May 30 US12 Sailing
May 30th was the second day of racing for the US12s. The weather cooperated, with gentle winds and warm temperatures. As can sometimes be the case, the two toughest legs were the short ones because the wind was shifty, especially close to shore.
The previous week, Bill Hagerup had his boat dialed in and was hard to beat. This week, Tim Wright had the magic. He won nine of the ten races, and Bill was second in eight. There were times the other sailors wondered how Tim was getting the wind and sailing right past their boats. Tim wondered that too, but didn’t ask too many questions.
Jerry Leach came in third, showing consistency. Don McBride was close behind in fourth, Bob Brennan in fifth, and John McClun in sixth. John would have done better, but he missed a few marks and had to go back to go around them, losing places but never his enthusiasm.
Bob did stop talking long enough to take a second place in one race. After the sailing, Bob weighed his boat, which came in almost two pounds over the sixteen-pound minimum!The competition at the back of the fleet was tight and many of the finishes were ever so close. The most important thing was that the sailors and the spectators all had a good time.
It is worth mentioning that Diane Labella has been coming on Thursday before, during, and after the racing, practicing with her Soling and working consistently to improve her skills for the Tuesday Soling races.
Hopefully the weather and the wind will cooperate next week.
Sasquatch Footy Regatta
On June 1 the annual Sasquatch Footy Regatta was held on Back Bay. Our numbers were down a little this year because of a regatta conflict in Portsmouth, but it was an enjoyable event nonetheless. The sun broke through and there was a mixture of winds to challenge the skippers.
At the end of the day it was Tim Wright who took the win, followed by defending champion Herb Dreher second, Jim Linville third, Herb Cotterly fourth, and Jack Berglund fifth. Nine skippers managed thirteen races, with trophies going to the top three places.
At the end of the day it was Tim Wright who took the win, followed by defending champion Herb Dreher second, Jim Linville third, Herb Cotterly fourth, and Jack Berglund fifth. Nine skippers managed thirteen races, with trophies going to the top three places.
June 4 Soling Regatta
Finally a decent sailing day for the Solings! A little too windy for some, but for those who joined the regatta it was spectacular. The previously unseen sun poked out from behind the clouds, the previously chilly temperatures had risen to mid-sixties, and the wind was a manageable 10 to 12 mph. There was no problem completing ten races for this the first scored Soling regatta.
A few sat out the regatta not wanting to battle the wind, but we did welcome back our snowbirds Rick Lalley, Howard Germon, and Don McBride. Twelve boats launched for scores; three more boats went in the water but didn’t make the score sheet.
Sadly, Rick Lalley made the three-hour trip from Thomaston Maine only to get knocked out with a severe leak before the regatta even started. Not all was lost, however. He did receive his Master Class second-place award for 2018.
Bruce Brown had electrical issues that knocked him out of contention as well.
Leading the Sailor Class was Paul McBride, followed by Paul Wallace, and Al Stevens. The Master Class leader, of course, was the seemingly unbeatable Tim Wright, with Howard Germon in second, and Rick Gates in third.
Join the Fun
We have a wonderful group of participants for this challenging-but-fun hobby. Young and old can join, and those wanting to build a yacht should keep in mind our boat-building class at the NH Boat Museum July 8 through July 12. The link will take you to a sign-up for the building class.
https://www.nhbm.org/model-yachting/model-yacht-building/
If you don’t want to build a boat, we’ll help you find a used one. Don’t want to sail? Just come and watch — we put on a great show every Tuesday and Thursday starting at 1:00 PM, weather permitting. Be sure to bring your camera.