Pandemic didn’t stop this year’s Orange Bowl regatta

Dozens of white sails dotted Biscayne Bay underneath gray overcast skies Wednesday morning for the final day of the annual Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta.

There was a small craft wind warning as teams of 14- to 18-year-olds used their strength and skills to maintain their courses riding single-sailor Laser class vessels on rough seas.

“These kids that are racing this are developing their skills and following their passions and are out here competing in these tough conditions,” said Harry Horgan, founder of Shake-A-Leg, a Miami nonprofit that teaches adults and children with disabilities how to sail.

Capsized boats were common sights during the races, followed by the young racers adeptly maneuvering themselves in the water to right their overturned crafts.

Shake-A-Leg Miami co-sponsors the annual five-day event, which has been held for almost 50 years, with the Coral Reef Yacht Club. Organizers say it regularly features more than 700 youth sailors ages 8 to 18 from more than 20 countries. Many past participants have become well-known in the international competitive sailing scene, organizers say.

About 60 Laser boats competed in Wednesday’s race, down from about 140 last year, but organizers anticipated the drop because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the Clifton family from Annapolis, Maryland, the regatta was a continuation of a sailing tradition going back to when dad Tip Clifton, 56, was a boy. This week, his oldest daughter, Mac, a junior at the University of Miami studying biomedical engineering, coached her younger sister, Sarah Grace, 18, who raced in a Laser in her first Orange Bowl regatta.

“It was really cool to sail somewhere that is so different than where we’re used to. We usually sail Maryland and the [Chesapeake] bay, which is a lot different from here. There are just some great waves, which is really fun. It was definitely really windy, but it was really exciting surfing the waves,” Sarah Grace said.

“We don’t have this,” her mother, Robyn, said. “If it does blow this hard, they usually just cancel the regatta.”

The Cliftons travel to Florida often, but haven’t participated in the Orange Bowl regatta before because it coincides with the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. But, with the pandemic forcing most of their extended family to celebrate via Zoom, they figured they could make the trip and still virtually see their loved ones.

“We have a huge family, so we would never give that up for Orange Bowl, but we said, hey, we can Zoom from Florida,” Robyn said.

The Cliftons drove to Florida with their vessels in tow, which included 16-year-old son Tad’s 420, a faster two-person, two-sail boat. They then rented a catamaran when they got to Miami, and are staying at the Shake-A-Leg marina on Bayshore Drive in Coconut Grove, home base for the regatta.

“We looked like the ‘Beverly Hillbillies,’ “ Robyn said.

What makes the Orange Bowl regatta stand out from other races for the veteran competitive boating family is Shake-A-Leg’s organization, which many who’ve attended this week’s races describe as very accommodating.

“Shake-A-Leg has just been amazing. Again, this is my first year doing Lasers,” Sarah Grace said. “And, this is, again, very windy, and very different. There’s stress, but fun stress. Shake-A-Leg, everybody was very encouraging and welcoming, and always so helpful.”

“It’s clear they have a staff who’s used to taking care of folks and getting them out of the water, and we’re just experiencing the benefit of that for them hosting the Laser regatta this year,” said Tip Clifton.

While the racers in the Orange Bowl generally do not have physical disabilities, Tip, who sailed Orange Bowl regattas in his youth, is appreciative of those who do. He survived pancreatic cancer almost seven years ago, which left him with some balance and spacial difficulties, and unable to sail anymore.

Eldest daughter Mac also knows something about living with challenges. For her, it’s post traumatic stress.

“We have a couple of special cases here,” Mac said, referring to herself and Tip. “And, they’re just so helpful and accepting. They make it so easy.”

Also helping Mac with her condition is Hobie Cat, her 2-year-old service dog, who responds to commands in boating lingo. For instance, “capsize” means roll over, “dock it” means sit, and “mayday” is if Mac is having a panic attack.

“He actually realizes before I realize if I’m going to have an anxiety attack or a panic attack so he can kind of let me know so I can get myself out of there. He’s very well trained,” Mac said.

The Fedderson family traveled from Charlotte, North Carolina, so their son, Nicholas, 14, could race his Laser. It was his first Orange Bowl and the first year he sailed his Laser competitively, his father, Christopher Fedderson, said as he watched the race.

“I think it’s a great event for all the kids here to really have fun, compete and really enjoy sailing. I think the yacht club is doing a really great job organizing it, and Shake-A-Leg’s presence and support. We’ll be back next year,” Fedderson said.

Brooke Schmelz, 17, and Ashley Abboud, 16, came down from Monmouth County, New Jersey, to race 420s in the regatta. While Schmelz is an experienced racer, the Orange Bowl was her first regatta in the 420 vessel class. Abboud is a rookie to the sport, with about a month’s worth of competitive experience.

Like the Cliftons, they found the sailing conditions of South Florida quite different from their home turf.

“Where we practice is more of a river,” Schmelz said. “So, it’s a lot shiftier, and the difference in pressure is a lot bigger. So, it’s kind of nice to come down here and have consistent wind.”

She said the conditions offered a better learning environment for Abboud.

“She could just get down on the wire and just go, rather than constantly having to change modes. It probably was a little easier for us, actually,” Schmelz said.

Shake-A-Leg started from tragedy. Horgan was 22 in 1980, living in Newport, Rhode Island, when he fell out of a truck and broke his back, which left him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. After the accident, he was looking for a way to make himself, and others with disabilities, more independent.

“It was, ‘whatever you want to do, we want to help you do,’ and, everybody wanted to go sailing since we were in Newport,” said Horgan, who grew up sailing. “Water has always been an appeal to me, and I really, to this day, believe there is healing that goes on.”

A boat builder built a boat that was wheelchair accessible, and Horgan built the program around it, starting in Rhode Island in 1986. The organization moved to Miami in 1990. It has operated out of its Coconut Grove waterfront property ever since through a special lease with the city of Miami.

In that time, it has become home to many sailing programs for children and adults with physical and developmental disabilities. It also has programs for wounded veterans.

“Shake-A-Leg is about get up and do it, and don’t wait for someone to do it for you,” Horgan said.

The group also offers sailing lessons and other water-based activities, as well as access to the water, for those who are able-bodied.

Pre-pandemic, the program’s summer camps saw as many as 400 kids a day, including 100 who are not disabled and volunteer as mentors. Horgan said that is what makes the relationship with the Orange Bowl regatta special, since racers are teenagers, and many past participants become Shake-A-Leg mentors.

“They would become friends with the kids with disabilities and role models, and that bond is so important because kids with disabilities tend not to be social,” Horgan said. “High school kids are learning compassion and empathy, and it becomes second nature for them to work with kids with disabilities and to find a way.”