> US SAILING Media > Sailor of the Week > 2010 > Sailor of the Week - October, 2010 > Amanda Callahan
Amanda Callahan
Sailor of the Week: Sept. 30 - Oct. 6
The 2010 U.S. Team Racing Championship in Seattle was a memorable event, especially for crew Amanda Callahan and the New York Yacht Club Silver Panda team. Amanda helped lead Silver Panda to a record fifth Hinman Trophy.
Amanda was especially excited to re-claim the championship, following last year’s loss in the final match. She was also impressed with event hosts, the Seattle Yacht Club and the Center for Wooden Boats, as well as the race management, race officials, and countless volunteers that made this event possible. This year’s event was raced in the Pacific Northwest for the first time in history.
One fact that Amanda was quick to point out was the high level of competition at this championship, especially this year’s event. “As far as the competition goes, it is always great at the Hinman, and this year was no exception. It was a little different than past years,” noted Amanda. “The whole demographic was a bit older and more experienced. There were many teams or sailors present that we’ve been racing for a while now, and noticeably people have been working to improve their game. I would say that every race in the top eight was a battle,” she explained.
Team racing is a favorite of Amanda’s for a number of reasons. “There is almost no room for error when races come down to the finish line. Team racing is also fun when you’ve been sailing with a team for a while and you build up a level of trust with one another.”
Amanda
has been an important part of the perennial power, NYYC Silver Panda,
since 2003. She was part of the Silver Panda teams who won the ISAF
Team Racing Worlds in 2009 and 2007, and the Wilson Trophy in 2008 a
nd
2007. She looks forward to joining Silver Panda at the 2011 ISAF Team
Racing World Championships next August in Ireland. She also hopes to
continue sailing the Sunfish competitively. “I am so excited that the
Sunfish North Americans are coming to my backyard in Barrington
(R.I.),” she mentioned.The USOC’s Military Paralympic Sailing Clinic at the Newport Naval Base is one of Amanda’s favorite days of the year. “I have the opportunity to give back to people who have given up a lot more for the U.S., and on top of that, it is just a fun day spent with great people.”
Amanda does her best to squeeze in as much racing as possible from the end of June until the end of August. From September through June, Amanda focuses her efforts on the Roger Williams University sailing team. She has been the head coach and waterfront coordinator at Roger Williams since August of 2007. The Hawks’ coed teams have been consistently ranked in the top ten since her arrival. She coached the Hawks to a fourth place finish at ICSA National Championships in 2008 and sixth in 2009.
Amanda came to Roger Williams from Stanford University, where she spent the 2007 season as the assistant coach of the Cardinal sailing team. Prior to her post at Stanford, she held the head coaching position at Tufts University during the 2006 season, where she qualified three teams for the spring ICSA Collegiate National Championships. She has coached a total of 15 All-Americans at three schools.
A 2003 graduate of William Smith College, Amanda is a member of the 2003 Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association’s All-America Team. She was named captain of the Hobart and William Smith Colleges Varsity Sailing Team in the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons.
Amanda grew up in a sailing family. She started racing during her middle school years, after her parents signed her up for lessons at Wessagusett Yacht club in Weymouth, Mass. A native of Canton, Mass., Amanda currently resides in Portsmouth, R.I.