Setting sail for the Atlantic Cup

ANCRAMDALE — Sailboats  are not a common site in the Harlem Valley, but they will launch from Charleston, S.C., on Saturday, May 28, for the 2016 Atlantic Cup with 29-year-old Ancramdale native Andrew O’Donnell set to race. He will compete in the three-legged race. His partner, who is sailing out of Charleston, will arrive to Brooklyn with the vessel on May 31 to pick O’Donnell up and set sail to the finish line in  Portland, Maine.

The Atlantic Cup is the longest offshore sailing race in the western Atlantic region. Additionally, it is the United State’s only short-handed offshore race dedicated to the Class 40 monohull sailboats, according to the organization’s website.

O’Donnell said his love for sailing originated from working at his uncle’s boat business in Rhode Island.

“I remember seeing boats getting ready for a championship race and I thought to myself ‘Wow, that’s cool,’” the enthusiastic sailor said.

His passion for boats and the sea led him to join the crew team at Salisbury School in Connecticut and Hobart College in upstate New York.

Having sailed for roughly 12 years, O’Donnell is an accomplished sailor already.

He has competed in several 12-meter races as well as in a transatlantic race from Spain to Grenada.

“It’s an amazing experience — you want to get there as fast as possible and make sure you’re the first one there,” he said, adding there is not much time for sleeping.

“I don’t sleep much when I race — it’s a nonstop type of deal,” he said.

He clinched “first in class” in the 12-day competition.

O’Donnell affirmed sailing has taught him how to rely on himself more and to communicate better with others.

“You’re out there on your own, knowing that [if stranded] there is the possibility that no one will come get you — you and your vessel have to survive,” he said.

Sailing ties in well with his environmental science degree, he added.

“The ocean is precious,” he said. “I’ve seen all the garbage that goes into the middle of the ocean when I race — balloons, bottles, plastic — it’s become another landfill.

“The Atlantic Cup race has been a huge influence bringing in conservation awareness and providing education of the environment,” he added. “They’ve made every effort possible to bring awareness [to the issue]. They’re doing a great job.”

According to the competition’s website, this race is one of this nation’s most environmentally sustainable races. It has been fully carbon neutral since 2012, requiring alternative energy sources such as hydrogenerators or solar panels.

O’Donnell anxiously awaits his departure. He has already been watching for weather conditions and said the winds appear to be favorable.

“[One] major concern will be lobster pods, especially at night, as we arrive in Maine,” he added. “There’s going to be no sleeping for two people for a long time.”