Bigger Water + Bigger Boat = More Fun

Starting July 22, the seven Victoria Sailing School instructors who race ZULU are competing in this year’s Race to Mackinac, the longest and oldest annual freshwater race in the world. Skippered by VSS instructor Mike Sotir, the team will be joined by three of his crewmates from Team Ha Long Bay Viet Nam, the third-place finisher of the 2019-2020 Clipper Round the World Race (completed in 2022 due to the global pandemic).

The group is combining their unique skills and vast experience to compete in the Beneteau 40.7 one design section aboard Chicago-based Mojo. They will only have a few days to become familiar with the personality of their new boat, but the team is already working on strategies and tactics for navigating the nearly 300 miles of often stormy Lake Michigan between Chicago and Mackinac Island.

Mike emphasizes, “Safety is at the forefront of our race planning and execution – from the initial passage plan, specific MOB procedures, sail changes, meals and hydration, and everything in between.” Experienced Great Lakes and trans-Atlantic sailor and veteran VSS instructor John Ingell notes that “The same principles taught at Victoria Sailing School are needed for this offshore race, and the racing at Chatfield provides great technical experience. Considering that VSS is one of the largest and oldest American Sailing Association schools in the world, perhaps it’s not surprising that sailing and racing in Colorado is a good foundation for evolving into bigger boats in bigger waters.”

Watch Leader Blair Gosselin is also no stranger to big water sailing. He is a Torontonian that frequents the waters of Lake Ontario on his own sailboat and conquered the Southern Ocean, sailing over 5,200 nautical miles from Cape Town, South Africa to Freemantle, Australia during Ha Long Bay’s campaign. “I’m looking forward to joining new and old crew for the iconic Chicago-Mackinac 2023 race,” said Blair.

Long-time VSS instructor Ken Jensen is excited to be competing in his first multi-day offshore race. His teaching method of promoting crew/student cohesion through a contagious, enthusiastic attitude of safety and fun, will be an equally valuable asset for the team in this race.

Respected VSS instructor Dr. Bob Ratliff is at work with the latest navigational and weather routing software to ensure the safest optimum route is sailed. Similarly, Watch Leader and well-known VSS instructor and professional sail consultant Trey Hegstrom is working with Mike to design optimum sail plans and is “happy we don’t have to worry about PHRF in a one design competition!”. For extra fun after the ocean-style multi-day race, Trey will part of the pared-down crew that is returning the boat to Chicago at a more leisurely pace.

Mojo is a great boat – it won the Beneteau 40.7 section last year with an experienced west coast crew – but is up against 11 rival teams that are all veterans of the race. Mike and his crew will need to call on all their CSYC and Clipper experience, and then some, as they strive for a successful race result. No matter the distance or which body of water, a podium finish rests in the details.

Those detailed sail plans will need equally efficient sail changes. Thankfully they have a foredeck rockstar in Jim “Harpo” Day, traveling from England for the race. Since circumnavigating the globe aboard Ha Long Bay, he claims to have “not stepped on a yacht or thought about sailing” but is “now really looking forward to meeting new crew mates and hopefully contributing towards the success of our tub.” The bow action will be helped along by fellow English compatriot and Ha Long Bay foredeck mate Andrew “Doddy” Dodd, who is all thumbs-up for this race’s bow action after his terrific performance across both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.

The team understands all does not always go according to plan when sailing and sometimes things just break. Formulating a quick and viable solution to such situations is crucial. Tenured CSYC member/boat owner and VSS instructor John Willis brings his first-class sailing skills along with much valued engineering abilities for such instances.

Trim! Trim! Trim! While new to Victoria Sailing School this year as an instructor, Tony Cochrane is not new to blue water sailing. Familiar with the fickleness of the Adriatic and Caribbean seas as well as the Pacific Ocean, he is determined to keep those telltales flying just so.

The team only has a few more weeks before the race starts. You can follow Mojo on the official tracker found on the race website:  https://cycracetomackinac.com. You can also possibly catch some candid behind the scenes photos and snippets on Instagram by following high_altitude_sailing.