HomeBoat Grant-Hayes-2008

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2008 Lightning Boat Grant Skipper – Clinton Hayes
Crew - Tyler Baeder, Steve Widdis

Clinton Hayes

Clinton grew up in East Haddam, Connecticut. As a Junior he sailed out of Pettipaug Yacht Club on the Connecticut River and raced in the Eastern Connecticut Sailing Association. He started sailing Optis, attending all the major regattas throughout year. After Optis he raced 420s and Lasers. He attended the US Youth Champs twice, in 2004 sailing a 420, and in 2005 sailing a laser.

One of the major reasons why he applied for the Lightning Boat Grant is because he enjoyed sailing them so much at the Sears Cup finals in 2004 at Mallets Bay Yacht Club in Vermont. Currently, Clinton is a sophomore, attending the University of Vermont and majoring in Biological Science. This fall he was the starting A Division boat as Vermont entered the national college rankings for the first time since 2001. In the summer Clinton sails on the Mumm 30 "Kaizen" and is a regular crew for them at big events such as the Miami Grand Prix.

Tyler Baeder

Tyler is from Cranston, Rhode Island. He is Junior Entrepreneurship major at The University of Vermont. Before becoming the B Division skipper Tyler began as a Junior sailor at the Edgewood Yacht Club and learned to race at Greenwich Bay Sailing Association. With GBSA, Tyler successfully raced Optis in NBYA and ECSA. After Optis Tyler, and crew Austin Brown moved on to 420s and had even more success racing in NBYA, ECSA, and parts of Massachusetts. In 2005 when Tyler attended Youth Champs in Milwaukee, it was the furthest regatta he had ever traveled to.

A major reason why Tyler applied for the Lightning Boat Grant is to get a better understanding of the challenges and benefits of campaigning a boat. Tyler has had success racing close to home without any logistical effort. The Lightning Boat Grant is an opportunity for Tyler to gain experience putting together a good regatta with the added responsibility of having to prepare for it

Steve Widdis

Steve grew up sailing and racing at Tom's River Yacht Club in New Jersey. He is a junior at University of Vermont where he studies Mechanical Engineering.

This spring he will be the fourth team racing boat for the 20th ranked Catamounts. When Steve isn't practicing on Lake Champlain, he can be found skiing at Jay. During the summers he sails Vanguard 15s and is looking forward to a fun and competitive summer racing on the Lightning circuit.

Last summer he had a lot of fun on Martha's Vineyard as the 420 race team coach at Edgartown Yacht Club, but is looking forward to living in Newport this summer.

2008 Racing Schedule

June

5/31-6/1    Lake Champlain Spring Open

15-15         CT/RI District Championships, Cedar Point Yacht Club (depending on Fleet affiliation)

July

5-6             70th Anniversary Regatta

12-13         Northeast Districts (depending on fleet affiliation)

26-27         Atlantic Coast Championships, Rock Hall Yacht Club,
                   Maryland

August

8-14           North American Championships, New York Yacht
                   Club, Rhode Island

23-24        Squam Lake Annual Regatta, New Hampshire

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