two events – the Club 420 and 29er. The 2019 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship is sponsored by Sperry and Zim Sailing.
In the past, this Championship has featured one event in the Club 420 to compete for the Ida Lewis Trophy. This year, the high-performance 29er has been injected into the Championship to provide additional opportunities for doublehanded teams to race and compete against top peers from around the country, while learning from a collection of the top coaches in the country. The Club 420 and 29er sailboats are provided by Zim Sailing.
The San Diego Yacht Club will host 78 sailors, competing across these two classes over three days of racing and two days of clinics. Racing begins Monday, July 22 and will conclude Wednesday, July 24.
The racing area will be approximately 1 NM southeast of Zuniga Jetty in the area known as the Coronado Roads.
Competitors will be greeted with the opportunity to learn from a panel of seven US Sailing fleet coaches. Clinic days will be this Saturday and Sunday, July 20-21.
US Sailing Coaches:
- Giselle Camet Nyenhuis: 1992 Olympian, 1990 Youth World Champion
- Richard Feeny: US Sailing Youth National Coach
- Charles Higgins: Head Coach, Tulane University
- Elizabeth Kratzig: 8-time US Sailing Team Member, World Match Racing Medalist
- Alana O’Reilly Marks: 3-Time All-American (2004, 2005, 2006), Quantum Collegiate Sailor of the Year (2006) for the College of Charleston
- Molly Pleskus: Head Coach, San Diego Yacht Club
- Beka Schiff: Former College of Charleston Sailor, Club 420, Laser, Opti, Keelboat Coach in Southern California.
News and Coverage:
- Visit the event website for news, Twitter updates, photos and more.
- Take part in the conversation throughout the championship using #IdaLewis19 and tag @USSailing in your social media posts.
Championship History:
- Support of the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship as well as the clinics is made possible by funds provided by the late C. Thomas Clagett, Jr. to perpetuate his unwavering dedication to junior women’s sailing. This support is intended to encourage young American women to enhance their sailing ability, with emphasis on sportsmanship, by providing the opportunity to compete in national-level competition with guidance from high-level coaching. Tom Clagett’s family continues to assist in fulfilling his vision.
- The U.S. Junior Women’s Championships Committee annually hosts two events: a Singlehanded and a Doublehanded championship. Both championships are open events.
- The U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship started in 1995.
Prizes:
- The Ida Lewis Trophy is the perpetual trophy presented to the winning team in the Club 420 Event.
- US Sailing Championship medals will be awarded to competitors who finish first through fifth.
- Trophies will be awarded to competitors finishing in the top three places.
- The C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Sportsmanship Prize will be awarded to a team based on the results of the competitors’ ballots.
Media Contacts:
San Diego Yacht Club Communications: Casey Allocco, casey@sdyc.org
US Sailing Communications: Jake Fish, communications@ussailing.org
About US Sailing
The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), the national governing body for sailing, provides leadership, integrity, and advancement for the sport in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Bristol, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. US Sailing offers training and education programs for instructors and race officials, supports a wide range of sailing organizations and communities, issues offshore rating certificates, and provides administration and oversight of competitive sailing across the country, including National Championships and the US Sailing Team. For more information, please visit www.ussailing.org.