Medals awarded for rescue of sailors
US Sailing's Safety at Sea Committee awarded an Arthur B. Hanson Rescue Medal to two Chicago Yacht Club sailing instructors for rescuing a pair of sailors Oct. 2, 2010 on Lake Michigan.
Racing at the Jimmy Talbot Memorial Regatta, a high school sailing event, was canceled for the day because of 25- to 30- knot winds, 5- to 7- foot waves, and air and water temperatures in the 50s. Despite the hazardous conditions, a 14-year-old sailor and a 23-year-old coach launched a racing dinghy on the public ramp and sailed out into the lake. Neither was wearing a dry suit, but fortunately both were wearing life jackets. When the dinghy capsized, the younger sailor drifted away, while the coach hung on to the hull.
