2024 SailPack Oriental Intercollegiate

The 2024 Sailpack Oriental Intercollegiate Regatta began with sunny skies and warm breakfast at Bow to Stern Boating Center provided by the Oriental Dinghy Club, the Neuse Sailing Association, and the Sailing Club of Oriental, and a hospitable greeting from Oriental Mayor Sallie Belanga. Following a brief skippers meeting, teams launched from Bow to Stern Boating and sailed to the historic Oriental waterfront where racing began around 10:15. For the morning, races were held in a southwesterly breeze from the mouth of the Neuse River into the Pamlico Sound while shoreside the crowd of spectators and competitors grew. Local interest in the regatta, now in it's 9th year, was strong with many from the community coming out to watch and cheer on their favorite teams. By midday, the breeze had shifted nearly 140° and the race committee did a great job keeping things square and adjusting as needed throughout the day. A-Division was able to complete two full rotations while B-Division completed a rotation and just one race in their second rotation of the day before racing was called to give sailors time to make it to the evening's festivities. Back at Bow to Stern Boating Center, competitors, coaches, and the community were treated to an authentic North Carolina whole hog barbeque, aka "a pig pickin'" led by legendary pitmaster Jim Kellenberger, and live music from a local favorite band Hoff 'n' Finch. Hospitality, camaraderie, and community were in full force as teams enjoyed getting to socialize with each other and with many from the town of Oriental.

Sunday morning greeted sailors with fog and rain, but following breakfast provided by the Rotary Club of Oriental, sailors were able to launch and make their way back to the waterfront for racing. B-Division began racing to complete their second set and it was agreed upon by all competitors to continue for two additional races before bringing A-Division back out for a final two races to match the 8 completed by B-Division. The rain would not dampen the competitiveness of the racers on the water as the regatta result came down to the very last race of the day where Jacksonville's A-Division secured a bullet, tying the then-leading NC State Wolfpack and earned the victory on the tie-breaker. Nail-biting finishes and suspense throughout the final day of racing made for an epic event finish. Many thanks to all of the host families who housed visiting sailors and coaches, to Curtis Stokes and Associates who helped us make this event possible, as well as the entire town of Oriental who supported this event with so much warm hospitality and excitement. Thanks, too, to all of the teams who traveled to join us this year including those from SEISA, MCSA, and MAISA. Thanks to Towndock.net for their help promoting the event and stay tuned for photographs on their site and from the NC State photographer soon. Photos from the event are online: Grace Hartman @gracesea.h (UMBC) https://photos.app.goo.gl/FYoNFsUCaJJHusfF6; Caz Doyle @cazd561 (NC State) https://photos.app.goo.gl/LWcjfjJccQ5gtVjt8.

The following chart shows the relative rank of the teams as of the race indicated. Note that the races are ordered by number, then division, which may not represent the order in which the races were actually sailed.

The first place team as of a given race will always be at the top of the chart. The spacing from one team to the next shows relative gains/losses made from one race to the next. You may hover over the data points to display the total score as of that race.