Award recognizes impressive season of sailing

Soaked crews made it back to PCYC after experiencing the full gamut of conditions in the 2011 Susan Hood Trophy Race. Many abandoned the race after hours of drifting near the Burlington Weather Mark; PCYC's Simon Hampson on Kawabonga explained when I saw him on the docks at 5:30 AM: 'Despite the light winds at the start, we still managed to get to within two miles of the Burlington mark in three hours, then we spent the next three hours drifting towards the mark in the slow current with no wind in the sails. We were still a half-mile away when we decided to turn on the engine and come back home. A bit frustrating but at least we were out on the water!'

The 'Doctor' took a break for today as the day began overcast with an offshore breeze. After a gentle start to the day the breeze slowly built topping out in the low twenties. Race one across the majority of courses was in a building breeze, starting in and about 10 knots and finishing up in the mid-teens. Race two was mid-teens to the low twenties depending on the course area you found yourself on. The off-shore breeze is the talk of the boat yard as most have become expectant of the doctors arrival, and presenting a new option early in the racing for everyone. There were big scores put up by numerous players across a number of the fleets, creating some interesting early dramas.

CORK/Sail Kingston has been selected to host the 2013 Laser, Laser Radial and Laser 4.7 North American Championships, July 24-28, 2013. The Laser, a Canadian designed dinghy, is the largest dinghy class in the world, with more than 200,000 boats built. Furthermore, both the men’s Laser and the women’s Laser Radial are Olympic class events. The event will attract sailors from all over North America, from youth participants in the Radial and 4.7 to members of the Canadian National Sailing Team. The event is also open to competitors from outside North America.

Heading into the last day here at Chester Race Week, there are some very exciting races for first place in both Distance Divisions and the Bravo 1 Division. Yesterday’s weather brought in cloud and sun, but very light winds, which some of the fleet found to be very challenging. However, the leaders always seem to rise to the top. Results heading in the final day of racing have many boats vying neck and neck for trophies and bragging rights.

Canada Wins at 2009 Six Metre World Cup Over five days, September 8-12, competitors at the 2009 Six Metre World Cup encountered every condition that Narragansett Bay could serve up, and then some. The sunshine and light air that opened the regatta on day one yielded to heavy winds and leaden skies for the balance…