First of all, let me say that when I first heard the name Ella Beauregard, I was reminded of someone like a Formula One race car driver. Someone like, say, Ayrton Senna, the great Brazilian. Her name just made me think of speed and racing and unusual gift. Don't ask me why, but in my crazy mind the names connected.

During a recent visit with the Beauregard family, the name association sort of reconnected. Ella had just returned from a weekend of “29er” races in Newport, Rhode Island, and I was curious to hear more about her experience. Ella had never sailed this type of boat before. She had gotten a last minute call from a colleague racer who was without crew. It was a chance for a new sailing experience. The family packed up, as they had many times before, and headed south. This was uncharted waters for Ella and an opportunity to interact with the development part of team USA.

My first visit with Ella happened years ago when she and her family lived in the house that had belonged to Ruth Gardner, upslope and across the road from Hendricks Head Beach. I was practicing ripple, sand and beach rock photography on the shore and noticed a young girl heading my way carrying two chickens. This was way more interesting than ripple, sand and rock adventure. It was Ella. She marched to the edge of the seawall and flung the two chickens over the edge watching them float confidently to the low tide and seaweed where they clucked and picked and strutted, content and curious.

Now, many years later, Ella, without her chickens, is in the final and peculiar stretches of high school. Online learning, cancelled sailing experiences, intermittent in-person visits to Lincoln Academy. Weird. None of which have altered her spirit to enjoy life and progress with her sailing. Although the Newport experience was dampened by low winds, Ella managed to grapple with new boats and adjusted techniques. She was not discouraged, just more enthusiastic about the opportunity to try something new.

Ella's sailing accomplishments are legion. I think the amount of time she has spent on the water, beginning with the Southport summer program, has helped her develop an understanding and appreciation for the art of sailing. Her abilities have been tested in many ways and on many boats over the years, from turnabouts, to “420s” to large offshore racers. Ella has a way to find the wind, a gift that will serve her well as she advances her skills and experience. She does not need fair winds and following seas, but they are always helpful. It will be fun to see how her career on the water progresses in the years to come.