If you are following the sailing 2021 adventures of Noah Zittrer, here is the next installment.

In March, Noah traveled to La Ventana, Mexico to train with the other U.S. Formula Kite sailors. He stayed for 3 weeks, kiting and training nearly daily, plus a little spearfishing at the end of the trip. It is a nice group of young men and women who are really working together to share knowledge and pushing each other to improve. Noah returned home for a few days then traveled back to Miami at the beginning of April for some 29er training and to attend two regattas. First, he competed in the Don Q Snipe Regatta which is the first U.S. qualifier for Snipe Worlds 2022 to be held this year. Approximately 30 teams competed on Biscayne Bay for 3 days. The first day was fairly light breeze and Noah and his partner, Justin Callahan, surprised themselves (along with the rest of the fleet) with a second place standing after a consistent string of third place finishes that day. The breeze picked up considerably over the next two days and despite being well under ideal combined weight for the Snipe, the boys hung onto 3rd place overall and took first place in the Under 30 category. The boys may have managed to secure a spot at the Snipe World Championships with this 3rd place finish due to the event’s selection rules, but this will all be sorted out by the end of the year.

On the following weekend, Noah participated in the final Skiff Generation event for the Spring, also held in Miami. Again, Noah is new to the crew position in the boat and since December 2020, has paired with Clark Morris of the American Yacht Club. This event was smaller than the last Mid-Winters event, but conditions varied from light and fluky to 20 knots. The boys took a commanding lead on the first day of the event and never loosened their hold on first place, winning 6 out of 8 races.

Noah will spend the month of May finishing up high school and thereafter plans to train in Formula Kite on Lake Benbrook in Fort Worth and at Sherman Island, California. The month of June will largely be spent on the east coast at training clinics focused on the 29er leading up to the 29er U.S. National Championship to be held on the last weekend in June. This event will be the single qualifying event for the recently announced 2021 Youth Worlds Championship, the pinnacle annual youth world sailing event. Noah and his partner are hopeful to win the National Championship and be selected to attend Youth Worlds in Oman this coming December. Mid-June, Noah will take a few days break from the 29er to compete with Justin again in the U.S. Snipe Nationals to be held in Annapolis, Maryland. In July, pandemic and travel restrictions to Europe permitting, Noah plans to participate in the U19 World Formula Kite Championship in July to be held at Hang Loose Beach in Gizzeria, Italy.

Written by Leigh Zittrer