Head Coach
Ted Hale will be coaching the race team again this summer, with goals of his junior sailors placing in every major event in the midwest. A denizen of Annapolis, MD, Ted has been competitively sailing since he was 7 years old. He has competed internationally since age 12 in the Optimist, at the Worlds in La Coruna Spain, as well as other international Championships in the Canary Islands, Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, New Zealand and Canada to name just a few. He won numerous major junior regattas in the club 420 including the Buzzards Bay Regatta. Ted also helmed a Championship Sears Cup team in 2005, the venerable National Championship for Junior Keelboat sailing. The 2 time varsity team captain lead the St. Mary's Seahawks to a National Championship last year in Madison, WI, and earned Honorable Mention All-American Honors for his accomplishments. He has spent the last 7 summers coaching 420 racing teams in Annapolis, MD, Martha's Vineyard, MA, and at Columbia Yacht Club.
Advanced 420
Stuart McSweeney is a twenty one year old currently in his thrid year of studying Law at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland. Stuart was born in raised in Chicago and started sailing at Chicago Yacht Club at the age of nine. He started sailing for their Optimist Race Team at the age of ten and would later move onto their 420 Race Team; on both teams he would compete on a regional and national level. He also attended the Hotchkiss School, where during his Senior year he would be named co-captain of the sailing team and winner of the Nunes Sailing Trophy. Currently, he sails for the 2nds at Trinity and was Treasurer of the Club this past year. He has been coaching for the past four summers Coaching – two at Chicago YC and two at Columbia – and is looking forward to coaching the Advanced 420s at Columbia again. He has also coached college and high school sailing at both Chicago and Columbia. He is excited for another great year at Columbia!"
Optimist Team Coach
Dustin Domer started sailing at Columbia at 10 years old. At the age of 14 he started sailing on the race team competing regionally and nationally. Some of his favorite regattas were CORK in Kingston, Ontario and winning Junior Olympics in Macatawa Bay, Michigan. He began teaching adult lessons at Columbia at the age of 16 and has been coaching here ever since. Currently Dustin is the captain of the UIC sailing team, where he sails with the team almost every weekend during the school year. During the summer months he is an avid sailor in the T-10 and V-15 fleets. He is looking forward to another fun summer on the lake at Columbia.
420 Beginner/Intermediate
My name is Leanne Staveley, I am 21 years of age and I am from a seaside village called Howth, in Dublin, Ireland. At present I am attending Trinity College Dublin where I am in my 3rd year BA (honors) science degree. My intention is to complete my degree and continue in my studies in the area of developmental biology research, an area which I am greatly interested in.
I started my sailing career at the age of 8 and I am delighted to say that my sailing ability has grown consistently over the years. I participated in both Junior and Inter-schools Regattas during my early sailing years. I have experience with many types of dinghies notably lasers, opti’s and 420s. I continue to get great satisfaction from both coaching and imparting my vast knowledge in the area of sailing to all my students. I consider myself to be in a very privileged position to be able to teach both children and adults whilst sharing my enthusiasm and experience in sailing. I have been employed in Howth Yacht Club and Sutton Dinghy Club in Dublin. I have also worked in Larchmont, New York and Waukegan, Chicago coaching both adults and children. I qualified as an Irish Sailing Association Instructor at the Royal Cork Yacht Club in 2006. I enjoy cruising and club racing and am an active member in Howth Yacht Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. I have also acquired 600 hours of powerboat rescue over the years.
I am well travelled both in Europe and the United States. At the age of 16, I travelled to France to study the French language. I am now fluent in French and I have acquired a vast cultural knowledge during my three month period in France.
My interests include swimming, sailing, tennis and snow sports. I really enjoy traveling, and my experience in France developed a keen interest in exploring other cultures and experiences. For the last three years I have been skiing with my college where we have travelled to various regions in France. I have sailed with my college for the last two years and continue to enjoy the experience.
I have been instructing continuously for the last 5 years in both Ireland and America. Last year I instructed in Chicago and had a very memorable time. I really enjoyed working in Chicago and so it was with great enthusiasm that I accepted the opportunity to work at Columbia Yacht Club.
It is with great anticipation and excitement that I now look forward to going back to Chicago this year, meeting everyone at Columbia Yacht Club and enjoying the very friendly nature of all the locals.
Bill Weiland is 19 years old and has just completed his first year at Michigan State University where he is studying Mechanical Engineering. Bill was raised sailing at Columbia Yacht club, beginning with prams at the age of eight. He joined the Columbia 420 racing team at the age of 15, he competed in several regional and national club 420 events. Bill was named Columbia’s Junior Sailor of the Year in 2009 and took the silver medal at the Junior Olympics that year. He was also proud to qualify and represent Columbia Yacht club at the 420 Bemis nationals that same year. Bill is now sailing collegiately for Michigan State, where he was just named captain. He spent the last summer teaching adult lessons at Columbia and now looks forward to sharing what he has learned with the next generation of young sailors.
Prams
Hi, my name is Gillian Condy; I am 21 and come from Dublin, Ireland. I have just graduated from University College Dublin having finished a degree in Health & Performance Science. I am planning to take a year out to work, snowboard and ski in France before starting a Masters degree in Physiotherapy.
All my family is involved in sailing and I have been sailing since the age of 8 and have raced at both national and international level. For the last 3 years I have represented my University in intervarsity team racing which resulted in winning the nationals this year.
I also enjoy windsurfing, long-boarding and hockey and from an early age have been a scout leader
During my transition year in school I attended boarding school in France and speak fluent French.
I am an Advanced Dinghy Instructor and have been instructing in both Ireland and America for the last 5 years. This will be my third summer in America and I am very much looking forward to working at Columbia Yacht Club Sailing School.
See you all in June.
Gillian
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