2007 CR 914
Midwinter Regatta

Horizon Job at Tigertail Lake

Eleven sailors enjoyed good winds (8-15 knots with higher gusts), mostly fair skies, and great camaraderie at the second annual Midwinter Regatta in Dania Beach (Fort Lauderdale) Florida on January 27-28. Thirty-one races had been completed before a brief squall shortened the 32nd race to one lap and ended the regatta about five minutes before the scheduled deadline of 1:00 Sunday afternoon.

2003 International One Meter national champion Tony Gonsalves from Hollywood, Florida, sailing a borrowed boat, won 11 of the first 12 races on his way to total domination of the regatta. Chad Rechcygl, a veteran MC Scow sailor from Wisconsin who had recently moved to Port Orange, Florida and built a CR 914, took first place in the Silver Fleet and fourth place overall, despite the fact that this was the first time he had ever raced a radio-controlled boat (he had practiced, however, using oranges that he tossed into his pond to serve as marks).

The contest for overall second place became more interesting when, in the 27th race, Dick Martin's Mariah (Columbia, Missouri) on port tack nearing the windward mark failed to clear Vince Peritore's Invinceable on starboard and their rigs became entangled, resulting in redress for Invinceable and a self-imposed DSQ (which under the Sailing Instructions could not be thrown out) for Mariah. The damage she had sustained in the collision, unrecognized at the time, disabled Mariah two races later, but after repairs she managed to hold on to edge out Fred Deutsch from North Lauderdale, also sailing a borrowed boat, who took the overall third place trophy. The Silver Fleet second place trophy was won by Pete Kreiling's SuPHRFluous from Cutchogue (Long Island), New York, also sailing in his first RC regatta, with Carlos Rojas' Juliet from Key West third. Click here to see the complete results.

Radio malfunctions, many of which could have been prevented by thorough pre-regatta testing, were a problem as they all too often seem to be, and Sunday's strong, gusty winds caused several other breakdowns, including a broken headstay and the fracture of a mast that had been illegally constructed using a plastic joiner rather than the standard stainless steel one (that owner, whose boat was built by someone else, now knows how Sammy Sosa felt when his corked bat broke at Wrigley field a few years ago). When the final whistle blew Sunday afternoon, only six boats were still in service.

The boat that Tony Gonsalves sailed had belonged to the late Solomon Abraham from Pembroke Pines, who passed away last year shortly after El-Sol had been built. After he heard about that from the Stamatos and Incantalupos who live in the same retirement commun-ity, Tony requested that the first place trophy that El-Sol  had won be hung in the community clubhouse in  memory of Sol.

In striking contrast to last year, when storms, faulty equipment and personnel problems marred the quality of the racing, this year's race management team got it right. Principle Race Officer Jerry Callahan (a snowbird from Ohio, who winters in Bradenton), JoAnn Callahan who served as the scorer, and Michael Rotariu who operated the scoring computer did outstanding jobs. There were lots of other highlights, including the Friday evening barbecue at Tigertail Lake, and the cocktails, dinner, and sailing tips at Shirttail Charlie's Saturday night.

As had been the case in the inaugural Midwinters last year, the best part of the event was the development of the new 914ers who summoned the courage to participate, epitomized by Irene Stamato. Irene and her brand new #1404, Hey I, were equally inexperienced when the regatta began. Hey I took two last places and a DNF before radio problems forced her to retire on Saturday, and Saturday evening Irene was heard to declare that "sailboat racing is harder than childbirth." But she showed up bright and early the next day, and before Sunday's racing was over Hey I had won at least one start (to the cheers of the other competitors) and had posted an impressive third place finish in the heavy-weather 27th race.

Click here to see a complete tabulation of the results.