ISSA News

  

The top 36 singlehanded high school sailors from around the country will descend upon the Pacific Northwest starting Friday, October 31 to compete in the 2015 Cressy High School Singlehanded Championship sponsored by LaserPerformance out of Bellingham Yacht Club in Bellingham, Washington. 

The event is organized by the Interscholastic Sailing Association in conjunction with the host Whatcom Community Sailing and title sponsor LaserPerformance.

The participants will compete in two fleets of 18 Laser Standard Full Rigs and Laser Radials. Each sailor has earned a spot by qualifying at championship regattas in their respective districts. 

Seven sailors are returning in the Full rig division from last year’s Championship to vie for the Standard Laser title including Patrick Shanahan from Shorecrest Preparatory, St. Petersburg, FL who finished 5th last year.  Riley Gibbs, a silver medalist from the Youth World Championship last summer in the 29er Class will also be competing. He represents Long Beach Wilson High School in Long Beach, CA.  

In the Radial division, three returning competitors will make for stiff competition.  William Marshall from Buckingham Browne & Nichols High School, Cambridge, MA who finished third last year will now have his brother Henry Marshall joining him on the starting line. Henry competed for the USA in the Youth Olympic Games over the summer finishing 9th overall.  Nic Baird of Shorecrest Preparatory, St. Petersburg, FL and Lawson Willard, Urban School, San Francisco, CA should be tough competitors for the 2015 title.

Bellingham should serve up a mix of clouds and sun this weekend, with fall-like conditions and cooler weather and the possibility of showers. The most important forecast for the sailors though does include prediction of good wind for both days of competition. Racing is scheduled to start at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, and 10:30 a.m. on Sunday; conditions permitting. All on-land activities will be based at the Bellingham Yacht Club, and racing can be watched from the shore.

For scoring updates and information, follow the regatta online at: www.hssailing.org/event/home/cressy

About LaserPerformance – LaserPerformance is the world’s largest producer of small sailboats and proudly promotes the sailing community, having been an ardent supporter of High School sailing for several years. LaserPerformance boats are designed and built to meet the needs of all sailors. LaserPerformance proudly produces many sailboats including: Laser, Sunfish, Pico, Bug, Club FJ, Club 420 and the new collegiate Z420. For more information, visit: www.laserperformance.com.

Whatcom Community Sailing is a non-profit volunteer run program providing the Bellingham and Whatcom County youth with sailing opportunities. Whatcom Sailing focuses on youth racing with two programs; a high school program consisting of teams from Sehome, Bellingham, and Squalicum High Schools and a youth racing program which operates during the summer months.

The Interscholastic Sailing Association (ISSA) is the governing body of high school sailing in the United States. Detailed info on the ISSA can be found at www.hssailing.org