Women on the Water

Betsy Alison is amongst the more successful racing sailors in the U.S. In August of 2023, she won the Sailing World Championships in the Para Athlete singlehanded class in Holland. This was roughly ten months after having massive surgery on her hip to remove a cancerous tumor. I spoke with Betsy at the US Sailing office in Bristol, RI where she is the Director of Adult Sailing.   Coop: Betsy, Hi. How are you doing? Thanks for taking…

We left off the first part of our conversation with Trish contemplating ownership of a Sunfish and not a Laser (windcheckmagazine.com/article/women-on-the-water-trish-sellon/). Coop: OK, Sunfish not a Laser… TS: Yeah, and Mom was like, “Deal with it.” Well, OK…There were about eight or ten kids in Lasers, and I was in my Sunfish trying to chase them and telling myself, “Grrr! This sucks.” I was used to winning, being in front in Optis. Then I thought, “If I…

We left off last month with Erica in Australia after some epic sailing in the Indian Ocean, when she came ashore in Sydney. Coop: Ah, my hometown. What happened after the cold beer and hot shower? EL: I was involved with the Maiden program on and off for five years during the first two World Tours, right up to the Ocean Globe Race. At the time we’re talking about, I left the boat in Sydney and rejoined…

Interview by Joe Cooper For those with good memories and/or a penchant for solo offshore racing, the name Lush will ring bells. The sound of those bells leads you to Tony Lush, one of America’s prominent early solo sailors, famously rescued in the Southern Ocean by Francis Stokes in the 1982 BOC. A freelance delivery skipper and race boat preparatrice, Tony’s daughter Erica recently launched Lush Sailing (lushsailing.com), a campaign aimed at developing equitable opportunities for female…

A Love of Sailing Coop: Trish, thanks for coming out. TS: Well Coop, thanks for the invite. I am honored. Coop: Are you a native Rhode Island, or a carpetbagger? TS: I am a native Rhode Islander. I was born in Rhode Island and raised in North Kingstown, very close to East Greenwich and in what turned out to be bicycle riding distance to East Greenwich Yacht Club. COOP: Ah, you likely had no chance, eh? What…

We left off chatting with Kate as she was getting into the thick of the 2013 “Big Cat” America’s Cup in San Francisco. (Part 1 of this interview can be found at windcheckmagazine.com/article/women-on-the-water-kate-somers/). Coop: Ah, typical boat biz, On the job training, eh? Kate: Yup, crash course central in marketing and communications, especially at that very high level. It was quite an experience. I finished my Master’s out there, in the middle of the AC. I told…

Kate Somers (widely known as Wilson before marrying Brandon Somers) is a lifelong sailor and has morphed sailing and her interest in technology into her own media and web design firm in Rhode Island called risingT. Coop: Kate, thanks for jamming this into the midst of your work for the Newport Bermuda Race. Kate: (Flat out like a lizard drinking sigh) Sure, no problem. Thanks. Coop: Where are you from, and was sailing a “thing” in your…

This month I’m diverging from the usual Women on the Water story line. There’s a young woman on The Prout School Sailing Team, Madeline (Maddie) Ammatuna, known almost universally as Tuna. I discovered an interesting dichotomy between Tuna and her Mum, Kate Ammatuna. Tuna loves sailing and Kate does not. Interestingly, both attitudes stem from early experiences. I recently sat with them after practice. Coop: Ladies, thanks for staying after school as it were. Both: (Chuckles) We’re…

I first met Katie when she worked at Sail Newport and I was on the board, in the early 2000s. We spoke on the deck at Ida Lewis Yacht Club. Coop: Katie, thanks for coming out. KB: Hi Coop, thanks for asking me. Coop: Are you a Newport native? KB: I grew up in Narragansett, so not a native Newporter but Rhode Island born and raised. I went to Florida for college, at Rollins College. After that…

Jessy Nees washed into Newport about a year ago and is a service and production technician at Quantum Sails Newport. We met at her favorite café in Bristol. Coop: Hi, Jess. Thanks for the lead on Borealis…nice place. JN: Thanks for the invite. Coop: Where are you from, and was sailing a “thing” when you were a kid? JN: I grew up in Port Washington, New York, and yes. My dad purchased a Sabre 30 when I…