Come Sail…Delay
Coverage By: WCAX / Scott Fleishman
Lake Champlain is calm these days. It makes a great postcard, but for some the scene is anything but picture perfect. Ice, nearly 18 inches thick in places, has delayed sailing season preparations for UVM and the Northern Vermont High Schools.
“We usually would’ve started a month and a half ago,” UVM sailing tem member Sara Anibal said. “I’ve never seen it this frozen. I don’t think anyone could have predicted that it was going to be this bad.”
“Typically our season wouldn’t start for another week,” Burlington High School Sailing team member Ben Hunt said. “I don’t know if the ice is going to melt by then.”)))
Last year, teams were on the lake by early March. Now they’re looking at the worst conditions since 2007.
“Our season’s really short so when you lose a week, it’s a significant amount of time,” Hunt said.
Their equipment remains idle, while the competition keeps busy.
“It’s pretty frustrating, we’re already at a disadvantage to the other teams that have been on the water,” Anibal said. “We have to really try in our workouts, make the most of our meetings, but the morale of our team is great this year. It’s good to see.”
UVM will start practicing on Mallets bay this week, but only time will tell when Lake Champlain will invite all to come sail away.
