Put a CORK in it!

The Cowgirls take up sailing – in the Canadian Championships.

Courtesy of MushyPony.com

This past weekend, the Cowgirls crewed at an international sailing regatta based in Kingston, ON – known as CORK. We’d never been in a race before, and yet miraculously we were scheduled to appear on two different J105‘s named Thunderstruck and Sonic Boom. We were then weighed, measured, and thrown aboard with our sea legs shaking – but still determined to maintain an even keel. And now, without any further embarrassing nautical puns, here is what we learned on our three-day excursion:

Courtesy of Mushy Pony

The Foredeck (or bowman) stands at the front of the boat before the gun fires. They call out where the other boats are so you don’t hit them as well as skirt the jib (the sail at the front). They also set up the spinnaker (the parachute sail that gets hoisted for downwind) and help feed it across during jibes.

The Helmsman (or Captain) calls the shots from the back of the boat. They run the show by steering the entire time (either with a wheel or a tiller) and working with the Tactician in finding the best course – he usually stands nearby with a pair of binoculars. Like so:

Courtesy of Mushy Pony

The Maintrimmer sits in the cockpit working the main sail. They tend to keep it trimmed as tight as possible for the start and then let it out based on the wind etc. We were told this is the most physically demanding role on the boat but we don’t believe it seeing as they barely have to move.

The Trimmers work both the jib and the spinnaker. We had one for each sail during the races – and the one working the spinnaker got to make all the calls heading downwind. Tailing is a term used when hoisting a sail to help pull in any slack.

The SQUIRREL (i.e. our role) is fairly easy to do. We had to pull down the spinnaker into the hatch when rounding the mark to head upwind. The rest of the time we were hiking on the side of the boat and trying not to get thrown overboard.

By the end of the weekend, we’d been bit by the racing bug and were already preparing for our next regatta! Sonic Boom finished in 5th place overall with Thunderstruck closely behind in 6th. Big thank you’s to our dad for taking care of us all weekend and also to our very dear friend Trevor for teaching us the ropes!

Courtesy of Mushy Pony

Courtesy of Mushy Pony

Courtesy of Mushy Pony

– The Cowgirls.