Last year Tom and I competed in the Utah Summer Games Catamaran Regatta up at Deer Creek Reservoir. Although we brought home a gold medal it was a somewhat hollow victory, seeing as how the race was interrupted by a micro-burst storm which brought 70 mph winds with it. Boats were summersaulting down the lake, search and rescue teams were picking up boatless sailors, and the sound of sirens and howling wind filled the air. Tom and I fought to stay with the boat as it flipped multiple times down the lake, after washing ashore into some trees 40 minutes later we abandoned the boat and got picked up by a Sheriff's unit. We spent some time in an ambulance with 7 other people until we found a ride back to camp. I drove myself to the ER to get patched back up while Tom tried to salvage what was left of the boat.
Over the winter we managed to repair the boat and we began training again the first chance we got, well before the snow had finished melting off. There's nothing quite like 38 degree water temperatures to motivate you to keep the boat from capsizing. Through out the spring we sailed Utah Lake, Bear Lake and Deer Creek trying to get back into the swing of things after a 10 month hiatus
When the Utah Summer Games came around again Mother Nature was much more favorable. The winds were finicky over the 2 day race, but overall everyone had a great time. We battled it out with a lot of great sailors and after fighting tooth-and-nail through 6 races over two days we were able to climb up the ranks to secure the Bronze medal. After the final race we headed back to shore, and it was then that Mother Nature decided to slap us upside the head one last time. Another micro-burst came out of the blue and knocked our boats over once again. A few boats came crashing down onto the beach and smashed canopies, beach chairs and a person or two; though luckily nobody was seriously injured. Although we only got a Bronze medal this year, it's much more satisfying than last year's Gold with a broken boat.
