Waterfront Midshipmen take 3 of 4 Awards

Midshipmen Jordan Musselman, Mike Burbello, and Kyle O'Connor were three of the four winners of the Captain Garrison Connor '57 award, presented at the Regimental Holiday Dinner.   The scholarship awards are given annually in the amount of $1000 to midshipmen who "have demonstrated a keen interest in all aspects of the seagoing profession and exhibited the sense of responsibility expected of a future ship's captain. The award is made possible through the generosity of the late Captain Peter F. Johnson '57, who was the former President of Pacific Gulf Marine and a classmate of the late Captain Connor '57"  M/N Musselman is the Regimental Waterfront Training Officer, M/N Burbello is the Midshipman Waterfront Officer, and M/N O'Connor is the Rowing Team Captain.  Congrats to our sailors for truly living the spirit of their award.

Happy Holidays from the Waterfront Family

Every year after the Midshipmen head home to their families, the Waterfront Staff gathers for an annual Holiday Lunch in the Cain Family home. the staff are treated to giant slabs of prime rib with all the trimmings. Thank you to Rich and Diane for hosting yet another fine day. We at the Kings Point Waterfront wish the rest of our family (all of you) a Happy Holiday as well.

Kings Point Waterfront Training in Boating Magazine

Check out the January issue of Boating Magazine for a great article about small vessel training at the USMMA Waterfront. Three of our Midshipman put feature writer Pete Mcdonald through a day of underway boot-camp aboard Sirina- here is a teaser of the article.

Holiday Ball

Someone had the wonderful idea to hold the Holiday Ball in Wiley Hall instead of Delano.  The venue change was great- here is a blurry but cool photo from the quarterdeck balcony.

Growler Shipyard

Growler was hauled out yesterday at Muller Boatworks in Brooklyn yesterday for some much needed M&R.

60,000

Just had our 60,000th visitor to the Waterfront Blog this morning!

Catching Up With Grads, Part 2

Erik Schmidt '95 with a new Ram for the farm

I always use two examples when talking to Midshipmen about how their careers may take them in a different direction from what the see in their futures.... first myself (I never pictured myself as Sailing Master!) and my classmate Erik Schmidt '95.  I spent this morning with Erik and his family at their farm in Ulster county New York.  After serving active duty in the Coast Guard, and then spending several years in the corporate world, Erik and Cecile started the Escot Valley Farm, and are now producing an amazing sheeps milk cheese in addition to free range poultry and other products.  I can vouch for the cheese, which is spectacular, and I brought a ton of it home to share.  

Catching Up With Grads Part 1

So I spent Thanksgiving Day with the family in Detroit, MI, and I knew that Brian Giorgio '08 was sailing on the Great Lakes- turns out his ship would be unloading coal on the St. Clair River, so I decided to stop by.  Working on the Lakes was what brought me to KP, so it was great to get aboard the James R. Barker, a 1000' long self unloader.  Great to see recent grads at work, and enjoying the Lakes.

Picture Credits

Thanks to M/N Mikkel Tophoj, 4/c for his great pics of Summerwind, including the new banner picture above!

Kings Pointers on Top at U.S. Match Racing Championship

Bill Hardesty KP'98 won this years U.S. Match Racing Chamipionship held this weekend in St. Petersburg, FL.  In fifth place was Ralf Steitz (USMMA Sailing Foundation) and Rick Dominique (USMMA Waterfront Staff.)  Congrats!

A Walk Aboard Summerwind

Before we wrap her up for winter I thought I'd take a walk aboard with the video camera......

Summerwind at Kings Point

Summerwind at her new home on Flag Landing

At the Helm on Summerwind

Ed Stacy '10 Underway on Summerwind

Learning the Ropes on Summerwind

Waiting out a Nor'Easter in Newport and learning about the new ship.  Look for Summerwind in Hague Basin Sunday evening.

Coast Guard has the Eagle........Welcome Summerwind to Kings Point

I've quoted Captain Prosser's words below before- but today we can begin to put action to some of his ideas. We just received word that the Sailing Foundation has been donated the 100' 1929 John Alden designed schooner Summerwind. Summerwind's owner had her completely rebuilt in a $8 million refit that finished in February. She is an absolutely beautiful vessel who will travel the East Coast as the Academy's flagship and ambassador. We thank Mr. and Mrs. J. Don Williamson for their gracious donation, and look forward to welcoming to her new home at Kings Point.

MORE PICTURES HERE

Then there are the special educational influences of being at sea under sail. Probably the most important additional quality induced is self-reliance. Life under sail is nearly always a perpetual struggle with the blind forces of nature which are no respecters of persons nor can one contract out of the struggle. It has to be waged by each individual on board with all his powers. Because sailing ships are often smaller than power vessels and always more dependent upon and susceptible to weather, special discipline must prevail. The man in charge must obey instantly under all conditions, very often conditions of extreme fatigue and discomfort. The discipline which the safety of the ship and the crew require must be accepted with willingness and alacrity. The occasional condition of danger or potential danger, while giving opportunities for the display of courage, quickly produces prudence and the habit of thinking ahead in a way that few other activities rival. And finally, if as is often the case, the crew is small there is constant scope and encouragement for unselfishness, that most truly respected of all qualities.

Kings Pointers Welcome USS New York to NY Harbor

On 9/11/01 the Kings Point Waterfront rushed into action, with Midshipmen, Faculty, and Staff devoting two weeks to support activities at Ground Zero.  Last week some of those involved joined us aboard the T/V Liberator to welcome the USS New York to New York Harbor for her commisioning.  The USS New York was built with steel from the WTC, and stopped to honor the victims and responders of 9/11.

Liberator in Nantucket

A clear, cool, fall day in Nantucket during the fall break trip.

Vanquish 2nd at IRC East Coast Championships

Vanquish came back from a last place in the first race to finish second in the IRC East Coast Champs, missing first place by just 1/2 point!  Congrats to the team for committing to make a comeback, and doing it!

IRC East Coast Champs

Alumni Chris Branning '09 and Peet Must '05 aboard Vanquish

After a tough start in Friday's distance race (we went to the wrong mark on a tour of the Chesapeake- we still crossed the line first but corrected to 8th place) the KP team found its stride in the wind and drizzle on the bay today with a second and two firsts in the days three races, good enough to move us up to second in the competitive 8 boat fleet.  

Offshore Team Heads to Annapolis for Three Regattas

Last weekend the Offshore Team finished 5th in the MacMillan Cup, sailed in Navy 44's at USNA.  After a disappointing performance on Saturday the team made progress on Sunday to claw back and qualify for next weekend's Collegiate Offshore Championship- the Kennedy Cup.  For the in between weekend we are in Annapolis sailing Vanquish in the East Coast IRC Championship.  Watch for results here.

USMMA Wins KP Dinghy Open

Congrats to the following Midshipman for winning the KP Dinghy Open in tough conditions this weekend at Kings Point! Our B division team scored an amazing 28 points for 16 races!!

Casey Gilmore '10
Sara Mock '10
Nick Aswad '11
Kevin Reilly '11
Gary Herring '12

Results Here

Welcome Back KP Sailing!

Name Our New Boat (Again!!)

(Edit) OK- so Gunsmoke is a cool name and all, but I've got to plug for my favorite- I think the boat is kind of spacey looking, and we have some history of naming boats after Waterfront dogs (Hercules) so how about Starlight, Ralf's lab who was with us for several years?

A few weeks ago we picked up a new donation (thank you Mr. DeJonge) and it needs a name! The boat is a pretty flashy looking 56' Simonis/Voogd Cruiser Racer.
Vote here on some ideas that we came up with ----------->>
Or send a comment with your own idea, but hurry this is only up for 24 hours!!!!

Head of the Charles Regatta– The Fall Rowing Classic

KINGS POINT ROWING
Head of the Charles Regatta– The Fall Rowing Classic
October 17-18, 2009 - Regatta Results


VARSITY MEN’S FOUR PLACES 6th IN THE NATION AMONGST DIII CREWS


CAMBRIDGE – The Kings Point Varsity Men’s four-man crew raced well as it finished 20th overall in the Head of the Charles Regatta and 6th overall amongst the top Division III institutions in the nation.
The Head of the Charles Regatta is the largest rowing event in the world. In this years forty-third running of the regatta, 19 countries were represented by 7,500 competitors and cheered on by nearly 300,000 spectators. College crews travel to Cambridge from forty states in the nation to determine the fall champions. Each of the two Kings Point crews met stiff competition and foul weather as they raced in categories that included crews from Division I, II, and III.

The crew of Coxswain Robert Kaldenbach ‘11, Stroke Steven Jones ’10,
3 – Charles Waters ‘10, 2- Connan Ingham ‘12 and Bowman Kyle O’Connor ’10, set a strong pace through the early stages of the race when it was fighting for a position on the river with University of Massachusetts. Unlike the strong tailwinds of last year last year’s competition, this year’s weather was dominated by gusty headwinds and the constant threat rain.

Led by the commanding voice of veteran coxswain Kaldenbach, the crew rowed a nearly flawless race but still fell short of winning a medal as they did in previous years. Division I Fordham completed the three miles in 17:00 to capture first. Kings Point’s time of18:13 was a strong performance for the less-than-ideal weather conditions. Based on last years performance, Kings Point started in the 6th spot and although only one crew passed them, some of the crews in the middle of the pack were able to post faster times.

The Men’s Varsity Eight as Kings Point raced the Collegiate Men’s Eight event for just the third time. Lead by the motivating voice and fine steering of Coxswain Daniel Dunn, the crew rowed its way through the five bridges and hairpin turns while trying to hold off crews that nipped at its stern. The crew of Coxswain Daniel Dunn ’13, Stroke- Thomas ‘Grey’ Gambill ’11, 7- Mike Stock ‘10, 6- Frank Osborne ’12, 5- Sam Diedrick ‘12, 4- Andrew Pfarner ‘11, 3 Jeremy Tunstall ’10 ‘12, 2 – John Wood ‘13, and Bow – Drew Baldwin ’10 clocked a time of 18:20 and finishing 35th amongst the best 38 teams in the country. Coach Daniel Udeanu seemed pleased with the crew’s performance but lamented over the poor rowing conditions of rain and strong cold winds “They are a young crew with two plebes and one of those having just learned how to row this fall.”

This competition ends the regular season although the team has been invited to compete in the Dowling Cup Challenge in November. The team will probably bring a couple crews to the challenge.



Regatta Results Online:
http://www.hocr.org/results/results.asp

Leadership, Teamwork, Seamanship, Responsibility- When What We Teach All Comes Together

Given the number of boats and hours we spend on the water we are fortunate that we have not had many incidents at the KP Waterfront, though we spend a lot of time training for them, well this week that training did it's job.

To all, 

On Tuesday October 13, 2009 there was an incident aboard the S/V Renegade. Crew members aboard at the time were M/N Derrick Cherico (helm) and Logan Koltermann (main), and Plebes James Pilliod (jib), Mikkel Tophoj (bow), Stefano Ritondale (mast), and Zachary Bradley (2nd jib).  At the time the wind was blowing about 20-25 with gusts up to 30. The J29 doesn’t have instruments so this is just an estimate. We had a #3 jib up and one reef in the main. We did some tacks upwind then went wing-on-wing downwind for a bit then came back up. Our Offshore Coach John Porter told us to practice some man-overboard drills. Logan then went down below to get an extra fender to throw overboard. We were on starboard tack at the time and tossed the fender off the stern. We immediately called man overboard and eased sails and came down. The Plebes had an eye on our "man," then we jibed and came up wind and tacked onto stbd. We came up to our man head to wind. The Plebes were unable to recover our guy so we went back onto starboard tack for a bit then came back down to make another pass. Plebes Tophoj and Bradley had an outstretched arm pointing to the man in the water while Plebe Ritondale went down below to get the boat hook and Plebe Pilliod was working the jib. As we came downwind Derrick called ready to jibe, we all acknowledged and then jibed. It was then that Bradley lost his footing on the starboard side and began to slip in between the lower lifeline and the deck. He managed to grip onto the stanchion just aft of the shrouds while his waist/legs were trailing in the water. Only able to hold on for a few seconds he let go and fell in the water. He was under the water for approximately 4-5 seconds. Fearing the worst we kept an eye and waited for him to surface, still on port jibe. We immediately notified the rest of the crew this was no longer a drill and we had an actual man overboard. While Tophoj had an eye on Bradley in the water, Derrick came up and tacked the boat onto starboard. Bradley saw this and began swimming to us. We were not on starboard tack for long when the boat met up with Bradley. As Derrick tried to stop the boat, Logan luffed the main and ran over to the leeward (port) side and grabbed Bradley and hoisted him through the lower life line and the deck. We asked if he was hurt and he said no just cold. We then told him to go down below and warm up. It was at this point our Offshore Coach came up in the Ambar and made sure everyone was ok. After this fact, we went engine on doused the jib and main. Then making sure everyone was ok and had no serious injuries, we headed back into the basin.

            Other boats that were practicing too were the Lager, Hypnos, Diana, a few sonars and the dinghy team. However these boats were not in the immediate vicinity.  We think a few things we did right was to immediately notify the entire crew that there was a man overboard and to keep a sharp eye on him.  The waves were about 3-4 feet high, some even 5. This we’re sure made it hard to keep an eye on Bradley. We never were more than 200 feet from him which made it easy.  We were really impressed with the other Plebes on board. They did a great job of keeping an eye on our guy in the water and knowing what to do when the situation presented itself unexpectedly.  Especially with the weather getting colder, you never want someone in the water for too long. Luckily he was able to swim to us which made it easier for us to get him on board.

            We cannot think of much we did wrong, however in that kind of breeze with 2/3 of your crew plebes, it might have been a good idea not to jibe. Instead we could’ve came up on the wind, tacked, then came back down. That was one possibility, another is absolutely making sure everyone is ready before each tack and jibe. I think also Bradley may have been too focused on keeping an eye out for our fake man in the water and was not paying as much attention as he should’ve and lost his footing. There was definitely a ton of breeze that day and I think each of us learned something. We were very lucky to recover him so quickly and also that no one was seriously injured.

Very Respectfully,

MIDN Derrick Cherico 2/c and MIDN Logan Koltermann,2/c

3^rd Company

Renegade Skippers

Navy Day Regatta

United States Merchant Marine Academy

Navy Day Regatta – October 10, 2009

Team results 

The Kings Point Rowing team experienced mixed results on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia at the Navy Day Regatta on October 10. The team’s best placing was a respectable 11^th place by the varsity men but had difficulty finishing in the top half with the other crew. The competition was very tight with many Division I, II and III teams including Navy and Army. 

The regatta was created as a way to commemorate the founding of the U.S. Navy. This competition was the team’s last preparatory race prior to competing next weekend at the Head of the Charles Regatta in Cambridge, MA. For the plebe crews, it was the last competition of the regular season. 

While the team did not bring home medals, each crew put forth their best effort. With a day of mixed weather and a progressively stronger tail wind the race times were fast for most races. 

The Men’s Varsity Four started the day off for Kings Point with what was to be the best performance in the Collegiate Four event. With only forty-five seconds separating the top 13 crews, the crew of Coxswain Daniel Dunn ‘13, Steven Jones ‘10, Chas Waters ‘10, Connan Ingham ‘12, and Kyle O’Connor finished a close 11^th.  This crew is hoping to improve their speed in an effort to again finish in the top three when it represents Kings Point at the prestigious Head of the Charles regatta next weekend.  

 

The Kings Point Varsity Women’s Double of Anna Simons ’12, Kacey Rohloff ’12, had some race difficulties and were unable to medal. The crew started the race strong and were leading most of the crew but then dropped back to finish 8^th of 9 crews. This crew came off a medal winning performance last week but had difficulty when they experienced difficulties with the rough water. 

The Novice Men’s Eight came off a victory over 12 teams last week but was unable to repeat this week as they finished a disappointing 15^th of 20 crews. The crew of Coxswain David Wong ’13, Chris Murphy ’13, Garrett Poncin ’13, John Wood ’13, Dustin Downing ’13, Garrett Fulton ’13, Brendan Rohr ’13, Kevin Woloscyk ’13 and Grant Johnson ’13 finished a distant 15^th  amongst 20 crews. They had trouble during the race when they had difficulty handling the rough water and fell off the pace when one rower’s oar caught the water the wrong water and they slowed significantly.

The novice Women’s Crew of Coxswain Kate O’Connor ’13, Str. Emily Meehan ’13, Christi Gallo ’13, Elsie Domingues ’13 and Lauren Callahan ’13 were unable to replicate last weeks silver medal performance of last week and finished 6^th of seven crews.

 Despite starting well and having what seemed to be their best race of the season the Novice Men’s four of Coxswain Daniel Dunn ’13, Str. Garrett Poncin, John Wood ’13, Sung Hyong ’13, and Brian Nichols ’13 ran into trouble midway through the race and were unable to keep with the leaders. In just their first race as a crew they rowed well and finished 12^th of 14 crews.

 

The final crew of the day was the Varsity Men’s Eight of Coxswain David Wong ’13, Str. Thomas Gambill ’12, Mike Stocko ’10, Sam Diedrick’10,  Frank Osborne ’12, Andrew Pfarner, Jeremy Tunstall’10, Chris Murphy 13, and Drew Baldwin ’10. Despite great efforts and a solid race, the crew was only able to finish 22^nd but did defeat threes crews. 

Overall, the team rowed to the best of their ability especially considering that it only rowed three times in last two weeks due to inclement weather. 

The team heads to Cambridge, MA for the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta on October 17-18. Four Kings Point crews will be vying for top honors on the twists and turns of the Charles River.

Sonar Worlds Report

2009 Sonar World Championship – Sonar 753- by Dan Gillis, Class of 2013
Looking back, Sonar Worlds was a challenge and adventure for all of us on 753. The event started out bright and early on Thursday morning, when we met for the skippers meeting. A few last minute reminders and comments were made, and the crowd of anxious Sonar sailors made their way to the launches to be taken to their respective boats. We got to our boat, rigged up, and sailed out into the Sound. The conditions were less than ideal for a boat as light as ours (around 550 pounds)… lots of wind and 2-3 foot waves. Nonetheless, we pounded through three races on the first day.
After a few general recalls at the start, we found ourselves being covered by most of the fleet off the start line. We tacked out quick and tried to hitch out to a corner, but the momentum lost by the starting line doomed us for the rest of the race. We had great downwind legs helping us claw back slowly at the pack, but there was as lot of pack to claw through. We finished with a rather disappointing 45th place. The next race was more of the same. We got off the line in a decent position, chose our side, and fought for it. The side we chose, however, did not pay off, and we found ourselves again fighting for positions in the back of the pack. We did not progress as far forward as we would have liked to, and finished our worst finish of the Regatta with 51st. Race three was yet again more of the same story… it seemed that Mother Nature was fighting against our light boat every inch of the race course. We finished 46th and headed back to the harbor for much needed rest and dry clothing.
Day two showed little change from day one. The wind and chop made for less than ideal conditions. We played our sides well with the first race, caught some great shifts and lifts, but once again, found our-elves fighting for position at the back of the fleet. Race four was finished in 50th place. The weather was relentless for the rest of the day, and our sailing spirit could not help us past 49th place in race five.
Saturday brought what we thought would be much needed change. The day started out with decent weather, calm seas, and a promise of good sailing for a light boat like ours. After drifting around the Sound for a few hours waiting for the Race Committee to start a race (due to the lack of wind), we finally were able to start. With a decent start, we fought hard to win our side, crossing boats when we could and hitting every shift right, winning our side. Unfortunately, the side we won was not the favored side. We fought to gain footing on the fleet, and managed to climb to 45th place for race six. While waiting for another race to start, the sky darkened and opened up with a heavy downpour. The races for the rest of the day were abandoned, and we were towed back to the Harbor amidst a rather ferocious thunderstorm.
Sunday promised one last day for us to show the Sonar fleet what we were made of. It was sunny, light winds, clear skies, and calm water. We were exited to finally race in some conditions we enjoyed, and our crew worked best in. We made it to the starting line, and once again found ourselves at a several hour delay waiting for wind to fill in to start a race. It finally did, although not much of it was present, and the seventh race began. We banked our money on a cloud formation towards the right side of the course, which we were hoping would provide some extra breeze for us to power towards the mark. This wind, however, never materialized, and we found ourselves spending the good part of an hour trying to make it to the mark. With no boats making it within 45 minutes, the Race Committee abandoned the race, and we found ourselves out of luck and done with our Worlds regatta.
Throughout the event, we received many thanks for attending. It seems the Sonar Class really enjoys our presence, and all we do to help the class run some of its regattas. The Academy was thanked for providing two mark boats and members of the power squadron to operate them.
In all, the experience was one that the whole crew enjoyed. We were sailing with legends- former World and National champions, the best Paralympics teams in the world, Bruce Kirby, the designer of the Sonar, and so many other accomplished sailors. That we had a chance to compete with this impressive fleet was more than we could ask for, and that we had some good sailing only made it better. The 2009 Sonar World Championship experience was one that will be in our minds for long time.

Days When We Just Cross Our Fingers.....

Because there is not much holding our Waterfront infrastructure together- come on new pier!!

Shiphandling Training

It's great when you can give the RWO the con taking Liberator out on a windy day- here's how you do it.

Diana takes 2nd, Renegade 2nd, and Hypnos 3rd in Light Air Greenwich Cup

The Offshore Team performed well in this weekend's light air on Long Island Sound, finishing high in this years Greenwich Cup. Skipper Pat Ambrose '10 aboard Diana managed to finish within the time limit to secure 2nd place, while Hypnos', skippered by Bubba Suggs '11, 3rd place on Saturday was enough to take the trophy.  I somehow missed Renegade, skippered by Logan Kolterman, which finished second!  Congrats to all the boats.  Also recieved a very nice email today- I love it when I get these!!

I thought you should know we sailed this weekend against three different boats from your school. Afterward one group came to the award ceremony. I must tell you these young men and women did a tremendous job representing themselves, the Academy and you. Not only we they tremendous sailors, they were also very polite, poised and well behaved. We happened upon two of the cadet’s in search of food for their team’s return trip. I ended up giving them a ride to and from the local grocery. All in all, your group elevated The Greenwich Cup and were a very positive influence on all involved.

Congratulations on having such a good group.

 

Sincerely,

PJ Connolly '12 Races aboard Courageous

We often get calls looking for Kings Pointers to crew on other boats- but not often do we get such a match. Courageous, a 12 meter that won two America's Cups raced this weekend in New York Harbor and needed a trimmer. So Courageous being the Rhode Island State Yacht what could we do but put a Rhode Islander aboard? Sounds like PJ enjoyed the sailing!

Also, thank you very much for the sail this weekend. It was by far, equal to the whole bi race week on vanquish, probably the best sailing experience I’ve ever had. The crew was incredible, I really learned a ton. Jamie was such a cool skipper, larry- a little out of his mind but really good, rich-awesome guy-guess owns a tricked out express, mike-the tender driver-probably the coolest of them all-great stories, matt-capt- is a great sailor-used to sail s boats. the boat was out of this world, the setup. Every tack and jibe was a real challenge, the loads were unreal. The pedals were really cool, towards the end I really got a hand of the transfer of the sheet and guy with the pedals. Also on layline when about to head downwind and attaching a second jib sheet and transferring the load so you could hook up spin was crazy. The crew helped me out a bunch. And trimming on a 12 was incredible, especially courageous. Thank you I really appreciate it.

Sonar World Championships

The 2009 Sonar Worlds, held in Noroton, CT, got off to a bumpy start for our Kings Point teams. Wind and large waves made the first two days difficult for our sailors who are used to practicing in the sheltered end of Long Island Sound. The last two days of the regatta were plagued by light air, with no racing on Sunday due to no wind. Congrats to our teams for competing in a World Class event. Thanks to the KP Power Squadron for operating the Committee boats.

Results

Textile River Regatta

Kings Point Rowing
United States Merchant Marine Academy
Team Results
Textile River Regatta – Lowell, MA
October 4, 2009

The Kings Point Varsity Rowing team took home medals in three events at the Textile River Regatta. A total of seventy-nine teams competed in the regatta with over five hundred and twenty entries amongst all of the events.

The weather could not have been more perfect for the two and three-quarter mile race conducted in ‘head style’ format on the Merrimac River in Lowell. MA. The morning conditions were typically cool as one might expect of New England fall weather but the day warmed up toward early afternoon and so did the competition as colleges and clubs fought each other for top honors.

The strongest performance was posted by the Men’s Plebe crew which dominated a field of eighteen crews to win gold medals ad the title of top Freshman team. The crew of Coxswain –David Wong ‘13, Stroke-Chris Murphy ‘13, 7-Garrett Poncin, 6- Brad Woods ‘13, 5-Brendan Rohr ‘13, 4-Garrett Fulton ‘13, 3-Dustin Downing ‘13, 2-Kevin Woloscyk ’13, Bow-Grant Johnson ’13 placed first in a field of eighteen. It is the crew’s second victory of the season.

Assistant coach Daniel Udeanu commented after the race that “the Varsity Men’s Four and Eight rowed very well despite some difficulty with the steering mechanism on the four-man shell and some last-minute line-up changes with the ‘Eight-man’ crew. We will be ready for a great race next week”
The Men’s Varsity four of Coxswain Robert Kaldenbach 2011, Steven Jones 2012, Charles Waters 2010, Connan Ingham and Kyle O’Connor 2010 experienced some problems with the steering and raced well but finished 13th of 26 crews. The crew was expected to place better and is now anxious to race next week at the Navy Day Regatta in order to show what speed that they really have. This crew will be representing the academy in the prestigious Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston in two weeks.

The Women’s Novice Four posted the best ever performance for Kings Point in this regatta with a second place amongst the eight college crews entered in this event. It was a fantastic race for the crew of Coxswain- Daniel Dunn ‘13, Stroke-Emily Meehan ‘13, 3-Kate O’Connor ‘13, 2-Casey Moore ‘13, Bow-Christi Gallo. The crew finished the course in 19:28. Crew member Christi Gallo commented after the race that the whole experience of racing and doing so well was ‘just incredible”.


The Men’s Lightweight Four of Coxswain Daniel Dunn,
Stroke 3-Garrett Poncin, Brian Nichols, Grant Johnson, and Sung Hyong rowed very well in capturing fifth in their first time racing in this category. Both Poncin and Johnson had raced earlier in the day with the Novice “eight” and were definitely tired after the second race. The ‘lightweights completed the course in 17:36.
The other medal-wining crew was the dynamic duo of the two women’s captains, Kacey Rohloff ’12, and Anna Simons ’12.
In finishing third overall but the first college crew, the women rowed their best race of the season. The posted time of 19:11 was their fastest of the season.

The Varsity Men’s eight completed the day with a fine row in the open eight category. With only one practice last week due to the poor weather conditions and having to substitute two new rowers into the crew due to the injury of two of it’s team members, the crew rowed a fine race and is prepared to do what it takes to be prepared for the last two races of the season.
The crew of Coxswain Daniel Dunn ’13, Str- Grey Gambill, Mike Stocko, Sam Diedrick, Jeremy Tunstall, Chris Murphy,
Frank Osborne, Drew Baldwin, and Brad Woods. The crew finished 13th and in a time of 15:27.

Sonar World Championships

Starting tomorrow our Keelboat Team will be racing for the Sonar Class World Championship. 53 of the best boats in the competitive class will gather in Noroton, CT for 4 days of racing in Long Island Sound. The Kings Point Power Squadron will be providing vessel support for race committee. Best of luck to our teams, and check back here for updates as well as-

Noroton Yacht Club

International Sonar Class

Dinghy Weekend Update

North #1 Regatta
Despite being blown-out by windy conditions on Saturday and the challenges of a light and extremely shifty breeze on Sunday, the KP Dinghy Team sailed to a fourth place overall finish at the North #1 regatta. The finish earned the Team a berth to the War Memorial and MAISA Fall Championship on October 31-November 1 at St. Mary's College.

On Saturday morning, the team arrived to a puffy 18-25 knot southerly on Seneca Lake. The Race Committee attempted to start a race, but the steep chop and high winds proved too much for many of the teams, leading to a postponement onshore until the early afternoon. Once the wind had died to a more manageable 15-18 knots, A-division and B-division started two races apiece before the building chop caused racing to be abandoned for the day.


Laser #2 Regatta
This past weekend Kings Point hosted the MAISA Laser North #2 qualifier for the Van Duyne Trophy. We were graced with perfect conditions on Saturday with winds ranging from 8 to 16 knots out of the South East allowing us to complete the rotation on day one. Kings Point had four sailors competing in the regatta - Bobby Boger, Evan Siepert, Ian Holtzworth and Jake Rugland.
Congratulations to Ian Holtzworth who finished 2nd and to Bobby Boger who finished 5th, missing a qualifying position by one point. Special thanks to the plebs and midshipmen who helped run a successful event. Stay tuned for the Van Duyne Trophy back at the waterfront on October 10th-11th where Eric Horrocks and Ian Holtzworth will be racing for a spot at the ICSA men¹s single-handed championship.

VARSITY ROWING TAKES THE HARLEM

October 26, 2009 Head of the Harlem – New York, NY
Both the Women’s and Men’s plebe crews rowed superbly to capture the top honors in the Novice Freshman race at the Head of the Harlem Regatta on Saturday. The race was attended by over 15 of the best local college and club teams in the area including Columbia, Forham and New York University.

The Kings Point Plebe/Novice Eight-Man Crew was the first to take to the mighty Harlem River. In the their first outing in the ‘eight’, the crew of Coxswain- David Wong, Stroke- Chris Murphy, 7-Garrett Poncin, 6-John Wood, 5-Brendan Rohr, 4-Brian Nichols, 3-Dustin Downing, 2- Kevin Woloszyk, and Bow-Grant Johnson took the challenge of the three-mile course seriously. Rowing with a slight current, the crew clocked a very quick 14:05 as it stroked at over thirty strokes per minute for the entire race course. This was indeed a fast time for a novice crew and almost fast enough to defeat the more experinced varsity crew of Fordham who completed the course in 13:28. However the mariners were the fastest novice crew of the day and captured gold medals in the process.

They battled the pleasure boaters and the changing tides, but the Women’s Plebe/Novice crew of Coxswain-Casey Moore, Stoke-Emily Meehan, 3-Kate O’Connor, 2-Elsie Dominguez, and Bow-Christi Gallo made it a gold medal day. Despite taking on four inches of water and rowing through heavy swells, the crew completed the course in superb form and brought the rowing shell back to the dock while laughing at the very challenging situation. ‘They rowed with great form and a winning spirit’ said Coach Derek Hartwick following the race. The crew completed the course in 21:30, fast enough to be the first Novice crew of the day.

“They will meet a greater number of crews next week at the Textile River Regatta. I know that they will all be up for the challenge” said Hartwick. The team travels to Boston and Lowell, Massachusetts next week as they continue preparations for the prestigious Head of the Charles on October 17-18.

Update From Peet Must '05 49er Campaign

Dear Fans,

Peet and I would first off like to thank everyone for all of your awesome support, whether it was a donation, a place to stay, or all the cheering from the sidelines, we couldn’t do it without you.

Our summer schedule consisted of 2 great regattas, the Delta Lloyd in the Netherlands which is a stop on the Gold Cup tour and the 2009 World Championships in Lake Garda, Italy. The Delta Lloyd was our first regatta with the new all carbon fiber mast and square top mainsail which is just a dream to sail. The regatta was a huge step in our learning curve, being our first international regatta, we were competing against the best from Europe. We trained with some Europeans for about 5 days leading up to the event to try and figure out the new mast and sail set up. As the regatta went on we got better and better; we rounded a few windward marks around 10th and wound up with our best finish in the last race. It was a great regatta, we learned a ton and especially started to understand what exactly needs to be done.

Stop two was the 2009 World Championships in Lake Garda, Italy. We arrived early and had about 10 days of some great training in big breeze; it is always windy in Garda. The Worlds were an awesome event, 6 days of unbelievable sailing conditions against the world’s best. We had some real shining moments during the worlds. In the qualifying round we had a couple of low teen finishes and we beat the 2 time world champion to the top mark once. We missed qualifying for silver fleet by a few points and wound up in bronze fleet, not a total bummer. We learned so much being a top player in our fleet, finishing 4 out of 7 races in the top 10 with a 2nd in the first race. All in all it was an unbelievable experience and our 49er sailing is really starting to take shape.

What’s next: we plan on training now through December for the 2010 Worlds which are being held in the Bahamas January 2-9, 2010. What’s also really great is that the 2010 North Americans and the Miami OCR regatta are also in January in Miami. Our plan is to give a big push for these up coming regattas.

This winter is going to be a start to the half way point in this campaign and we need to stay on track. This we believe, will include a lot of coaching. We have been in contact with some veteran 49er sailors and they all want to help. We are hoping to put together a schedule that will include the practice and coaching that we need.

You can keep in touch with our training and results by checking out our webpage http://www.barnegatbay49er.com/ or at Team Barnegat Bay on Facebook. If you wish to make a donation to our campaign, the information is also on our webpage.

Thanks for all your support,
Carl and Peet

More Why We Do.......

A little more from Captain Prosser- here on Sea Sense, something that cannot be learned in a classroom or a simulator.

But sea sense does not consist only of this ability to cope with special problems of relative velocity. It is concerned with a constant pro-occupation, waking or sleeping, with the weather and its effects, both now and in the foreseeable future on the safety and movement of a ship. It is concerned with an ability to sense the stresses to which a ship is being subjected by rough seas and to take steps to relieve them before they become critical. It is concerned with a realization of the seas’ overwhelming power when in any angry mood, the size and power of modern ships not withstanding, and with the ability to react to a crisis not with terror which is the natural human reaction, but with coldness and judgment. It is concerned with thinking ahead and acting prudently, making things fast so that they are not only safe now but will remain safe in a few hours time: when it is dark, the tide has turned and the wind increased. Sea sense means to think as the sea thinks, to feel as the sea feels, this sensibility comes most positively through the prideful mastery of sail training.

Offshore Team Wins Secretary's Cup Point Against USCGA

The Offshore Team beat the Coast Guard Academy team at the Shields Trophy Regatta at Navy last weekend. The Shields Trophy is the fall event for points for the Secretary's Cup competition, the annual all-sport competition vs. the Coast Guard Academy for athletic bragging rights. Well done!!

Mystic Rowing

As you can see it was a beautiful day on the water in Mystic!

Shields Trophy Comeback

With excellent tactics, speed, and fleet management, Kings Point jumped from 6th to 4th in just 2 light air races today. Clearly the midshipmen have figured out the Navy 44 and will be a big force in the fleet as we continue toward our goal of winning Kennedy Cup.
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Womens Pair Beats Coast Guard at Coastweeks Regatta

Anna Simons and Kacey Rohloff rowed the 1800 meter course in 10:01 to beat two teams from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy!  This is the first time out women rowers have beat USCGA.

Results

Shields Trophy First Day

It was a challenging day on the water in Annapolis that left our team sixth after 4 hard races. The good news is that we are fast and have the best boat handling in the fleet. Some tactical changes tomorrow will surely bring some top results in this tough fleet.
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Sunrise at Sea for Kings Point Rowing

Morning arrival in Fishers Island Sound and Mystic, CT for Kings Point rowers on their way aboard Liberator and Maximon to compete in the Coastweeks Regatta at Mystic Seaport.

Where We'll Be

Liberator and Maximon at the 2008 Coastweeks Regatta in Mystic, CT


This weekend the Dinghy Team will be competing in the Nevin's Trophy Regatta here at Kings Point.


The Rowing Team will be traveling by sea to Mystic Seaport to compete in the years first regatta. Liberator and Maximon will be docked at the finish line, so any Easter Connecticut Kings Pointer's and Parents, feel free to stop by and check out the team on Saturday or Sunday.

And the Offshore Team will be racing in Larchmont and Annapolis.

Good Luck!!

Why We Do What We Do

So the part of my job as Sailing Master that is never written up here are the hours sitting in administrative meetings, and recently many of them have been about institutional planning and strategic goals etc. We'll review and develop and update these for the Waterftont with proper metrics and all- but the real outline for what we do at the KP Waterfront was beautifully outlined by the first Sailing Master at KP- Captain Prosser. I won't put it all up at once, but each section really hits the nail on the head. Below is perhaps my favorite passage of a white paper that Captain Prosser wrote in the early 1960's-

Then there are the special educational influences of being at sea under sail. Probably the most important additional quality induced is self-reliance. Life under sail is nearly always a perpetual struggle with the blind forces of nature which are no respecters of persons nor can one contract out of the struggle. It has to be waged by each individual on board with all his powers. Because sailing ships are often smaller than power vessels and always more dependent upon and susceptible to weather, special discipline must prevail. The man in charge must obey instantly under all conditions, very often conditions of extreme fatigue and discomfort. The discipline which the safety of the ship and the crew require must be accepted with willingness and alacrity. The occasional condition of danger or potential danger, while giving opportunities for the display of courage, quickly produces prudence and the habit of thinking ahead in a way that few other activities rival. And finally, if as is often the case, the crew is small there is constant scope and encouragement for unselfishness, that most truly respected of all qualities.

Weekend Update- Sailing Team off to a Great Start

Kings Point Sailing Competed in 5 Events this Weekend-

Laser North Qualifier at KP- Eric Horroks finished 3rd to qualify for the district championships

Riley Cup at ODU- USMMA 3rd, congrats to Brett Baker, Sara Mock, Chris Herring, and Alyssa Montague

Cornell Fall Open- USMMA 3rd, congrats to Pat Reilly, Casey Gilmore, Dan Liberty, and Elle Rogers.

Pine Trophy at USCGA- USMMA 6th- after a rough start the team finished strong on Sunday, beating Navy.

Sonar LIS Champs-USMMA finished 15th in a tough fleet- getting ready for the Sonar World Championships

Parents Weekend, Laser Regatta, Coast Guard Game, Shell Christening, oh, and somehow Stephen Colbert showed up on the Waterfront!

Busy weekend at KP.  Great to meet so many parents, and to see so many Plebes showing off the Waterfront to parents and family.

Four Kings Point Sailors compete to qualify for the District Singlehanded Championship.

 RWO Jordan Musselman with Stephen Colbert aboard Liberator

Fans Rush Tomb Field after the Double Overtime Victory over Coast Guard

Coach Hartwick introducing the Rowing Team during a Shell Christening.

NIght Piloting / Navigation Class 2

So I forgot to bring my camera, but it was night, so not much to see anyway. Last night we took Liberator and Growler for our second Night Navigation and Piloting course on the East River. Small groups of midshipman had the opportunity to pilot the vessels through the harbor and into the narrow Rikers Island Channel for practice in a lit buoyed channel. Lots of practice with radio comms, traffic management, and tight quarters shiphandling. Standouts aboard Liberator were Plebes Kate O'Connor conning through the bridges (I think she has it in her blood,) Plebe Erika Lawson making a great first time (and very complicated) security call, and Jeff Musselman 3/c bringing the boat into the basin and docking on a dark night.

M/N Kevin Reilly at New Jersey Laser Regatta

The morning of the laser regatta, I showed up to the yacht club with full expectations to do pretty well since there was a good breeze and I am a bigger guy. The fleet was only about 7 full rig lasers, with 3 or 4 radials included. I started out the regatta with a start that involved me getting pinched out at the committee boat, but I slowly regained ground by taking the right side of the course when everybody went left. The breeze only increased throughout the day, and it got to the point where it was blowing around 15 to 20 knots with puff pockets. I can honestly say I haven’t been so tired from hiking/balancing in a sailing regatta in a very long time. I must be out of shape or something, but it was a struggle, even during the first race. The second race looked promising right up until about 10 seconds before the start. I wanted to start off the pin, but while waiting for the last few seconds before the start, the wind clocked hard to the left, making it impossible to cross the starting line with the ripping current. I ended up having to gybe around and start on port underneath about 3 boats. Again, that race was mostly spent regaining lost ground. The last race was the most promising, but Murphy’s Law proved itself yet again- if something can go wrong, it will go wrong. I had a beautiful start off the pin and sat on top of the fleet for a very long, struggling windward leg, and ended up rounding the windward mark in first, about 10 to 15 boat lengths in front of the next laser. I rounded the mark and started planing back downwind, doing my best to keep balanced and under control. Unfortunately I caught a strong puff at an awkward angle and death rolled while on a plane. I dry-tipped immediately but had the laser turn right back over on top of me since the mast was windward of the centerboard. I righted my laser twice before getting back into the race, which put me behind two boats but still very much in the race. I managed to sail the entire leg before having to gybe and snagging my boom in the water, causing the laser to turn up and over quickly, capsizing for the third time. The rest of the race after that was just the same tune on a broken record. Overall, I managed to get 4th place, but it felt like a last place. It was a well run regatta and the breeze was great, but for me it was just amateur hour. Hopefully I will be able to practice my laser sailing a little bit more so that I will be ready for such heavy air conditions.

Storm Heads to the Great Lakes

On Thursday, the diverse crew of two power squad skippers, Peter Kaple 11’ Jeff Musselman 12’ one crew team captain Sam Diedrick 10’, and a sailor Chuck Floyd-Jones 10’ piled into a van and headed to Albany, NY to start what turned out to be an eventful and incredible weekend. Storm is being transferred to NOAA and is being taken ultimately to Muskegon, MI; we were tasked with getting her a third of the way there to Buffalo. Storm departed KP for the last time Thursday morning crewed by Rich Cain and Denis Donahue Marine Superintendent for the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory and headed for Albany. The Midshipmen crew then jumped in the van after class Thursday and met them in Albany where we would trade Rich Cain van for boat and start our journey to Buffalo. 0600 Friday morning rolled around and the crew was ready to go, the dense fog however had other plans for us. One hour went by and the fog had lifted just enough that the crew, now of midshipmen and Denis Donahue (who was great in helping us learn and leaving the major evolutions to the midshipmen) felt comfortable enough to get under way. With lookouts on the bow we slowly made our way through the beginning of the Erie Canal and made it to our first lock. Right about this time the fog had lifted and everyone could relax a bit. Friday consisted of a full day of locks, sunshine, and no wake zones which allowed all the crew to experience a beautiful part of New York that none of the Midshipmen had seen before. The long day landed us at the outlet of the Erie Canal on Lake Oneida at 2200 Friday night. Saturday morning again came early getting under way around 0500 to make our way to Lake Ontario. For some this was the first time seeing any of the Great Lakes and the weather for our 5 hour cruise on the lake could not have been better. After and evening swim and shower in the clean and refreshing Lake Ontario, and crew member Peter Kaple 11’ wondering where the salt was… we continued on to the Welland Canal. We began the 24 mile transit through the canal around midnight and were in Lake Erie by 0500 the following morning. This could not have been a worse time to lose the GPS, but we did. With only paper charts and radar we made our way in the dark from the south end of the Welland Canal into Buffalo Harbor where we would leave Storm in the hands of NOAA and get in a van to make the trip back to KP. The weekend was amazing experience for the entire crew. The 310 mile trip consisted of countless hours of boat handling experience through canals and tight spaces, night navigation into a new port and in foreign waters, restricted visibility, VHF communications, and fairly consistent maintenance issues which forced good teamwork and the use of our skills learned in the classroom and at the waterfront. 

Crossing Swords

Titan and Vanquish jockey for the start of the Vineyard Race.  

More Start photos here!

Vineyard Race Awards

Midshipmen Ben Reavis and Derrick Cherico accept the award for Vanquish for first place in class in the 2009 Vineyard Race.

Growler at the New York Tug Competition

Growler competed yesterday in the New York Harbor Tugboat Competition.  The crew had a good time, and were able to meet many of the Captains and companies that operate in the harbor.  Here they are "pushing up" nose to nose to compare pushing power with a much larger tug.

Vanquish Wins Class in 75th Vineyard Race

Vanquish finished the Vineyard Race yesterday afternoon, and after waiting for the rest of the fleet to finish for results, corrected into first place in the IRC Zero class, beeting several fully professionally crewed boats, sailed by some of the top sailors in the sport, and finishing 4th overall of 46 boats in the IRC class.  It was mostly a light air race, and our Kings Point sailors did a great job of keeping the boat moving, and finding the wind.

More Pictures Here