WAHINE SAILING SERIES

The Wahine Sailing Series committee is working on improving our communications platform with hopes of making changes in the year ahead.

For more information on the series, connect with your yacht club’s liaison:

Leslie Foster (WYC/KYC)
Andrea Cheung (KYC)
Maddy Kennedy (UH/KYC)

Tracy Woodrow (PHYC)

Lena Woods (PHYC)

Linda Ladeira (PYC)

Therese Straigis (KBC)

Leandra Velasco (HYSA)

*Skippers who are members of a HYRA club and who are in good standing, are eligible to compete for the North Sails Wahine Skipper of the Year trophy.  

HISTORY:

Throughout the 80s and 90s HYC, KYC, PHYC, PYC and WYC all hosted woman skipper (WS) races. In 1997 the North Sails Wahine Skipper of the Year Perpetual Trophy was inaugurated in recognition of the small community of women racers. The formation of the Hawaii Women’s Yacht Racing Assoc. occurred around the same time and this fledgling group managed the awarding of the trophy until it faded away and PHYC continued the awarding of the trophy. Sadly, WS races started disappearing with the PHYC Kim Greenhow Regatta being the only WS race held in 2007 & 2008. Finally, in 2009, when the Greenhow was not held, I recovered the trophy, gathered friends from each yacht club and HYRA, and created a steering committee for the Wahine Sailing Series.

Since 2010 we have grown from 4-6 regattas a year to our current calendar of 8, with the University of Hawaii joining in as a host. We’ve seen regattas held in 420s, RS Fevas, Rhodes 19s, …. We currently compete in regattas on Lasers, FJs, Catalina 18s, Cal 20s, KYC’s IRF fleet and town’s PH A, B & C boats. The IRF & PH regattas are the only regattas where men (no more than 50% of the crew) can be on board.

Any wahine sailor wishing to go for the Wahine Skipper of the Year trophy must be a member in good standing of a current HYRA member club.