Would Hurricane Earl precipitate the cancellation of the regatta? Fingers were crossed on Friday evening, when Earl was slated to pass by the east end of Long Island, NY and the south shore Bellport Bay Yacht Club would be caught in some of his wind and heavy seas. Lon Ethington and Meg Gimmi drove out from New Jersey in the morning. Boats were delivered to the club in the afternoon and secured. Some pretty strong gusts were felt during the night but no damage occurred.
Saturday dawned with a clear blue sky and lots of westerly wind after Earl headed north. After postponement on shore and a survey to see which fleets wanted to race in the 22 – 25 knot winds, the race committee headed out. The 4 Windmills had indicated they would race but, after testing the winds, reluctantly decided against temping fate. “When you crew has that ‘deer in the headlights’ look as you are head out to the racecourse, you need to rethink your plan,” said Windmill Class Prez. Lon Ethington (5070). Roy Sherman & Matt Miranda (1823), Charlie and Jane Davidson (3450), and Eric & Emily Francois (3049) comprised the rest of the fleet. While all 4 boats did go out for a ride, no Windmill racing took place on Saturday. Roy Sherman’s “Black & Blue” had been brought to the club as a loaner for a south shore sailor who then couldn’t make it, so a couple of the club’s junior sailors took the boat out, had a blast reaching in the big breeze but weren’t too upset when Roy realized the only 2 boats left on the water both belonged to him and had them go in when he did. The big wind, with hefty gusts, caused a number of capsizes in all the fleets. Two 420’s were rescued after being de-masted when they turtled and got stuck in the mud of the shallow bay. The Club had plenty of chase boats available to assist since the Opti fleet was racing on another circle, closer to shore.
Sunday was also a beautiful day, with a bit less wind. All the fleets elected to race so the Windmills shared a circle with Narrasketucks, 420s, Lasers, and Sunfish. The big PHRF boats were also started by the circle’s RC but finished elsewhere. Two races were completed before the RC decided to give the fleets a break for lunch and, with the wind building, the Windmills elected not to return to the racecourse. The races that were completed saw some excellent speed by all the boats with 5070 winning both races and 1823 placing 2nd. Charlie and Jane (3450), who had driven out from Manhattan to race the boat for the first time this year, took 3rd in race 1 but withdrew during the 2nd, taking 3rd overall. Eric & Emily (3049) were 4th in race 1 and then headed in shortly after starting race 2.
For a regatta with no entry fee the Bellport Bay Yacht Club did a pretty nice job with regatta management. Continental breakfast both mornings, beer after the racing, water and soda for participants, and lunches available for purchase were all part of the package. Each skipper & crew received a silver cup as a trophy, 3 deep. The on the water committee did a good job in trying conditions and did go back out Sunday afternoon to run a race for the PHRF and Sunfish fleets. With a long tradition of Windmills at this Club it would be nice to have a bigger fleet next year. After a wonderful dinner at Roy and Marcey’s house with all the participants on Saturday evening, it was decided to make it an annual event.
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