Some photos and a personal perspective on the regatta from George Adams, one of our Y-Knot volunteers who sailed with Julia Dorsett in Saturday’s races:
“We struggled with the conditions but both really enjoyed the race, particularly the finish where we were pushed by a gust to go about as fast in a sailboat as I have ever been. I wish I knew how fast, but she was screaming at the top of her lungs and we were steadily gaining on the boat ahead. It was exciting and the result might have been different if we had another minute or even 30 seconds to the finish line, with Julia all the while fighting and winning the constant battle to maintain control.
“I thought it was questionable whether the race should have continued after the really heavy wind that came up, but after considering all this and looking at these pictures, I’ve changed my mind and think it was a good decision to let those who wanted to continue do so, because otherwise they would not have had the sailing experience — one I will never forget — that we all had. I’m still on a high from it days later, even though I got banged around.
“The disabled lady who was the skipper [Julia Dorsett] broke her back about 20 years ago and cannot walk; after many years of wheelchair tennis, she made the U.S. Olympic team as a sailor, although she did not actually race. She knows more about sailing than I ever will. She knows that and is not shy about letting you know, but it was still an amazing experience. Since it was very hard to come about due to the strong wind, she jibed almost as often as she tacked, which is when I got some lumps trying to get out of the way of not the boom, but the sheet from the end of the boom to the backstay.
“We lost by one second in the first race to a guy who owned a Martin; she had never sailed one or even been on Lake George, with which she was really impressed.”
