Leukemia Cup

Our Fundraising was an amazing success! We pulled in an extra 12k or so on Saturday to bring our total to over $53,000. I was hoping to be able to raise 10k to put together with the 10k Scotty thought he would be getting. I would never have expected anywhere near this success. I missed the regatta to go camping with Nick, Anthony, Corey, their wives, and Ryan, but I was there in spirit as Rumours/Unplugged sailed to victory both on the water and where it really matters in the coffers. Instant karma kicked in as Scotty who was so nice to donate use of his boat to our efforts won the raffle for the Rolex Watch. Thank you to all who donated. We all appreciate being able to do this in Woody's name and honor.

Fighting the Big "C"

As I have mentioned before my friend Tim (pictured on his Thompson 35 Rumours) is fighting the big "C". Leukemia to be specific. He just went back in for his second and more intense round of Chemo this week so Rumours has been put away for the season. It is difficult to sit around and watch a friend fight such a terrible fight feeling like you can't help, so when I looked at the calendar and saw that the Leukemia Cup was coming up I had a great idea. With the help of Rob we decided that the Rumours Crew should do the race (on whatever boat we could wrangle) and try to win the donation race (the real competition at this regatta). This weekend we finally got off our asses and are making it happen. Scott Murray from NEB has offered us the crew spots on Unplugged so now we have a boat. The last, most important, and hardest part is still to come together.

WE NEED TO RAISE A BUNCH OF MONEY! I won't be able to make the regatta as I am going camping with a bunch of college friends, but am organizing the effort I want to show that a bunch of "kids" can make a difference in honor of our friend.

Tim is one of the nicest boat owners I have ever sailed with. He is extremely competitive and gets VERY heated on the water. In fact, the first time I sailed on Rumours, I wasn't sure if I could continue, but as soon as the finish gun sounds all changes. He wants to hear your stories, your troubles, and he truly cares. He is known as Uncle Woody to the crew of mostly twenty somethings and we know he would do anything he could to help us if we were in trouble. We want to return the favor. If you would like to support our effort, please DONATE to the Leukemia Cup Regatta on our donation page (click "Donate" above) or e-mail me and I can send you info on where to send a check. Obviously any amount is greatly appreciated and will help the foundation in its goal towards a cure. Thanks!

A Good Start

Last night was J-24 racing and boy was it a good one. Summer like weather allowed swim trunks and a T-shirt to be the attire of choice even in the strong 12 kts diminishing wind. We set up mid line and had room to bear off and accelerate. At 20 seconds I warned Rob to stay down as long as possible and we listened intently as four boats got called back. Had a slight fright when they called back 33...88 not our 3360. Our great position on the line and good speed shot us out in front. Mookie tacked early, got good breeze on the right and came back in a righty to cross easily ahead, but otherwise we were nicely nose out in front. We played the middle left, getting some current relief, but not getting into the lighter air along the shore. A VERY quick jibe at the mark put us in clear air and we were able to hold 2nd place all the way around. We thought for a few seconds we might have a chance to catch Mookie at the leeward mark when they jibed inside the layline, but they were just too far in front to get an overlap. A great score after a below standard second half of the season. Luckily our first half was excellent and we are probably very close to 4th place again. Two more weeks to get that spot.

I'm a Weeeener!

Sunday provided much better weather for sailing and the 6m class competed in a single 14 mile windward-leeward course. We had a great start on Alana and legged out to an early lead. A bad tack caused by the stbd J-lock coming undone (mental note to check that locks are rotated in the future) allowed Madcap to get inside of us along the Jamestown shore where they made a HUGE gain (good on them) and brought Belle and Flapper up close at the windward mark. Downwind, Madcap's huge sails and light displacement launched her, but we held off Belle and Flapper who were bringing down the puffs. Unfortunately Tom must have misread the course board (or neglected to) and sailed right past the leeward mark and headed into the harbor. Our first upwind tack to cover Belle went badly due to a knot in the sheet which allowed them to get inside at the windward "Island". Flapper continued to Newport to allow Nick to make his flight (who schedules a flight for the afternoon of a regatta anyway?). We caught Belle downwind due to the nice move masterminded by Michelle, but couldn't quite finish the pass. A desperation jibe at the next mark didn't make enough of a difference, but 2nd place was enough to clinch the Olin Stevens Cup for the Summer Series. Toby finally gets to take home the cup his father donated which has been in his family for 50+ years. He was truly happy and should be quite proud of the advancement he has made over the summer. We put the boat away, so that was my last weekend regatta of the summer. An early end, but a great season. I missed the trophy full of Dark & Stormy at Harbor Court to have dinner with Corey (read his blog for more details of the weekend) and Jenelle, but I hear it was a very entertaining evening. We may need to send the cup around like the Stanley Cup so I can have a chance to enjoy as well.