After last year’s pandemic-related cancellation, the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Regatta (GLIOR) is back on September 25 & 26, and it promises to be bigger and better than ever. Storm Trysail Club (STC) and Columbia Yacht Club (ColYC) are joining forces as the Organizing Authority for 2021 and beyond. 

“The new partnership this year between the STC and ColYC is something we are very excited about. STC brings a lot of experience, along with Larchmont Yacht Club, as they have been running the largest big-boat collegiate regatta in the country on Long Island Sound for many years,” says Steve Karstrand, GLIOR Event Co-Chair. “In addition, we are very pleased to announce that we will be waiving this year’s entry fees in order to encourage as much participation as possible, especially after last year’s COVID cancellation.”

Event Co-Chair Nick Zomer adds “The Collegiate sailing community is full of anticipation; teams are indicating to us they are ready to jump back into the Fall season with deep involvement in events such as ours.” 

The event is by invitation only and provides an opportunity for the predominantly dinghy-focused college sailors to experience big boat sailing – which is unavailable to many college teams. The event was founded in 2015 by the Chicago T10 fleet association, initially hosted by ColYC and later hosted by the Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club (CCYC). 

This year, the event is back to ColYC on September 25 & 26, 2021 with a practice day on September 24. Boats will be provided through the J/105 and T10 Class Associations, and collegiate sailors will sail against each other in two circles set up in a one-design format. Boats are volunteered by local boat owners and there will be one owner’s representative aboard each boat serving as the safety officer. 

The regatta consists of windward/leeward buoy races on Lake Michigan offshore of Chicago. Teams arrive on Friday and have the opportunity to practice on their assigned boats that afternoon. The Race Committee will attempt to run as many races as possible all day Saturday and Sunday morning. Award ceremonies are Sunday during lunch and teams have the afternoon to travel back to campus.

In addition to great race management, the collegiate sailors and owners representatives will also be welcomed to the social events at the Columbia Yacht Club throughout the weekend.

“Columbia Yacht Club is excited to welcome back the GLIOR event, continuing its commitment to youth sailing and encouraging collegiate sailors to stay involved post-college,” says ColYC Commodore Stu Friedman. “Creating opportunities like these continue to be a priority for our club and we are excited to join the STC in welcoming collegiate teams to the Chicago area for some intense competition on Lake Michigan.”

“This is our first year partnering with the team in Chicago hosting the GLIOR. We expect that this will become an annual tradition in the years to come, and we are proud to add it to our portfolio of partnered events,” says Storm Trysail Club Commodore Ed Cesare.

Teams interested in an invitation should submit an “application for invitation” located here: https://forms.gle/YEshAP1YReJp6Z4F9.  There are a limited number of boats available, so teams are encouraged to express their interest as soon as possible. 

Teams that have already signed up include Michigan State, Grand Valley, Miami of Ohio, Ohio State, Perdue, Toledo, Indiana, Notre Dame, Marquette, U of Michigan, Northwestern, Wisconsin, Michigan Tech, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Maine Maritime Academy and the United States Naval Academy.

The Notice of Race is posted on Yacht Scoring at: https://yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eid=14482

A special thanks to the committed sponsors for 2021: Skyway Yacht Works, Beemsterboer Slag Corp., Buddig Meats and United Engravers. If your business is interested in supporting, please contact Nick Zomer at nwzomer@gmail.com.

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