Recaps

MC Nationals Recap (contributed by Jon Pomerleau - 2367)
MC Fleet 4 Recaps	By Fleet 4 Administrator on 6/23/2007 9:49 PM

I see that they have the final results posted, so no surprises there. The Kimball train just keeps rolling. This was a really tough regatta for everyone. No matter how bad you were doing, you could look over and see a rock star or two struggling next to you. Not only is it a little unusual for Jamie to put up 35 points over 6 races, but that was still a 41 point shellacking of his nearest competitor, Zack Clayton. Clayton's average finish was 13th to take second place! The regatta was not about working oscillating shifts. It was about clean starts (as always) and being on the right side of the course. There were some oscillations, but it was more a case of persistent shifts throughout the regatta. The weatherman was just as wrong today as the previous two. After calling it light, then getting breeze in the teens the first two days, they called it in the teens for today and we got light (unless it came up after we left). The sailors started the first race sitting on the high side with only an occasional move into the hiking straps. Rob Terry, having only been in an MC one day (thank you - DM 2188 at GWB) since last August returned to form and was the best boat on the water today. After a nice 2 in the first race of the day, he started the second with Kimball below him and Clayton above him. He worked out from between the two of them and led the race for the first two legs until the breeze died and the RC canceled. Rob, who had a chance to trade a 1 for a 50 if the breeze held for the 7th race, was one of many who might have made a big move in the standings with the throw-out. June sailed a great regatta, but lost out to Brie Hatton, who packed on her dad Brett (all 240 lbs.) when the breeze was up. Some might say that having a multiple National Champ as crew was an advantage, but I think we just need to pack some pounds on Marry Ann.

Ted Greene's "Thrill Seeker" wins M17 Bluewater Regatta by 11 points - By Jon Pomerleau (2367)!
MC Fleet 4 Recaps	By Fleet 4 Administrator on 6/18/2007 6:15 AM

The sailing gods smiled on Crystal Lake as the Bluewater M17 Regatta kicked off Saturday morning with 15-20 mph winds from the south. Ted Greene was kind enough to pull his hull out of storage and turn it over to a couple of M17 novices, Rob Terry and yours truly. The first race was rather spectacular as Charlotte, NC pro Bill Wiggins stuck his bow in a wave and did a high speed cartwheel that would make a cat sailor proud. His wife (crew) immediately came down with a case of heavy air flu and left Bill searching for crew on the shore. We rounded in the top 5, hunted down a big black cannon ball and smoked the fleet to the bottom mark. We extended and won by a large enough margin to go back to the club and change to warmer clothes before the next race. The breeze and waves built a little for the second race as Brian McMurray led the fleet to the first mark. We got the kite up quicker and immediately rolled him. A few moments later I looked over and noticed our starboard upper sidestay was swinging in the breeze. We cranked the vang and mainsheet then jibed over to port to take the load off that side. I grabbed a shackle off the lifting bridle while Rob drove the boat and flew the kite over the 2 foot chop in 20 mph breeze. How the stick stayed in the boat I have no idea. By the time we got repaired, we had lost Brian and 1-2 others. At the end, we couldn't quite catch Brian and settled for a 2 in what was arguably our best effort of the weekend. A third race was sailed before lunch and we were able to get things dialed in a little better and won by a larger margin than the first race. The breeze let up in the afternoon as we sailed 2 more races in 6-12 mph. Knowing our heavy air advantage was gone, we were ready to take some hits in the lighter breeze. Bob Wynkoop with June Howell had a pair of killer starts and looked very fast up the beat. We rounded with the leaders but sailed off to oblivion as most of the fleet jibed over and caught solid breeze along the shore. We found ourselves in 9th at the bottom and were fortunate to fight back to a 5th in the end. E Scow Champion Tom Munroe, crewing for his 13 year old son Tommy, finished 3rd (we have not stopped hearing about that). The fifth and final race of the day had a little more breeze. We struggled for the first couple of legs before a good final downwind allowed us to get an inside overlap on a large pack of boats. We left the mess behind and went on to a solid 2, taking a 13 point lead to dinner that evening. Sunday morning brought an uncommon easterly with moderate pressure and 9 miles worth of chop. We led for a while, then let Wiggins go as we covered our three nearest competitors. A nice 2 gave us a 17 point lead and the option to put the boat on the trailer with a dying breeze. We decided to sweat it out with the rest of the fleet as the breeze got unstable. We had a decent lead half way up the second beat before sailing back and forth a few times while 6-7 boats sailed by. Bill Wiggins was great in the light stuff and won both races. Mary Anne Ward looked faster than anyone upwind in the light to moderate and was able to take second overall with a nice 4 and 3 morning. Results: http://www.clyc.net/scores/m-17-bluewater.htm After the trophies, Candi, June and Mary Anne all did a nice job hyping LESC and its great events, inviting everyone to come down and sail next year. Hopefully I will be able to walk and hold a mainsheet by Wednesday when we head over to Torch!

Good winds & Great Fun End the 06-07 Season!
MC Fleet 4 Recaps	By Fleet 4 Administrator on 5/30/2007 5:58 AM

All I spoke to agree - it has been a great windy season and last weekend was no exception. Light 3-7 knot winds in the morning grew to 8-15 both days out of the East with fair skies and upper 80's temps. Saturday's "regular racing" saw Lee (2201) with Ben Getchell as crew jump out on both races to take back-to-back bullets. David M. (2188) overcame some disastrous starts to challenge Lee at one point and sneak into the lead, but could not hold it and took two 2nds. Patrick (2292) missed some shifts, but kept up his usual superior boatspeed to claim the 3rd spot in both races. Saturday afternoon, the gang got together at a vastly expanded "tent city" for games, naps, sailing, and fun. Christy (Moorhouse clan friend) and Brian (Moring clan friend) braved the waters of Eustis with Randy Boekema on his Flying Scot "for a 3-hour tour" in the mounting 20-knot winds and came back looking VERY wet and smiling. From this experience, they came up with the 10 things you NEVER want to hear your skipper say (see below). Several new members of the camping club came out - Cesar Toro (1504), Robert Newland (Flying Scot) and families, and the kids practically took care of themselves. Sunday's racing was Dave William's "crazy courses" with downwind starts and courses ranging from a simple short Leeward-Windward to a modified Z course. Many packed on crew with David M. (2074) taking most of his family at one time or another, David M. (2188) with Brian, Lee again with Ben, Cesar with his son and Jon Pomerleau (2367) with Pearce. Patrick easily dominated both races where downwind speed was at a premium to separate quickly, and the first mark roundings were VERY busy! Taken together this was a GREAT weekend to end a GREAT season for the LESC Fleet 4 MC bunch. Be sure to rest up, see your family and get ready for a wonderful summer series (see Calendar) and an even more competitive fall! Top 10 Things You Never Want to Hear Your Skipper Say! 1. Anybody know which way to the Clubhouse? 2. I’ve never seen this much water in the boat before. 3. You ever seen Gilligan’s Island? 4. I always make it back… eventually. 5. Ahhhhh! What the hell? 6. Did anyone pack the life jackets? 7. Hey! Look at all the stuff floating in the boat! 8. I’ve never been out here when it’s this rough. 9. How far do you think you can swim? 10. Anyone bring a cell phone?