Join us for an engaging discussion with a New Orleans local, Andy Lovell, as he shares insider perspectives on the city and captivating stories from his sailing career, both past and present.
Article by Ty Christopher Olsen, November 20, 2024
My City: New Orleans with Andy Lovell
TCO: Andy, I understand that you have been a long-standing native of New Orleans. How long have you lived in that area?
AL: I was actually born here in New Orleans, so it has been a while! I moved away to Charleston, S.C. for about 10 years. I went to College of Charleston. After graduation, I started an Olympic campaign in the Laser class that was headquartered out of there. After the 1996 trials, I started my career in finance, the same business that I am in now. I relocated back to New Orleans 1998.
TCO: Tell us a little bit about your sailing background and where your sailing takes you to these days.
AL: I was fortunate to have started sailing at a young age. In high school, I won the Mallory Doublehanded National Championship and the Cressy Singlehand National Championship. I also took first place in the US Sailing Youth Championships. While at the College of Charleston, I was named College Sailor of the Year.
I started campaigning for the Olympic Games in 1996. I finished 2nd in those Laser Olympic trials. I also did an Olympic campaign in 1999, but my career was just getting off the ground, so I wasn’t fully engaged. I gave it another shot and competed in the 2004 trials in the Star Class fleet. We did well in those trials, but we ended up 2nd again.
After the last trials, I decided to put sailing aside for a bit and focus on my career. Then in 2009, I campaigned a Melges 32 with a close friend, Burt Benrud. We had a fantastic time racing all over the place. We were having fun and doing very well. We won the Nationals and ended of 4th in the Worlds. Then I moved on and started sailing with the New York Yacht Club in the IC37 fleet for a couple of summers. I won the 175th Annual regatta at the NYYC, that was pretty cool!
TCO: I understand that your kids caught the sailing bug at an early age as well. What are they sailing?
AL: My wife Mary and I have three girls, and two of them are actively sailing Opti’s. The oldest decided that sailing wasn’t for her. My middle daughter will be 15 in January, and she is small enough to continue being competitive in the Opti Class, but I am not sure she will. She has ideas to move up to other classes, in fact she recently sailed her first 420 regatta this fall and really enjoyed it. My youngest daughter is 12, so she will be around in the Opti for another season or so.
TCO: Personally, never having the chance to sail in New Orleans, give me an idea of what it is like to sail there.
AL: It is a truly unique place to sail with deep history. The Southern Yacht Club (SYC) is the best club to join if you’re looking to get involved in the sailing scene in New Orleans. The tradition of sailboat racing here goes back over 180 years. The course was chosen because the summer heat and malaria outbreaks made sailing along the Gulf Coast more appealing, thanks to the cooler sea breezes in the afternoons. This race still continues to this date. In fact we just celebrated the 175th year of this regatta.There is a lot of history with the SYC. In fact the 1st ever gold medal won by the United States in sailing was by a gentleman from the SYC.
Just a quick fun fact…One Design racing has been a tradition in New Orleans for over 100 years! It is said that the 1st One Design boat was designed for a regatta that was held between several club ranging from Florida, Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana. The boat was called a Fishboat, which was designed by Doug Rathbone. Essentially the boat was designed for all clubs which were members of the Gulf Yachting Association to stop the controversies of ratings, designs, etc. The neat thing is that this is that the race still goes on today, though it’s now sailed in the Viper fleet.
We sail primarily on Lake Pontchartrain, which is truly unique. You have almost every condition on the lake. If you learned to sail on the lake, you will endure every condition you could plan for, with the exception of a swell. You will get big chop, and big waves. The lake that averages about 15 feet deep and about 50 by 25 miles wide. So north/south is about 26 miles and east/west is just about 50 miles. It is a huge mass of water. The SYC is located on the south side of the lake, so if you get a northerly, you can expect huge waves. If you get a southerly, you get beautiful wind shifts with flat water as they come through the city. It is like you have every condition; a lot of light air, a lot of heavy air all depending on the time of the year. That is the beauty of it. If you grew up sailing here then you have pretty much experienced every sailing condition possible, minus the swells. I remember growing up sailing, and we would join our friends out in California for the CISA Clinic and that was my first introduction to swells. At the time it was mind blowing!
It is also very convenient to sail here. There are no long tows out to the courses. You just launch your boat and head out about 50 yards, and you are set to go.
TCO: Is the sailing on Lake Pontchartrain seasonal, or do they have programs that run year-round?
AL: Yes, we sail all year round. We all laugh about it now, but a long time ago we used to have an opening and closing regatta. Now the “closing regatta” is actually the start of our largest regatta season. Prior to hurricane Katrina, we used to host numerous regattas, but since the hurricane and all of the damage that was caused, the events have decreased. But now that we have rebuilt, we are starting to increase our schedule. For example, we (SYC) host a 28-team high school regatta every November and the Optimist Midwinters each year. Every other year the Opti Midwinters can reach numbers of 200+, because it is what the class calls their Spring Team Qualifier. In the past we have also hosted several Star Class Spring Series events, along with several other Midwinter series for other fleets.
TCO: What is some local advice or tips that you would give to a newcomer sailing for the first time in New Orleans? Is there anything that they should be aware of that might be different from other areas that they have raced?
AL: I think that the cool thing about racing on the lake, is that even a local is not going to have much of an advantage over a visiting sailor. The winds can do lots of different things, it really just comes down to the gradient conditions, which change a lot. Just
like sailing anywhere, it is important to have your head on a swivel when sailing here. If the winds are leaning towards the shoreline, you need to watch out for shifts coming offshore. One thing that is important to note is that there is a big bridge that goes right through the middle of the lake that works a shoreline in many ways. So, if the winds are left of north, it is a north westerly. You really need to pay attention to how the wind is acting around the bridge. Most of the time it orchestrates how the winds will be acting around the rest of the lake. As always, you just need to watch the local forecast, especially what is forecasted around the lake. This is not a big “local knowledge place.” It is just the opposite. For example, when I was sailing for the College of Charleston, that was all about the local knowledge of current, current and more current! Again here, we don’t really have any currents, just a slight lake drift.
One other thing that visitors may want to take note of, is that although we are on a lake, the water is brackish. We get freshwater that comes in from the north and the west, but it mixes with the saltwater coming in from the Rigolets. They will need to wash off their boats after sailing.
There was an old sailor that told me a long time ago, “If you don’t like the sailing conditions on the lake, leave and come back in an hour, and they will be different!”
TCO: Moving away from sailing a bit and getting to the actual city of New Orleans. What are some local places that you would recommend to find the best restaurants, bars, nightlife, etc.?
AL: I have always lived by Audubon Park, which is a beautiful area. There are just so many wonderful famous restaurants in that area like Clancy’s, Saba, Lillete on Magazine Street, just to name a few. There are just so many phenomenal places to shop and eat in the area. Magazine Street has become so popular for locals because of the number of great restaurants and local shops. One huge local tip that visitors should know about, is if you want to get beignets, which everyone does, Café du Monde is definitely the place. But, instead of going to the location in the French Quarter, which is always a madhouse, they should go to their location in City Park. When there is a line for eternity at the French Quarter location, you can typically walk directly in the City Park location and get a table straight away. The location at the park is just amazing and only the locals really know that it is there. While you are at the park, you can enjoy the Walking Sculpture Museum, the New Orleans Museum, and amazing oak trees throughout the park. Mid-City is pretty cool, which is also a part of City Park. That is where they host the Jazz Festival, which is awesome if you are in the area when it is being held.
One neat spot to visit while in New Orleans is the National World War II Museum. It is located on Magazine Street, in the Central Business District. They have some amazing displays and the amount of history and detail tells the story of the full war and what was behind it all. It is interesting not just for history buffs, but for everyone.
If you want music, then you will want to head to the French Quarter. There is a street called Frenchman Street that is great if you want to experience the musical culture of New Orleans. In all honesty, it is better to go to Frenchman Street as opposed to Bourbon Street.
TCO: Andy, you have given me some great spots in New Orleans, but what are some of your “go to places”?
AL: Well, some of the locations I named are my go-to places! I would certainly say Clancy’s for a good dinner, great drink list and fun atmosphere.
TCO: A common question we receive when teams are traveling for a regatta is where to find a good place for team dinners —somewhere that can accommodate large groups.
AL: Martin’s Wine Cellar is one good place. I have a coffee shop/breakfast place that everyone should know about called Celtica. It is super close to the Yacht Club. The place is exceptional—offering authentic French sandwiches made with real French bread. It’s the epitome of a true French bakery and the perfect spot to grab sandwiches for a day out on the water. Another place for large groups, is R&O’s, also located near the Yacht Club. They are known for their spaghetti and meatballs, pastas pizza and have really good po’boy sandwiches.
TCO: What about some local ideas for lay days during regattas?
AL: City Park and Audubon Park, for sure. The zoo it a fun place for an afternoon, and it is located at Audubon Park. Royal Street, which is just one street over from Bourbon Street, is known for its art galleries and antique stores. There is some cool stuff, that I don’t really do too much anymore, but swamp tours are fun. We have great fishing; we are especially known for Red Fish. New Orleans is truly known for its vast fishing and duck hunting. You can get a guide anywhere to take you out for a day. Our license plates say “Sportsman’s Paradise” for a reason. I am not a golfer, but there are some well known courses in the area, both municipal and PGA rated. Unfortunately, we are not known for hiking or cycling because the area around us is all flat. If you really want to go for a bike ride, you should ride the levy. In all honesty, it is so boring! You can ride it forever, just zig-zigging around the river. Sometimes you get a headwind and that is about the only time that you get any type of a challenge. I can say this because I used to ride it all the time when I was training in the Laser, and if I never ride it again, it would be too soon!
If you take a drive across the bridge to the north shore, it is beautiful. There you can find some gorgeous hiking and biking trails. The scenery is beautiful, and the terrain starts to get hilly, so it is a little challenging for biking and hiking. It is only about a 45 minute drive from where we are.
We have our professional sports teams as well. Depending on the time of the year that you are visiting, you can catch a Saints football game or the Pelicans basketball game. We don’t have a baseball team right now, but hopefully that will change soon.
You can’t forget the obvious attractions like theater and of course Mardi Gras! If you are visiting during Mardi Gras, you will know it. The entire city turns over into the festivities, so it will be in your face, so to speak. The Yacht Club has actually had to schedule regattas around the day of Mardi Gras because of all the parades and festivities around town.
TCO: Switching gears a bit back to sailing, when sailors travel to regattas, it is inevitable that they are going to need a sailmaker, rigger, chandlery, etc. Do you have any local recommendations that I can pass along?
AL: Absolutely, we have one of the best go to guys in the country right here! His name is Andrew Brennan. He has been the boatwright for the US Olympic Team for decades. For example, my brother did 4 Olympic Games, and Andrew’s Dad Donny was there for each one of them to support the team. There is another guy named Baker. The best way to get connected with these guys is through the Southern
Yacht Club’s Waterfront Director. I tell you there is no one better than Andrew Brennan. He is an artist when it comes to boats.
We have 2 sail lofts; there is a North Sails loft and Quantum loft. Both are super close to the Yacht Club. Our chandlery is Sintes and of course we have a West Marine right near the Club.
I would just like to say, New Orleans has so much to offer. It is a cultural hub of history, music, and food with its unique blend of influences. Sailing is just another great aspect of the area. If you have not had the opportunity to experience it, then you should add New Orleans to your list of places to check out.
Andy, thank you for taking the time to give us some great insights on New Orleans and some of your sailing accomplishments! Also, best of luck to you guys with the upcoming Opti Midwinters!
