SAILING THROUGH THE STORM Young participants show leadership and fortitude during regatta

JACQUELINE HALE www.keysweekly.com

Rough winds and pounding rain during the 14th Buccaneer Blast Regatta failed to put a damper on the spirits of the 268 participants, the event’s largest ever fleet of competitors.

Why? Well, 9-year-old, Alec Voss Del Vecchio, first-year sailor from Coral Reef Yacht Club, gave his answer.

“In sailing, I just feel like it’s my happy place. I feel like I’m so open to do anything,” Voss Del Vecchio said.

First-year sailor Victoria Don, 7, had a more straightforward answer.

“I love water, especially rain,” Don said.

These kids, simply put, love being on the ocean, rain or shine.

The regatta, which took place Feb. 4 and 5 at Rowell’s Park in Key Largo, hosted youth competitors in the Optimist or “Opti,” ILCA/Laser, Club 420 and Windsurfing classes. Sailors came from nearby clubs like the Upper Keys Sailing Club and Biscayne Bay Yacht Club and from as far away as Puerto Rico, the Cayman Islands and California.

The event, through raffles and sponsorships, netted around $40,000 for the Mark Sorensen Youth Sailing Program, according to executive director Rosa Lamela. The money will go toward equipment and scholarships for local kids to attend the program’s summer sailing camps.

According to the event organizers, parents, coaches and kids, the oppor- tunity to learn sailing means a lot more than just competing in a sport.

“There’s so many life lessons on a daily basis,” Lamela said. “When these kids are out there on their little boats, it’s them, their boat and the elements. And they have to learn to figure things out. They adjust. It’s like a chess game out there. And it builds character mentally and physically.”

The regatta displayed the impact of youth sailing in a particular way during the weekend, as the young sailors not only showed off their talents but also put into action the life skills gained on the water.

Clouds rolled in early on Feb. 4 with an occasional shower, but during the second race of the day, the sky opened in a downpour that seemed to stall directly over the competing sailors.

Organizers canceled the race, and the sailors headed back to land. The high school Club 420 and ILCA/Laser sailors arrived first, with the Opti green fleet, the newest sailors, right behind. The young sailors fought against the increasing rain and wind, and the few parents and volunteers on land struggled to help the kids, many of whom had water filling the small boats. A group of high school sailors took control of the boat ramp area while another went out to rescue the Opti sailors drifting. Everyone landed safely.

“They were just downright heroic,” Lamela said. “It was very impressive to see them take leadership and initiative and just take total command of the situation.”

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