Mag Blog | team paradise.org

Preview ISAF Sailing Worldcup in Hyeres.

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 07:27:18 -0400

Next stop on the ISAF Sailing Worldcup is in Hyeres, France, begins on April 20th. Most of the countries have their Paralympic teams selected and for them this regatta is all about preparation for the main event (the Paralympic Regatta). Team Paradise have several sailors competing, some that have already qualified and others that are sailing with their goal set on the Paralympic Games 2016. Jen and JP will are leaving the US today. They will be racing in an 8-boat Skud18 fleet. All the prospective Paralympic podium finishers are present.

Kevin Burnham reported form the 2.4mR racecourse yesterday. Danny Evans is sailing fast, even against the best of the best, like Thierry Schmitter, NED. Kevin said: "Danny was hot on his heels at the weather mark and then rolled him downwind!" The conditions are different from sailing in Miami where Danny has done 95% of his training

I also like to take this opportunity to say that I'm almost recovered from my two surgeries in February and March. My doctor said that I will be 95% healed after 8 weeks, but it take s a year to recover 100%. The good news is that I have no more cancer because it was all contained in my appendix, which was removed. The second biopsy report was a clean sheet of paper. No chemo needed!

Preview ISAF Sailing Worldcup in Hyeres.

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 17:44:45 -0400

Next stop on the ISAF Sailing Worldcup is in Hyeres, France. begins on April 20thHyeres

Danny was hot on his heels at the weather mark and then rolled him downwind!

Luv ya,

Miami OCR 2012 and the Miami Experiment

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 08:47:01 -0500

Event album

For scores and more visit http://rmocr.ussailing.org/

Team Paradise had one entry in the Sonar class during the recent Rolex Miami Olympic Classes Regatta (MOCR). Patrik Norstrom (SWE) and Bryan Tabler from Orlando, FL, who sailed together with me in the US-Sailing Sonar camp last year, were determined to enter the MOC), an International Sailing Federation (ISAF) "Grade A" event. The competition would be the best in the world, teams who just would have finished the World Championship on the Florida west coast, teams that are in their final preparations to race in the Paralympic Games, teams who have been sailing together for many years, teams that are on top of their game and as good as they ever will get.

Our main challenge was to find a disabled mainsheet trimmer, which is vital position in sailboat racing. The main sheet It's like the throttle of a speed boat, or the carburetor of a race car, a crucial component for speed. It would be hard to find that third key person. Someone good, with minimal disability and max ability. The Sonar rules allows for a maximum of 14 points in a functional classification system that ranks disabilities in a scale from 1-7. Seven would be someone with the least amount of disability and a one would be someone with the most severe physical impairment. Patrik was not yet classified and we weren't sure if he would be a 1, 2, or 3. Bryan is a 4, so we needed someone with a 6, or a 7 rating. The crew search was on, but all the "hot" prospects were already taken, or they had something better to do. This is when we got a bit lucky and timing was on our side, which always helps. I received an email from a Canadian citizen who had is right leg amputated below the knee a couple of years ago. He had learn about Team Paradise and wanted to come to Miami to learn sailing and how to race sailboats. We Skyped back and forth many times. Patrik and Bryan eventually joined in on the conversation and details began to take shape. Steve had no classification either, so that became a hurdle. He also needed to do some fund-raising to make it happen and he did.

Preparing for 2012 MOCR

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 08:44:44 -0500

The month of January is as busy for Team Paradise as April is to an accountant. There seems too be no end to the work that needs to be done. The Miami Olympic Classes Regatta is almost upon us and sailors have begun poring into town.

Team Paradise will bring one very special team to the starting line. it is the "United Nations" team of skipper Patrik Norstrom from Sweden, jib-trimmer Bryan Tabler from Orlando Florida and mainsheet trimmer Steve Shaw from Canada. Combined, they are the definition of a rookie team. Patrik and Steve have little to no racing experience while Bryan has crewed in a Sonar for a few years. I will be coaching them on and off the water and really look forward to the challenge.

Steve arrived Miami on January 3rd and we have been sailing both Sonar and 2.4 in an attempt to kick-start his sailing career. Patrik and Bryan will arrive on Thursday and pretty much go sailing right away.

Karen Mitchell and her crew will be using one of our Sonar in the BBYRA and Flat Earth Racing Series on Biscayne Bay for months to come. Karen owns an older Sonar which doesn't give her much justice. The newer boats are faster and we are looking forward to follow her progress, sailing in Miami and Biscayne Bay.

Orange Bowl Regatta - Courteous Actions and Fairness is Rewarded!

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 07:36:00 -0500

Deliberating

On the Podium

Wonder if the subway was under thrown?

Happy New Year 2012 Everyone! May it be healthy and prosperous! Thanks for all of yours support, without it, Team Paradise would not be possible. We fell short of a year-end fundraising campaign, but donations were made and volunteers stepped up to the plate.

Sailing in Miami is fantastic. This is where the serious sailors come to train and race during winter. As evidence, the recent Orange Bowl Junior Regatta, hosted by CRYC (Coral Reef Yacht Club) had 559 sailors competing in Laser, 420 and the Optimist Dinghy. Team Paradise signed up as volunteers with a safety boat. The winds were mostly mellow, so we assumed the lunch boat assignment. Team Paradise volunteers passed the test and got the job done, a bit different from what we usually do, but a great experience that made everyone involved better at what they do and also created a true sense of team building. The volunteer party following the awards ceremony at CRYC was an award in itself and as generous and fun as promised.

The Sportsmanship Award bearing my name is like a dream to me. I'm very appreciative of it and very thankful to my friends who keep promoting it every year. I would like to preserve it for ever, if only possible. Last year I was stuck in a snow blizzard and could not attend, but the trophy was still awarded. This year I was back reading the 41 nominations submitted by the young athletes and others who witnessed various acts of sportsmanship. All the nominations where carefully considered by a panel of respectable individuals and we ended up with a short list of 3 teams. I finally decided on a team from California who sailed brilliantly all week while being respectful of the racing rules and other competitors. They were helpful to their fellow sailors in many ways. They also stood out when they were disqualified by a Black environment Flag (over the line early) and came back by the Race Committee Signal Boat to apologize for possibly leading others over the line early. They winners were 420 sailors Chris Villicich and Nikki Obel from Marina del Rey, CA. The first time the trophy was awarded to a team of two.

Report from J2 Racing

Fri, 16 Dec 2011 07:41:41 -0500

America's Disabled Regatta

J2 Racing USA supported by Team Paradise finished on top of the SKUD 18 fleet at the 2011 America's Regatta in St. Petersburg, Florida. Debuting back on the racing circuit after several months of training, the J2 Racing USA team with JP Creignou and Jen French fought hard to cilmb there way to the top of the fleet. The event hosted by St. Petersburg Yacht Club was from December 2-4 with 5 countries represented and consisting of all 3 Paralympic classes. "It was a good event for our team to gauge our performance against the other USA team and the international teams." says Jen French. Jen French was also the recipient of the Milam-Gruson award for top disabled female skipper.

Team Paradise has supported J2 Racing USA team since they started training together two years ago. The team is now preparing for IFDS 2012 World Championship and the Miami Olympic Classes Regatta both held in January and both part of the USA Paralympic selection process. Only one SKUD 18 team will be selected to represent Team USA at the Paralympic Games. Jen French continues, "With the Team Paradise behind us, we have the needed resources to compete on the world stage. We are looking forward to soon be sailing in Miami again. Thank you, Team Paradise!"

Corporate Team Building

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 06:48:34 -0500

Last week was action packed! It was a busy weekend for sailing in Miami. Team Paradise main event of the week was to provide six Sonar with skippers for a corporate team building event at Castle Harbor Sailing School in Matheson Hammock Park. Shake-A-Leg and Coconut Grove Sailing Club hosted about 40 Melges 20s, Biscayne Bay Yacht Club hosted a 40 boat Etchells regatta and both the Coral Reef Yacht Club and the Sailing Center had their regular activities going on. Shake-A-Leg prepared three boats for the Winter-fest Parade in Ft. Lauderdale, you get the idea?

The good news was that eight volunteers/coaches came to help and get the job done. We launched one Sonar for the sailing school on Tuesday, then two more on Wednesday morning. I had made an arrangement with the City of Miami to store three boats on the municipal anchorage at Dinner Key. My buddy, Kevin Burnham, help us tow them out there so that we could launch another three boats and still fit at the dock.

There was zero wind on Wednesday, so we decided to tow the three boats on the anchorage down to Matheson Hammock, where Cai Svendsen and reserved dock space for us. Cai had asked me for an E.T.A. and I remember answering "about 4.15pm". We tied up at the dock at about 4.14pm, which was pretty cool. Our event started at noon on Thursday. We left Shake-A-Leg around 10.30am and sailed the remaining three boats down to Matheson. We tied the boats up next to the other Sonar, leaving the mains hoisted. We then rigged and hoisted the main on the other three boats, finishing just in time for our noon commitment. On time again!

Don't run aground!

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:29:19 -0500

Damaged rudder on Sonar

What is this?

Let me down!

Danny off to St. Pete.

Sailing in Miami has been spectacular for the past couple of months. The strong easterly flow of endless breeze has been accompanied by sunshine and blue skies. Life is perfect!

Part of operating Team Paradise and a fleet of sailboats must include the ability to fix whatever gets broken or damaged. We have been lucky for a while because nothing much has gone wrong. Win or loose, it's a victory in itself to return to port on a windy day after tight racing with nothing broken and nothing damaged.

Running aground in Sweden is usually very different from running aground, while sailing in Miami. In Scandinavia running aground often translates to hitting granite. One of our Sonar ran aground last week, hitting a sand bank. The incident was remarkable because only the rudder got damaged. The keel had only minor scratches, but the rudder was bent to a point where it locked more like a hydrofoil than a rudder. It was an honest mistake by the operator. If you ever find a sailor who says "I never ran aground", you know he/she is a lier!

2.4 mR sailing in Miami

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 08:24:50 -0500

Comparing mast rake on five 2.4mR

Clinic participants: Patrick Loduca, Daniel Evans, Magnus Liljedahl and Gilbert Peckar

Danny and Patrick to leeward with downtown Miami in the background

Sailing school in action

The past months has been spectacular for sailing in Miami. November and April/May are consistently the best months for sailing on Biscayne Bay. Not that the other months are bad, but this stuff is special.

Team Paradise had a 2.4 training camp this past weekend. Patrick Loduca, from Chicago, visited our Magic City in preparation for the disabled regatta in St Pete and a couple of other regattas on the Florida west coast. Daniel Evans took the opportunity to sharpen his skill. Danny, who soon will have to undergo surgery to re-attach his biceps tendon, is also heading to St. Pete this week.

Anyway, we had two good days of sailing. Stephen Rottblatt came out with us on Saturday. Our fifth boat remained on shore, as the wind was out of the east at about 15-20 mph. Gilbert Peckar came to help us both days and it is always nice to have someone at the dock when returning to port.

We sailed some pretty long upwind legs which provided for some nice stuff downwind. We did many "Rabbit Starts", which is a great drill. It teaches time and distance and how to duck a another close hauled boat. Once we were all on starboard tack, the drill ended when one of the boats was able to tack and clear the other boats. If the weather boat was out front, we simply let the leeward most boat become the new rabbit and we restarted the drill.

Back in the 2.4mR

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 07:31:21 -0500

2.4 mR sailing in Miami

2.4 mR repair

We dusted off the 2.4mR boats and put away the Sonar, last week. It was time for a Melges 20 regatta at Shake-A-Leg, so Team Paradise had to scale back on its activeties. Instead, we dusted off our 2.4mR boats, worked on a couple of them and then went sailing.

The next few months will be busy for disabled sailing in Florida. St Pete is hosting the America's Regatta in the beginning of December. Then the focus shifts a bit further south and then south-east, to Miami.

The IFDS (International Association for Disabled Sailing) is the world organizing body for disabled sailing. It conducts an annual world championship regatta for Paralympic class boats, the 2.4mR, the SKUD-18 and the Sonar. The IFDS chose Charlotte Harbor Regatta, Inc., a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit corporation, to serve as host organization of its world championship in 2012. The regatta will be staged at Laishley Park Municipal Marina in Punta Gorda, Fla., from Jan. 7-15, 2012. More than 100 sailors on some 75 boats from nearly 20 countries are expected to participate.

Keeping up with the Best?

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 07:26:16 -0500

The US Sailing/Alphagraphics/Team Paradise High Performance Paralympic training camp at Shake-A-Leg Miami concluded this past Sunday. Four days of Miami sailing in some of the most spectacular conditions is the best way to describe the event. South Florida was blessed with the first cold front of the season. It usually translates to shifty winds since the breeze can’t seem to make up its mind on how to manipulate the high-rise building on Brickell and downtown Miami.

Five boats came to play on Thursday, then Bruce Millar from Canada joined in to make us an even ½ a dozen. The camp started out in light to medium air, but ended in 20+knots of wind.

Team Paradise had two teams in the mix. On-board Team Paradise 1 were US Sailing Team members, Mark Mendelblatt and Brian Fatih, who altered sailing with Danny Evans and Brenda Hopkins. Jeff Ecklund was filling in for Mark and Brian on Thursday. Team Paradise 2 had Patrik Norstrom at the helm, Brian Tabler trimming the jib and me at the main. I learned about Patrik about 18 months ago when he contacted me from Sweden. It took until September of this year for us to meet. He is a good sailor with Paralympic ambitions, but really doesn't know much about racing. It is all going to change. Patrik and Brian are planning on sailing in the Miami Olympic Classes Regatta in next January.

Paralympic Training Camp

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:42:46 -0400

The winter season for sailing in Miami is upon us and Olympic/Paralympic hopefuls from around the globe are returning to Biscayne Bay. The excitement is building as most teams have yet to be selected for the 2012 Games. Only one team per country qualifies and the competition is fierce. Everyone is looking for an edge.

Team Paradise will be co-hosting US Sailing/AlphaGraphics High Performance Paralympic training camp at Shake-A-Leg Miami in the Sonar class during November 5-6, 2011. World-class race clinics typically include components such as speed testing, starting practice, and short-course racing. This clinic is no different. Plain and simple, the top teams come here to get better.

The event will include several top crews from North America, including US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics (USSTAG) members Ricky Doerr / Brad Kendall / Hugh Freund and Paul Callahan / Brad Johnsson / Tom Brown along with USSTAG head coach Betsy Alison. Canadian contenders Bruce Millar / Logan Campbell / Scott Lutes and the world's number-3 ranked team—Norway's Alejks Wang Hansen, Per Eguen Kristiansen / Maria Solberg—will be attending as well.

Hibernation time for Team Paradise

Sun, 04 Sep 2011 08:48:41 -0400

In years past, Team Paradise used to take a break from sailing in Miami during the weather wise unpredictable summer months and instead focus on regattas in other parts of the world. This summer was different. The phone has been ringing and we have seen activity like never before. Wednesday Night Racing ended on July 13th and I thought that was it for the year, but the Biscayne Bay Cruise and instructor training continued.

The month of August was busy, too. I never thought that we would run a youth camp, but we did and it was a lot of fun. As it turned out, it was a preview of what YogaSail offers. We had three siblings between the ages of 9-15. The kids didn't have much sailing experience, but they could all swim. We started out using the Sonar, but that's not a magnet for kids. Instead, we used Shake-A-Leg Miami's Sunfish fleet, paddle boards and wind-surfers. We did Yoga at the Aum Home Shala in Coconut Grove when lightning and thunder prevented us from being on the water. We also provided a drumming class for the kids which was a lot of fun. Check out the collage below.

Team Report from Disabled Sailing Worlds

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 08:33:44 -0400

The "Reward is in the Journey", but in my case the reward these days is to follow someone elses journey. To be a small part in these athletes pursuit of perfection is hugely rewarding and almost comparable to the real thing.

Following are a couple of reports from Jen and JP in the Skud18 and from Danny Evans in the 2.4mR about their adventure last month at the Disabled Sailing Worlds in the UK. Sailing in Miami and St Pete with endless hours of practice, prepared them well for their main event.

Report from Jen and JP:

J2 Racing USA SKUD-18 USA Paralympic sailing team recently competed in two regattas in Weymouth, United Kingdom; which is also the venue for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. With the support from Team Paradise, our team sailed SKUD 004 in both events. Most of the top teams were using the new designed SKUD-18 equipment. Our performance was better than expected and would not be possible without the gracious support of Team Paradise.

The first of the two events was Skandia Sail for Gold, a large event attracting over 1,000 sailors from around the world in both Olympic and Paralympic classes. For the SKUD-18, there was a fleet of 18 boats from 10 different countries. The regatta included 5 days of racing with two races per day from June 6-10, 2011. The racing kicked off with light breezes and shifty conditions. J2 Racing held off at the top half of the fleet but occasionally found ourselves on the wrong side of the shifts. Our team still finished in the top third of the fleet. As the regatta progressed, the breeze increased to typical conditions for Weymouth. In Team Paradise SKUD004, our team worked our way up the fleet to higher performances. Finishing the regatta in forth place.

Volunteer Instructor Training

Tue, 26 Jul 2011 09:40:16 -0400

The past couple of weeks have been fun and I'm lucky to be able to do what I love to do, go sailing. My passion for the sport has no end. To me, there is no boring job on, or around sailboats.

Team Paradise is focused on making Shake-A-Leg volunteer skippers and sailing instructors better, sort of advanced education, if you will. These wonderful individuals are eager to learn and when called upon, willing to teach future Team Paradise sailing classes and help to skipper boats in various program activities. All levels of instructors are welcome.

The Calle8 Drill is a total hit! As far as I know, it is the best way, not only to learn sailing, but also to become a better sailor. The drill has everything, all points of sail, maneuvers and time & distance training. In short, it's a worth while practice session even for top level sailor.

Our drills are short, but effective. Quality is better than quantity, especially when it comes to summer sailing in Miami. The UV radiation is so bad and limiting exposure is a smart thing to do.

IFDS Worlds 2011

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 11:09:01 -0400

The Disabled Sailing World (IFDS) Championships concluded on Friday at the Olympic venue in Weymouth, England. Conditions were very challenging with strong current and a verity of wind and weather conditions.

Team Paradise was represented in all three paralympic classes, Sonar, Skud18 and 2.4mR. Team Paradise entries tallied 14% of all the teams, which translates to 25 sailors from twelve countries. All have benefited in the past, or currently, from Team Paradise's scholarship program.

Jennifer French and JP Creignou climbed through the Skud18 standings all week. They finished very strong with a 2, 2, 2, 1, 1 to claim a podium finish and the Silver Medals.

Jen and JP were sailing in Team Paradise's Skud18. It's an "Oldie-Goldie", but still a very fast boat. Newer boats, that surely must be faster, surrounded them at all times. Remarkably this boat (hull #004) won the Worlds a few years back with Kareen Mitchell at the helm and JP Creignou crewing. Not to take anything away from JP, top notch sailor that he is, but hull #004 is now declared a Magic Boat and a Bullet!

Paralympic Sailing from Miami to Weymouth, England

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 17:00:46 -0400

The Disabled Sailing World Championships are currently going on In Weymouth, England. Team Paradise have several teams competing. Ricky Doer, Brad Kendell and Hugh Freund are currently in third place in the Sonar fleet. Jen French and JP Creignou are third in the Skud18. John Ruff is 2nd in the 2.4mR, ahead of Marc Leblanc in 5th and Danny Evans in 22nd place. Go to the event website for the latest update.

Monday is supposed to be my day off from sailing on Biscayne Bay, but there is usually something to keep me busy. This time it was a prior commitment with BMW at a dealership in Broward County. BMW contributes $10 to the US Olympic Team for every person taking a test drive and I was there to meet and greet potential customers. It was fun and I met a lot of nice people.

I invited some of the sales staff out sailing in a Sonar on Wednesday. We only had one boat in the water so I asked the group to bring a maximum of four people that really wanted to give sailing a try. Sure enough, four people showed up and we went for a short, but very informative session.

Sailing on Biscayne Bay

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 07:47:00 -0400

"Best" Wednesday Night Racing

Danny improving Sonar transfer bench, while Adrea is watching

Casey, fit to work inside a 2.4mR

Magnus preparing new Sonar tiller

Writing a weekly blog helps me to reflect on what we accomplished for the week. What used to be a one-man show is no longer so. I get help from several sources and it makes my work a lot easier. Casey Rudick and Daniel Evans comes to work every day. Other volunteers help us one, or two days per week, or show up when the work-load is stacked, like when 5-8 boats needs to be launched, hauled and cleaned. It would be hard, if not impossible, to function without them.

The main excitement for the week was sailing on Biscayne Bay in the Wednesday Night Racing (WNR) series. Last week was the best one yet. Why? We had four Sonars and six Freedoms and five Snipes out racing in near ideal conditions. Jonas Roddenberry and I had to fill in as Race Committee to make it all happen. We set a nice long weather leg and sent the Sonars on a two-lapper. The Freedoms followed, and then the Snipes, both sailing one lap only. We managed to get the Snipes off for a second race before the Freedoms finished and the we started them again before the Sonars finished. There was little or no waiting around, loosing valuable daylight hours. To sum up the evening, we did a great job :)! (for years and years I have whitenessed Race Committees congratulate themselves on a job well done. Never thought that I would become one of them, but I did, at least for now).

Sailing in Miami Relieves Sizzling Hot Temperatures

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 08:14:20 -0400

Team Paradise's 2.4mR boats are back sailing in Miami, as Daniel Evans is preparing for the IFDS (International Federation for Disabled Sailing) Worlds in Weymouth, (UK) in July. The air and water temperatures are sizzling hot, but once out on Biscayne Bay, the breeze is cooling us off. Casey Rudick is our latest addition of a full-time volunteer. He did fantastic on his first time in a 2.4mR, sailing in Miami against Daniel and myself. Casey was in David Schroeder's old boat, which is still going strong. He was blazing fast upwind!

Wednesday Night Racing did not materialize last week due to threatening thunder and lighting storms. The Race Committee was between a rock and a hard place in deciding weather to sail or not, but I think that we made a vise and mature decision in staying ashore. There is always another Wednesday to go sailing.

The Youth Summer Camp is now in full swing at ShakeA-Leg Miami and kids are literary everywhere. We have moved our Sonars further up the ramp in order to accommodate for dinghies and kayaks. Our coach boat and a couple of Sonars are stored behind the hangar building and will see limited use until the youth camp is over. What use to take 1/2 hour to launch is now about twice as long and hauling/cleaning/covering takes more than an hour per boat.

Making it all Happen

Sun, 12 Jun 2011 19:55:25 -0400

Preparations

Biscayne Bay Cruise

No one said that it was going to be easy. Lot's of sweat and hard work goes in to keeping up our fleet, but volunteers like James Hart and Casey Rudick are making it all happen. I chose to do this and I love what I do, so please, don't feel sorry for me.

We usually begin launching boats in the afternoon on Wednesdays, then they are tweaked, rigged and ready to race by the time Wednesday Night Racers (WNR) arrive between 5-6PM. We never really know which players are going to show up and it keeps us guessing how many boats that we will need for the evening. It makes selecting who is on what team near impossible and last minute changes are almost certain.

My goal is to have the boats as evenly matched as possible. The racing is a lot more fun if boats are close to one and other, another words, close racing is a lot more fun than when boats are separated by a large margin. This is accomplished by having the the most skilled person at the helm. Most of my sailing career was spend in the front of the boat and that is really the best way to learn. Crewing for someone better than yourself is where it's at.