William I. Koch Cup:
An International Stage for
Sea Scout Racing
Jack Otto, Past National BSA Sea Scout Boatswain, tells us all about the William I Koch Cup – an international competition for Sea Scouts!
Every other year, Sea Scouts from around the world descend on the United States in order to compete against each other. Their week of racing consists of qualifiers, finals, and a ceremony to present the winners with a larger than life silver trophy. In 2018, the William I. Koch International Sea Scout Cup was held at Sea Star Base in Galveston, TX, where competitors from 18 different countries gathered. While the racing was intense, and the results hinged on the last few races, all the competitors got a chance to get to know one another and enjoy their time at Koch Cup.
I was lucky enough to attend this event as a staff member and it was incredible watching 40 duos all become friends with their competitors. Even the first day during registration, a larger than normal game of UNO broke out at one of the tables, first starting with just a few players and then expanded until we had about 20 scouts all huddled around a table.
Swimming, movie nights, and games were a common occurrence, with competitors and staff alike, joining in on the fun. The organizers of the event, especially Chairman Philbrook, did an amazing job making sure that the racers were taken care of and were having a great time at the event.
From July 12th to 18th, 2020, the Koch Cup is returning to Galveston with hopes of having 20 International teams and 20 United States teams. The Event is open to currently registered International Scouts of a recognized foreign WOSM Scouting organization. Evidence of registration must be submitted to the Regatta Registrar.
International teams should visit the event website at https://seascoutcup.org for more information and to complete the international participant interest form or contact the event Chairman at chairman@seascoutcup.org expressing interest. Applications will be accepted between September 1, 2019 and January 1, 2020 for the 20 spots reserved for International teams.