Bermuda sailors Vieira & Rodrigues Launch Season with Eckerd

Bermudian sailors Jordan Vieira and PJ Rodrigues kicked off their collegiate campaign as the Eckerd College sailing team opened its season at the SAISA South Top Six Invite. Eckerd finished fifth overall out of six teams on the opening day of racing, before volatile weather conditions intervened to prevent the completion of the SAISA South Tournament on day two. The opening day featured all three divisions competing simultaneously on the water. Vieira partnered with Avery Guck in A Division, Rodrigues teamed up with Will Alvarado in B Division, while Nic Dowling and Peyton Seidle contested C Division. The regatta got underway in light breezes of 4 to 5 knots, which quickly gave way to shifting winds and an increasingly assertive current that tested fleets across nine completed races. Vieira and Guck provided a major highlight for the Tritons, securing a pair of race victories to finish fifth in A Division on 64 points and seventh overall. Rodrigues and Alvarado enjoyed an equally strong showing, topping the B Division standings and placing eighth overall, while Dowling and Seidle finished sixth in C Division and 18th overall. Eckerd returned to the water the following day at USF for the SAISA South Tournament, fielding two separate squads. Vieira, Guck, Rodrigues, and Alvarado formed the first team, with Dowling, Seidle, Wesley Kaser, and Lily Tracey making up the second. However, adverse weather brought proceedings to a halt. After an initial start, sailors were pulled from the water due to nearby thunderstorms. Although action briefly resumed around 2:00 PM, only a single race was completed before the breeze died away completely, leaving an insufficient number of races to constitute an official regatta.