Haslett - Dense fog permeated over the calm waters of Lake Lansing on Saturday morning as about a dozen boats waited side-by-side on its shore for less intimidating conditions.
But about 60 skippers would soon be winding their ways through several buoys as the Cedarfest regatta got under way. The MSU Sailing Club hosted the 10-team event, and the club raced two teams in the two-day regatta. There are multiple sailing teams within the club. The two MSU teams finished fourth and eighth, respectively.
“Everything went great,” said Jill Byczek, the club’s commodore. “The wind picked up in the afternoon, and if it would pick up, it would shift the course. It was frustrating.”
Mary Vorel, the club’s captain, said racing the group’s Flying Junior boats, are not easy.
“You’re constantly thinking about wind direction, where other boats are and where the people on your boat are,” the pre-vet sophomore said. “It’s so many variables and so many things to think about when you’re sailing.”
Ken Warshaw, manager of the MSU Sailing Center, 5918 Shaw St. in Haslett, has been affiliated with the 60-year-old club for about 20 years and said weather is one of many challenges with racing and especially with holding a race.
“The most difficult thing is varying conditions and adjusting to them,” Warshaw said. “The other most difficult thing is organizing all this stuff.”
The Lake Lansing event came at the midpoint of the team’s season, which has been racing since early September.
MSU’s organization paid off as the event went smoothly with Northwestern University taking the team championship.
The group is gearing up for its next event, the Hoosier Daddy Invitational, this weekend at Indiana University.
To practice, teammates will often meet for “work parties,” said Byczek, a political science senior. At these parties, members will repair boats and fix up the MSU Sailing Center while fitting in some practice between repairs.
When race time comes, anywhere from 16-40 club members will race 15- to 20-minute races. Between 15 and 20 races are held each day. Racers from each team get to use each of the boats, so no team has an advantage over another.
In comparison, professional racing can last for up to two hours.
During away matches, members from other schools will stay with members from the home team so all teams in the Midwest Collegiate Sailing Association Inc. get to know each other, Warshaw said.
“Look at these guys - these guys are family,” Warshaw said. “They’re working as a team, they’re socializing as a team, they’re racing as a team - that’s what college is all about.”
