O&P IN THE COMMUNITY
PETER PHILLIPS COMPETITION UPDATE:
2025 Mobility Cup and U.S. Para Sailing Champtionships results
Late August brought high winds and rough waters to Lake Saint-Louis just outside Montreal, Quebec, Canada. This was the setting for the 2025 Mobility Cup, where Peter Phillips competed among some of the top sailors in North America from August 25-29.
​
Most of the field was comprised of Canadian sailors, but Peter and several other regulars from the Challenged Sailors San Diego (CSSD) organization made the journey to Quebec for the competition. The event started with a day of course practice followed by ten races over three days. Peter competed in the Gold class of more skilled, solo sailors.
​
“The conditions were the biggest surprise, it was not at all what I was used to,” Peter said of the difficult sailing weather. “After the first practice race it became a more comfortable environment. But it was definitely extremely wet and rough.”
​
The Silver fleet, with two sailors, didn’t get to practice on day one because of the conditions. Sailors were allowed to have another person in the boat for safety, and this also helped the boats balance better when the wind and waves picked up.
​
Although he didn’t place overall, Peter did have some good races and earned the Darren Tucker Memorial Award for Sportsmanship.
“There was one day where it did become a little more quiet, the wind was lighter, the seas were more calm, so my results were better that day,” he said. He placed third in one race that day, beating the overall winner of the regatta. “If I had kept that up, I would have had a much different overall outcome.”
​
Even with all the challenges, Peter said he had a great time.
​
“Overall, I felt that I did well. When the final race was over I just kept sailing. I really enjoyed it and by the end I was loving sailing on Lake Saint-Louis.”
​​
​
Full 2025 Mobility Cup race
results can be found here.
More photos of Peter racing
in the 2025 Mobility Cup
can be found here.
​​
A month later back in San Diego, Peter competed in the U.S. Para Sailing Championships. He said the conditions were a stark difference from the high winds and chop of the Mobility Cup.
​
“We had one day that was kind of blustery but generally speaking, it was 6-8 knots. One day was cloudy and windier but mostly it was sunny and beautiful, and pretty perfect conditions,” he said.
​
Even with ideal waters, Peter found he wasn’t on his A-game. “For some reason in San Diego I was in a bit of a funk,” he said. “A lot of my starts were just average and I just didn’t have a good regatta. I couldn’t tell you why.”
​
Peter’s previous race history from over the past two years had him tied with the overall winner going into the event.
​
“I felt as if I should have done better so it’s disappointing, but it happens to some of the best sailors in the world.”
​
His training and preparation has paid off, both on the water and in daily life. He said he is noticeably stronger now than he was before he started training.
​
“Sailing comes down to a lot of finesse, even though you do have to use a lot of muscles,” he said. “I didn’t have to focus on being strong because I was stronger than I had been previously. I was therefore better able to focus on the finesse.”
​
Look for Peter and CSSD every Friday and Saturday in the San Diego Bay. Sailing experiences are free to anyone with a disability who is interested, and more information can be found on their website.
Tell us how we're doing!
Download and complete our patient satisfaction survey to give us feedback about your time at Bionics. We look forward to hearing from you and appreciate your feedback.
​
​​
​
​
If you'd like to write a testimonial or submit photos for us to publish on the website, please email us at bionics@sbcglobal.net.
​​