Trans Superior Online 2021
We are pleased to announce our April Zoom guest will be Stuart (Stu) McLachlan. He’ll be discussing boat preparations for offshore sailing, including guidance on boat checks to enhance safety and reliability.
Stu has 5 years experience racing on the Great Lakes as Boat Captain for Il Mostro (VO70). Prior to that, he completed two campaigns with the Volvo Ocean Race: Boat Captain for Telefonica Blue (2008-09) and Systems Manager for Camper, ETNZ (2011-12).
Stu has also performed extensive work as Boat Captain with the IMOCA 60 fleet with his work in the Barcelona World Race, as well as now wrapping up a 2020 Vendee Globe Campaign with Team Malizia (SeaExplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco). Photo above of Stu on Malizia Photo credit Brian Carlin
Matt Wachowicz is a tactical navigator who has raced professionally since 1998. He has 3 America's Cup campaigns to his credit, and has played both a technical and sailing role on 2 Volvo Ocean Race teams, as well as on a host of other international grand prix racing programs. He currently races in the IMA Maxi, Mini-Maxi, ORC, IRC and Superyacht circuits worldwide. While his focus over the last few years has been more on the inshore aspect of the sport, Matt originally learned the art of blue water navigation under the tutelage of the legendary Mark Rudiger, and lately has returned to his ocean racing roots with a renewed focus on offshore racing. Having achieved an Overall Win in the Transpac in 2013, as well as an additional Class Win in 2015 in the Sled Division, he also assisted the VO70 Il Mostro in setting the World Sailing Record on the Chicago-Macinac course, as well as setting course records on the Long Course in the Bayview Mac Race and the Trans-Superior Race. He currently lives in Nashville, TN with his family, and is proud to be a part of the international sailing community.
Trans Superior Online With Lead Marine Meteorologist Jonathan Wolfe and Ketzel Levens Recorded Tuesday, June 22 , 2021@ 7pm CDT
We are pleased to announce our June Zoom guest will be Jonathan Wolfe and Ketzel Levens
Jonathan has been a meteorologist with the NWS for 15 years and has worked in Oregon, West Virginia, and Minnesota. He has developed a lot of tools and web pages that help both forecasters and people make better weather decisions. Jonathan wrote the software for a project that will eventually transition the NWS towards probabilistic tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings. You can see some of Jonathan’s work at: weather.gov/greatlakes, weather.gov/forecastpoints, and preview.weather.gov/edd.
Ketzel is recent graduate from the University of Wisconsin - Madison with a Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences with Honors in the Major. She has interests in meteorological instrumentation, hydrometeorlogy, and delivering complex scientific topics to the general public. Ketzel is particularly interested in hydrometeorological field work and hands-on research on the Great Lakes. Ketzel has a deep interest in bringing complex scientific ideas to the public, in order to cultivate a science-savvy global community. Ketzel is an experienced kayak guide with a demonstrated history of working in the leisure, travel & tourism industry.
Eric Thomas (on right) joined us online on Wednesday, March 31, 2021. Eric shared pro-tips on preparing yourself and your boat for the 2021 Trans Superior. Eric is the owner/manager of Barkers Island Marina. In addition to 3 solo Trans Superiors and 8 as captain or crew, Eric won his class in the 2008 Single Handed Transpac (second overall). Eric is an engaging speaker with a lifetime of sailing and boat setup knowledge. Participants will be invited to ask questions to make sure that you have all the information needed to prepare for 2021 Trans Superior.
Unfortunately due to a Zoom operator err we do not have an online recording of Eric's Presentation.