Far from the ocean, a surprising sailing culture is taking shape across Utah’s high-country reservoirs. Near Park City and the Heber Valley, alpine winds and wide-open water have created an unlikely mountain hub for lessons, racing and world-class training. From junior and collegiate sailors to Olympic competitors, a growing network of programs and athletes is redefining what sailing looks like in the Wasatch.
Navigating the World by Water
From her home near Hideout, Olympic sailor Francesca Clapcich can see the waters of Jordanelle Reservoir, where she trains for one of the sport’s ultimate challenges: a solo circumnavigation of the globe. Raised on Italy’s east coast, her family owned a small cruiser for summer outings, and she entered sailing school at age 6. By her teens, Clapcich was racing single-handed in the Europe dinghy class.
“I’ve always been quite competitive and tried to be the best I could be,” she says. As a child, she idolized World Cup skiers and dreamed of becoming a professional athlete. Sailing offered a unique path of longevity, allowing her to compete well into adulthood. “It gives you a really long career,” she says.
Clapcich competed in the Laser Radial at the London 2012 Olympics before switching to double-handed racing. In 2015, she and her teammate won the World and European championships and the Italian national title, then finished fifth at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
Her first team circumnavigation came with the 2017-18 Ocean Race, which sails around the three great capes — Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Horn — before returning to France. “It’s where I learned the most about dealing with life onboard: eating, sleeping, moving with the boat,” Clapcich says. Returning in 2022-23 with a smaller crew, they earned first place, becoming the debut American team to win.
In her most recent podium, Clapcich and her sailing partner took second in the 4,000-mile Transat Café L’OR, a transatlantic race that traverses from Le Havre, France, to Martinique in the Caribbean. “It’s like being in a dishwasher,” she explains. “The boat’s brutal movements are hard on your body.”
Now Clapcich’s eyes are set on the 2028 Vendée Globe, a solo, unassisted, nonstop circumnavigation. “It’s more than two months by yourself on a boat — you push hard all the time,” she says. The pace requires micro-sleeping in 20-minute to two-hour increments while managing the boat and equipment. This year, she races qualifiers to earn one of 40 starting spots. She emphasizes, “Every race counts.”
Ultimately, childhood dreams can come true. Off the water, Clapcich is a Level 3 ski instructor at Park City Mountain Resort. She’s also an advocate for inclusivity and balances her work-travel schedule with motherhood. Her daughter Harriet, nearly 4, keeps her grounded. “It’s amazing to be her mom and see curiosity for the world through her eyes,” she says.
Early Success
In a landlocked state known for ski slopes rather than sailboats, Utahn Morgan Vesco first stepped onto a boat at just 5 years old. Growing up near Park City, falling in love with sailing is uncommon. Mountain reservoirs bring erratic wind shifts, flat water and sudden summer hailstorms — conditions far removed from steady ocean breezes and rolling swells. But for Vesco, the experience of being on the water quickly became unforgettable when her mom signed her up for a local Guppies program, an introductory, hands-on sailing camp for kiddos offered by Park City Sailing Association (PCSA).
“I remember being in awe of the big sailboats,” Vesco says, “[and now] I love the freedom. There’s something [special] about being on the water — you’re out there. You don’t hear cars or people, you just enjoy it,” she adds. Despite the odds, Vesco has steadily risen in the sport. This August, she begins her collegiate sailing and ice hockey career at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, where she’ll be double-handed racing, which is when a crew and skipper compete against other duos.
The decision followed a major milestone: competing at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Sailing Team Trials, where 26 sailors nationwide qualified through regional events and raced over nine days. Athletes completed two to three races daily, each taking 60 to 90 minutes each. As a 16-year-old, going bow-to-bow against seasoned sailors twice her age who train year-round compared to her four-month annual cycles, Vesco managed the elite level of pressure. “It was definitely the highest competition I’ve ever raced against,” Vesco says. “[Racing] somewhere where it was all women and the best in the country was so cool and inspiring.”
Vesco continues to train on Jordanelle Reservoir and work as a junior instructor for PCSA. “My favorite part of the summer is working with kids, coaching and teaching them how to sail. It’s so fun,” she says. The association’s Junior Sailing School offers customized classes for kids ages 5-17, from June to August. Ultimately, Vesco is eager to see where her skills and the local community go next. Vesco adds, “I love how much competitive sailing has grown, especially with girls. It’s so enjoyable.”
Harnessing Hulls
There’s nothing quite like summer solstice in the mountains. And every year, PCSA invites the public to celebrate the year’s longest day at their Summer Sailstice, a global celebration of life on the water. The open house features sailboat trials, networking, barbecue and games, but it’s more about opening the doors to a world-class venue, says Executive Director Scott VerMerris.
“There’s not much we can’t do,” he emphasizes. “Whether you’re a local or on vacation, it’s a great place for a lesson, a sunset cruise or a family adventure. We can create any of those experiences.”
PCSA launched in 2008 with a modest fleet of Lasers (now known as the ILCA). VerMerris joined the organization in 2010 as the first head instructor for the junior program. “The Laser is humbling; it capsizes easily and is high-powered for a small boat,” he notes. “But it’s simple to learn.”
The association benefits from the unique geography of its location at Jordanelle Reservoir. While the Great Salt Lake has struggled with receding water levels, Jordanelle thrives on thermal winds that funnel up through the Heber Valley. “Mountain sailing can be fluky because of the topography,” VerMerris explains, “but we are lucky to have a consistent thermal that makes for a legitimate, high-caliber venue.” Other nearby sailing waters include Deer Creek and Rockport reservoirs, likewise fed by high-country snowmelt.
Today, PCSA has evolved far beyond racing. The adaptive sailing program features a state-of-the-art boat with a bucket seat for wheelchair transfers, and they’re currently securing grants for sip-and-puff robotic technology. Among the curriculum, they run a Junior Sailing School and race team, women’s-specific sailing courses and adult sailing lessons.
For visitors, the association provides a range of options, including customized corporate meetups. While groups gather at Montage Deer Valley, PCSA can host sailing sessions or rotate staff between on-water activities and indoor presentations. “We can do team-building objectives, where they race each other,” VerMerris explains. “We teach them the basics, they have a skipper on board who’s an instructor, they race and we do a debrief. We can get deep, or we can keep it very broad and picnicky.”
Feeling competitive? The Fall Regatta in September, a series of organized boat races, draws out-of-state athletes. “It’s a very competitive event,” says VerMerris. “We have high-caliber sailors and instructors in an inclusive environment. Whether you raced collegiately or have zero experience, the beauty and accessibility of this legitimate venue with good wind make it special.”
Schooled for Circumnavigation
Dreaming of chartering sailboats or circumnavigation? Sailors get one step closer on Utah Lake, where Bonneville School of Sailing in Provo is a rare inland organization offering on-the-water assessments for the International Sailing License and Credentials (SLC). Recognized worldwide, the certification enables charter companies and port authorities to verify competence for bareboat charters. While most SLC assessments happen at coastal schools, like those in Florida and California, Bonneville is a NauticEd-accredited training center in the Rocky Mountains.
“[SLC] is a unique offering. It’s not easy but if you get the license, then you can charter a sailboat anywhere in the world,” says Todd Frye, cofounder of Bonneville School of Sailing. “We’ve had [students] from Washington and Idaho go through the assessment, and students have sailed around the world after going through our programs. We want to be a springboard to get into the ocean,” says Frye, who launched the school with his wife, Louise, in 2007 as a retirement project. But Bonneville quickly outgrew their expectations and became an accredited U.S. Sailing School in 2016.
Utah Lake’s 189-square-mile expanse presents unique challenges, including shallow waters that create sharp waves and unusual patterns. To manage the zone’s sudden high winds, local Bonneville student Sean Thornton developed the Windy Lookout app. The program uses weather stations to track and sound an alarm when winds exceed user-defined safety margins — such as 10, 20 or 30 knots — and has expanded to include Bear Lake on the Utah and Idaho border and Colorado’s Dillon Reservoir.Â
Today, Bonneville has a plethora of boats. keeping three in the slips, and serves nearly 250 participants annually. Students register for formal lessons to build international chartering confidence or travelers sign up for casual two-hour sunset sails. Louise says, “People are all amazed at how beautiful and peaceful Utah Lake is.”
