U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship - New York

Rye, New York - Dozens of sailors from all around the United States and Canada gathered over the last few days for the U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship in Rye, New York. Participants included sailors who are quadriplegic, paraplegic, and amputees, as well as people with disabilities related to cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, polio and ALS. A few of the participants of this event will be going on to compete in the Paralympic Games in Qingdao China in September, alongside the US Olympic sailing team.

The last day of racing at the U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship was a tense one for Paralympic Team members Rick Doerr (Clifton, N.J.), Tim Angle (Marblehead, MA), and Bill Donohue (Brick, N.J.) in the Sonar class. In the lead position since the start of the regatta, they had some tough competition from fellow US Disabled Sailing Team members Paul Callahan (Newport, RI), Roger Cleworth (Lithia, FL), and Mike Hersey (Hyannis, MA) who really gave them a run for their money on AlphaGraphics. But in the end, it was Doerr and his team who emerged victorious after coming out ahead in a close tie-breaker.

An exhausted but elated Rick Doerr said “We pushed all week long and fought hard right to the end. We knew we had to win the last race to win the Championship... It feels great to know that we are the top U.S. team.”

The Ideal 18 fleet was filled with some very talented athletes as well. In another tight competition, it again all came down to the final day to determine the new champion in New York. Sarah Everhart Skeels (Tiverton, RI), who was sailing with her new crew Jim Donahue (Danvers, MA), was in first place overall going into the final day, but even her two first-place finishes in the last day of racing were not enough to stay ahead of the Canadian team of McRoberts and Stacey, who finished just two points ahead of her to secure the win.

In the 2.4mR class, Canadian Bruce Millar of Richmond, BC, Canada took home the top honors. Millar held a very comfortable lead throughout the U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship, and secured his win a full 13 points ahead of fellow Canadian Paul Tingley of Halifax.

“These athletes defy the public image of disabled people living in a deep depression and waiting for their next disability check”, says Hugh Elliott, who was chief judge for the event and is himself a former Paralympic contender. “They have overcome enormous challenges, and they are better people for it.”

U.S. Disabled Sailing Championship Final Standings

- Kim Hampton

Video: Last year at the Disabled Sailing World Championship (2.4mr)