CBA Sailing Athlete Spotlight: Joe David ’20
Since the 1960s, CBA has been building upon a culture of success in athletics, adding new varsity sports each decade to meet the interests and talents of the students. There have been numerous conference, state, and national championships to count.
While a more recent addition to athletics, varsity sailing is one of the most unique sports CBA offers, finding championship-level success in their 11-year history.
A dual season sport, the team is in the midst of their current fall season, with an impressive group of 18 varsity sailors from different grade levels. For the last four years, senior Joe David has played a main role on the team, and has been a big part of CBA’s success in different regattas not only in New Jersey, but around the country. David’s story is also more unique than some other CBA sailors in the past.
He started sailing much later than most athletes who sail in high school. David got into the sport at age 14, going into his freshman year at the Monmouth Boat Club in Red Bank. Before that, he used to sail once a year, not knowing he would pursue the sport competitively. When he realized CBA had a varsity sailing program, he decided to sail more often in hopes of making the team.
David made the team and quickly became an important piece for the team. At first, the team needed him as a light weight sailor when he was a freshman and sophomore, but his natural talent for the sport was quickly evident.
Now as a senior captain, his most memorable experiences as a CBA sailor have come when traveling to the out-of-state regattas because of the team bonding that is involved. The team typically stays in the same hotel, has dinners together (Outback is a team favorite), and walk around the city that they are in.
“Last year, our trip to a regatta in Norfolk, Virginia was my favorite,” David said. “I have great memories of walking around the city, as well as hanging out with my teammates and sailing in a new location.”
Sailing is a sport that requires a lot of strategy and thinking ahead. The sailors have to decide quickly what part of the race course has the best wind conditions and sometimes that is constantly changing throughout a regatta.
“The most difficult part is all the different things you have to be thinking about during a race,” David said.
Usually, there are 12 to 14 races per regatta for each CBA boat, so there is a lot of thinking involved during each event.
This fall, the team has been solid overall with top-three finishes in their league and qualified for the Mid-Atlantic District Championship in St. Mary’s, Maryland.
As he looks ahead, David plans to apply to schools that have sailing programs. His top choice is George Washington University, which has an impressive, nationally-ranked sailing program.
But before he graduates, David hopes to help lead his team to some top finishes during the spring season.
