When God took a moment to try and improve life on earth he came up with the concept of the midwinter sailing regatta. Step 1: pick warm sailing venue. Step 2: gather a decent fleet of boats. Step 3: Blow a little wind their way. Pretty basic. Pretty ingenious.
When I arrived in Miami yesterday it was sunny and warm with a 10 knot breeze blowing on Biscayne Bay. I couldn’t really believe I had somehow escaped the snowstorm that was blanketing the northeast. Not only that, I was going to go sailboat racing at a time of year when sailboat racing (for me at least) does not normally occur. First it felt surreal. Then it felt sinful. Then it felt great.
The J22 Midwinters are being staged out of the Miami Shake-A-Leg facility, which has plenty of parking, a monstrous building with an open-air third-floor terrace that is perfect for regatta parties, and lots of good hotels and restaurants nearby in Coconut Grove. The race area, Biscayne Bay, is a short sail away, and so far has featured flat water, decent (if tricky) breeze, and a lot of dolphins. Get the picture? It’s perfect. I never went to the Midwinters when they were held at New Orleans’ Southern Yacht Club but I heard plenty of stories about wild partying, rain and freezing temps. I think I would take Biscayne Bay any day.
Today the race committee got off three races into a nice, easy southerly. There are a lot of good teams here, and even though there are only 26 boats racing, the fleet is pretty nicely bunched at each rounding. Picking a side of the course proved to be the key, and on Kathy Parks’ Sundog I sometimes got it right, and sometimes got it wrong. But it was hard to care too much because, well, we were sailboat racing in 80 degree weather in February. Consistency paid, and the top ten are:
1) Henry Filter 12 points
2) Greg Fisher 12
3) Scott Nixon 13
4) C. Doyle 16
5) S. Elliott 21
6) Seidel/Eibert 22
7) T. Schertz 25
8) S. Fidler 25
9) D. Van Cleef 27
10 C. Wientjes 30
Race winners were: Nixon, DaMore, Schertz
We’re down in 17th after a 14, 20, 14 scoreline. Two more days to go. Heh-heh…
The Sundog Crew
“I wonder what those poor saps up north are doing…?”
“Dammit, where’s the sun lotion…”
The VC Performance Beer, I Mean Rigging, Tent…
The Earthist Chronicles 