Summer 2008 - United States Snipe Sailing

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Cross-training in a Snipe By Carol Cronin This is the first in what will be a series of articles by Snipe sailors who sail and race other types of boats, about how the various experiences carry across classes. From that great 21st century source of information, Wikipedia: “Cross-training refers to training in different ways to improve overall performance.” I first heard the phrase “cross-training” connected with the Snipe in 1994, when I teamed up with Henry Filter. Henry was campaigning toward the 1996 Games in the newly designated Olympic Laser; I was halfheartedly sailing the Europe dinghy. In order to justify missing more work to hang out with our buddies, we jokingly told each other that Snipe sailing would provide valuable “cross-training” for our Olympic ambitions. Joking or not – it turned out to be true. Although the Snipe weighs three times as much as the Laser or Europe, it provided us with a great way to get in more racing while taking a break from the pressures of Olympic sailing. It also gave us a regatta off from that famous singlehanded sailor’s disease, talking to yourself. And only a few bits of gelcoat repair resulted. (Raise your hand if we ever tagged your port corner executing a tight “Laser duck.”) Cross-training in the Snipe kept us fresh without burning us out. We were still sailing, still working quad and core muscles and biceps in that completely unchoreographed dance that is dinghy sailing, still looking for breeze and trying to figure out which gate mark was favored. We also gained valuable international experience. And yet we were almost always surrounded by friendly faces. Best of all, there was no funding riding on our finish. Fast forward seven years past many Carol and teammates Liz Filter and Nancy Haberland all used their Snipe experience to win two races in the Yngling at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Daniel Forster photo. Snipe regattas to 2001, when I started steering another newly designated Olympic class: the Yngling. Several sailors I respect pointed out that my lack of tiller time would make it tough to win the Trials against women who had been steering since (it seemed like) birth. Henry suggested a way to catch up: steer a Snipe. “ Get back into the Snipe to learn to steer a Yngling? What a crazy idea… ” Get back into the Snipe to learn to steer a Yngling? What a crazy idea. The lead mine that is the Olympic women’s keelboat weighs in at a cool 1425 pounds. Its rudder is eight feet forward of the transom. It has a round (read: chine-free) hull, and its weird balloon of a sail (the spinnaker) had already caused me and my teammates (Liz Filter and Linda Epstein, both Snipe veterans) all kinds of learning curve headaches. What I needed was more time steering the unknown craft, not a step back into my chined past. While I appreciated Henry’s suggestion (and the justification, once again, for more time with my buddies), it hardly seemed that Snipe sailing was the key to improving my Olympic chances. Yet again, our favorite fifteenfooter proved its worth as an Olympic cross-trainer. Although my busy travel schedule only permitted one or two Snipe events each year, those regattas gave me valuable tiller time – as well as a fresh perspective on the difference between two and three person teams, which could be a whole article on its own. I was also able to work on starting, a personal weakness, in a less intimidating environment. And most importantly, it reinforced the concept that friendships are longer-lasting than regatta results, which I successfully carried back to the Yngling fleet. 8 www.snipeus.org
Jumping into a Snipe did, however, require adjustments to my newly acquired Yngling habits. I cringe with the memory of some poor soul (Eric Reinke, perhaps?) patiently waiting to round behind me at my fi rst leeward mark, while I left a Yngling-sized hole between me and the tetrahedron. (Remember the Yngling’s rudder location: eight feet forward of the transom.) And at a Women’s Nationals when I asked Peter Commette why we weren’t pointing, he said that he and Connie could tell which boat we were (from a distant powerboat) by my undertrimmed main. In the Yngling, you pull on the mainsheet until it “stops”. You’re never going to bend its lightpole of a mast with the extra tug that is so vital to pointing well in the Snipe. Fortunately my crews were patient, and boathandling and trimming errors were far outweighed by the downwind thrills. At a combined crew weight of 280 in a boat that weighs less than 400 pounds, jumping up on a plane just seemed to happen. I also relearned the link between tiller pull and heel angle, which helped me be more sensitive SCIRA USA Charter Boat Insurance Program If you plan to make charter boats available at your regatta this year, consider taking advantage of SCIRA USA’s Charter Boat Insurance Program. It’s a simple, inexpensive way to protect charter boats, easing the concern of owners that might otherwise be unwilling to loan their boats out for events. For just $40 per boat, the insurance will cover any damage to the boat ($250 deductible). Available to all members and registered boats, this is yet another benefi t of membership. More information and the necessary forms are available on the website ( www. snipeus.org/news/rules.asp) or contact Mary Buckley in the SCIRA USA offi ce. when I stepped back into the Yngling. And at the end of each race day, I got to share a beer with my Snipe competitors, which for many reasons is a rarity in most Olympic circles. I fi t in as many Snipe regattas as I could during my campaign, and by the 2004 Trials I had gained the experience I needed to beat all those women who’d been steering other boats since birth. I also realized how lucky we are in the Snipe Class. We enjoy high quality competition in a variety of venues, close to home or around the world, without sacrifi cing the luxury of a regular life between regattas. That rare combination should be cherished and guarded as one of our most important traditions. Whether your goal is Olympic glory in dinghies or keelboats (long may they shine) or just learning a new sailing skill, the Snipe can help. Regular Snipe racing can improve results in a less serious class, provide a relaxing escape from more serious events, or simply offer a regatta experience outside of your comfort zone. If you prefer open water venues, get your butt and your boat to the San Francisco Nationals for sure, but also try out a lake regatta like Quassy or Huntington. And if your specialty is the shifty fl at water of, say, Mystic Lake, Massachusetts (where I almost got divorced), sign up for an open water event like the North Americans at Cottage Park in September. That is really what cross-training is all about; digging out of our comfortable ruts, in order to learn something new. Carol Cronin represented the USA in the inaugural women’s keelboat event at the 2004 Olympics, where she and her teammates, former Snipe sailors Liz Filter and Nancy Haberland, won two races and fi nished tenth overall. She has competed as both skipper and crew in the Snipe Class since 1990, and won the US Nationals in 2000 with George Szabo. She runs a graphic design and writing business, and lives in Jamestown, RI with her husband Paul and their wellloved 20 year old cat.Carol and crew Kim Couranz recently won the 2008 Women’s Snipe Nationals, which were held in Seattle. Snipe Bumper Stickers! SNIPE SNIPE SNIPE SNIPE SNIPE Serious Sailing, Serious Fun ® Serious Sailing, Serious Fun ® Serious Sailing, Serious Fun ® Serious Sailing, Serious Fun ® www.snipeus.org Serious Sailing, Serious Fun ® www.snipeus.org www.snipeus.org www.snipeus.org www.snipeus.org –Submitted by Merrill Varn You’ll get one when you pay your 2008 dues. If you need more contact Mary Buckley in the SCIRA USA offi ce. US SNIPE SAILOR Summer 2008 9
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Summer 2008 - United States Snipe Sailing

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