Naples "New Year Regatta" Report Naples New Year Regatta January 11&12, 2014 By Dick Hedderick The Naples Regatta was the 3rd regatta of the Florida winter series. It was well attended with 31 skippers. Jacksonville had 6, The Villages 6, Punta Gorda 4, Palm Beach Gardens 3, and Atlanta 1. The remaining skippers were from Naples. With P/R fleet management we had 17 boats on the line in the B fleet and 18 in the A fleet. The event was held at a new Collier County lake which the Naples Model Yacht Club just started sailing on January 1st. As shown in the aerial photo, the lake is accessible from all sides. (North is up.) This accessibility turned out to be valuable, because the wind changed a lot during the regatta. Saturday morning the wind was light and coming generally from the South. Race Director Bud Cassidy set a course starting at mark 3 going to mark 1, with throw ins used for offsets. This course was challenging because the wind was very shifty and oscillated between SE and SW. This was light air A rig conditions. After lunch the wind finally went decidedly southwest and increased to 15 mph. Bud then set a course starting between 5 and 6 and going around 2 and 1. This was a long upwind slog and definitely B rig conditions. Towards the end of the day, we were getting a few breakdowns and cartwheels. Saturday night we had a great dinner at Spanky's, a casual local restaurant with reasonably priced but good food. The night also brought a nice shower and a cool front from the north. Sunday morning brought a bright crisp day with a steady wind from the Northeast at 5-10. Bud Cassidy then set a course starting between 1 and 2 and going up around 6 and 5. This was a spectacular day and perfect A rig conditions. Despite the large fleet, the starts were reasonably clean with many boats spread down the line. We got a few pictures taken mostly on Sunday. Pictures are courtesy of Bill Oberpriller and Karen Luscomb: Here is part of a B fleet heat just after the start. The wind is about 5 mph. Roman Cibirka (462) and Frankie Novak (66) had started at the port end. Roman recently purchased 462 and plans to join us at all future Florida regattas. John Bottensek (11), Doc Greer (100), John Goldsworthy (50) and George Balashak (2200) had started in the middle. Ulrike Kelter (18), Bud Elder (13), and Jim Pardee (72) had started at the port end and are peeling off on port tack. Tom Phillips strolls down the walkway... Below is another picture of a B Fleet with Bill Oberpriller's new, home assembled boat (44) pacing upwind with Dan Pearce (56) and Dave Boulanger (34). Pictured below is part of A fleet just after a start. The wind has built to about 10 and most skippers have cracked off the main to bleed power: Shown right to left is Jon Luscomb (45), Jack Ward (01), Alan Perkins (14), Gerhard Kelter (118), Alan Dion (74), and John Bottensek (11). Here is another A Fleet picture below with the boats reaching across to the leeward offset: Leading this pack is Joe Walter (24), EC-12 class secretary. Martin Gray (83) is trying to gain an inside overlap on George Balashak (2200), while Dick Hedderick (38) waits (patiently?) on the outside for the boats to round the next mark. No picture group would be complete without a shot of a gorgeous hand planked wood deck. Shown is Jack Wubbe's woodie (123), lifting up on Jon Luscomb (45). Who won this one? What happens at the lake stays at the lake... After a total of 13 races, Alan Perkins continued his streak of wins in the Florida series. Shown left to right is Al Dion (5th), Dick Hedderick (4th), Gerhard Kelter (3rd), Joe Walter (2nd), Alan Perkins (1st), and Brenda Pardee, top finish, female skipper. Finishing positions of all skippers is listed below. And here is a picture of a smiling Race Director, Bud Cassidy (left) and Regatta Host, Dick Hedderick. Why are they smiling? This regatta is over! We do hope you enjoyed the weekend. Results
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