Check out our photo album from French Olympic Week 2022.
Incredible pictures taken by Sailing Energy and Allison Chenard/US Sailing Team.
Every boat we have owned as a team is named after a powerful woman from history.
Our first boat is Belle Starr, named for the outlaw queen of the Wild West. We were so green and fresh when we got Belle Starr that putting her together for the first time was a huge challenge. We spent days in the parking lot of the sailing center in Medemblik, Holland, trying to figure out what the heck we were doing.
Later in our campaign we met our second boat. By the time she came into our lives we knew what we wanted and setting her up to race came much more naturally. Smooth. She is named Isabella Bird, after the first woman to circumnavigate the globe. Funny enough, Isabella Bird the Nacra 17 did actually complete her own circumnavigation after being shipped to Oceania in 2019-2020.
As we start our second campaign together we are older, wiser, and more determined than ever.
Our new boat is aptly named. The Chihenne Chiricahua Apache warrior, Lozen, was a prophet and a leader. She was a powerful, skilled, and brave woman. She challenged every norm. And she is an original resident of the land that we call our home.
Lozen “was a respected ally of the famed Apache Chief Geronimo and sister to Apache Chief Victorio. Although these men are better known to historians, Lozen remains a legend to her people today.”
“Lozen is my right hand,” Victorio once said of his sister. “Strong as a man, braver than most and cunning in strategy. She is a shield to her people.” Lozen once crossed the Rio Grande on horseback, rifle overhead, leading her tribe’s women and children and their horses away from the enemy. Then she turned around and crossed the river again in order to rejoin her tribe and fight beside the men.
Lozen will start us off on an excellent month of training in Narragansett Bay this week. Welcome, Lozen! We are so honored to have you!
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Update: We have christened Lozen! We have come so far since the first boat we launched in 2018. This is such a great video of where our team is at! Deep friendship and teamwork, strong support system, relaxed but on point. Love this team. Love this boat! Gorgeous training on her so far and can’t wait to race her this summer.
P.S., we also have a sweet little mascot who is afraid of the sound of a champagne bottle being uncorked. Iren! We have to work on this! There are many more boats to christen in your future! In all seriousness, the little guy actually did a great job helping us out in the rain :)
Thanks @brosenberg1 for taking this vid!
We believe strongly in setting the example for future generations to create gender equity in sport, and in the world. Kilroy Realty is our sponsor and we are proud to represent them because their goals align with ours, and because they lead by example.
Check out this awesome teaser video that Kilroy put together. We talk about how we have worked to support each other as a team over the years and how our relationship has evolved as Sarah has become a mother. We believe our mutual respect for each other is built on our appreciation for each other’s differences. This respect is what we believe leads to long term performance on the race course. Take a watch!
“As WHM comes to a close, we nod to the female athletes competing on the @ussailingteam as a show of skill and strength, demonstrating gender equality 24/7/365. United in our goal to foster an environment that cultivates diverse perspectives, voices, and driving excellence in all arenas.”
#kilroyishere #whereinnovationworks #kilroyrealty #ussailing #ussailingteam #sailing #diversity #femaleleadership #genderequality #WHM #womenshistorymonth
14th overall at French Olympic Sailing Week 2022. Haven’t looked at results all week, but nice to take a peek now that racing is over.
After two good races on the last day, the final race presented a challenge for us. Our start at the boat end of the line went awry, and we lost our lane pretty much right away. A few tacks later… and we had not dug ourselves out of the pack.
Uh oh, this is a light race with a short course… Got a lot of work to do! I told David “If we win at comms during this race, then we’ve won the day.” AKA we’ve already sailed two good races for the day, and if we nail our comms and teamwork while we’re in a tough spot in the last race of the day… well… we’ve won at our most important goals!
David said “Let’s win the day!” and we got to work sailing the boat as hard as we could. We passed boats the whole race, and even though race 15 was not our best score of the regatta, it was an awesome way to wrap up our event.
We came to Hyeres with the goal of checking in with our routine, our process, and our teamwork now that we’ve had a two year hiatus from racing. We weren’t concerned about results so we didn’t follow them. We just went out every day and tried to solve problems. Guess what? We learned SO MUCH. Thank you David for all your hard work, and thank you to our sponsors and donors for making it possible for us to be here.
P.S. Two years ago I dreamed of this moment. Coming to race an international event after having a baby… recovered, stronger, smarter, wiser, a better athlete. I thought “can I do it?” David knew I could. We made it. This might be the biggest goal I have ever achieved in my life. It also happens to be an excellent result to start out our second Olympic campaign with. Go the USA 50! Next up, training in Newport…
#ussailingteam #kilroy #harken #gillmarine #harkenderm #siemens #nimbux #newenglandropes #athletemom #andmother #usa50racing #olympicsailing #nacra17
