We had beautiful conditions for our annual fall regatta. Temperatures in the low 70’s, blue skies, and a consistent northerly breeze from 6-12 knots plus gusts, diminishing to 4-8 knots with gusts to 10 for the final two races. The fleet completed six races with one throwout.
10 Sailors competed. Dave Breder of Oreland, PA and Corinthian Yacht Club of Cape May set the pace, winning the first race. Though challenged by Mark Sanford and Nick Pardini, Dave won the regatta with 10 points over the 5 races that counted, with Sanford beating Pardini in a tie-breaker for second place; both with 12 points.
Racing was close, with stiff competition throughout the fleet. Four sailors in the middle of the standings were separated by only 4 points.
Conditions were great, with full hiking half the time for most of the races. Shifts and puffs were both moderate for our lake, where sometimes they can be extreme. Shifts were generally about +/- 10 degrees, until the last two races when lulls resulted in bigger shifts to the left. Dave Fenimore benefitted from a big left shift early in the final race (W-L, 3x), and was half a leg ahead of the fleet when he capsized at the leeward mark. He kept a decent lead upon righting the boat, but had torn off his tiller extension, so was at a disadvantage in the ensuing puffs. Got passed, but hung on for a third. Impressive sailing for having been away from the sport for several years until very recently.
Thanks to everyone for coming out; especially Pat Phelan who drove over two hours from Maryland’s Eastern Shore to finish 4th. Good showing, Pat!
Thanks to Charlie Lindsay for providing the Signal Boat and his expertise, along with Dan and Eve Walters and Allyn Miner for serving on the RC. And thanks to all the competitors who pitched-in to help get things set-up and disassembled later.
I’ve included the full results below.
I hope everyone had fun. I think so. That’s why we do it!
-Vince Harris
