Stearns, McCullough sail to victory in Regatta

The husband-and-wife combo of Tony Stearns and Janet McCullough proved that a family that sails together wins together, as the duo guided their catamaran to victory for the 11th time in the 30th Annual Laguna Regatta over the weekend.

While the long-time local sailing legends had first-place finishes in all eight of the races that contributed to their total, they were bested in two races by Ako Nakura of Japan and Brett Sellers of New Zealand—but the Regatta format allowed competitors to drop their two worst finishes.

Stearns and McCullough received top honors at the awards banquet at the Dai-Ichi Hotel Saipan Beach on Sunday evening, as well as the coveted Brass Bat for besting the fleet of eight on the crystal clear waters between Managaha Island and Saipan.

Nakura and Sellers finished second overall during the two-day affair that stretched from Saturday, Feb. 26, through Sunday, Feb. 27, and aside from their pair of wins over the Over the Reef Yacht Club commodore and his crewmate, finished in second place for the remainder of the races. Nakura did so in her first time skippering in the Regatta, alongside Sellers, who has sailed in the Hobie Worlds a number of times and is currently a sailing coach in Japan.

The tandem of Tetsuya Sasaki of Japan and local sailor Kelly Bruce managed to take third place in the long-running event, while Michio Tanaka of Japan paired up with Saipan’s Hilary Stevens to take fourth place with two third-place finishes, four fourth, and four fifths.

Former OTRYC commodore Ron Smith and crewmate Ted Parker sailed to fifth place overall, while local sailors Lino Olopai and Cecilio Raikulape overcame slower finishes on the first day to take sixth.

Seventh place went to skipper Lisa Black and first-time crewmate 14-year-old Katie Johnson. The team was awarded with the Bronze Bat, which is given to the team that shows perseverance in the face of adversity and/or excellent sportsmanship.

The team of John Maguire and Scott Augenbaugh raced to an eighth-place finish overall, but provided for a number of close rounds that thrilled onlookers.

Activities for the event get underway early Saturday morning, as sailors and volunteers left the shoreline to race from buoy to buoy utilizing their knowledge of their craft and communication in two morning races.

Following a midday lunch break at Managaha Island, the fleet returned to the waters for a trio of afternoon races before retiring for the night. The Sunday events followed the same format, and continued with a trend of the first place finishes by Stearns and McCullough.

The OTRYC has been in existence since 1972, and has sponsored catamaran events (Hobie and Prindle cats), monohull distance sailing and regattas, and public seminars about both traditional Carolinian sailing and modern sailing.