Boyle leads team to victory in regatta
In this strange age of the coronavirus, local sailors have responded positively to inaugural races with unique formats.
Two of the most successful regattas held this season (in terms of turnout) were created specifically because the pandemic has altered the normal Chesapeake Bay calendar.
Annapolis Yacht Club developed the Two Bridges Fiasco and held it on a Saturday therewas no other racing. That weekend would have seen a large fleet compete in the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Governor’s Cup, which was canceled. AYC officials were thrilled to see the Two Bridges Fiasco attract 133 boats and all the competitors enjoyed all the interesting elements, such as being able to cross the starting line in either direction.
Organizers with the Naval Academy Sailing Squadron proved equally innovative in creating the Race to the Lighthouses, which was held last Saturday and it drew a huge fleet of 96 boats in 14 classes. Again, the Annapolis sailing community was intriguedby the idea of something different.
Tom Stalder, a longtime officer with the Naval Academy Sailing Squadron, said the rousing success of the Race to the Lighthouses could lead to making it an annual event. Stalder saidNASS is reevaluating the Spring Race to Oxford, which has struggled to attract competitors in recent years.
“With the feedback we have received from competitors, we will take a serious look at repeating this concept. Maybe we will replace theNASS Spring Race with this type of event,” Stalder said.
It was an ideal day for sailing with easterly winds ranging from 10 to 16 knots. TheNaval Academy varsity offshore sailing team entered seven boats in the race and posted an impressive array of results.
Leading the way was Wahoo, a Ker 50 skippered by senior Katie Boyle that was victorious in PHRF A0 class. Boyle, who grew up as a dingy racer in Basking Ridge, N.J., led a crewthat featured several female sailors. Boyle served as tactician while junior Liz Hauschild steered and sophomore Katarina Katzarov trimmed the jib.
“When I first joined the offshore team there were not many girls on the roster. More and more are joining every year and there’s been a big increase in the total number of girls on the team,” Boyle said.
Completing the crew were seniors Brett Eckert and J.P Post, juniors Paul Rahner, Adrian Schalk andMatMalone along with sophomore Riley Plosica, Jared Bouley, Joe Press, Riley Cushing and Carson Hillier.
Principal race officer Taran Teague set a 21.6-nautical mile course that took the fleet around government marks located near the three historic lighthouses on the bay —
Thomas Point, Bloody Point and Sandy Point. Boats headed north off the start line and traveled under the Bay Bridge to round a mark near Sandy Point Light. That was followed by a southerly leg to ThomasPoint Light then across the bay to Bloody Point Light. The last leg took the fleet north again to the finish line near Greenbury Point.
Wahoo was the fastest rated boat in PHRF A0 and Boyle chose not to battle for the favored end of the start line. That decision paid dividends as theKer 50 found a wide-open lane and used its speed advantage to develop a big lead.
Navy sailing coach Jahn Tihansky was aboard Wahoo and said sail selection strategy was critical. Prior to the start, the crew worked practiced raising the Code Zero spinnaker in heavy air for the first time and struggled. In practice, the Midshipmen had only set the huge asymmetrical spinnaker in light conditions.
Tihansky said Boyle wisely scratched the Code Zero from the playbook for the day and instead deployed the A3 spinnaker for two legs followed by the A2 on the third leg.
“While the A0 would have been more optimum for the conditions, Katie eliminated the risk of making a complicated sail change,” said Tihansky, noting that several other PHRF A0 boats struggled setting and dousing their spinnakers and suffered huge losses as a result.
Teague employed a starting sequence that sent the fleet off from slower to faster based off rating. Wahoo was part of the last start among PHRF entries and therefore had to negotiate its way through the traffic of slower boats throughout the race. Boyle did her best to keep the Ker 50 away from other boats on the course in order to avoid foul air. Wahoo captured line honorsamong monohullentriesandfinished almost ahead of Artemis, an Italia 13.98 skippered by Jeffrey Kennedy, on corrected time. Boyle and crew were thrilled by the result after placing third in class during the Annapolis LaborDay Regatta theweek before.
“It was a fantastic result and the crew definitely showed improvement. This is a new crew that is still learning how best to
sail this boat,” Boyle said. “I thought the team sailed a good race with minimal mistakes or problems. We’re very excited about winning such a big regatta.”
Skipper HaraldMangold sailed his Cape Fear 38 Xiberger to victory in PHRF A2, largest class in the regatta with 17 entries. Closest competition came in J/105 class, where Donald Santa steered Santas Reign Dear to a 31-second victory over Crescendo (Angelo Guarino). Temple of the Wind, a Corsair 31 owned by Doug Dykman, posted the best elapsed time for the race.
NASSRace to the Lighthouses
Alberg 30(3 boats)