Queen's Sailing sent eight sailors to Vancouver, B.C. over reading week to compete in the CICSA Match Racing National Regatta.
 
The group consisted of two teams, Queen's 1, skippered by Julian Hill and crewed by Thomas Elia, Rosie Sbrolla and Sam Barbra, and Queen's 2, our rookie team, was skippered by Christopher Tang, crewed by Liam Toward, Taylor Eagen, and Norbert Sycz.
 
Over the course of five days, the sailors had the opportunity to sail out of the beautiful Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, on English Bay, in the club's 2012 Olympic class Eliot 6M's.
 
Match Racing is a special type of sail racing that involves only two competitors racing head-to-head in a tactful game of controlling and outwitting your opponent and sailing around course faster. The light wind conditions during the first two days of the regatta made for close matches, which emphasized tactics and smooth crew work. After the first day of the round robi,n Queen's 1 had three wins and one loss, while Queen's 2 had three wins and no losses after their last race was abandoned due to dying wind.
 
On the second day, both teams faced tough competitors, including Dalhousie, Victoria, Toronto, and the Royal Van's Youth Team. Both teams' most exciting matchup was the one they had against each other. Eagerly awaiting their face off, the two Queen's teams put on a spectacle as they each sailed aggressively, outmaneuvering each other on the start line and overtaking each other a number of times throughout the 10-minute race.
 
With Queen's 1 leading on the last downwind stretch to the finish line, the rookies in Queen's 2 just managed to get their spinnaker up in time that they could reach a favourable position enabling them to overtake Queen's 1 a mere 50 yards before the finish line.
 
After a tough day of racing, the round robin ended with Queen's 1 in seventh place and Queen's 2 in third place, advancing to the semi-finals. During the semi-finals, the wind picked up significantly, which brought far more intensity to the racing. Losing against Victoria in the semifinals, Queen's 2 proceeded to the petit finals against their rival Dalhousie, to fight for third place.
 
Queen's 2 won three of four matches against Dal, solidifying their spot on the podium.
 
Royal Van's Youth team beat Victoria in the finals, leading a surprising victory. As they are not a university team, they were removed from the CICSA scoring, putting Queen's 2 in second place and Queen's 1 in sixth.
 
The amazing event, hosted by UVic and the Royal Van YC, was tremendously organised and well put together. After a long week of racing the team enjoyed dinner together at an excellent local Chinese spot. The best team bonding is over good food!