The Maine-based, all-female team is competing
over six days at the J/24 World Championship
in Miami in October
The Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team has been preparing to set sail for Miami, Florida this October to compete with and against the sport’s top professionals in the 2019 J/24 World Championship. The international racing week will boast 80 boats and more than 400 racers, all while the Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team will represent only one of two total all-female teams in attendance.
On the heels of the U.S. Women’s World Cup victory, Sifan Hassan breaking the women’s mile world record for the first time in 23 years, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers becoming the first NFL team to hire two full-time female coaches, the energy and vigor around women persevering in sports in 2019 has never been more palpable. This group of all-female champion sailors is ready to claim their stake in Florida and show they are a force to be reckoned with.
The Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team is a group of focused, experienced and passionate racing champions who take the thrills and incredible challenges of J/24 sailboat racing to new heights. Campaigning their J/24 for the past five years, the team is comprised of 11 sailors ages 16 to 57 and is led by co-captains Erica Beck Spencer and Jess Harris. Co-captain Spencer received the J/24 World Championship Top Female Skipper Award in 2018, and the team also won the prestigious Jaeger Women’s Trophy in 2017 at the J/24 World Championship in Ontario, Canada.
In 2019, Spencer was inducted into the New England Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association Hall of Fame and named the Top Female Skipper at J/24 National Championships. When the team is not racing together, they lead full lives as working professionals, moms, college and high school students.
“Our team has excellent boat speed—going as fast as several world champions at Nationals. If we can get off the starting line consistently, I think we could have an even stronger finish than we did at the 2017 Worlds in Toronto,” said Erica Beck Spencer, Skipper and Co-Captain of the Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team. “There are over 80 boats competing at this event, our largest fleet ever, so any finish in the top half is good, top twenty is exciting, and top ten, if we can pull it off, will feel like a victory.”
The Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team is sponsored by Sea Bags, the Maine-based designer and manufacturer of bags and accessories from recycled sails. As ambassadors of Sea Bags and stewards to the company’s sustainability mission, the team actively collects seasoned sails along their journey. Sea Bags upcycles the sail cloth and uses the material to design and create new products. Through its donation and Sail Trade program, Sea Bags has saved over 700 tons of material from ending up back in the ocean and landfills.
“These women are role models, competitive sailors and true advocates for everything we believe in at Sea Bags,” said Beth Shissler, President and COO of Sea Bags. “Their authenticity and love of sailing make us natural partners, and we are beyond thrilled to support them as they show the world they have the determination and drive to succeed in the J/24 World Championship.”
Show your support for the team from Maine with a Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team Tote or Beverage Bucket Bag. Representative of the contrasting marine hues sailors see in a day of sailing, the blue stripes are contrasted with a white wave. Twenty percent of sales from this collection are donated to the Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team to support their racing efforts.
Follow along the Sea Bags Women’s Sailing Team journey as they compete at Worlds and beyond at www.seabagssailingteam.com.
Katie Wolitarsky
KWM PR
713.824.2258
katiew@kwmpr.co
Representing: Sea Bags
1-888-210-4244
