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| Wylie Wabbit Nationals at Inverness Yacht Club | October 2 - 4 |
| Story |
| Oct 2-4 Wylie Wabbit Nationals on Tomales Bay hosted by Inverness Yacht Club
Inverness had three people including PRO Skip Shapiro on the dock Friday for the long race, and on the signal boat Saturday and Sunday for the next 5 races. Two mark set boats also were on the course, and doubled as the ferry boat service to get the crews to and from the mid-bay anchoring field each morning and evening. A single long distance race was held Friday, with a 2 PM start going well up and down the bay for the 12 mile course. “Jack” won the race with the Erkelens team, followed by class builder Kim Desenberg’s “Mr. McGregor” and Aaron Sturm’s “Wild Bunch II” from San Diego. The race was held in 12-16 knots of breeze in the flood current. Wabbit class Commodore Erik Menzel put on a Friday night pizza and salad dinner in the outside club bbq area, with the upstairs club bar open for club members and racers. There was more than enough food for the 10 boat fleet and over 40 people attending, and the meal was accompanied by beer supplied by the bay area Ullman Sails lofts. Saturday started with calm winds and a shore delay, so the class took advantage of the captive audience by holding our annual meeting – discussing next year’s calendar and electing Taylor Joosten as fleet captain and Christian Meulish as nationals commodore. The light winds predicted gave way to a nice breeze, so the next three races which started about 1 were held in around 14 to 15 knots of wind. The Erkelens won two of the races but the middle one went to Aaron Sturm who hit the left side of the bay and gained a huge lead on the fleet on the first beat, which their team defended well through that whole race. It was usually the trapeze person who operated the kelp stick which was required quite often to clear the blades of the eel grass and occasional kelp that were ever present and unavoidable. Everyone backed up between races, and a few even did so while racing if they couldn’t clear the keel or rudder successfully. The Dubuc family who missed the Friday race due to work commitments forgot their kelp stick and paid dearly for that omission on Saturday. The Saturday dinner was held inside the historic clubhouse and cooked by a volunteer team – another delicious meal this time of salmon or chicken, rose wine supplied by the class. The club member volunteers directed the racers in setting up and cleaning up the room, and several club volunteers kept the bar open for the evening. Sunday morning was again glassy, and the weather prediction was ominous at 3-4 knots. However, the wind again filled in, perhaps 10-13 for the two races held that day. Once again the fleet mixed it up throughout the races, with lead changes, one general recall, a few 720’s performed, and two shorter races allowing the fleet to haul out after the finish. The Dubucs borrowed a kelp stick on Sunday, but unfortunately dropped it overboard during one maneuver, so again had their challenges. The Erkelens won the first race. The second finish looked like Ethan Petersens “Hare-O-Dynamic” with Sarah Deeds at the helm was going to take the gun, but just before the finish “Mr. McGregor” slipped by and got the win. The traveling trophy went to Aaron Sturm who trailered up from San Diego, and his daughter flew in from Hawaii. 5 of the 11 boats sailed with husband and wife aboard, one with father and daughter, but the Dubucs won the family trophy hands down: Christine Dubuc driving, Rob on the wire, and daughters Natalie and Skyler doing the trimming duties. The Erkelens team with Melinda driving, tactician Bill on the wire, and friend Andy Hamilton trimming won 4 races, took one 2nd, and threw out their last race’s 8th place finish to win the Nationals trophy. Kim Desenberg’s team included Liza Trombi trimming and Bart Hackworth trapping and calling tactics (well, with some discussion….) came second with two seconds, three thirds, and one first. Third went to “Holy Hand Grenade” with David Rogers steering, Taylor Joosten trimming, and Kurt Lahr doing trap – with 2 seconds, 2 fourths, and 2 fifths. The Inverness Yacht Club put on a very successful event, enjoyed by all the Wabbiteers, particularly with the perfect weather on beautiful Tomales Bay. Our thanks to PRO Skip Shapiro and all of their volunteers for their welcoming and competent efforts. Submitted by Kim Desenberg 1,Jack ,Melinda Erkelens William Erkelens Andrew Hamilton 2,Mr. McGregor,Kim Desenberg Liza Trombi Bart Hackworth 3,Holy Hand Grenade,David Rogers Taylor Joosten Kurt Lahr 4,Wild Bunch II,Aaron Sturm Guillaume Canivet Ella Sturm 5,Hare-O-Dynamic,Ethan Petersen Carmalyn Lubawy Sarah Deeds 6,Bad Hare Day,Erik Menzel Michele Sumpton Tait McCarthy 7,Kwazy,Colin Moore Rachel Fogel OJ Olson 8,Tulawemia,Chris Melhuish Connor Schmitt Duncan Ferguson 9,Bear,Christine Dubuc Rob Dubuc Natalie Dubuc Skylar Dubuc 10,Just a Hare,Tim Roche Mike Scott Chris Boome 11,24K,Lisa Byrne Greg Byrne Nathan Basset |
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