The West Coast Optimist Championships was host by the Sequoia Yacht club on the weekend of August 14-15 in the breezy and challenging venue of South San Francisco Bay. The champs were part of the Nor Cal Junior Olympic Festival and were a qualifier for Opti Team Trials. The event drew a large and very talented opti fleet from all over California and even a few of our own SYC team members. Katy Cenname and Stuart Renehan who were accompanied by fellow northwest sailor Josh Larson. The venue truly lived up to it’s reputation with steady 15 knot winds and huge waves, not to mention 3 ½ knots of adverse current at times. On Sunday we weren’t even sure that the opti’s would be able to make it across the start line. In one race the first leg took 23min and the down wind, which was twice as long, only took two min. The racing was exciting, close and at times hectic, with several opti’s capsizing and submarining. The top 25 percent of the fleet (including the 10 green fleeters) qualified for team trials, a group which included Katy with her consistent top finishes. One piece of advice that I’m sure both Katy and Stuart would agree with is that we Seattle Sailors need to get out into some big waves and practice sailing downwind in tough conditions, so look for some stormy weather this winter and challenge yourself!