Canadian Albacore Association - Racing every weekend

by Ken Yamazaki on 6 Oct 2010 The last month and a half has seen at least one, often two, and sometimes even three events each weekend. This includes regattas for all skill levels, the Harbour Master series, the Friday night series, and the fall series.

Regattas
The East Coast Championships were held August 20-22 at the Shelburne Harbour Yacht Club in Nova Scotia. The regatta is well known for its hospitality and the first race was held close to shore so that the town could come out and watch the event. Several participants travelled in from Ontario and the States and many of the local racers were members of the junior program. After 8 races, Barney Harris and Lee Mullins from the Potomac River Sailing Association won the championship.

The Toronto Island Sailing Club regatta was held the same weekend on August 21 in Toronto's Inner Harbour. 36 boats participated and four races were run in relatively light winds from the east. George Carter and Almir Tavares from the Mooredale Sailing Club won the regatta.

The US National Championships were held the next weekend at the Monmouth Boat Club in Red Bank, NJ. A total of six races held over the two days. Gene Spillane and Gary Peatick were the winners of the Challenger fleet and Barney Harris and David Byron were the winners of the President fleet.

The next regatta was the Kanata Sailing Club Open in Ottawa. It was held over the Saturday and Sunday of the Labour Day long weekend. Nine races were run with strong winds on both days. Simon Igici and Mary-Catherine Doran from the Nepean Sailing Club won the regatta.

The Women's Regatta was held on the following Saturday at the St. Jamestown Sailing club. 2010 marks the 20th anniversary of this regatta which was created to encourage women helms. Winds were light to moderate from the east and four races were held. Mary Free and Kimberly Rooks from the Westwood Sailing Club won the regatta.

The Fanfare regatta was held on the same weekend, on September 11-12 at the Nepean Sailing Club. Four races were run which allowed no drops. Warner Monteiro and Sonja McAuley from the Nepean Sailing Club won the regatta with fve points.

The Canadian Championships were held the following weekend on September 17-19 at the Buffalo Canoe Club in Ridgeway Ontario. Considered one of the main events of the season a total of 48 boats participated. All of them travelled in from around Ontario and the States.

The Friday saw light, shifty winds and one race. However, the Buffalo Canoe Club is known for winds and waves and the Saturday delivered on this. The winds built to approximately 18 knots with a significant swell by mid-afternoon. Four races were run that day. Sunday returned to being light and shifty for the final two races of the regatta. Fred Fellouse and Anna Sepko from the Mooredale Sailing Club won the Challenger fleet. Barney Harris and David Byron from the Potomac River Sailing Association won the Champion fleet.

The weekend after the Canadian's was Klinger's around the Island race held by the St. Jamestown Sailing Club. Traditionally a race around Toronto Island, the regatta is a favorite for more casual racers. This year the winds were gusting to approximately 20 knots, so racing was held in the Outer Harbour. Despite the conditions 24 Albacores participated in the three races. Almir Tavares and Christine Kelly from the Mooredale Sailing Club won the regatta.

Full regatta results may be found www.albacore.ca/results!here and pictures from a number of the events may be found www.albacore.ca/photos!here.

Harbour Masters
The final two Harbour Master races were held on August 22. The 16 race weekend series saw a total of 84 helms and 125 crews participate. An average of 35 boats competed with many races seeing over 40 boats. The top helm was Pasquale Leone from the St. Jamestown Sailing Club and the top crew was Christine Kelly from the Mooredale Sailing Club.

Full results may be found www.albacore.ca/fnr_hm!here.

Toronto Friday Night Club Series
The Friday night club series finished up on September 3. The 18 race series saw 85 helms and 171 crews participate. An average of 45 boats raced each Friday with several nights with over 50 boats.

The top club helm was Allan Measor (St. Jamestown Sailing Club) and the top club crew was Susan Calahan (Mooredale Sailing Club). Raines Koby (Outer Harbour Centreboard Club) was the top private helm. The Mooredale Sailing Club was the winner of the club series with the St. Jamestown Sailing Club, Westwood Sailing Club, and Toronto Island Sailing Club 168, 1033 and 2848 points behind respectively.

Full results may be found www.albacore.ca/fnr_hm!here.

Fall Series
The eight-race fall series ran for four weekends in September and October and finished up this last Sunday. 56 helms and 66 crews participated and the races saw an average of 25 boats on the line with several peaks of over 30 boats. The top helm was JJ Hall and the top crew was Tracy Hall (both from the Outer Harbour Centreboard Club).

Full results may be found www.albacore.ca/fnr_hm!here.

Upcoming
The season is beginning to wind down, but there are still two upcoming events. The North Americans are being held this weekend on October 9-11 at the Rehoboth Bay Sailing Association in DE. This will be followed by the Blood and Guts regatta on October 17 hosted by the Mooredale Sailing Club in Toronto.


For more information, please go to: www.albacore.ca