Sailing club partners with Bald Head Island

The wind was blowing and the rain wasn’t falling Saturday as the UNC Sailing Club enjoyed the benefits of its newly formed partnership with Bald Head Island for the first time.

“It was unbelievable,” said junior business major Logan Rowell. “There was heavy wind, and it was a big experience for people who haven’t gotten to sail like that before.”

Rowell, who is new to UNC this semester, used to manage the Bald Head Island Sailing Club. He started working to create the partnership between the two clubs when he transferred to UNC and joined the sailing team this year.

Bald Head’s sponsorship is nonmonetary. Instead, when the UNC club visits the island, the Bald Head sailing club will provide boats for members to use, and Bald Head Island Limited will provide housing.

Philip Womble, president of UNC’s sailing club, said the club plans to take a retreat to Bald Head each semester.

Bald Head Island will also benefit from this new alliance with UNC. The UNC club will put the Bald Head logo on shirts, banners and other apparel, and will advertise for the island at its regattas.

The Bald Head sailing club also hopes to encourage students to work as sail instructors on the island this summer. Barry said Bald Head was looking for personable students with racing experience to teach the basics of sailing.

Members of both the UNC and Bald Head sailing clubs said they think the partnership will be mutually beneficial for years to come.

“The average person in a typical yacht club is about 60 years old,” said John Barry, the island’s sailing club manager. “A lot of this is about getting younger people involved in sailing.”

Besides giving the club an opportunity to bond as a team, Womble said the partnership will give UNC sailors valuable experience in open-sea sailing with larger boats.

Womble said the stronger, more consistent winds found in coastal sailing makes for a different experience.

“We usually sail on Jordan Lake,” Womble said. “Being able to sail at the beach is a lot different. It’s more active.”

This weekend, UNC club members arrived at Bald Head on Friday evening and sailed the majority of the day Saturday. Womble said the wind was strong and the rain that plagued Wilmington and surrounding islands never fell on the Tar Heel sailors.

He added that he is looking forward to future trips.

“I think this is a promising partnership,” Womble said. “It’s an opportunity for us to get some good sailing experience and hang out and have some fun.”

The UNC sailing club meets Tuesday evenings at about 7:30 p.m., though the time varies from week to week.



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