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Dana Magliola, coach of North Carolina State’s SailPack sailing team, writes in to TownDock.net about this weekend’s SailPack Regatta.

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riental will once again welcome a large group of college sailors from across the country for the 10th Annual SailPack Oriental Intercollegiate Regatta, April 4–5. For those around town, that means a busy and lively weekend on the water and on shore with more than 120 college sailors and coaches descending on Oriental and Pamlico County for the weekend. For the visiting teams, this means great racing conditions, warm hospitality, and a weekend full of camaraderie and fun.

Coach Dana Magliola

This year’s event brings together teams from:

NC State, UNC Wilmington, Jacksonville University, Clemson University, Embry-Riddle, University of South Florida, Georgia Tech, University of Florida, Christopher Newport University, Virginia Tech, UNC-Chapel Hill, Queen’s University, University of Texas, Rice University, UC San Diego, the College of William & Mary, Michigan State University, Ole Miss, and Arizona State University.

Some are making long trips back to Oriental after competing here in past years, including Texas, Arizona State, and Michigan State, while others are new to the event, including Ole Miss in its first season of competition and Queen’s University, the first Canadian team to take part.

Racing will take place in double-handed sloop-rigged FJ dinghies with each team having two entries in the event, one is A-Division and another in B-Division. The two divisions rotate and race separately with all teams competing in a fleet race format. The collegiate racing format keeps things moving quickly with lots of short races over the course of the two-day regatta. With the finishing scores of each division combined, the final results rank the low score totals for the podium. Depending on the wind direction, racing will be visible from shore, especially from Lou Mac Park. On shore college sailors, coaches, families, fans and friends will be watching and enjoying the sights and sounds of Oriental.

While the regatta includes teams from all over the country, a handful have stood out this year based on their performances in the most competitive college sailing events during Fall 2025 and Spring 2026. Jacksonville University, NC State, Clemson University, and the University of South Florida have consistently finished near the top in strong conference and intersectional events including last weekend’s Azalea Bowl Regatta with Jacksonville and NC State finishing 1-2. These teams have been racing well against the strong competition in the Southeast and are likely to be in the mix again this weekend.

Christopher Newport comes from the Mid-Atlantic with strong results in high-level regattas outside the region and should be right in that same group. Behind them, there’s a large group of teams that have shown flashes in higher-level competition and could move up quickly if they put together a clean weekend. Teams like Virginia Tech, Michigan State, Florida, and UNC Wilmington have all competed in tougher events this year and have the experience to challenge near the top. With so many races and a large fleet, standings can change quickly, and it is not unusual to see teams move up or down the leaderboard throughout the weekend.

Live scoring will keep spectators up to speed on developments via Techscore at this link:
https://scores.collegesailing.org/s26/10th-annual-sailpack-oriental-intercollegiate

For Oriental and the sailors and coaches visiting Oriental, the regatta is as much about community as it is about competition. Many of the visiting sailors stay with local host families, and over the years the event has become known for its welcoming atmosphere, outstanding hospitality, and community engagement as much as its racing.

What started in 2015 as a small college sailing event with the goal of bringing younger folks to Oriental, has grown into a regatta that now draws teams from all over. With programs like Texas, Arizona State, and Michigan State returning again this year, along with new additions like Queen’s and Ole Miss, the SailPack Oriental Regatta continues to grow in both scale and reputation.

For locals, it remains a chance to see high-level college sailing up close, right off the waterfront with plenty of action, a wide range of teams, and a weekend atmosphere that has become a spring tradition in Oriental.

Related Links

• 2025 Sailpack Regatta
• SailPack 2023: Year of the Capsize

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