UC Irvine Men’s Sailing Team Wins Third National Title
UC Irvine’s sailing team has spent the past three or four months practicing in a little corner of Newport Harbor, trying to simulate the conditions the team would face at the national championships at Cambridge, Mass.
The work paid off Wednesday and the men’s team won its third national championship, taking the dinghy title at the Intercollegiate Yacht Racing Assn. national championships.
Irvine won with a low score of 158 points, followed by defending champion Old Dominion, which had 166, and Tufts, which had 174. USC finished 10th with 309 points.
Irvine also won the national sailing title in 1972 and 1988. The Anteaters placed third last year.
Skipper Mike Sturman and crew Geoff Becker won Division B for Irvine with 74 points, and skipper James Malm and crew Scott Munch finished third in Division A with 84 points.
Irvine typically practices in the open water of Newport Harbor, but in preparation for the competition on the Charles River, the team sought out a place where the winds are shiftier.
“The location where we sail in Boston is right in the middle of the city, and the breezes are very unpredictable from moving around buildings,” said Craig Wilson, who is a former coach of the team and did not make the trip to Boston. “The Charles is famous for causing good people to do poorly, and allowing others to come out on top sometimes. Consistent sailing is very, very difficult there.”
So the team searched out an area of capricious winds. “We called it pseudo-Boston, right up against the buildings where the winds are very shifty,” Wilson said.
Nine Irvine sailors from the 20-member team made the trip to Cambridge to compete in the 32-race dinghy competition. The emphasis in the races, which last about 25 minutes, is on tactics, Wilson said.
“The college format places an emphasis on boat handling and strategy, making quick decisions,” Wilson said. “The Olympic format stresses speed more than anything else. The races are longer.”
In Sturman, a senior, Irvine has a sailor Wilson describes as “textbook.”
“He does everything very, very well,” Wilson said. “When it comes to Boston, that usually is not a winning formula, to do things the way you’re supposed to. It worked this time. Mike ended up having the best performance.”
Malm, also a senior, gives Irvine a sailor of a different sort.
“Since the Charles is so unpredictable, it’s built for someone with a creative approach to the whole sport,” Wilson said. “That’s where it’s a strength if someone doesn’t do the standard thing, “(Malm) is pretty unpredictable, but it’s an unpredictable place. He does funny things that make a coach nervous.”
Coach Jon Pinckney, a former Irvine sailor who took over for Wilson, accompanied the team to Boston. Nick Adamson and Pat Rowley sailed in the 16th Division A race, and Ross Nermeroff replaced Becker in the 16th Division B race.
Irvine placed fifth in the recently completed women’s championships. The Anteaters will remain in Boston for another team competition involving three boats from one team pitted against three from another.
Intercollegiate Yacht Racing Assn.
National Championship Results
1. UC Irvine (158). 2. Old Dominion (166). 3. Tufts (174). 4. Navy (180). 5. New York Maritime (215). 6. Brown (222). 7. Connecticut College (223). 8. Tulane (234). 9. Yale (244). 10. USC (309). 11. Florida State (345). 12. Wisconsin (352). 13. Texas A&M; (360). 14. Michigan (374). 15. Portland State (377). 16. Michigan State (426).