Richmond Hill High School sailing finished in 14th place April 18-19 at the District Qualifiers in St. Petersburg Fla. They recently earned the right to compete at Districts after taking second place in the North Points region, which covers Georgia, the Carolinas and Tennessee.

"We fell short of our expectations which would have been in the 10th or 11th place range," Coach Carrie Rohde said. "We knew we would meet up with stiff competition from Florida as we compete against kids who have been sailing since they were six or seven years old and have lots of experience under their belt."

The race took place in both 420 and FJ boats. Many of the RHHS squad have never stepped foot in an FJ. Add that to unfamiliar winds, and the Richmond Hill sailors had more than their share of obstacles in this elite race.

"Our lack of experience in FJ’s along with very light breezes on both days made for a very challenging racing," Rohde said. "We also faced very choppy conditions which we don’t face at home when the wind is light. We definitely gained some great experience on the starting line which will help us in the future. All in all it was an awesome experience."

This completes the high school season as only the top four District finishers advanced to Nationals. None of the teams in this area broke the top ten at the District Qualifier. Most RHHS sailors will continue on in the off season. This was the last season for seniors Ryan Tillman and Emerson Stephens. Tillman recently purchased a Laser and hopes to join the UGA Sailing Club as he will be attending UGA next season.

Rohde said a team goal is to urge middle schoolers to pick up sailing in order to raise the skill level by the time of the District Qualifier in future years. She said lessons are available at Lake Mayer. For further details, visit www.savannahsailingcenter.org.