J/22 South East Circuit

Ironman Regatta
Despite the tornados that were about to begin Sunday night on the drive home, the 2003 Ironman
Regatta at the Birmingham Sailing Club was one of the lightest air affairs on record. The lack of wind did
not deter the race committee from getting off 4 once around races on an “Opti” size windward-leeward
course that still took nearly an hour to complete each time.

Regatta winner Sean Clare needed for the last race of the regatta to secure this first win of the 2003
Circuit. The Freeman/Robertson team turned in a good showing but in the light and fluky winds were
unable to repeat their win last year in Birmingham. Everyone agreed that the on the water highlight of
the regatta was the “Buccaneer” joke emanating from the 1422 boat during the mid day swim-fest.

With 9 boats on the line, participation in the regatta was enhanced by the out of town attendance
including 2 boats from Nashville and 2 from Atlanta, along with local sailor Robert Reich who got excited
at the J/22 fleet turnout and jumped in a extra boat, only to decide after the first race that the onshore
refreshments looked a lot more enticing. The Hospitality of the Birmingham Sailing Club was once again
top notch and everyone looks forward to more wind at next year’s regatta.

Waiting for the wind

Still waiting for the wind, but racing

Equalizer Regatta

What a great weekend for sailing. Saturday the temperature was in the mid 70's with the breeze out of
the South between 10-15mph with some gust to 20mph. The race committee PRO, Bruce Richards, got
off 3 flawless races with very long beats and it made for very competitive racing. In the second race
boats #1261, #202 and #475 all finished overlapped and finished in that order.

After the Racing on Saturday the fleet went to the Clare's house for a cookout. Fun was had by all!t.

Then the dreaded Sunday appeared. Not only the time change having a strange effect on the fleet, But
the weather changed also. The temperature dropped to 50 degrees and the wind shifted to the North
from an overnight front. However, not all was lost. We still had velocity. The breeze stayed constant in
the 10-15mph range. The only issue was on the water trying to find the weather mark through the fog.
It made for an interesting 2 races.
This Equalizer was one of the best ever remembered and the smile on all of the sailors faces couldn't be
removed.

Lake Wylie Autumn Regatta

On November 15-16, the Catawba Yacht Club hosted the final regatta for the Southeastern District
traveling series with the Lake Wylie Autumn Regatta. All of the competitors arrived Friday, and most of
them had their sticks up before nightfall. The earliest arrivals were the two Js from the Tawas Bay
Yacht Club, Michigan - Judd Lather and Jennifer Princing wanted to be sure and get the best campsites
at the club.
After some tasty chili and hot dogs for all, John Powell from Pamlico Sailing Club graciously provided an
informative tuning clinic. John was able to net out all of the details of tuning guides into some simple
rules of thumb that he uses regularly to win regattas.

Saturday proved to be a challenge for the race committee. By the time the skippers meeting ended, the
wind had shifted 90 degrees from the course laid out before the meeting. The wind had also dropped too
low for a race start. After 45 minutes of guessing what the wind would do, the breeze finally picked up
and shifted to take best advantage of the north-south orientation of the lake.
John Powell used some of his own tuning tactics to win the first race in the regatta. However, he was
unable to repeat that level of performance in the remaining two races for the day. Sean Clare and Treez
Deeker were able to bring home the wins in those two races. Racing concluded just as the sun was
setting - painting the sky many colors of orange and red. A good ending to a fine day on the lake, and a
good start of fine dining on BBQ pork provided by the club.

Racing started promptly at 9:00 AM on Saturday, but the wind was not quite ready for that start. The
light wind proved difficult for many skippers who are not accustomed to lake sailing - there were some
dramatic shifts that gave some skippers the edge they needed to excel. Sean Clare won the first race of
the day, followed close behind by John Powell. Tom Martin of the Catawba Yacht Club finished with a
respectable third place in that trying race.

The second and third race of the day provided more wind and two new winners. Jennifer Princing won
the second race with the able assistance of husband Chris. The third race resulted in a general recall
after Judd Lather collided with Sean Clare in the final seconds of the countdown; Judd went on to win
that race.

As racing concluded for the day, Ron Wright, race PRO, observed that only one skipper had won more
than one race - an indication that competition was stiff throughout the regatta. After the tallying was
done, Sean Clare was declared the regatta winner. He had won two races and consistently finished in
the top three positions. John Powell took second and Treez Decker third.

The fleet spreads out looking for wind.

Clare leads the fleet upwind.