By Mike Ferring
Severin Gramm is the very model of a modern major sailor, racing to the top, with information floatable, foilable, and planable. He knows the kings of Magic and quotes the fights historical. He understands boat speed, both simple and quadratical. He is the very model of the kind of person Americans want trimming their next Cup boat.
Severin was our AYC March meeting speaker and explained to a roomful of AYCers how he came to be the starboard trimmer on the AC40 Youth America’s Cup team supported by American Magic. He started the way our ASF kids do, in a floating box called an Opti, gradually progressing to Brown University’s always-strong college sailing team and then deciding FJs and 420s are not his game and reaching for speed on a 29er skiff and other boats that break free of the bonds of flatwater.
He competed on the high-performance F18 skiff, winning European and World championships. He caught the attention of young Harry Melges IV, the 2021 US Sailing Rolex Yachtsman of the Year, and the pair often sail together. Harry was the starboard helmsman on the AC40, Siamesed ahead of Severin’s trim position.
The gameplan now: sail as much as possible in as many different boats as possible and do as well as possible so he’ll be considered for the next American Magic America’s Cup campaign. Later in March he’ll trim spinnaker on Terry Hutchinson’s TP52 in the Great Lakes series.
Of course, the sailing resume doesn’t describe the person, his personality and style, which are impressive. He’s handsome, with powerful physique and penetrating blue eyes. On a boat (he sailed with us), he’s extremely focused and active, always trimming: setup, halyard, sheets, inhaul, twist, traveler, Cunningham, and so on. He’s on and off the edge as he hikes. He says he’s looking for “the magic tenth of a knot.”
On and off the boat, he’s open and approachable, ready to answer questions and to share a blazing passion for sailing. It’s easy to imagine he’s a great teammate.
If you’d like to give Severin a little push, consider sending a contribution to his campaign to race in the Moth World Championships at Lake Garda. Write a check payable to: The Sailing Foundation of New York for Severin Gramm and mail it to: Thomas Stark, Sailing Foundation of New York, 116 Lakeshore Drive, North Palm Beach, FL 33408 Over the years, AYC has been host to some of the country’s greatest sailors. Watch this guy. He’s one of them.