Sharon High School Sailing

About Sharon Sailing

The purpose of the SHS website is to facilitate communication among those interested in Sharon High Sailing. It provides an introduction to the team as well as information needed by team members, other league participants, and those considering joining the team. On the About Us page, we describe the program and its membership (including a picture of the team), and we provide team history, fundraising information, and something about our venue as well as how to contact the coaches (and Website Manager). Our important requirements section can help students interested in joining the team and their parents know about prerequisites and what may be required for ongoing participation on the team.

From the requirements section below or via the tab above, one can navigate to the Gear page which provides details to assist sailors on dressing for safety and performance during different times of the year. Directions to our beach and a map appear on the Directions page. On the Schedule pages, the schedule of practices, meets, and regattas is provided for the current season. The results of competitions are presented on the Results page, and photos and videos are available on the Photos page.

The Program

We are open to all Sharon high school students, male and female, novices to experienced sailors. We can accommodate about 25 to 30 sailors. High school sailing is a truly co–ed sport, where girls and boys compete equally against each other and have interchangeable roles as skippers and crews. Similarly, all grade levels sail together.

Although we occasionally sail other similar boats, the boats we most frequently sail are 420's. A 420 is a 13 foot, two person boat with a mainsail, jib, and a retractable centerboard.

For the SHS team, sailing is a two season sport – fall and spring. The fall season focuses on fleet racing regattas, boat handling and lots of practice. We have an intramural fleet race regatta at the end of both seasons.

The spring season is about seventy five percent team racing and twenty five percent fleet racing. We compete in the greater Boston based Mass Bay League (MBL), as well as in the regional New England Schools Sailing Association (NESSA). We sail against public and private school teams of various skill levels and compete at both varsity and junior varsity levels.

We sail after school Monday through Thursday and occasionally on Friday. In the fall, we sail mostly at home. In the spring, we have around 20 team race meets at home and away. We also sail in five to seven additional regattas. We have events on more than half the weekends in the spring. During the week, those who are not traveling to away meets may have a home meet or practice.

Learn more about the unique experience of being a member of the Sharon high school sailing team.

Requirements and Guidelines

A swimming test is administered at the beginning of the season for safety reasons. All school Athletic forms, including Medical forms, are also required to sail. For a detailed description of clothing and other gear that are required for sailing, especially when the water and/or weather is cold, check out our Gear Page.

If you are interested in joining the team, learn to sail in the years before high school. Here's how!

Team History

The genesis of the Sharon High School sailing team was a proposal by a sophomore student, Sam Koval, to start a sailing club in 2002. The idea caught on and over the next several years, the organization grew and grew.

2002/2003 School Year:

Fall – The club began with ten sophomore and freshman students using a motley collection of very old boats owned by the town recreation department and four old Tech dinghies borrowed from Wheaton College.

Spring – The club joined the Mass Bay League, and two on two team racing was introduced using the four Tech dinghies.

2003/2004 School Year:

Fall – A large crop of eager but inexperienced freshman joined the club, and the fall season focused on fleet racing and practice while the spring season remained focused on team racing competitions.

Spring – Two more Techs dinghies were acquired to facilitate the usual three on three team racing, and the vital tradition of fundraising to pay for new equipment was begun. Founding coach Bob Gaffney was joined by Gary Werden as assistant coach.

2004/2005 School Year:

Spring – The club became a varsity sport, the team moved up to the B division of the Mass Bay League, and the team raised the funds for and acquired a fleet of seven 420’s. With the additional boats, the team hosted events at the varsity and junior varsity levels simultaneously.

2005/2006 School Year:

Fall – The team moved to the high school end of the lake, acquired new sails for the 420’s, the coaches swapped roles, and the number of sailors topped thirty.

2006/2007 School Year:

Spring – All sailors wanted to sail the 420’s, and five more 420’s were purchased for this spring season.

2007/2008 School Year:

Spring – Additional new sails were purchased. Now with twelve boats having first class sails, we were one of the few public high schools in Massachusetts able to run two simultaneous team races or large fleet races at our own venue.

2008/2009 School Year:

Spring – The Sharon sailing team finished the 2009 season with a first place in the 420 fleet, second and third place in the Silver fleet, and second over all at the 2009 MBL Fleet Racing Championship Regatta. We were ranked sixth in the NESSA standings and again qualified for the wildcard round of the New England Team Race Championship. In the State Championship, Sharon did better than any previous year with a fifth place over all. To end the year, Sharon juniors took home first and third place while the sophomores placed second in the MBL Undergrad.

2009/2010 School Year:

Fall – A good group of freshmen joined the team, many bringing skills learned in the Sharon Recreation Department Summer program or elsewhere. The team sailed in boats from which all autobailers were removed to minimize leaking.

Spring – Six newer (used) 420 boats were purchased to replace six older boats.

2010/2011 School Year:

Fall – The joining freshmen represented the largest, most experienced and most skilled freshmen group ever.

Spring – The sailing team started the year placing second in the Courageous Keel Boat Regatta and finished strong with a third place in the Mass Bay League Championship Regatta. There were standout individual performances of second place in the Sharon Invitational B Division and second place in the Mercury Silver Division in the Mass Bay League Championship Regatta. In the State Championships, the team finished tenth.

2011/2012 School Year:

Spring – The team's greatest successes were in various fleet racing events. We took second at the Sharon Invitational and first place in the MBL JV Regatta, the Donald Greene, and the MBL Undergrad Regatta. We also placed third in Division A of the MBL's Women's Regatta.

After ten years, our founding coach, Bob Gaffney, retired to spend more time with his family. Expert in all facets of the coaching job, he left a big hole to be filled.

2013/2014 School Year:

Fall – In August, the team conducted a Learn-To-Sail Clinic for middle-schoolers and raised $735 for boat repairs.

Spring – On opening day, our lake was still frozen so we began the season with several indoor training sessions mostly from Handbook material prepared by Coach Gary. Lisa Downey returned to provide invaluable coaching assistance. The team had their ups and downs with team racing, but excelled in several fleet race events. We won the Sharon Invitational Regatta, the Fresh/Soph Regatta, and the Sharon Fleet Race Friday. For the second tiime in team history, we qualified for the O'Day finals. Finally, we placed third in the MBL Championship 420 A Division and sailed to a team record fourth place in the State Championships.

2014/2015 School Year:

Fall – With a lot of money from special fundraising, some help from the school, and revenue from selling our very old boats, we acquired 12 newer (2007) used boats from Tabor Academy.

Spring – Ice on the lake prevented the team from any practice before the competitions started, and several of the early meets were cancelled due to ice or excessive wind. We did not do well until after April 15; then the team won all its remaining meets. We were 2nd in Silver and 3rd in Gold in the MBL Fleet Race Championship

2015/2016 School Year:

Fall – We were fortunate to be able to compete in Martha's Vineyard, Casco Bay, Maine, and at The Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut as well as locally.

Spring – We won 19 out of 22 team racing meets, going 7 - 0 in the A Division of the Massachusetts Bay League. For the first time in team history, we sailed in NESSA's Mark Team Racing Championship, and we won the over all trophy at the Mass Bay League Fleet Racing Championship. Finally, we were invited to sail in the National Invitational Tournament in Minnesota. It was a great season!

2016/2017 School Year:

Fall – Based on our fall regatta performance, we earned a berth for the first time at the Atlantic Coast Championship in Rochester, NY.

Spring – It was a stellar season of competition and travel. Besides the usual local meets and the large regattas on the Charles River, we raced in Martha's Vineyard and Marion, MA, New London, CT, Portland, ME, and Annapolis, MD. With a 9 -0 record, we won Division A of the MBL in team racing, and we raced to an 18 and 3 record over all. We placed 2nd in NESSA's Terk Team Racing Championship. We again won the over all trophy at the Mass Bay League Fleet Racing Championship and placed 2nd at "States." Based on our record, we were the best public school sailing team in Massachusetts!

2017/2018 School Year:

Fall – We finished 3rd at the Casco Bay Open and 2nd at the Glickman Fall Funfest, both times missing a berth at the Atlantic Coast Championship by 1 place.

Spring – The team was successful in a variety of levels and formats. The freshmen and sophomores finished 1, 2, and 3 in both fleet race Fridays, and took second in the Freshmen/Sophomore Regatta. The JV team race team was undefeated at 5-0. Our girls placed 4th in the Herreshoff Qualifier and made it to the finals. They also finished 2nd in the Linda Juliano Team Race Regatta. The varsity won the MBL team racing season for the third consecutive year with a 9 – 0 league record. We finished 4th in NESSA’s Terk Team Racing Championship, for a final ranking of 12th in New England.

Four seniors were given lifetime achievement awards for having qualified for two national events and one Atlantic coast championship event, for three years of top 12 rankings in New England, for two MBL Championship Regatta over all victories, for one MBL Team Race Regatta Championship, and for three undefeated MBL team race seasons.

2018/2019 School Year:

Fall – The team welcomed twelve new sailors. We competed in all four NESSA (New England Schools Sailing Association) events, hosting the Fall Funfest. Our best finishes were 4th at the Polar Bear Open at Bowdoin College and 5th at the Arnold Brown Regatta on Martha’s Vineyard.

Spring – It was another very active season with 24 head–to–head team race meets and eight weekend regattas. Our best regatta finishes were 4th in the Sharon Invitational, 3rd and 4th in the Donald Greene Regatta, and 4th in the Fresh/Sophomore Regatta. Our girls placed 6th at the Herreshoff Qualifier, and they were 1st of ten teams in the Linda Juliano Team Race Regatta, the only girls' team race event in the country. Our overall record was 12 and 12, but we were 7-0 in league competition. The team hosted and won the Mass Bay League Team Race Championship for the second straight year.

Sadly, we had to say goodbye to our long time co-coach Lisa Downey who moved away. She was the best!

2019/2020 School Year:

Fall – Five of eight of our new sailors were girls, bringing the boy/girl ratio almost to 50%. (We are truly a coed sport.) We competed in the Casco Bay Open in Maine, and again hosted the Fall Funfest. Mostly importantly, we welcomed Dave Bernard as our new JV coach.

For the first time in the 17 year history of the team, the coaches were paid on parity with other coaches in Sharon, no longer working two seasons for the salary of one.

Spring – This was the non–season of Covid 19. After getting everything setup, we got in one hour of sailing before they shut down school and its sports programs. It was a sad time for our seniors who were poised to have a very successful season We were honored to be asked to host the 2020 National Invitational Tournament, but that too was cancelled and rescheduled for 2021. One bright spot was our acquisition of six more boats bringing our total to 18 and giving us the ability to run three team races simultaneously. We also got all new jibs and 6 new mains.

2020/2021 School Year:

Fall – Due to the pandemic, we were not able to compete against other teams, but nevertheless, 32 students joined the team including five freshmen. The season was spent in rigorous sailing practices focusing on boat handling and team racing skills. A few weeks in, coach Dave was stricken with appendicitis, but we were very lucky to get the former co-coach at Wellesley high school, Jacon Mayer, as a replacement within a few days.

Spring – The 2021 spring season was a pared down version as the regional organization declined to hold any of the many events it usually hosts. However, we did sail in seventeen meets at the varsity level and seven for the JV. Our varsity beat all but one of the schools in our division, and the JV was 7 and 0 against all comers. The Fleet Race Championship held at the end was also reduced from four to two fleets, and it was hosted by Sharon instead of CBI on the Charles River. Sharon sailors took home third place.

2021/2022 School Year:

Fall –Finally out of the pandemic, we had ten new sailors join the team. Matt Johnson took over as our assistant/JV coach. Matt, AKA “the Walpole kid,” practiced with our team in 2009-2010, when he went to Walpole High. Judy Krimski, long-time laser sailor and veteran high school sailing coach, joined the coaching staff to split time with Matt in the fall seasons. We sailed the NESSA fleet race events and were able to qualify for the Atlantic Coast Championship (ACC) in Norfolk, VA. For many, this was their first time sailing in salt water.

Spring –The first “normal” spring season in two years was a very busy and successful one. Our head-to-head team race record was 11 – 7, and we sailed in seven weekend events. Highlights were our second place in the MBL team racing season, second at the Linda Juliano regatta, first at the MBL Fleet Race Championship, and third at the State Championship. We were ranked ninth in New England in team racing. COVID roared back and kept us from sailing in the Terk, but we recovered in time to host the National Invitational Tournament. Parents did a fantastic job of feeding the sailors and were largely responsible for us winning the NESSA Sportsmanship Award for our hosting efforts. Topping off a great season, Friends of Sharon Sailing, our non-profit support organization, raised enough money in a month and a half to fund the replacement of our aging fleet with 18 “new used” Z420 boats.

2022/2023 School Year:

Fall –Six new sailors took the place of graduating seniors, and the team got better every day. It was a pleasure to show off our new 18 boat matched fleet in hosting the Fall Fun Fest. Two new events were added to increase the NESSA fleet racing series to five events. With a third in the Fall Fun Fest, we qualified again for the ACC, this time in Annapolis.

Spring –Our team race record was 17 – 5, and we were ranked ninth in New England once again. That ranking earned us a berth to the Terk regatta where we placed second. The girls took second at the Linda Juliano regatta and also at the Herreshoff Qualifier. For the first time in our history, we sailed in the Herreshoff finals which were held in Newport. In fleet race regattas, we took first at the Sharon Invitational, first at the Donald Greene (with different sailors), and second at States. We dominated the MBL Championship Regatta taking trophies in every fleet and the overall championship. We hosted the NIT for an unprecedented second year in a row, and again had competitors saying it was one of the best run regattas they had ever been to. Our JV team went 5 – 2 in team racing, and they finished second at the Tabor JV Regatta and third at the Freshman–Sophomore regatta.

Venue

The team sails from Memorial Beach on Lake Massapoag in Sharon, across the street from the high school. The lake is a mile long and three quarters of a mile wide, and provides typical shifty–wind lake sailing. Our boats are sixteen 420’s that we have acquired (used) over the years. We have the use of a Boston Whaler rescue boat from the Massapoag Yacht Club as well as Coach Werden's own power boats which are helmed by the coaches. With these resources, we are able to run two team races concurrently, allowing us to have simultaneous varsity and junior varsity races, or three and four way

For Directions and a map to Sharon High Sailing, Click Here

Team Fundraising

Starting with borrowed boats, the Sharon High Sailing program has been built by the extraordinary fundraising efforts of the students and coaches as well as by the outstanding generosity of the community. In the past, we have relied on fundraising for the maintenance and improvement of the equipment. For many years, we produced an annual “Racing the Wind” calendar which generated revenue from the sale of advertisements as well as the calendar itself. Some years, we were also able to conduct elementary sailing clinics for middle schoolers or engage in other small fund raising efforts. We are grateful to all those who have helped us in the past including Eastern Bank which funded some new sails for us with a large grant to the Boosters Club in early 2008, Dedham Savings, and Sharon Credit Union which gave us a significant contribution many years in a row.

Since the high school no longer permits sports team fundraising outside of a 501(c)3 organization, donations to the team can now only be done via Friends of Sharon Sailing.

Sharon high school Sailors

2021 Team Picture

The 2021 SHS Fall Sailing Team

Coach / contact Information

Team Coaches

Gary Werden
781-784-9269
gary4619@msn.com

Matt Johnson
matt.johnson.9424@gmail.com

Judith Krimski
JudithKrimski@gmail.com

Website Manager

Annie Pennington
Annie@SharonSailing

Coach Gary

Gary Werden, a certified level 3 US Sailing coach, has been coaching the Sharon high school sailing team since 2003, and he’s been its head coach since 2006. Gary only began sailing at the age of 30, but he’s become a skilled sailor and accomplished racer in several different boat classes. During his time as head sailing coach, he has developed the Sharon Eagles from a small Division B sailing team into one of the most respected public high school teams in New England. In 2012, coach Werden was elected President of the Mass Bay League, a regional sailing league of around 32 public and private secondary schools.

Besides regularly running high school meets and regattas (including the annual MBL Championship, the largest local high school regatta in the country,) Coach Werden has also been the principal race officer for several adult North American Championships in the Daysailer and Flying Scot classes.

Before retiring in 2006, Mr. Werden was an architect and builder, and later, a high school English teacher.

Coach Matt

Raised on the wrong side of the Walpole/Sharon line, Matt Johnson was able to practice, but not compete, with the Sharon high school team during the 2009 and 2010 fall seasons. However, Matt grew up sailing Opti’s and 420’s for ten summers on Cape Cod. The highest placing Optimist sailor in southern Massachusetts in his final season, he also skippered a 420 in team racing regattas and summer league championships.

Besides being an excellent sailor, Matt played varsity hockey in high school and later at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. After graduating from RPI’s Lally School of Management, he started working for his family construction company in Walpole, MA. In spring 2021, he was a coach of the Natick varsity sailing team, and he currently coaches the Natick Comets hockey team as well as the Sharon JV sailing team.

Passionate about coaching, Matt is excited for the opportunity to work with the Sharon sailing Eagles.

Coach Judy

Judith Krimski brings with her an excellent sailing pedigree and a wealth of experience coaching at the high school and adult level. She started her coaching career at Boston Latin and has since coached champion-level teams at Milton Academy, Hingham High School, and BB&N. We are very lucky to have her join the fall coaching staff of the Sharon sailing team.

Judith spends her winters in the Dominican Republic coaching sailors who come for sailing clinics from around the world. In the summers, she sails in various regattas in the area and she is an active member at the Massapoag Yacht Club where she enjoys weekly racing with her peers.

Judy loves racing sailboats, especially her Laser, and she has competed in everything from local sailing leagues to the 2019 Master Laser European Championships where she finished second in the Women’s Grand Master Division.

An award winning graphic designer, illustrator, and marketing communica-tions consultant, Judy is the principal at Krimski Design & Communications.