Looking Ahead to 2015

It's been a full year of skiff sailing for all of the coaches here at McBride Wilson Sailing, whether training and building a foundation in the 49er, coaching skiffs of all sizes, or bringing home a silver medal from the ISAF Youth Worlds, we were busy honing our skills across the globe.  With 2015 just around the corner, we have our sights set very high for the coming year, and we have a plan for success.  Check out some of our plans below, and be sure to check our upcoming events page to find out what the next opportunity is to work with the team!

In January we will be announcing our 2015 29er High Performance Sailing Team, with hopes of boys and girls team members brining medals home from the ISAF Youth Worlds in Malaysia.  We have more coaching and clinic opportunities on the calendar than ever before, and we're excited to provide opportunities for the next generation of skiff sailors to trade notes, and learn from the senior 29er High Performance Team members.

On the Opti front, we will be supporting sailors from across the country with our unique training approach that focuses on developing mechanisms for long term learning, both on and off of the water.  With the USODA Team Trials as a primary peak event, we will set the foundations for success by teaching sailors good attitudes for practice and competition,  teaching them how to peak for an event, and most importantly, how to learn.

Finally, we will be helping several teams graduate from the 29er training class into the full, Olympic class 49er.  By the end of the year, we expect to have 6 49ers collaborating and training in California - more than ever before.  This group of teams will help to solidify a foundation of knowledge for generations to come, and will be a major part of our campaign for the 2016 Olympics.

 

February 21-22 Opti Training Camp Announcement

Join us for two intense but fun days of training, designed to help opti racers of all ages and skill levels get an idea for what the next steps are in their learning process.

With expert opti coaches Dane and Quinn Wilson, the weekend's focus will be on boat handling and tuning, and will feature morning chalk talks, individual video debriefs for each sailor, and a bodyweight fitness component, designed to get sailors thinking about how fitness effects their results.

Schedule
Saturday, February 14
900-1000 Boat setup
1000-1200 Fitness testing and one on one campaign planning sessions
1200-1300 BYO lunch or lunch money
1300-1700 On the water sailing drills
1700-1830 De-rig and group video debrief

Sunday, February 15
900-1000 Workout
1000- 1100 Morning sailing session
1100-1200  BYO lunch or lunch money
1200-1600 Afternoon sailing session

Individual video debriefs sent out via e mail

Sign up in the Start Practicing Page

February 14-15 29er Training Camp Announcement

Join us for two fast paced days of elite level training in Santa Barbara!

The weekend's focus will be on campaign planning, and boat handling and will feature one on one planning sessions, fitness evaluations, and individual video debriefs.

Saturday, February 14
900-1000 Boat setup
1000-1200 Fitness testing and one one one campaign planning sessions
1200-1300 BYO lunch or lunch money
1300-1700 On the water sailing drills
1700-1830 De-rig and group video debrief

Sunday, February 15
900-1000 Workout
1000- 1100 Morning sailing session
1100-1200  BYO lunch or lunch money
1200-1600 Afternoon sailing session

Individual video debriefs sent out via e mail
 

Coach Quinn Wins Silver at Youth Worlds

In March of 2011, just as Dane was beginning to get serious about training as a skipper in the 29er, I received this e mail from papa Wilson:

Quinn really wants to sail on Sunday if that’s still a possibility… Whatever is best for Newt and Dane. Quinn’s time will come.

cw

Just over 3 years later, Quinn returned home from the ISAF Youth World Championships in Tavira, Portugal last month with his crew Riley Gibbs, bouquets in hand, and silver medals hanging around their necks.

With two prior ISAF Youth Worlds experiences full of emotional roller coasters, I’m sure that the silver medal this time has a tremendous amount of meaning to Quinn, and even to me it represents so much.  Over the last three and a half years, it represents thousands of hours of training on the water. It validates our training program, our theories on sail setup, and our methodical approach to strategy and tactics.  It represents a handful of draining, and highly emotional hours waiting nervously for protests to be decided.  It encompasses memories of being stuck in the freezing cold, memories of being surrounded by thunderstorms, and memories of scrambling to repair broken parts.  At this point, I have lived through moments of blood, sweat and tears (literally) with many of the people closely involved, and it is each of these moments which built character, revealed character, and ultimately made this medal so meaningful.

I’ll never forget sailing with Quinn for the first time on that Sunday in 2011 in a strange easterly breeze, tacking up the coast towards Summerland in a thick bank of fog.  After about an hour of beating upwind, Quinn had a big grin on his face, as he marveled at how fast we had gotten down the coast, and how he had never been so far from the harbor before.  As Dane and I prepare for our debut on the international 49er stage, Quinn will be pushing us hard from the coach boat to be the best we can be, just as he pushed Dane and Newt to prepare for their international 29er debut, and gold fleet finish in 2011.  In the next several months, Quinn will be launching his next big endeavor and while I won’t give it away, I think it’s safe to say that, I think that he will marvel once again at how far from home he has pushed his boat and his comfort level.

Congratulations to Quinn and Riley for their amazing performance!  We are very proud of you and we are so grateful to be a part of such an amazing team of people!