Sailing News
Mallory Trophy - Dan Vought won the area C semi final of US Sailing's men's championship this past Saturday. Crewing for Dan was David Watts and Ian Sanderson. John Luard, with crew Thom Lee and Pris Gettis, placed second. Matt Smith, with crew Randy Dickerson and Marisa Bloodgood, were third. All were from Monmouth Boat Club. Video of races one and two can be seen at the top of the page.
Tuesday Evening Sailing - The huge dark clouds with the sun peaking through created an almost eerie feel on the Navesink River this Tuesday evening and provided some very nice video which can be seen here. Avid racer Thom Lee and friend Jerry Vogel took some amazing photos which can be seen here.
Full Moon Regatta - Congratulations to Thom Lee and Amy Faris on winning the Full Moon Flying Scot Regatta at Monmouth Boat Club. Unfortunately, because of the rainy, damp conditions I was not able to get video of the regatta this year. See full results here.
The First Wood Pussy Intergalactics
Twelve MBC skippers competed on Saturday, June 13th, for the coveted Woodpussy Intergalactic championship - hosted by WP Fleet One & the Monmouth Boat Club under threatening skies, in Red Bank, NJ.
Principal Race Officer Bill Henry, and Assistant PROs Dane Wagner and Vince McLuskey staged 3 races in a shifty SE breeze, 2 windward/leeward and 1 triangle. Read more for a recap on the action.
Race 1 - a consistent left-hand bias made the pin end favored, so pre-race favorites Randy Dickerson and Denis Farley (followed by Team Lynch) sailed off on starboard toward the port layline. All three carried on, found very good pressure, and rounded 1-2-3. Dickerson snuck past Lynch into 1st on the downwind, and applied a loose cover to win. Meanwhile, Steve Okinow, whose WP mast was mast lacking side-stays (not good) in the moments before launch, made some quick repairs and managed to round the windward mark in 4th place. Dave Minton shook off his off-season rust to finish 4th. Bob Kent, Joe Burns, and Dale Barney were locked in a heated battle upwind to the finish- with Burns surging ahead in the final 100yds to claim 5th.
Race 2 - the natural order of the Navesink was restored, if briefly, during the 2nd race, as perennial Fleet Champion (and river fox) Denis Farley romped to victory over Lynch and Dickerson. As the afternoon progressed, Dale Barney was sorting out his freshly re-commissioned steed- “Ocho”- notching a 4th place finish ahead of Kent, Minton and Burns.
Race 3 - PRO Henry called for a traditional Triangle course for race three, adding a gybe mark into the mix. Dale Barney hit the line with speed (very relative) and led Dickerson around the windward mark. Dickerson managed to close slightly on the reaching legs, setting up a close match race to the finish line. Unlike the leaders, Team Lynch in 3rd place split off onto port tack in a failed attempt to gain. Barney edged out Dickerson in an overlapped finish, followed by Lynch and Farley. Ron Kudile edged out Minton, Kent and Burns for 4th place as the rain intensified.
Many thanks to Joe Cahill (1st time WP sailor), Bob Hill- racing his aptly named “Galore”, and Doug Peckmore (using Dan Vought’s ugly, but fast, “Lemon Drop”) for participating in less than ideal conditions. Thanks also to my daughter, Tegan, who endured a chilling downpour finish to an afternoon of ‘quality time’ with dad.
First Place, and the Sig Olving Woodpussy Intergalactic Perpetual Trophy (say THAT fast) went to Randy Dickerson with 6 points. Team Lynch (7pts) and Denis Farley (8pts) claimed 2nd and 3rd. See results here.
Sunday Bridge Race - Photos from the June 14th Bridge Race on the Navesink can be seen here. Because the cruising fleet has less opportunity to race, I concentrated more on them than the one designs. I did try to get a photo of every participant but sometimes the sun and the waves on the river don't always cooperate. Many thanks to Glenn Bloodgood for driving me around. See video from the Memorial Day Regatta featuring albacores and lightnings here.
Laser AC Championship - If you don't think that laser racing is competitive in the two river area, think again. Jack Swikart, Shrewsbury Sailing and Yacht Club, placed second and Max Lopez, Monmouth Boat Club, placed third overall at the Atlantic Coast Laser Radial Championship which took place at Severn Sailing Association in Annapolis, Maryland. If you check out the results, you'll see a number of junior sailors from our area who did very well.
Lightning Long John Regatta - See newly added photos here.
Other Stuff
New state boating law pending would give local police more authority. Read more.
Funds for dredging the Navesink and Shrewsbury Rivers have been approved. Read more.
