US SAILING, national governing body of the sport, has recognized several sailing organizations and volunteers for their contribution and dedication to the sport of sailing during an awards presentation at the organization’s annual general meeting in Phoenix, Ariz., this evening. US SAILING President Janet Baxter presented several awards, including the Gay S. Lynn Trophy for outstanding contribution to disabled sailing (awarded to Gene Hinkel) and the Timmy Larr Award for outstanding contribution to the advancement of sailor education and training (awarded to Jo Mogle).

Gay S. Lynn Memorial Trophy
Gene Hinkel (St. Petersburg, Fla.) was presented with the Gay S. Lynn Trophy for outstanding contribution to disabled sailors and the sport of disabled sailing. Dedicated to the welfare and success of not only disabled sailing but also of individual sailors, Hinkel has been involved with disabled sailing for many years. His driving concern and mission are fair play and safety for all sailors. As a result, he has assisted them in many ways. He has run events for novice and severely disabled sailors in Access Dinghies, been involved with blind sailing and, perhaps most importantly, he has designed, developed and delivered adaptive aids for sailors around the world. His innovations in seating and other adaptive aids have meant that sailors could improve their performance in boats with increased safety. Additionally, as a member of the Technical Committee of the International Foundation for Disabled Sailing, Hinkel has traveled to numerous world championships as well as to the Paralympic Games in Sydney and Athens to serve as measurer. Hinkel’s service to the sport of disabled sailing, at the grass roots and at the international levels, made him a very worthy recipient of the Gay S. Lynn Trophy.

Timmy Larr Award
Jo Mogle (Punta Gorda, Fla.), a lifelong supporter of boating safety through education and training, has received US SAILING’s Timothea Larr Award for her lifelong commitment to standardized quality sailing education. The award is the US SAILING Training Committee’s highest honor, presented annually to an individual whose vision and guidance has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of sailor and education and training in the United States. Mogle exemplifies the best qualities, the highest standards and selfless devotion in her lifetime service to public service and boating education in general and specifically to US SAILING’s efforts to train sailors for safety and excellence. Her belief that no sailing instructor should lack a template for best practices in sailor education and training led her to her current role as the Training Committee’s Vice Chair for Standards and Credentials and liaison to several national boating organizations, including the National Safe Boating Council and National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA). A Small Boat Instructor Trainer and Keelboat Instructor as well as Regional Training Coordinator, she has visited and supported many courses nationwide, providing support and oversight and to continue to drive the culture of quality training forward. Her evaluation feedback reports are legendary and her work has become the gold standard of US SAILING’s quality control efforts.

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