Lighthouse Regatta
Hosted by
Fond du Lac, WI from
6/2/2001 to
6/3/2001
2001 Lighthouse Regatta
Posted by: Steve Scheck
I
t was a dark and stormy night…
Sorry, this isn't Snoopy's latest best-selling novel, just a report on what everyone missed at the 2001 Lighthouse Regatta, hosted by the Fond du Lac Sailing Club on June 2nd and 3rd.
C
onveniently, Windward Boatworks is right on the way from Madison to Fond du Lac. Friday evening, Leigh and I stopped by to pick up our newly converted boat. Okay, which one of these lines pulls the pole out? This one - great, works slick. Seems like John and Mimi decided to have a party as there were many a team wandering the grounds picking up their yachts. In typical regatta fashion, we were running behind schedule, so we hooked up the trailer and took off for Fond du Lac.
I
was serious about the dark and stormy night. It started raining right before we pulled out, and kept on coming down as we drove on into the darkness. After getting nervous with too much hydroplaning [planing with boat on water - good; HYDROplaning with boat on trailer - very bad], we conceded that it was better to get to Fond du Lac in one piece so we stopped for dinner. But the rain, she no stop - she increase. Well, maybe it'll get it out of its system before morning.
O
kay, who forgot to tell Mother Nature this was June? Saturday morning was cold, rainy, and windy. Temperatures in the low 40s with the wind out of the north at 20 mph had the wind chills in the upper 20s to low 30s. Not ideal training ground since we've only sailed the asymmetrical three times, and never on our own boat. Sanity prevailed, the RC postponed until 1:00 PM, and we retreated to the warmth of Grant's motor home and the hospitality of he and Nadine.
T
he rain stopped, the wind died a little, it got a little warmer so out we went for a 2:30ish start. I was surprised at how shifty the wind was. More disappointing was that I never did get in phase. John Spargo found the shifts to win by a couple of boat lengths over Paul Bates. Paul was probably the fastest upwind and down, but John didn't miss any upwind shifts.
A
fter sitting around all morning, one race was enough, so we headed in for a little hospitality. The folks in Fond du Lac didn't do a good job with the weather, but they more than made up for it at social hour. A very low regatta entry fee got you a free polo shirt, and lots of food after the race. Oh yeah, something I've observed the I-20 fleet likes on rare (any day ending in a "y") occasions - rum, better yet free rum provided by regatta sponsor Bacardi.
I
'm sure the party went well on into the night. Although Executive Secretary Mary Kay Bates was in Seattle (where it was actually warmer and drier), her presence was felt. You might even say she had a hand in a little after hours boat renaming. No wonder she was even giddier than normal waiting for us to put a sprit on.
S
unday morning had a pretty strong wind coming more directly thru the channel, but settled down to around 12-15 mph. The wind seemed steadier in direction than Saturday, and the courses longer. I found races 2 and 3 to be a boat speed battle, as the fleet worked on getting thru typical Lake Winnebago waves (big for the wind, pretty close together). Late in race 3, the wind severely died, making the already trying conditions more difficult. When the conditions are tough, time in the boat is extremely advantageous in wearing down the competition. The more races you have under your belt on more lakes, the more comfortable you will become in preventing the boat from going slow.
W
anting to make up for Saturday, the RC postponed race 4 as the dying NNW wind fought a NE breeze trying to fill in. I was sure the NE was going to win, but couldn't resist starting at the way favored pin. About a minute after the start, the wind died again, so we eased out and headed for the western shore. The NE couldn't break thru against what little shore breeze there was, and we soon found ourselves laying the windward mark on port. I thought the downwind would be torture trying to keep the spinnaker from being blanketed, but the waves had died enough allowing for an incredibly fast reach - I was amazed at how much apparent wind we created as we just flew down the leg in hardly any air. The breeze shut back off after everyone had finished, so we all drifted in to hit the road.
P
revious years of this race were warm with flat waves from southerly wind. The weekend forecast for this year was well known to be lousy pretty far in advance. This had a severe impact on participation in both the I-20 and Lightning fleets. The organizers can't control the weather, but they did a fabulous job dealing the cards they were dealt. There were many businesses that helped sponsor the event, including the crews at Windward Boatworks and Quantum-Inland Sails. Thanks to all who came to the regatta, and all who helped make the weekend brighter.
Regatta Results
| Sail # | Boat Name | Skipper | Crew | Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3 | Race 4 | Race 5 | Race 6 | Total |
| H-652 | | Steve Scheck | Leigh Leonard | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| H-42 | | Paul Bates | Brad Koehn | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| FD-499 | | Andy Gratton | Ann Gratton | 4 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| H-677 | | John Spargo | Jim Brust | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| H-216 | | Grant Frautschi | Nadine Nassif | 5 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 25 |
| FD-653 | | Alec Chabalowski | Anita Bersie | 6 | 6 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 25 |
| H-11 | | Curtis Burgess | David Gunderson | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
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