Have you ever wondered who is out sailing dinghies in the Harbor weekday afternoons in March, April, and May before most of the mooring fields begin to fill up? Those are young sailors from the region learning to sail and race as part of the Boothbay Region Sailing Club (BRSC).  BRSC attracts sailors from not only the Boothbay peninsula, but also Damariscotta, Bristol, and even inland to Gardiner and Whitefield.  

BRSC was started over a decade ago to provide sailing team opportunities for high school students in the region. It has expanded over the years and now serves both high school and middle school students, including public, private, and homeschooled students. This year, the spring program had over twenty sailors participating in more than twenty-five regattas between April and June.

Did you know that high school sailing is one of the only recognized co-ed high school sports? High school sailing is not a part of the Maine Principals Association (MPA), but rather the New England Scholastic Sailing Association (NESSA).  The Boothbay Region Sailing Club hosts two registered NESSA teams, Boothbay Region High School and Lincoln Academy, as well as a conglomerate team composed of middle and high school sailors from all schools.  

BRSC competes in regattas in the Maine-based Pen-Bay League as well as in NESSA regattas across New England, some which are qualifiers for larger national regattas or championships. Over the years the region’s young sailors have advanced from new sailors to competitive racers, competing in and winning regattas up and down the New England coast and beyond. For the first time in the history of BRSC, last fall Lincoln Academy won a coveted spot in  the Atlantic Coast Championships held in Virginia, as well as the High School National Keelboat Championships held in Florida.

Over one hundred young sailors have been involved with the program over the years with recent graduates going on to maritime-focused schools such as Maine Maritime Academy or continuing in collegiate racing. BRSC has also provided a priceless opportunity for international exchange students to learn to sail, all of whom came from areas without sailing opportunities.  How exciting it must be to return home from a year in Maine with stories of having learned to sail in Boothbay Harbor, site of some of the best sailing anywhere, and sailing in March, April, and May no less!

The BRSC sails out of the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club and is active every spring and fall. The club strives to offer an opportunity to learn to sail and race for all who are interested. Sailing is an expensive sport that can be or seem out of reach for many local families. Generous financial aid and equipment is provided so that any local sailor, regardless of income, can sail and compete. The Club is thankful for ongoing support from local parents, members of the community, BHYC members, and two local non-profit organizations: the BHYC Junior Program Foundation and the Boothbay Harbor One Design Association. The Sailing Club operates as a community program open to all local students and does not require membership in BHYC. Recently the BRSC has started to host younger sailors in an Opti Based program to make sailing even more accessible in the off season. 

Soon the Boothbay Region Sailing Club sailors will say good-bye to graduating seniors and exchange students leaving our shores, hang up their dry suits for the season, and pass the tiller to the sailors and instructors of the Boothbay Harbor Yacht Club Junior Program -- and a new fleet of young sailors will take to the waters of the Boothbay Harbor to learn to sail and practice their racing and sailing skills.