by Chuck Luscomb » Mon Oct 01, 2012 11:32 am
Our 2012 Sailing Season here in New England is now complete. The Thunder Mug was one of the more challenging for this location. The breeze we had most of the week before had died with the passing front and we struggled with 0-8kts from the NNE and the NNW with massive shifts which served to frustrate a number of the skippers including myself.
Saturday
With 11 boats on the line and the course set, we got underway and sailing with us at his first Radio Control regatta was David Dellenbaugh. You might know him from his E-News series called "Speed and Smarts" covering all things about rules and tactics in big boat sailing. Great to have him aboard.
The breeze was relatively steady in the morning before lunch with some pattern to the shifts but after lunch? Things just simply got crazy. No rhyme or reason to any of it as the NNE breeze struggled to stay in play. After 12 races in some of the most challenging conditions I have experienced in quite a while here where the standings before throw outs...
1 Dave Brawner 33pts
2 Dave VanCleef 47pts
3 Chuck Luscomb 54pts
4 Bruce Walton 57pts
5 Al Dion 60pts
6 Bob Greer 62pts
7 Ken Shaw 80pts
8 Kevin MacLellan 85pts
9 Brian Jobson 88pts
10 Tim Stone 100pts
11 David Dellenbaugh 119pts
Dinner was had by a bold few who made it to the Brush Mill (Ex Chart House) in Chester. Lots of good cheer was had and we all enjoyed the time to chat.
Sunday
David D. was not able to sail with us Sunday AM and was hoping to join us at lunch time. The breeze was nearly the same as the day before with slightly more pressure. The marks stayed where they were and we got rolling. By Noon and just after, the wind began to die and the skies began to clear as the predicted Southerly was trying to push in. One very long two lap race saw drifting for most as the Southerly started to fill. The Leeward gate was now a Weather Gate which made things interesting.
Dave VanCleef demonstrated to us all how it is done in some of the most "interesting" wind patterns by simply dominating the day. Dave Brawner joined the rest of us in our amazment watching VanCleef's remarkable performance. Well done Dave V.!
We managed to complete 21 races total with 3 throw outs (some were willing to buy more) and the final results looked like this...
1 Dave VanCLeef 49pts
2 Dave Brawner 55pts
3 Bruce Walton 62pts
4 Chuck Luscomb 70pts
5 Al Dion 85pts
6 Bob Greer 90pts
7 Ken Shaw 101pts
8 Brian Jobson 106pts
9 Kevin MacLellan 126pts
10 Tim Stone 141pts
11 Dave Dellenbaugh (Sunday was all DNS so no need to mention the points)
Food all weekend was prepared by my wife Mary who made some truly wonderful Sausage and Peppers subs, Chile, corn bread and brownies. A perfect menu for a fall regatta. Thank you Mary!!!
Thank you also to Ron Rhault who was our RD this weekend. Although he seemed to like the number 75 all weekend when he called boats over early, It did not seem to faze Dave much and he often did better after being called over early? Hummm...
Thank you finally to all the skippers who made the trip to Killingworth to sail this event. This is a great site that has given us some of the best conditions we can ask for in our sport.
Results for the New England Cup...
Well, it came down to a Tie Breaker between Al Dion and Bruce Walton... I did not think it was as close as it was until I reviewed the scores. Both Skippers attended all 4 events, sailed very well and this year and both had total points of 74. How to figure a tie breaker? I went back and saw the finishing positions of both Skippers for each event. Al Dion had 2 second place finishes and Bruce's best finish was a 3rd so Al Dion is our 2012 New England Cup Winner. Congratulations to both Skippers for an excellent showing all season.
Chuck
USA 84 "SECRET"