Pick your description of the winds for Day 3 of racing in the North American 5.5M Regatta. Fluky. Weird. Non-existent. Bizarre. Confused. Writes Jennifer Harker
On shore pre-race crews were teased with light breezes. On the water the word of the day was slack sails and frustration as the race committee, led by the always unflappable Rick White, did their best to set a course to challenge but that wouldn’t leave crews stranded in dead air.
Winds finally filled in throughout the races, but were fluky at best, often switching mid-leg to provide the interesting image of boats flying spinnakers but travelling in opposite directions. Add in some busy Saturoday boat traffic and the first day of the bass fishing season and Midland Bay was an intriguing race course.
While not an optimum day for the sleek 5.5 that just want to go fast, the conditions called on skippers and all crew members to strategize skillfully, use their intuition and constantly keep a watchful eye on the water, the sky, the rigging and other boats for any clues and possible advantage – and hope to be rewarded with a little bit of luck as well.
After some uneven first two days re-familiarizing himself with Purple Haze USA 51, Dan Rossi showed up to race, finishing the day with a fourth, third and second. That hard fought second was inches short of taking the horn on the final race of the day. After the race John Lister [Nantoria CAN 22] said with a laugh, “Welcome back Dan.”
It was an interesting day as Summer CAN 80 was in the middle of it all for most of it, leading several legs and being first around the mark more than once while Pride USA 31 had a strong fourth place finish as well. Rossi said, “The boats are closer than ever and the fleet is tightening up. The competitiveness is getting sharper.”
Nantoria CAN 22 foredeck crew Dave Harker observed, “You’re not safe even when you’re in first now. The wind fills in behind you and the other boats catch up quickly and overtake you before it reaches you. You have to be sharp.”
As is the tradition, following the races the crews gather onshore for refreshments and a rehashing of the day’s races.
Laughter, joking and good natured ribbing dominate the conversation as 5.5ers dissect the day, replaying strategy, reliving highlight reel moments, discussing the good and great choices, as well as the choices that went horribly wrong.
Chris Gooding aboard O’Kelly CAN 79 said, “It was a fun day but just the weirdest races. In one, all six boats were at the mark at the same time. We were the outside boat, got shadowed and shoved off. Then the rest of the race was so fluky, spinnakers up, down, up again.” They crossed the line in fifth.
However the exciting finish for the last race of the day more than made up for that disheartening earlier race mark rounding.
“The third race was a lot of fun,” Gooding enthused. “At the start it was a drifter but we managed for the first time to get Lister on port. We got Firestorm over into Nantoria. Then we led the race from start to finish, and tacked at the last mark still in the lead.”
Then while focused on the finish line, Purple Haze was quickly moving in unnoticed and overtaking O’Kelly. “We tacked and flopped in by inches,” Gooding recalled.
Officially the race results show it was a win by one second, but all agreed it was much closer than that.
Cheryl Keith sailed aboard Purple Haze USA 51 and although she has sailed dinghies and keelboats, recognized it’s a big jump to the 5.5. She stepped in at the last minute to help out after a last minute crew member’s cancellation. “I just love the racing,” Keith said. “The 5.5s are low and sleek and so fast. I had never really done a regatta before the 5.5. Race, race, race, day after day with the physical push and the exhaustion, it’s something. But the people are amazing.”
It will be interesting to watch what the winds bring and what skippers and crews can conjure up for the last day of racing. It’s still anyone’s regatta to take.
After two uneven days readjusting to sailing his classic Purple Haze USA 51 skipper Dan Rossi arrived ready to race.
There was a lot of looking for clues to what exactly the wind might do next on Day 3 of racing. Don Cameron, Chris Hatton and Chris Gooding found the answer somewhere as O’Kelly CAN 79 registered a win by mere inches in the last race of the day.
The unflappable Rick White leads the race committee year after year for the North American 5.5M Regatta which relies on the support of the Midland Bay Sailing Club, Bay Port Yachting Centre and many volunteers for its success.