Commodore: Aaron Boesenecker – Aaron has been sailing and boating since he was a kid growing up on Lake Michigan. He competed in junior sailing during high school in Holland, MI, and went on to sail with and eventually lead the Western Michigan University sailing team. During his college racing career Aaron also moved out of the world of FJs, 420s, and JY-15s to race in the Mumm 30, One-Design 35, and Farr 40 classes across the Great Lakes. Having moved to Washington, DC, in 2002 for graduate school, Aaron stumbled upon PRSA through a serendipitous Sailing World article that covered the “folks who raced in the jet wash at National Airport.” After simply showing up at the marina one evening, he quickly became a regular part of the Lightning Fleet, first racing with Rick Welch on USA 14553 and now racing his own boat, Beedobeat (USA 14592). Aaron and his excellent crew were the 2022 PRSA Fall Series winners as well as the 2022 Lightning Fleet 50 Championship Series winners and the 2023 PRSA Spring Series winners.
Vice Commodore: Nabeel Alsalam –Nabeel is a Great Grand Master in the Laser class and is on schedule to become a Legend in the class next year. OK, those are just fancy labels for the age-related handicap points in Laser Masters Regattas. He is also known as Gandolf, the white haired wizard, when he sails Shadowfax, his trusty white steed (a Lightning). He came to sailboat racing on Irondequoit Bay near Rochester New York as crew on Thistles in the 1980s. He jumped into the skipper’s seat at PRSA in 1997 on Grey Ghost — Lightning 14097 — when he put aside his competitive tennis ambitions to pursue one-design racing full-time. During that pursuit many sailors developed and grew their skills with him and are now scattered about PRSA and beyond with sailboat racing in their blood. However, the joy of sailing — harnessing the wind to go places — he owes to his mom who bought the 14-year-old Nabeel a kit to make a wooden Sailfish (a Sunfish without a cockpit) which he completed and sailed on the James River throughout high school.
Albacore Fleet Captain: Dave Huber
Buccaneer Fleet Captain: Nic Bogren – Nic’s dad thought it best to start early, so while Nic was still in the womb, he took him on his first sail. Growing up, Nic sailed mostly on keel boats in California; a Catalina 22 on Folsom Lake, some sort of Vanguard and an Ericson 33 on the San Francisco Bay. As he got older, a Laser and Bic Windsurfer in Davis and on Lake Tahoe. Later, in college, on a Swan 38 in the Bay and up and down the coast of California and most recently, on an Alerion 28 on the west coast of Sweden. In college he had a semi-floater windsurfer, sailing out of the Berkeley Marina, off of Chrissy Field and on the Sacramento River in Rio Vista (no wetsuit needed!). In 2014 Nic biked down to the WSM to check out what was going on, saw a Buccaneer out in the Cove and a few months later had a Bucc of his own. He and his daughter now sail with PRSA and in local Buccaneer regattas.
I-20 Fleet Captain: Laura Albert
Laser Fleet Captain: Brian Joseph – Brian grew up sailing Sunfish and other small boats in the summer, but never raced seriously. After moving back to DC, Brian crewed on a C&C 36 for a few years before buying his own J22, which he raced in Annapolis unsuccessfully but happily for a few years. Brian shifted to Lasers when his son started sailing Optis out of Annapolis 15 years ago. Brian joined the PRSA Laser fleet over six years ago and has progressed to a solid mid-fleeter.
Lightning Fleet Captain: Frank Gallagher –
Multihull Fleet Captain: Ben Arthur – Ben learned to sail when he moved to Southern California for graduate school in 1992. To date the most fun summer he has ever had was in 1996, when he participated in Long Beach Yacht Club’s Catalina Island series on a Chance 37. He learned then that who you’re with is at least as important as what your doing– retired Navy guys *really* know how to party! Shortly thereafter he got into buoy racing on a Hobie 33 monohull, and then started skippering his own Hobie Cat 18 after inheriting a fixer upper from a departing student. He has rarely stepped aboard a half cat since experiencing the beauty of the Polynesian solution to boat stability. After moving to New York in 2002, Ben crewed on a Corsair 28 for a couple seasons, and then bought his own Weta 14 trimaran after the skipper bought two for his kids. Ben learned a lot in this three-boat one-design fleet, and has sadly gotten way out of practice since moving to Virginia in 2012.