Sailing Association

After numerous failed attempts to build his 13-year-old son's confidence and self-esteem through football and baseball, James Muldoon noticed something.Jimmy, who was severely learning disabled because of complications during birth, had mastered the art of sailing with little effort.Right lesson, wrong methods."Poor Jimmy got a baseball in the lip a couple times before I was smart enough to realize that he didn't see the ball coming fast enough," said Muldoon, 57, an avid sailor and vice president of the United States Sailing Association.

Sail ExpoSail Expo '96, billed as the largest indoor sailboat show in the nation, will set its course at the Atlantic City Convention Center in New Jersey from Feb. 3 to Feb. 11. More than 200 fully rigged sailboats and the premieres of many manufacturers' 1996 models will be available for boarding. A preview of sleek and sporty new models will take center stage, including Sunfish Laser's "Escape," Bremer Marine's "Bremer 25" and Ultimate 20's "Antrim 27."The expo's theme, a "Salute to Olympic and One Design Sailing," will honor Olympic medal winners and highlight current contenders.

The Chesapeake Bay Yacht Racing Association's big-boat High Point calendar begins next weekend with the Naval Academy Sailing Squadron's Spring Race, although J/24 sailors already are at it this weekend at Severn Sailing Association's Spring Bowl, sharing the course with non-CBYRA Solings.SSA will conduct a major Laser regatta, the Sunshine Open, next weekend, while down off Galesville the Stars, 5.0.5.s and 470s will face off on the water for the West River Sailing Club's Spring I regatta.

The first spring breezes are blowing, and hopefully the last of the snow is behind us, so it's time to think about summer sailing programs for kids.Some young sailors already are on the water, in Annapolis Yacht Club's and Severn Sailing Association's after-school programs for teens, but for youngsters 6-17, there are plenty of options for summer fun, sail training and safety education. The entry deadline for the club programs already is upon us.The first step for any parents interested in a summer junior program is to talk with the junior sailing representative from their yacht club, or to contact other parents whose children have taken part in junior programs.

Annapolitan Margaret Podlich and her crew are working hard to prepare for the prestigious Rolex Women's International Keelboat Regatta in Newport, R.I., Sept. 10-17.Sailing with Podlich will be Annapolitans Joni Palmer, Jill Sander and Laura Nye, and Kim Couranz of Arlington, Va., and Beth Scheidt of Edgewater.Their boat, Spot, is a J/24 owned by Podlich and her husband, Steve.Podlich, daughter of John Bonds, executive director of U.S. Sailing, has been sailing since she was 3 weeks old and grew up racing with her family.

Drifting was the story at last weekend's Corsica River Yacht Club's 53rd annual regatta.Forty-four crews in seven classes took off from a starting line north of Sandy Point for a ride up and over into the Chester River to finish at the mouth of the Corsica.Although there was light but decent breeze at the start, and again at the finish of that race, doldrums in the mid-section added to the challenge -- and frustration levels -- of the event.Those problems paled in comparison with the next day's Corsica River Race Back, produced by the Magothy River Sailing Association, when nobody managed to finish in non-existent wind and a strong current.

Veteran Chesapeake Bay sail racers have expressed concern over the fact that entry requirements for this year's Governor's Cup Race from Annapolis to St. Mary's City Aug. 6 have been relaxed and no longer include experience restrictions.Instead, this year's entrants are required only to be members of a Chesapeake Bay Yacht Racing Association-sanctioned club or of CBYRA itself, according to information from host St. Mary's College.A release from St. Mary's reads in part: "A number of special restrictions have been dropped this year which should enable more yachts to enter this 20th annual event."

Annapolitan John Torgerson, a junior-level sailor, won the U.S. National High School National Singlehanded Championship and its associated Cressy Trophy in a 16-race regatta last weekend in Newport Beach, Calif.This year's Cressy regatta, which previously was sailed at the Naval Academy, was run by the Newport Harbor Yacht Club under the auspices of the U.S. Interscholastic Sailing Association.Competing were 31 sailors representing high schools across the country, who were selected in regional qualifying events.

In a few days, the sailboat racing season will begin in earnest, despite the fact that the first officially sanctioned High Point events are still two weeks away.The popular sport of weeknight racing, a preoccupation from spring to fall in this area, is back for another year.Weeknight racing gives sailors a chance to enjoy racing in a relatively relaxed atmosphere, to tune up for more serious weekend competition, or just to take a break in the work week and have some fun.Weeknight series, most of which are on Wednesdays, can be found from the Patapsco to the West River, and each has its own style and substance.

Collegiate sailing Navy-style is a familiar sight to residents near the Severn River and out on the bay, but soon a new collegiate sailing effort also will be visible when the waters near Annapolis become home to the University of Maryland Sailing Association.The association has moved its base of operations to Severn Sailing Association in Eastport.To help revitalize a club that faded in the face of a lack of a permanent home with access to the water, the university sailors approached SSA, a noted small-boat racing club with a long history of success for help in obtaining access to the water and a waterfront facility.