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Space Coast Sailing team continues to improve out on the waters
Credit: Ben McKissick-Hawley and Kara Mathews

Space Coast Sailing team continues to improve out on the waters

SATELLITE BEACH, Fla. — Not many know we have a youth sailing team for kids ages 8 to 18 in Brevard! The team began about five years ago by the president of the team, Phil Spletter, who is an avid sailor and a member of the Melbourne Yacht Club. He felt that this sport should be more accessible to kids in the area and founded Space Coast Sailing.

The program started with no money and just a few kids and is supported by both the Melbourne Yacht Club and The Eau Gallie Yacht Club. Thanks to the support of the program, it has grown each year and the sailors skills just keep getting better and better.

Space Coast Sailing is governed by U.S. Sailing. This organization also governs all organized sailboat racing in the United States. Practices are two days a week so kids are also able to participate in other activities. If no regattas scheduled on a weekend, sometimes they will host a “Sunday Scrimmage” and invite sailors to participate, along with the sailing team from Florida Tech. It is like a free miniature regatta to get the kids out on the water.

Once a month is a regatta as part of the Florida East Coast Series. This season, the kids have already competed in three separate regattas outside of the series and also Sunday Scrimmages. Regattas are scored differently than other sports. Made up of a series of races, the place the team finishes in each race is how many points you get for that race. The finishes of each race are then totaled up, and the boat with the lowest score wins the regatta.

Credit: Ben McKissick-Hawley and Kara Mathews

Regattas are challenging because the kids have to sail in any and all conditions (except for thunder and lightning and dangerously high winds). They are also out on the water for the entire duration of the regatta and cannot go ashore. There is also a very brief gap in between races. The sailors are entirely responsible for their success during a competition, aside from some brief coaching tips in between races.

Sailing is a dynamic sport. To be a successful sailor, you can’t be just athletic. The kids learn critical thinking skills, learn to grasp complex concepts relating to physics, weather, wind, boat maintenance, and more. Responsibility is the biggest skill they learn as they are in command of their own vessel. The Sailing team has eight-year-olds who can sail a boat by themselves already and do this in rough conditions! Many locals wouldn’t do that!

Kids love this sport so much that many continue to sail into high school and beyond. Coach McKissick-Hawley, head coach and program director, says that it is a sport offered at over 200 colleges and universities in the U.S. and many kids continue through the next chapter in their lives sailing. Having sailed for four years at Jacksonville University, he brings a lot of knowledge and expertise to the program. He says that as kids get older, they can compete in dinghy racing, keelboat racing, offshore racing, become a coach, direct a program, teach sailing, work on yachts, or just enjoy the fun of the sport forever.

Many of the sailors come from other sports or continue to play other sports while sailing. Most new sports involve learning new skills and rules of a game, but sailing is different. It requires a high level of comprehension and learning. If kids can see the big picture and take the time to learn the sport, they will do well. Many kids just started a few months ago and already compete on the advanced team! If it is a sport that a kid loves, they will enjoy it and put the time into learning what it is all about.

Coach McKissick-Haley says that some of the skills the sailors learn are: more familiar with the water, weather, physics, and boats. He, himself feels that from his upbringing in sailing, he is much more responsible and doesn’t dread hard work. Managing stressful situations is something he and the sailors have learned from this sport. As a sailor and as a coach, he has found himself in some scary situations but has learned how to remain calm and problem solve. The kids’ favorite parts of sailing are going fast, getting wet, racing, and being out on the water with friends.

Credit: Ben McKissick-Hawley and Kara Mathews

`The program cannot run with just one coach. There are three assistant coaches: Tim Brustoski, Brendan Mittleider, and Sailor Mohrman and plans to add a few more coaches next season. Tim has a passion for sailing, kind, and patient with the kids, and loved by all. He coaches the development O’Pen Skiff sailors and development 420 sailors. Brendan is a fantastic racer, knowledgeable, and an intelligent young man. He helps with the advanced 420 and advanced O’Pen Skiff teams. Sailor is a great asset to the staff and a veteran of the Space Coast Program.

Coach McKissisck-Hawley has great advice for kids. He says that they have a great opportunity here in this area, one that many kids don’t have the access to if they live somewhere that is landlocked. If it is not sailing, find something you love to do, and don’t be afraid to fail. If you enjoy it, you will always work hard, no matter the challenges. Sailing is a sport that so many enjoy and something that people can do for their whole life. It is a tight-knit community that stays together forever.

The team has two more regattas as part of the Florida East Coast Series and also the Junior Olympics coming up. Coach McKissick-Hawley and his assistants are always looking for more competitions for the sailors. He leaves us with his favorite quote “Success consists of moving from failure to failure without a loss of enthusiasm.” -Winston Churchill.

If you are interested in learning more about the Space Coast Sailing Team, contact Ben McKissick-Hawley, Director and Head Coach (913) 972-1338. Also, check out their website for information: http://www.spacecoastsailing.org/

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