FLEET 50 ARCHIVES FROM 2004Nabeel Wins 2004 Bloody Rudder Award! Nabeel Alsalam took first place in the 2004 Bloody Rudder competition, with Bobby Astrove second. The Bloody Rudder Perpetual is a traveler's trophy awarded to a Fleet 50 skipper. The trophy was donated in 2002 by Jeff Storck who broke two rudders in 2001. To qualify for the trophy, the skipper must sail in at least 6 of the 11 regattas marked with a "B" on the calendar. Those begin with the "No Gas" on April 27-28 and end with the Borderline in late October. Here are the details. Thacher Tiffany Wins US Sailing's Community Sailing Award! Our own Thacher Tiffany (Laser & Lightning sailor) has won a great honor. Unfortunately, he left the area last fall to pursue an urban planning degree at MIT, but we are glad that his great efforts to build a community sailing program on the Anacostia have received some recognition. Here is the announcement of the award. Website Gets Over 6,790 Visits in 2004! The 6,790th website visit, after tracking started on March 1, occurred on December 31. Check it out! Final Draft of 2005 Yearbook Report is Available for Your Review! The final draft of the 2005 ILCA Yearbook report is available for your review. If no other editing takes place, this is about how it will look when it is laid out in the 2005 ILCA Yearbook. If you liked the first draft better, here it is. Jason
Werner
wins
2004
Purnell
Cup!
Congratulations
to
Jason
Werner,
of
the
Havre
De
Grace
Fleet,
who
won
this
year's
Purnell
Cup
trophy.
Jason
topped
46
other
Dixie
District
sailors
who
competed
in
1
or
more
of
the
6
regattas
that
were
a
part
of
the
Purnell
Cup
series.
Those
regattas
were:
the
Potomac
Cup,
Sweet
Corn,
Duck
Challenge,
SMSA
Invitational,
Frigid
Digit,
and
the
Hampton
Fling.
Jason
was
one
of
3
skippers
who
did
5
of
the
6
regattas.
The
other
two
were
Star
Michel
and
Matt
Jay.
John
Bates
did
4.
PRSA Frostbite Regatta, Saturday, November 13. We had sunny skies, a high of 46 degrees, and winds from the north at 17 - 21 MPH, with higher gusts. The water temperature was a bone-chilling 48 degrees, and the river flow was higher than average, at 13,000 CFS (gage height 4.3 ft). This was a good kick-off for the winter Frostbite season. PRSA Annual Banquet, Saturday, November 13. More than 70 PRSA skippers and crew attended. Many thanks to Dave and Annette Dalbec who hosted us at the Terrace party room, and to Cathy Bleakly, who organized and managed the food and beverage acquisitions. Nabeel Takes First Place in the 2004 Championship Series! The top 4 finishers have closely-clustered final scores, with Nabeel on top at 127.5; Frank second at 141; Rick Welch third at 152.1, and Steve Gregg fourth at 189.6. Congratulations! Twenty-five skippers were on the water for at least one race during the year. Here are the details. PRSA Fall Series # 8, Sunday November 7 (the last one!) Eleven Lightnings came out for the last race of the season on a delightful Fall day. We had sunny skies, a high temperature of 68 degrees and directionally very steady winds from the south at 7 - 13 MPH. As Bobby exclaimed, "How could we have such a nice day in November! On our boat we were in bare feet, and soaking up the sunshine. What a great way to end the season!" It doesn't get any better than this! The river flow was back up, due to recent rains upstream, at 8,000 CFS (gage height 3.7 ft.) causing at least two boats to snag the windward mark on their way around. There were plenty of good stories to share at the picnic afterward, including three boats experiencing spinnaker halyard mishaps. Results and photos to be posted soon. PRSA Fall Series # 7, Sunday, October 31. This turned out to be a beautiful sunny October day with an unbelievable high temperature of 79 degrees and big WSW winds at 18 - 20 MPH, with higher gusts. The forecast had called for gusts as high as 35 MPH, which was enough to bring some boats back to the marina early. As it was, there were a couple of capsizes and some near misses, but the Lightnings all remained upright. Nabeel won the day, with 3 bullets and a second; Frank came in second; Steve Gregg third. Here are the results. Since it was Halloween, some skippers costumed out accordingly. Jeff's previously unclaimed trophy of the mystical Heineken 12-pack (see below for the continuing saga) was destined for the best-costumed crew, but in the end the judges agreed that it should be shared. Here are pictures . More to be posted soon. PRSA
Fall
Series
#
6,
Sunday,
October
24.
Some
of
our
skippers
were
at
the
Borderline
Regatta
at
Kerr
Lake
NC,
but
the
rest
of
us
came
down
to
the
marina
for
another
interesting
Fall
day
on
the
water.
We
had
mostly
cloudy
skies,
off-and-on
rain
showers,
a
temperature
of
48
degrees,
low
tide,
and
no
wind
--
it
doesn't
get
any
better
than
this
--
for
ducks!
For
sailors,
though,
it
posed
a
dilemma.
Should
we
tow
everybody
out
to
the
race
course,
sit
in
the
rain
waiting
for
a
breeze
to
come
up,
and
eventually
get
towed
back?
At
10:15
PRO
Ben
Ackerman
said
he'd
postpone
a
decision
for
half
an
hour,
and
at
10:45
he
asked
for
a
show
of
hands
--
who
wanted
to
race?
Those
who
still
wanted
to
go
out
were
in
a
distinct
minority,
and
the
rest
were
non-committal,
so
he
put
us
out
of
our
misery
by
advising
us
to
all
come
back
next
Sunday.
Race
over!. Bobby takes first place at the Borderline! Bobby Astrove motored down to Kerr Lake last weekend with his dependable crew of Billy and Matt, and sailed away with the first place trophy in the Hull Number Handicap Series. Here are the results. Way to go, Bobby! PRSA Fall Series # 5, Sunday, October 17. Nabeel, Pat, Steve Gregg, and Joe Anderson were at the SSA Frigid Digit Regatta, but eight of us came out for what we hoped was another great day on the water. We had sunny skies, a high of 62 degrees, but wacky westerly winds at 17 - 18 MPH, with higher gusts. By the time the first race started, four had retired, leaving just four to participate in the three quick races of the day. Rick won the day with two bullets and a second, displaying much courage by flying a spinnaker. Frank, Bob Wilbur, and Paul Maher (short one crew!) rounded out the competitive set. Here are the results. Nabeel places 11th at the 2004 Frigid Digit. Nabeel, Pat, Steve Gregg, and Joe Anderson went to the SSA Frigid Digit Regatta, and Nabeel placed 11th, in a fleet that started with 45 boats but thinned rapidly due to high gusty and shifty winds. Here are the results. PRSA Fall Series # 4, Sunday, October 10. This was possibly the best Sunday of the year for sailboat racing, weatherwise, with mostly sunny skies and a high of 72 degrees, and winds out of the NNW at 13 - 16 MPH. The river flow was down considerably from last week's flow (7,900 CFS vs. 25,000 the previous Sunday; gage height 3.7 ft.), but still well above average. Eleven Lightnings and four Hobies came out for the 11:30 AM start on a long windward-leeward course. One Hobie and one Lightning capsized, and several others had close calls, but we got off 4 races before calling it a day at 2:30 PM. Thanks to the Lightning-run RC for doing a great job, especially Bobby Astrove and Matt Klice on the Mark Boat; Joe Kimak and Bryan Lanier on the Crash Boat; and Catherine Calvin (Signal Officer), Barb Thompson (Recorder) and Cathy Bleakly (Timer and RC Boat Captain) on the RC boat. They did their jobs so well that about all that was left for PRO David Thompson to do was to occasionally answer the calls on the radio. Here are the results. PRSA Fall Series # 3,Sunday, October 3. A nice sunny day lacking only one thing -- wind. We left the docks when the winds were out of the northwest at about 5 MPH, consistent with the forecast. However, before we got to the race course, they died. RC did a nice job of picking us up and towing us to the starting line, where we anchored and waited for the wind to build. Finally it filled in and RC set a short windward-leeward course across the river and we got in one race before the winds died again. Congratulations to the skippers who remembered to bring cold beer aboard -- it helped! The river flow was up, due to the rain dumped upstream by the remnants of hurricane Jeanne. On Thursday the peak flow was an astounding 130,000 CFS (average is around 3,000), 30,000 CFS higher than it was on September 19. It had eased down to 25,000 CFS (gage height 5.2 ft) by race time, but still the current was a factor to contend with all day. Here are results. PRSA Fall Series # 2, Sunday, September 26. It was a delightful sailing day, with a high overcast and temperatures in the high 70s, with northeast winds at around 8 MPH. River flow was down substantially from last week's record 100,000 CFS, but was still above-average at 9,050 CFS (gage height 3.9 ft). Paul Maher was our PRO, with a RC crew that included Bobby Astrove, Nick Tant, Rose Gentile, Susan Buckley, Ted Lutterman and a young man named Dale. Lightning 15228 liked the clear air on the right side of the course but did not discover, until the end of the day, that the current was strongest there, and that the current had a big impact on the outcome. Here are results. PRSA Fall Series # 1, September 19. PRO Lloyd Leonard called the Skippers Meeting to order at noon, and announced that winds were forecasted at 15 - 25, the current was ripping (flow at Little Falls was a record 100,000 CFS by then) and that RC had only two boats at its disposal -- so rescues of capsized boats were not going to be possible. Unfortunately, it turned out that rescues were required. Here is a story. Frank, Rick, Pat, and Laurie braved the elements; the rest of us stayed ashore. Here are results. Nabeel Takes First Place in the Leukemia Cup Lightning Class event! Nabeel Alsalam, sailing with Scott Bradford and Russ Roberts, took first place in the Leukemia Cup regatta, the first of two regattas the weekend of September 11/12. Frank Gallagher, sailing with Skip Hirsh and C.J. Fisher was second, and Rick Welch, sailing with Aaron Boeseneker and Sean Hanna third. For the two-day President's Cup, Nabeel also took first, Jon Guth of the SSA fleet took second, and Frank took third. Here are the results. Here are some pictures. There has always been a good turnout for this event that kicks off the fall PRSA season, and this year was no exception. On Saturday there were 102 small boats on the river, with 72 of them on the upper course, including 16 Lightnings. The weather was nearly perfect, with mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the high 70s. Winds were a bit light, however, around 5 - 7 MPH, from the east on Saturday, and southwesterly on Sunday. River flow on Saturday was way up, due to recent heavy rains upstream. Friday night's flow at Little Falls was an astonishing 58,900 CFS (average is about 3,000), and the gage height was 7.1 feet. Congratulations to PRO Jeff Storck who did an outstanding job running two regattas on the upper course in light winds with a very large fleet of boats. Other sterling members of the RC included Sousan Arafeh; John Butler; Tracy Costigan; Drew Hudson; Dan Korwan; Paul Maher; Michelle Marcoot; Jose Montiero; Ian Mutnick; Emily Pavilon; and Aimee Storm. This regatta also marked the debut of the world's newest Lightning sailboat, hull number 15228, a beautiful new NBW boat carrying sail number 10745. Frank Gentile. Sad news: lifetime Fleet 50 member Frank Gentile passed away on September 6, after a long illness. He always had a smile, and passed it on often ... known to do a little barging on the line, he wasn't fond of 2nd row starts ... he would lighten the mood at times, especially remembered was when he took his Mercedes swimming at the Borderline. Our thought and prayers go out for Frank, and his family. Moonlight Sail Saturday, August 28. John Butler went out with Daughter Sarah and was joined by a number of Fleet 50 boats. Conditions were perfect, with mild temperatures and southerly breezes about 10 MPH, with a full moon rising just as the sun was setting. Also out were Jeff Storck, Bobby and Billy Astrove; Frank and Maryann Gallagher; and Red Fehrle saiing with Amee Wiggins. What a great idea! August 14 Annual Downriver Cruise Canceled. Due to the prospect of unfavorable winds and heavy rain being brought to us by Hurricane Charley, we canceled the event. We are sorry. North American Championships, Buffalo Canoe Club, Pt. Abino, Ontario, Canada, August 3 - 13. Nabeel and Pat represented Fleet 50. Nabeel placed 21st in the Green Fleet, and Pat placed 17th in the Yellow Fleet. The weather was challenging. Here is Jason Werner's story about the qualifying races. Actual event racing started August 10. Here is Nabeel's story about August 11. See details, and get the latest news from Pt. Abino, here. Three Fleet 50 skippers take Special Olympian Sailors to the Maryland Special Olympics Championships, July 31 - August 1. Aaron Boesnecker, Frank Gallagher, and Joe Warren took Lightning sailboats and Special Olympians to the 2004 Maryland State Special Olympics Sailing Championships on St. Mary's River on the weekend of July 31 - August 1. Here is their story. July 28 - 12-pack disappears at the third bi-weekly Wednesday Evening String Theory Challenge! Several challengers showed up to try to win the trophy from the incumbent, but there was no wind. So, they drank the 12-pack instead. Here is the story.. Bobby Takes First Place at the ILCA Wooden Boat Regatta, July 24, 25, Syracuse NY! Here is the story. Atlantic Coast Championships July 24, 25, Toms River NJ. Nabeel and Todd Johnson went. 52 boats entered. Here is the story. Here are the Results. Kitty Racine. Kitty Racine of the Rehoboth Bay Sailing Association, a long-time friend of the Lightning class, passed away on July 25. She will be missed. A memorial service will be held Sunday, August 1, at 2 PM at the Parsell Funeral Home in Lewes, Delaware. Here is more information. July 14 - Jeff smokes the competition, retains trophy at the second bi-weekly Wednesday Evening String Theory Challenge! We had good sailing weather for the second bi-weekly Wednesday Evening String Theory Challenge. Jeff wagered a 12-pack of Heinekens that no one would beat him around the buoys that night. He kept the trophy! Here is Jeff's story. The next challenge will be July 28. 3 Fleet 50 skippers compete in the 2004 SSA Summer Series! Here is Nabeel's report.. Buoy Back! The red nun buoy |
