Whiskeytown Regatta

Whiskeytown Sailing Club holds their big annual regatta on Memorial Day Weekend, on Whiskeytown Lake in the mountains outside of Redding. Tom Goodwin trailered up his Banshee, which he mostly sails on Folsom Lake. He comments: “We had great weather and light breezes with shifty puffs, mostly out of the east. Both days were alike: sunny and warm. I guess they had about eighty boats, with no big fleets.

“For me it was just another day at the office. I finally fixed the mast step on my Banshee on Thursday at 5 p.m. before the Friday 9 a.m. trip to the lake. Saturday proved to be my undoing. I launched and sailed two hundred yards towards the line and had the surprise - the MAST STEP BROKE AGAIN at the same place: the witch’s hat came loose from the bottom hat. My repair was faulty: 20% strong when it should have been 120% strong. A little epoxy and chewing gum don't cut it. So 'back to the drawing board'.

“I got a ride for Saturday’s second race on a Raven. It was a nice dry, fast boat. I played the chute. Both Sunday races aboard the Raven were fun too. The Raven is kind of a giant 24-ft Thistle, decked, no hiking straps.”

The Raven Tom had hopped aboard belongs to Steve Galeria, another Folsom Lake sailor. Another Raven was sailed by Wade Hough, who currently has a report about the regatta on the Raven class home page at http://ravenclasssailing.org. The two Ravens got a second and third (after a Thistle) in their division. For all the Whiskeytown results, see www.whiskeytownsailing.org.

May Racing at Tiburon YC

TYC Race Chair Gary Proctor files this report:

May brought the sun (mixed with a bit of rain) to kick off the summer wind patterns. Nothing like racing in shorts and T-shirts!

TYC Behrens Regatta, a two-day five-race event, brought out the usual gang with the addition of a couple of guest racers: Ultimate 20 sailors John Wolfe (Breakaway) and Michael Josselyn (Uhoo). It was great fun watching them mix it up with the J/105s and Moore 24s.

Division One fought a close battle that would have been closer had the U20s known they were starting with Division One. As it turned out, only a point separated first place, Bill and Suzie Hoeler’s J/105 Joyride, and second, John Wolfe’s U20 Breakaway, with Lon and Susan Woodrum’s Moore 24 Frenzy coming in third.

Division Two’s top spot was earned by Ann Watson on Wind Dance, a Cal 2-27. Rob Hutchinson performed a one-man act as Race Committee. The racers really appreciated the effort.

Friday night racing also started up in May. Eighteen Friday night events are followed by casual gourmet dining. If you’re interested, there is a modest $5 entry fee per night’s racing or $50 gets you all 18. These are individual races with awards presented each evening. Check the www.tyc.org site for sign up sheets and details.