Junior Sailors Competing in Double-Handed Championship

Editor's note: This story was originally published on Tuesday, June 25 at 5:30 a.m.

Young ladies from around the country, including a couple from Newport Beach, and prepping to compete in this week's U.S. Junior Women's Double-Handed Championship in Newport Harbor.

Hosted by Corona del Mar's Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club, the championship brings 78 young women, ages 13 to 18, to compete in races through Thursday for the Ida Lewis Trophy. BCYC has two junior sailors, Shannon Morris and Holly McNamee, competing in the championship in a Club 420.

"There aren’t a lot of girl sailors out there, so this race was meant to empower girls to show them they can race too," Morris, a freshman at Mater Dei High School who started sailing at the age of 6, said.

Morris is the skipper of the 420 and is in charge of driving the boat and controlling the main sail.

"It's really thrilling to be out on the water and knowing you are in control of your own boat," Morris said.

While Morris sails a lot in Newport Beach, her partner McNamee lives in Colorado and is only in town from time to time to visit family. McNamee has sailed since she was 7, and will be tasked with different duties including keeping the boat flat and at a normal speed.

"It's life-changing to be so close to the water, having to learn the different wind changes and you just feel like you can let yourself go on the boat," McNamee, 17, said.

The girls started practicing last week to get comfortable with the 420, a new type of boat they have never sailed before.

"Shannon and I are going try to get top 10, and just have fun and stay competitive," McNamee added. "We are definitely relying on each other to do our parts."

The JWDC was last held in Newport Harbor in 2002. To get more information about the championships, visit ussailing.org.

Click here for today's top stories on Newport Beach-Corona Del Mar Patch.