Success in sailing depends on mastering the wind, water, and sails. It is a distinctive sport that requires teamwork, technique, and balance. However, the sport has many unique necessities that can limit accessibility, such as access to large bodies of water, expensive boats, sails, oars, and a sailing federation or yacht club to sail out of. Because of these conditions, students aren’t usually exposed to the opportunity to sail, and many are unaware that Berkeley High School has a local sailing team.
To sail, one must harness the wind to glide across the water. At BHS, most sailors navigate two-person boats, with one person steering and the other managing the sails. “Teamwork is key,” explained Amy Dreskin, a parent volunteer, “you need to communicate constantly, especially since you might sail with different partners.” In order to master sailing, one must build confidence and an understanding of how the water moves. The need for this balance ensures that every practice and competition is a diverse lesson in collaboration and strategy.
The BHS sailing team was founded a few years ago by a small group of sailors. This year, they made the switch from practicing at Richmond Yacht Club to Encinal Yacht Club.
BHS sophomore Lila Rodet, the team’s captain, explained, “When I first joined, there weren’t a lot of people; it was kind of dying out. But now, we have more members, and it feels like the team is growing and improving.” Rodet practices three times a week and emphasized the importance of teamwork, saying, “You really need to be able to work well with your partner.” While the team is not officially recognized as a club or sport by BHS, its members remain dedicated. Rodet stated, “I would really want to change that, recognizing it as a sport at (BHS),” adding that the team currently isn’t funded, making participation more costly.
According to BHS sophomore Emilio Bottrell-Rogers, “Sailing was really fun for me, and continues to be really fun for me, because sailing is a lot more about how you apply your body, than raw physical strength … It’s more about tactics, timing, and being aware.” He shared that although he had been sailing recreationally for a few years before joining the team, the BHS sailing team taught him how to sail competitively. “Sailing is, to me, one of the most tactical sports out there,” Bottrell-Rogers said, “half of our practice time is spent talking about strategy, rules, and tactics. That’s really, really interesting and challenging, and it changes the way I think about things ... I complain about having to rig, launch, and pull boats out of the water but even so, it’s really fun when you have to learn how to do it a new way.”
Sailing competitions are called regattas, which are a series of timed boat races, typically involving multiple teams or clubs. Regattas can feature many different types of boats, including sailboats, rowboats, and even yachts, depending on the specific event. These competitions are usually organized by sailing clubs, organizations, or event committees. The BHS club sailing team has demonstrated impressive skill, consistently achieving strong placements in recent regattas. “There was a regatta not long ago where we got third place overall, which is amazing, a lot of wind. And there was a big storm that day,” Rodet said, “And recently we went to a regional regatta where we got fifth place overall, which was very nice, definitely, because a lot of (sailors) were there competing.”
The sailing program has not yet received the recognition or funding it hopes for, but its dedicated members continue to excel in both skill and teamwork. With its unique blend of strategy, technique, and collaboration, the team represents a chance for students to challenge themselves in a sport that’s as mentally demanding as it is physically. Sailing provides an opportunity to explore challenging new concepts and be part of a diverse group of people, united by the common appreciation for harnessing waves.