November 22, 2009
Week 1 - races 1-6 - Winds N-NE at 15-17 mph, gusty and shifty, strong current moving down course. Great turnout for opening day. Mike Mezz took the most bullets and 1st place, but Ned T. was most consistent and is in 2nd, with Zilai rounding out the top three. Tyler and Tim took a swim on the starting line.
December 6, 2009
Week 2 - races 7-11 - Wind N-NW 12-15, gusty and shifty, strong current going right to left. Deitz did well thanks to guest skipper Matt G., but once again Thomson was solid and moved into 1st, with Deitz moving up to 2nd and Zilai holding on to 3rd.
December 27, 2009
Week 3 - races 12-15 - Winds N-NW at 10-12, a bit gusty and shifty, weak current moving left to right. "And a child shall lead them..." On a beautiful sunny day, the youngest skippers, Tyler and Riley, put in strong performances, taking 3 bullets between them. Janet Davis also had a first and moved into 3rd place overall. With only four boats competing, the absent Ned slipped to 2nd while Deitz backed into 1st.
January 1, 2010
New Years Day Race - cancelled, due to hangover no wind.
January 10, 2010
Week 5 - cancelled, due to dredging work being done in the harbor.
January 24, 2010
Week 6 - race 16, wind died after 10 mins, only 4 boats finished, all other races cancelled due to no wind.
February 6, 2010
Week 7 - cancelled, due to snow storm.
February 21, 2010
Week 8 - cancelled, due to high winds.
March 7, 2010
Week 9 - races 16-21. Very windy, gust and shifty, building as the day wore on. Amazingly, no boats went down or took major damage. Dave and Cheryl Cook in Pink Pramther had a great day, scoring 4 bullets. Ned was solid as usual, consistently finishing in the top three, to take first place overall once again. Janet Davis was also solid, scoring 4 thirds and a second, and moving into second place overall.
March 21, 2010
Week 10 - races 21-29. Sunny, 60 degree day, wind S-SE 5-10 mph. Great day for sailing, a full schedule of eight races were sailed. Ned was again the class of the fleet, maintaining a tight grip on first place. With just one race date remaining, second place is still in doubt. Jetsetter Janet Davis had to retire early to “catch a flight”, temporarily conceding second place to John Deitz, which she predicted would incur the wrath of absent partner John Harkrader. Riley Kiernan looks to have fourth place locked up, based on his fine performance today. Fifth, sixth and seventh are up for grabs. The only casualty of the day was in the 7th race, when Tim Smith’s port stay failed, causing his mast point directly at the club house, to which Tim was soon towed. The damage was not too bad, so hopefully Tim will be back in the game in four weeks, when racing resumes for the final showdown.
April 18, 2010 (Final) (Click on highlighted names to view portraits, courtesy Win.)
Week 11 - races 30-36. Sunny, 60 degrees, winds from the N-NW 5-15 mph. Winds started out NW and rotated steadily more N as the day progressed, with some shifts and gusts. Strong incoming current all day. Overall, another fine sailing day. The committee caught the tardy fleet by surprise and started the first race with only 2 boats ready on the line. After that all sailors were on theirs toes and many exciting starts were had. Congratulations go to Ned Thomson and Claire Forlenza, who successfully won first place overall, despite a subpar day that included being on the wrong end of a T-bone collision with the Cook's Pink Pramther. John Deitz somehow held onto to second place, despite multiple goofs, including twice approaching the windward mark in the lead, then needlessly tacking for an incorrect rounding (both times to the Cook's benefit) and later by attempting to start a race from the wrong line - as in the anchor line of the committee boat. Janet Davis was unable to capitalize on Deitz's misadventures due to the many gallons of the Manasquan River sloshing around in her boat, but bravely bailed her way to third place overall. Promising young rookie Riley Kernan and dad Keith had another good day including one bullet and secured fourth place overall, performing splendidly in their first winter campaign. Bringing up fifth and sixth were Team Cook and Jack Woods, respectively. To top it all off, there was a Rick Zimmerman sighting today - which included two first place finishes! He should show up more often!
That's all, folks! All sailors are very thankful to all the committee and support personnel and especially to the great kitchen crew that makes us all feel warm and loved (and a little tipsy) after each day of racing.
See you all next fall!