The 2011 Buzzards Bay Regatta drew 14 boats to the New Bedford Yacht Club to compete in the 39th running of the three-day, multi-class event. Welcome to Todd Zilinski, who brought his new Falcon F-16 to race along with the F-18s.

The SI's called for a 10:30 warning gun on the red circle which was a long sail in light breeze from the harbor. The sequence for our first race was started with only the team of Sandra and Nate in the starting area. This start was abandon but a race was subsequently started with only three boats in the starting area. Brooks and Jeff persevered in the light air to take the first race. There was a long postponement while waiting for breeze which offered a great chance to swim and dive for sharks. When the sea-breeze finally did develop, the Race Committee was quick to get off a second and third race for the day with double-trap sailing as a reward for the patient sailors. Mike and Tripp and Bob and Jonathan swapped firsts and seconds. Getting my son, Eric, out on the wire for the long spinnaker reach back to the harbor was the highlight of the day for our team.  'Gansett and a right-of-way rules seminar wrapped up the day for most the cat sailors while the rest of the regatta participants partied under the tent.

Saturday dawned with the more typical Buzzards Bay conditions. There was enough breeze for wiring downwind and a sizable chop on top of a ocean swell. In the first race, Tripp proved that while super-human abilities to swing around the head stay are great for show, spider-sticky feet might be a more useful super-power for top results. Meanwhile, Sandra stayed focused harnessing Nate's super-powers to drive her Infusion to a 1-2-2-3 (just 2 point behind team Ronstan for the day)!! Bob, sailing on Saturday with his brother Collin, round out the top three on their C2.

On our C2, the mojo was evidently not working so well...we were run over by an F-27 trimaran while eating lunch between races. It was a terrifying experience and the port hull is destroyed, but most fortunately, there were no injuries.

Sunday greeted us with wild wind and rain. The start was postponed for a hour. After 3 boats ventured out to test their skills in the wicked conditions, the racing was eventually abandoned. The final results (below) are copied from the New Bedford Yacht Club's website.

Fair Winds,

Eric Witte

PHOTOS

RESULTS

The weekend of July 29-31 saw 24 F18s gather at the Hyannis Yacht Club on beautiful Cape Cod for the Hyannis Regatta and the F18 Eastern Area Championships. Hyannis Yacht Club will play host to the F18 North American Championships in September, so the weekend provided the fleet valuable experience on the championship waters, and with the same race committee that will be running the main event. Twenty four boats represented the biggest fleet of the Eastern Area Summer Circuit to date, and promised extremely close racing throughout the weekend.

Friday's first start was scheduled for 1 pm, and an approaching front promised strong southerly breeze for the day's racing. Just as the forecast predicted, the fleet was greeted with wind in the high teens for Friday's races, combined with short, steep waves that made the downwind legs a considerable challenge. Continuing their outstanding form from previous weeks, the team of Mike Easton and Tripp Burd on the Nacra MKII Ronstan Racing machine won all three races on Friday, sending a clear message that they are hungry for a North American title. Bob Merrick applied pressure all around the course, taking three seconds, with Chris Titcomb claiming the final podium spot in each race. The conditions challenged the entire fleet, with many teams finding, and often exceeding, the limits of both boats and crews. Following the day's racing, a large portion of the fleet enjoy Narragansett Beer and gathered for dinner and tales of wipeouts and great sailing at the Steakhouse and Sports Bar in downtown Hyannis.

In spite of a dire forecast for dying breeze, Saturday provided chamber of commerce weather for five great races in a northwest breeze and flat water. The addition of several boats that had to work on Friday brought the fleet to full strength, and placed additional importance on getting off the line cleanly and in the first row. The Easton/Burd team continued their winning ways, but more moderate breeze provided very close racing throughout the entire fleet, with crowded roundings and overlapped finishes the norm. The Giuliano brothers, coming off a solid effort at the US Multihull championships, proved consistent across the varying conditions, moving into a solid third place at the end of the second day. Visiting from Florida, Jeremy Herrin proved the younger generation of catamaran sailing is a force to be reckoned with, pushing the leaders all around the course and showing excellent downwind speed.

Saturday afternoon demonstrated that the Eastern Area fleet is not just about racing, with three boats staying in the water after racing to take eager 420, laser and opti sailors for blasts on the trapeze around Hyannis Harbor and Lewis Bay. Common reactions from the youth sailors were: “How fast does this go?!” “I want your boat!” and my personal favorite, “This thing is AWESOME!” Once again fleet camaraderie was on display Saturday night after the ‘Gansett social hour, as nearly 30 F18 sailors took over Sam Diego's for dinner and excellent company.

After a lengthy morning delay waiting for wind, Sunday provided two beautiful races in a moderate 10-12 knot south west sea breeze. Chris Titcomb was in top form, taking a 1-4 for the day and moving into 6th overall for the event, despite missing two races to a broken spinnaker pole. The team of Reed/Dusek enjoyed the moderate breeze, finally getting off the line and recording to top five finishes. At the end of the day, it was Easton/Burd dominating the event to add the 2011 Eastern Area Championship to their already crowded trophy case. Bob Merrick finished a close second, with the Giuliano's holding on to third.

The F18 fleet would like to thank the Hyannis Yacht Club for a fantastic event, with excellent hospitality and ten great races over three days. Judging by the great conditions for the Hyannis Regatta, the 2011 F18 North Americans will be a truly memorable event. If you haven't registered, don't miss out on what will be one of the best events of the year!

RESULTS

PICTURES by HYC

more pictures comings soon.

Narragansett F18 Summer Series New England 100

Quonset Pt, RI
August 13-14, 2011
Organizing Authority
NECSA

Notice of Race

New England 100 is a distance race for beach catamarans. We will sail 100 miles over the course of two days in and around Narragansett Bay.

1. Rules 1.1. The New England 100 will be governed by the Racing Rules of Sailing 2009-2012 (RRS).

2. Eligibility

2.1. This race is open to all Portsmouth rated beach catamarans. Scoring will be divided in two divisions: F18 and Open.

2.2. Boats may be single- or double-handed

2.3. All boats must bear legible sail numbers on the main sail

3. Safety

3.1. PFDs must be worn by all competitors at all times.

3.2. This is a distance racing event, as such, boats should be prepared to sail all day without returning to shore. The OA requires the below safety equipment. As per RRS, the decision to race, and the decision to continue to race, lies with each competitor.

• GPS or Compass • Flashlight • Knife • Marine VHF or waterproof cellphone

3.3. In addition, the following equipment is recommended.

• Chart • Line (enough to secure both sailors to vessel) • Extra food and water

4. Divisions

4.1. There will be two divisions: F18 and Open.

5. Registration

5.1. Registration will be in the morning proceeding the event. There will be no pre-registration.

5.2. The Entry fee will be $50. per boat. This entry fee will be used to subsidize the costs of running the regatta as well as dinner Saturday night. The entry fee is payable by cash or check on Saturday morning.

5.3. There will be no refunds for any reason.

6. Schedule

Saturday 8/13

0700 - 0800 Registration Quonset Pt

1000 Warning for Starting Sequence

1700 Estimated Finish Day 1

1800 Regatta Dinner

Sunday 8/13

0900 Skipper’s Meeting

1000 Warning for Starting Sequence

1600 Estimated Finish Day 2

7. Skippers Meeting

7.1. On Saturday, the course for Day 1 will be distributed at Registration, there is no skipper’s meeting. On Sunday, the course for Day 2 will be announced at the skipper’s meeting as scheduled above.

8. Courses

8.1. The Courses will be distributed in the full Sailing Instructions to be distributed at Registration. The course for each day will be selected from the available courses in the SIs and announced as above.

9. Venue

9.1. The venue is Quonset Point.

9.2. This venue will be shared with Hobie Fleet 448’s Narragansett Bay Island Hop, http://www.fleet448.org/Schedule.htm

10. Prizes

10.1. There will be prizes

11. Disclaimer of Liability

11.1. The OA, RC, Spectators, Quonset Pt, and any delegates or agents of the aforementioned parties hereby disclaim any and all liability for damages, injuries, or death sustained in conjunction with this event. All participants are invited to participate at their own risk.

12. Boat storage and Parking

12.1. Boat storage will be available at Quonset Pt.

12.2. Parking will be available at Quonset Pt.

13. Further Information

13.1. May be obtained by contacting Samuel Adelman, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 978-996-0974

This past weekend of July 16-17, 7 beach catamarans competed in the annual Lipton Cup Regatta at the Squantum Yacht Club, in Quincy, MA. The regatta served as the Area A and B qualifier for the U.S. Multihull Championship (Alter Cup) event as well as part of the 2011 Narragansett Beer F18 Summer Series. 7 F18 teams competed in the event, completing 8 races in two days. Conditions on Saturday were primarily light winds building to a moderate sea breeze as the afternoon progressed. The shifty conditions saw several lead changes and some very tight racing.

The Saturday night regatta party and dinner for the beach cat racers was hosted by Sam Adelman and Emma Stockley with beer provided by Narragansett Beer Company. The sailors gathered with tales of the day’s events and anticipation of the forecast for Sunday’s racing.

Following Saturday’s on-the-water battles in light winds, the weather god’s awarded the racers on Sunday, as racing took place in breezes building from 10 to 20 kts on the flat warm waters of Quincy Bay. The F18 boats were picturesque, flying downwind at speeds in the high teens/low twenties, with colorful spinnakers and the Boston skyline as a backdrop. Several capsizes and crew/boat separations took place to keep things interesting and make for some good stories once all the sailors returned to shore.

The team of Mike Easton and Tripp Burd were dominant for the second consecutive regatta of the series, winning 7 of the 8 races, and taking the title of area representatives for the Alter Cup Championships. Sandra and Nate followed in second, with Chris and Sam rounding out the top three.

RESULTS

PHOTOS by Squantum YC

PHOTOS by Jason Majane / Lindsay Smith