2012 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship

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PORTSMOUTH, R.I. (June 20, 2012) – Lake Minnetonka Sailing School (Deephaven, Minn.) is hosting the 2012 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship on June 27-29. Thirty-eight teams will race Club 420s in this US Sailing National Championship. This is the first time the Championship will be sailed in Minnesota.

Among the top contenders to win the Ida Lewis Trophy are skipper Allyson Donahue (Brigantine, N.J.) with crew Maddie Widmeier (Pipersville, Penn.), and skipper Holly Tullo (Staten Island, N.Y.) with crew Cally Tullo (Staten Island, N.Y.).

Donahue and Widmeier finished second overall at last year’s U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship in Mantoloking, N.J. They are the only sailors returning among last year’s top five finishers, and were the only all female pairing in the top 15 at the Club 420 Midwinter Championships this year in Jensen Beach, Fla., where they finished ninth.

Twin sisters Holly and Cally Tullo sailed separately at last year’s Championship. Holly landed in seventh, while Cally was eighth. Holly improved on that performance by finishing fourth at the U.S. Youth Championships last year in Newport, R.I. The sisters will join forces to make a run at this Championship. Other contenders in the fleet include Paris Henken (Coronado, Calif.), who won last year’s U.S. Youth Championship in the 29er class sailing with crew, Kaitlin Driscoll (San Diego, Calif.).

There are six participating teams representing the state of Minnesota, five of these teams train out of the Lake Minnetonka Sailing School. Headlining this group Lake Minnetonka Sailing School's team of sisters, Isabella and Madeleine Loosbrock of Deephaven, Minn. The pairing finished 10th in last year’s U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship.

A two-day clinic for the participating sailors will take place prior to the start of racing on June 25-26. Sponsored by the C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Trust, these clinics will be led by US Sailing’s Junior National Coach, Brian Clancy, and a team of notable sailing coaches from all over the country.

For more details on the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship, including competitors list, results, standings, recaps, photos, and more please visit the event website at http://championships.ussailing.org/Y...ublehanded.htm.

Stay connected with US Sailing through Facebook and Twitter for breaking news and results from Deephaven.

The 2012 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship is sponsored by Gill North America, Maclaren, and Switlik Survival Products, and is supported by the C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Trust.

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U.S. Junior Women's Doublehanded Championship Day 1 Recap

DEEPHAVEN, Minn. (June 27, 2012) – Thirty-eight teams set sail on Lake Minnetonka late this morning on day one of the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship. The team of Allyson Donahue (Brigantine, N.J.) and Maddie Widmeier (Pipersville, Penn.) took an early three point lead through three races after a strong finish on Wednesday.

Racing got underway just minutes before 11:00 am CT after a wind shift forced the race committee to re-set the line. Sailors faced south-southeast winds at 5 to 10 knots under sunny skies. The wind held through the finish of race three then died down, which forced a postponement at approximately 3:00 pm CT. The race committee attempted to resume racing, however race four was abandoned due to insufficient wind. The three-day Championship will resume on Thursday.

Donahue and Widmeier won race three to take a lead going into day two. They finished fourth and second in the first two races respectively. Donahue and Widmeier were second overall at last year’s U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship in Mantoloking, N.J.

Sitting three points behind the leaders are Carolyn Smith (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Bayley Davidson (Costa Mesa, Calif.). The California duo had a lead through the first two races when they finished second and first. In race three, they posted a seventh place finish to drop into second place. They were 10th at last year’s U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship.

In third place and four points behind the leaders is the team of KB Knapp (Syosset, N.Y.) and Rebecca Anderson (Northport, N.Y.). They won race one and added seventh and third place finishes to their score.

A two-day clinic for the participating sailors took place on Monday and Tuesday under blue skies and 10 to 20 knot breeze. Sponsored by the C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Trust, these clinics were conducted by US Sailing’s Junior National Coach, Brian Clancy, and a team of notable sailing coaches from all over the country.

For more details on the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship, including a list of competitors, results and standings, recaps, photos, and more please visit the event website at http://championships.ussailing.org/Y...ublehanded.htm. This year’s Championship is hosted by the Lake Minnetonka Sailing School.

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U.S. Junior Women's Doublehanded Championship Day 2 Recap

DEEPHAVEN, Minn. (June 28, 2012) – Thirty-eight teams set out on Lake Minnetonka late this morning for the second day of the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship. Racing today was particularly challenging, but two teams emerged from the pack to set the stage for tomorrow’s final day. Allyson Donahue (Brigantine, N.J.) and Maddie Widmeier (Pipersville, Penn.) maintained a narrow one point lead over Carolyn Smith (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Bayley Davidson (Costa Mesa, Calif.), as the two teams distance themselves from the rest of the fleet.

After several general recalls and postponements due to light, variable winds, and aggressive starting behavior from the competitors, the first race eventually got underway at approximately 11:30 am CT. The day started with a Northwestern breeze, ranging from 5 to 10 knots and temperatures in the mid 70’s. The first two races were completed in mostly light breeze, with winds increasing slightly for the day’s final race.

Donahue and Widmeier came out of the gates hot winning the opening race of the day, and extending their overall lead. They followed up in the fifth race with a 19th place finish. Smith and Davidson remained consistent for the first two races of the day, allowing them to briefly take the overall lead. The roles were reversed in today’s final race with the California team posting a 23rd place finish, and allowing Donahue and Widmeier to retake the lead.

One of the more consistent teams today was the pair of twin sisters, Holly Tullo (Staten Island, N.Y.) and Cally Tullo (Staten Island, N.Y.), who put together a string of top 10 finishes to move into third place overall, and 12 points out of second place. This pairing was one of two boats in the field to put together all top 10 finishes for the day. The Tullo sisters finished seventh overall at last year’s U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship.
Tomorrow’s final day of racing is set to start at 9:30 CT, and an awards dinner will follow at 7:00 CT, where the winning team will be crowned, and have their names placed on the prestigious Ida Lewis Trophy.

For more details on the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship, including a list of competitors, results and standings, recaps, photos, and more please visit the event website at http://championships.ussailing.org/Y...ublehanded.htm. This year’s Championship is hosted by the Lake Minnetonka Sailing School.

Stay connected with US Sailing through Twitter for breaking news and results from Deephaven, Minn.

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Donahue, Widmeier Claim US Junior Women's Doublehanded Championship

DEEPHAVEN, Minn. (June 29, 2012) – Light winds dominated the third and final day of the 2012 US Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship. The race committee attempted to get an early jump on the day to no avail, as the weather refused to cooperate. Yesterday’s leaders Allyson Donahue and Maddie Widmeier were crowned 2012 champs after finishing second last year.

The regatta concluded with six races in the books. Each team was allowed to discard their worst score. Donahue (Brigantine, N.J.) and Widmeier (Pipersville, Penn.) maintained a one point lead over Carolyn Smith (Newport Beach, Calif.) and Bayley Davidson (Costa Mesa, Calif.). Both teams put together remarkably consistent scores throughout the week. The top two teams placed outside the top seven just once, which was dropped from their overall scores. This consistency allowed these teams some breathing room at the top of the leaderboard.

Donahue and Widmeier were able to provide perspective on competing at this event, and what bringing home this title means to them. The two have sailed together for the past four years, and had a great deal of pressure on their shoulders after finishing second last year. Widmeier explained how their mental toughness as a team allowed them to lock up the regatta: “Coming off of the fifth race (19th place finish), we said to ourselves ‘wow that was horrible’, but we were able to go off to the side, get some food, water, relaxation and get right back in it for the sixth race.”

Donahue commented on what it meant to her to win the regatta: “This is definitely the most important regatta we have ever won. We have done well at a lot of the big regattas over the past few years, but have never had a victory until now.”

The two girls will continue to push themselves throughout the summer, and on to their upcoming senior year of high school. The pair will compete in the Club 420 North Americans, the Buzzard’s Bay Regatta, and the US Sailing Youth Championships at the Gorge in Oregon this summer.

An awards banquet is scheduled for 7-9 PM CT, where the winning team will hoist up the prestigious Ida Lewis Perpetual Trophy. The top three teams will also receive trophies, and the top five teams will receive US Sailing Championship Medals. The C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Sportsmanship Prize will also be awarded based on the results of a secret ballot.

For more details on the U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship, including a list of competitors, final results and standings, recaps, photos, and more please visit the event website at http://championships.ussailing.org/Y...ublehanded.htm. This year’s Championship is hosted by the Lake Minnetonka Sailing School.

The 2012 U.S. Junior Women’s Doublehanded Championship is sponsored by Gill North America, Maclaren, and Switlik Survival Products, and is supported by the C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Trust.

* Recap content provided by Conner Blouin, US Sailing Communications Assistant.