First things first:
Our hearts go out to the victims of the Orlando attacks and their families, as well as the people of Orlando. We're all in this ship together.
But you came here for some racing news. So now we'll get to that.
The New York Yacht Club hosted its Annual Regatta presented by Rolex over the weekend, starting with the Around the Island Race. The wind shut down toward the end of the race, and a southerly filled in and picked everyone up in a jumble. That meant that over 100 boats found the finish line at the same time. Chaos ensued. Racing on Sunday was just as destructive, with winds hitting upwards of 27 knots. There are reports that a TP-52 lost her rig. You can see photos from Day Three here, but check out the incredible video of the Around the Island finish below. It's stressful enough being race committee...
Bay-biased results for the Around the Island Race:
Aura, Bill Kardash: 5th, IRC 5
Bobsled, Bob Moran: 5th C&C 30
Cecile Viking, Vidar Skjelstad: 4th, ORR
Defiance, Jim Reynolds: 7th, IRC 5
Rush, Bill Sweetser: 3rd, IRC 5
Swift, Ethan Doherty: 4th, IRC 5
Wahoo, Matt Robbins: 5, IRC 2
Overall results:
Annie, Gary Gilbert: 6, Etchells
Aura, Bill Kardash: 6, IRC 5
Bobsled, Bob Moran: 5, C&C30
Cecile Viking, Vidar Skjelstad: 9th, ORR Navigators
Crackerjack, Alan Krulisch: 3, PHRF NS
Defiance, Jim Reynolds: 11, IRC 5
Rush, Bill Sweetser: 2, IRC 5
Swift, Ethan Doherty: 9, IRC 5
Wahoo, Matt Robbins: 1, IRC 2
Annapolis Yacht Club hosted their Annual Regatta as well, and strong and steady winds made for an excellent day on the water. Top three in each class are as follows:
PHRF A0:
1. Endorphin, Erik Wulff
PHRF A1:
1. Saykadoo, Stephen McManus
2. Dailey Tipton, Dailey Tipton
3. Blockade Runner, Bruce Bingman/Taran Teague
PHRF A2:
1. Monkey Dust, Craig and Dotty Saunders
2. Kalevala II, Tapio Saavalainen
3. Xiberger, Harald Mangold
PHRF Shorthanded Spinnaker:
1. La Fortuna, David Powell
2. Stacked Deck, Ramzi Bannura
3. Flashpoint, Dan Leonard
PHRF Cruising Spinnaker:
1. Island Girl, Brian Flynn
2. Resolute, David Adams
3. Rendexvous, Rodger Carter
PHRF Cruising Non-Spin
1. Sundog, Paul Parks
2. A PArent Tripp, Brett Harrison
3. Mischief, Peter Henry
J/22:
1. Hot Toddy, Jeff Todd
2. Ekas, Jason Ipe
3. USA 977, Gunnar Gode
J/30:
1. Rag Doll, Rob and Beth Lundahl
2. Bebop, Bob Rutsch
3. Insatiable, Ron Anderson
J/70:
1. Leading Edge, Todd Hiller
2. Phoenix, Peter Firey
3. Sport, Gregg Zurmuhlen
J/80:
1. Vayu, David Andril
2. Some Respect, Richard Harrison
3. Cool J, Alexander Kraus
J/105:
1. Mirage, Lewis/Salvesen
2. One Less Bad Person, John White
3. Bat IV, Andrew Kennedy
In the Southern Bay, 20 boats raced this past Thursday to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of Norfolk’s Harborfest. Bill Ripley’s Obsession won the Norfolk Mayor’s Cup. Boats sailing were broken into two fleets, PHRF Spinnankers and Cruising. RESULTS: PHRF SPINNAKER (9 boats): 1.Christian Schaumloffel, Mirage; 2.Gordon Edwards, Cowboy; 3.Ian Hill, Sitella. CRUISING (11 boats): 1.Bill Ripley, Obsession; 2.Tom Lira, Colgate; 3.Bob Archer, Bad Habit. The race started in Hampton Roads harbor near Craney Island and had a lovely reach up the Elizabeth River to the finish line at Waterside, in the center of the Harborfest festival. Event Chairman-Preston Carraway; Principal Race Officer-John McCarthy; Official Scorer and Finish Line Race Officer-Scott Almond; Signal Boat- Eric Matherne, Tardis (Portsmouth); VIP and Photo Boat-Michael Pitchford, Winsome Winn (Annapolis).
If you're looking for Photoboat's pictures of Southern Bay Race Week, check 'em out here.
[caption id="attachment_95503" align="alignright" width="450"]
The crew of Bad Cat coming out to the starting line[/caption]
A few racers are taking their game off the Bay with the Bacon Sails and Marine Supplies Annapolis to Bermuda Race. As of 10:30 last night, the majority of the fleet had passed through the most vigorous section of the Gulf Stream, progressing into eddy territory, where picking the correct side of the course can make or break you. The shorthanded Mini Transat Trouble No Trouble, Music, and Shuang Hsi were still picking their way through the Gulf Stream currents. Bob Cantwell's Rival is on the other side of the fleet, leading the pack and certainly further left of rhumb than most others. Rival currently has 228 nautical miles to their dark and stormies...
A couple of boats have dropped out of the race, after higher-than-anticipated winds (30 knots in some cases) hit the fleet coming out of the Bay. Lady in Red and Alyosha have both dropped out, reporting no injuries or issues. Lady in Red is headed back to Rock Hall, while Alyosha is motorsailing the rest of the way. Other boats reported heavy seas, storms, and sea sickness upon entering the ocean. At 10:30 last night, winds were topping out around 22 knots, but looked to be dropping steadily as the night went on, with a max of 18 knots by 2 p.m. today. At the morning call-in, boats reported a cold front that had moved in overnight, bringing with it thunderstorms and gale force winds (30-40 knots) for a few hours. Schematic posted a top boat speed of 15.6 knots during the night. Everybody is doing well. Hopefully crews will be able to get some rest today and enjoy the ride.
Be sure to follow our Annapolis to Bermuda page for all the action and updates, including the live tracker.
