Passion for sailing takes Kate Andrews to McGill

A prairie athlete might not be the first person most people think of when they watch the sport of sailing, but for Kate Andrews, a former Weyburn local, she has a passion and enthusiasm for the
sport.

Kate started sailing with the McGill University sailing team this September, and the team is a competitive club in the New England Intercollegiate Sailing Association, the most competitive division of the Intercollegiate Sailing Association.

Ahigh school graduate from the Weyburn Comprehensive, and the daughter of Peter and Carolyn Andrews, Kate explained how she got interested in sailing. "I got into sailing because of my dad. He's an avid sailor, and I can remember sailing since I was five."

"We have three sailboats, and a cabin at Lake Diefenbaker. I've only ever sailed for fun, but when I saw McGill had a team I decided I would try out."

The tryouts were very competitive, with only half of the interested recruits actually making the team. "There were two days of tryouts. They paired us up and sent us out on the water. I had never sailed 420s before so I was a bit nervous."

"The tryout was made up of drills and races to test our boat handling and speed. There was also a fitness part consisting of an eight kilometre run and core exercises. Practices are much more intense than the tryouts were," said Andrews.

Kate definitely made an impression on the team captain, Josh Bullen. "When Kate first arrived at tryouts, she didn't have any race experience. This isn't too uncommon for our team's tryouts, we usually have a few sailors who show up with sailing experience, but have never been on a race course."

"What helped Kate stand out from the other less experienced candidates was her enthusiasm on the water and her ability to pick things up quickly," added Bullen. "These traits have become even more apparent throughout the training season, Kate has improved a tonne thanks to her enthusiasm at practices and willingness to be patient and learn from our coach, Jess Lombard, and Kate's more experienced skipper Matt Palardy."

The college sailing season starts the beginning of September and goes until the end of October or the beginning of November, depending on the weather. They practice four times a week, and train at the Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club. There is also a spring sailing season that starts around April.

"We sail 420s, which are two-person boats with a crew and a skipper. I am a crew," explained Andrews. "The skipper steers the boat and takes care of the main sail. The crew is in charge of the jib, checking for wind puffs or calm spots, letting the skipper know where the other boats are, where the marks are, keeping the boat flat, and basically everything else."

"Communication and mutual respect are very important factors to having a successful boat," add Bullen. "Kate and Matty get along great on and off the water, and Kate's attentiveness to Matty's experience, coupled with Matty's patience while working with Kate has really helped them perform beyond anyone's expectations this season."

During her first season with the team, Kate sailed in two regattas, one at the University of Toronto and one at Queens. "We got first at U of T, and third at Queens. The U of T regatta was a fleet racing regatta, which means you just try to be the first to finish the course," said Andrews. "The regatta at Queens was a team racing regatta, which we haven't done much of in practice. In team racing you sail against only one other team at a time, and each team has three boats. The goal is to get the lowest number of points collectively."

"There is a lot of strategy, or a different kind of strategy, involved in team racing. Boats are allowed to mess with the other boats to allow their teammates to win or catch up," added Andrews. "It is a totally different mindset from fleet racing, because you have to work together and communicate with your team on the water, and your goal is to have your team win, even if it means you have to slow yourself down to interfere with the other team."

With their sailing season complete, Kate still attends team meetings, fundraisers, and socials with her teammates during the year at McGill University. Even with the boats docked for the winter, studying never stops as team members do take theory sessions, which are important to knowing the rules and tactics.