As Revere junior Maddie Brichacek glanced around at her settings, all she could see were the waters of Lake Erie. She was preparing for her next sailing competition with her team, the Edgewater Yacht Club. As her practice came to an end, Brichacek knew that she was ready for the next competition.

Brichacek participates in the Edgewater Yacht Club for five years. She never thought about the idea of sailing until then.

“My parents forced me to go to a five week sailing camp. When I first started I hated it, but now it is the center of my life,” Brichacek said.

Now that Brichacek participates in sailing in her free time, her family has also decided to participate in sailing. Tracey Brichacek, Brichacek’s mother, explained the family’s participations in sailing.

“Our family was not sailors, but since Maddie and her brother began sailing, her father joined a weekly race team comprised of mostly adults, with Maddie. [She] and her father competitively sail every Wednesday evening in the summer. Maddie’s younger brother, Mick, has attended the same sail camp and is on the race team as well,” Tracey said.

One of the most important parts of sailing to Brichacek is the wind. The amount of wind determines how much fun sailing will be that day for her.

“My favorite part of sailing is the wind. The wind determines everything. The more wind there is the more fun it is. I love it when it’s windy and the boat moves through the water super fast,” Brichacek said.

Nena Moran is the chairman of the sail camp at the Edgewater Yacht Club. Before competitions, the Edgewater Yacht Club prepares with multiple practices. She explained how they prepare for competitions.

“Competitions are prepared for on land and on the water. On land, running, biking and swimming help prepare sailors for the rigors of sailing. Chalk talks are the class work to sharpen a sailor’s knowledge of tactics and sailing rules. The closest part of training that resembles racing is the on-the-water portion. [We include] drills that give [the] sailors crew and steering time, race starts, mark roundings and puts [their] sailing knowledge into action,” Moran said.

Brichacek competes with the Edgewater Yacht Club on Saturdays. Brichacek explained how a normal day is when she has a competition.

“Competitions are usually all day events. Most start around nine and end around five. Usually on Saturday mornings is when we trailer our boats to the regattas that take us all over Ohio and parts of Michigan. I usually have to leave my house around five to get to most of the competitions close-by. There are usually five races in a day. In the mornings we pack our lunch and bring it out on the boat with us for lunch later. After the racing is finished, we head in and start packing up again. After we pack up we usually have a team debrief while waiting for awards. After awards we can go home. I usually got home around seven or eight,” Brichacek said.

Once the races are over, the judges deliberate and give a score for how each team did. The competitions are based on the US Sailing Low Point system which scores them in the order they finish. Brichacek explained their scoring system.

“The competitions are scored on a points system, there are usually up to five races in a day or competition. The places you earn represent the total number of points you score, the less points you have the better,” Brichacek said.

Moran explained the requirements you must have to participate in the competitions.

“To compete sailors need a boat that meets U.S. Sailing rules, class rules and a life jacket. [You also need] knowledge of the sailing rules and [an] understanding of how the wind moves the boat,” Moran said.

Brichacek has to normally leave at five in the morning for regattas. A regatta is the term for a sailing competition. Since she leaves early, she makes sure she is always prepared the night before.

“In preparation for regattas I pack up my boat the night before and then I pack my sailing bag with everything I’ll need for the next day. I usually pack lots of extra clothes, sunglasses, sunscreen, a life jacket, other sailing stuff and lots of extra food. Other than that a good night’s sleep is all I need to prepare for competitions,” Brichacek said.

Sailing offers many important life skills. Moran explains the kind of skills one can develop by sailing.

“The sport of sailing helps develop life skills. These skills include self-sufficiency, independence and confidence. Imagine, sailing a boat and something breaks. You are on the water and have to figure out how to fix the boat until you make it back to shore or finish a race. While racing you learn to calculate wind speed, wind direction, weather and sailing rules and how to use them to your advantage. This sharpens your sailing skills,” Moran said.

Brichacek normally has practices every day of the week besides Friday. On Friday, she prepares for the competition on Saturday by taking apart her boat and packing it. To Brichacek, sailing is not only a competitive sport, but a great way to make friends.

“The easiest part of sailing is making friends. The people are all nice and even when competing we all get along,” Brichacek said.

Brichacek enjoys sailing with the Edgewater Yacht Club. With the competitions, team, and the sailing, Brichacek continues to sail every Saturday on the waters of Lake Erie.