Sailing conditions were light and shifty today at the Ephraim Regatta. Larry Klick and his crew, James Williams, from Medicine Lake, MN, had the best day of anyone,
with a first- and second-place finish. There are more than 31 boats participating, as well as several International 110s.
The first race the wind was coming out of the south at about 180 degrees. We had a very good start and stayed on the right, which we decided looked better. We rounded about fifth at the first mark and about the same at the leeward mark. On the second upwind leg we concentrated on keeping the boat moving, not tacking very much and looking for pressure. We also spent a lot of time looking at the other boats around us, all of whom were doing pretty much the same thing! The committee shortened the race to that upwind mark, much to our relief, and we placed fourth. Just after we finished an entirely new and fresh wind came in from the north and the rest of the fleet finished the “upwind” leg with spinnakers flying. It was an awesome sight, but I did not envy the committee boat trying to take finishes with everyone all clustered together, including some International 110s.
We then waited for about an hour for the race committee to reset the course, at which point we sailed a second race. The wind seemed much better on the right side, but we started on the left to get a clear start and never quite recovered! Larry and James had a great windward leg, rounding well ahead of the next boats. That was the case for the entire race, until Mike and Jennifer Faugust caught them just at the finish. I can’t report much more about the front of the fleet because they were mostly out of sight as we tried to work our way back up through the fleet, without much success.
The race committee tried to get a third race off before the 3 pm deadline, but were unsuccessful, so we all headed back to the dock, many getting towed in, as the wind continued to die. Tomorrow predictions are for more very light wind, but time will tell.
Part of the Ephraim Regatta tradition is the annual Saturday bratfest, which is always very well attended. This year was no exception and we enjoyed brats, grilled corn on the cob, and lots of cold beer. The results also were posted there and a very partial listing includes:
Larry Klick and James Williams 3 pts
Ryan and Evan Malmgren tied with Mike and Jen Faugust 6 pts
Jay Lott and Dave Sauter 11 pts
Cain Goettelman and his brother Seth 13 pts
Someone ran off with the actual standings, so I can’t tell you more just now, but stay tuned!
Photos by Doug Williams.
