Naples
Regatta Report - Region 3 Championship The EC 12 Region 3 Championship was held at the “VillageWalk” community, a new sailing site for the Naples Model Yacht Club. The site has some nice small shade trees near the launch site, but few other wind restrictions. Skippers were able to gain an elevated viewing site, as the land slopes down about 10 feet near the lake. There was rain early Saturday morning, but by race start time it was mostly just overcast. The wind was 5- 8 mph from the East, perfect “A” rig weather. Usually, there are more than 20 boats entered in this Regatta, requiring two fleets. 19 boats entered. With good conditions and a long start line, race director Jack Wubbe had all boats in one fleet charging the line at 10:00 AM. It was a pretty sight. We continued to race as one fleet with a 10 minute break after every three or four races. After a comfortable lunch, racing resumed, but with one three race series completed after lunch, a shower came through and halted racing. The rain stopped and the wind went light and shifted 180 degrees to the west. We raced the remainder of the day into a light shifty westerly. The last race of the day was punctuated by high gusts from the east and an inch of liquid Florida Sunshine. At the end of the day with 15 races completed, the top five were Hedderick, Bremer, Perkins, Dion, and Kelter. An excellent dinner was held Saturday evening at L’Osteria, a restaurant at VillageWalk. Dinner was prepaid to avoid delays with payments after dinner. With $2 beers, the evening was very enjoyable. Sunday was a rain event. Race Director Wubbe determined we would run six more races. Wind was back to the East again, but a bit lighter than Saturday. The field tightened and racing got exciting as Bremer scored several bullets and Perkins continued to place near the top. In the end, the top five positions remained the same. Handsome wood plaque trophies, engraved with a line drawing of an EC 12, were awarded to the top five positions. The “Ancient Mariner” trophy (highest position over age 70), went to Fred Pfeil. Al Stall, who was unable to sail on Sunday, placed last and gets a free pass the this regatta next year. Final Standings after 21 races and 2 throw-outs:Results
|