The Last Chance Regatta
A great weekend with 1O International 21Os racing in the Magothy. Pictures to follow soon on the GIYS 210 Blog site http://www.myfamily.­com/group/40990105

Saturdays forecast was grim, with predicted winds of up to thirty knots and a hundred per cent chance of rain. Race Committee Terry May courageously kept the "non spin" flag hidden and ran 3 great races as the strong winds in the Bay were reduced to only moderate in the River. The volatile weather system brought some light rain, fleeting sun through racing clouds and intimidating gray to the west. The wind stayed under 18 knots and spinnakers were flown for every race. The bright white 210 sails under the dark clouds were dramatic and seeing 10 of the boats on the start line was spectacular.
Heron, sailed by Tom Price, John and Dave Clinnin won race one, followed by Courtenay Jenkins with Kin Yellott and Mike Ballo crewing and Mark DeShong from Boston crossing 3rd. Mark led for the first leg but forgot about the offset mark as he rounded the weather mark. The 210s surged downwind under their broad spinnakers, almost planing. The heroics of our 210 fleet members in handling these sails with our rather rudimentary set up should be recognized and many improvements and fixes were implemented on the fly.
In race 2, 210 Class President, Mark Deshong didn’t make the same mistake twice as he led us all around, followed by Greg Sullivan. John Baker and Court Jenkins battled for 3rd and 4th.
A slight lessening of the breeze brought John Baker, a recent 210 purchaser, sailing with Oakley Jones and son (juice?), to the fore. Showing who was the boat to beat, Mark Deshong finished second with our own Courtenay Jenkins 3rd.
The fleet sailed in with plenty of time to prepare for the Halloween party at the Boathouse (including a nap!). Weather rolled in and it POURED! Timing is everything. Our visitors mingled with costumed Islanders getting a good idea of our unique population.
Sunday dawned with a brilliant sky washed clean by the night’s storms and a moderate NW breeze of 8-12 kts. Pumping the boats out gave the crews their morning workouts and small, vital improvements were accomplished, making spinnaker handling that day nearly flawless. Fast learners!
Ralph Sponar blasted off the pin end of the line, showing that he meant to make an impression today, crossing everyone. He led around the course, only to lose 2 boats as he overshot the leeward mark! Deshong garnered another win followed by John Baker chased by Ralph.
Gritting his teeth and showing what he is made of, Ralph with his wife Sandy and son Matt crewing, came right back and won the final race going away! Handling the now shifty, dropping winds superbly and with excellent speed he led from start to finish. Mark Deshong nailed 2nd with Courtenay wrapping up his well sailed series with a 3rd.
This year, our well prepared Northern visitors, Mark Deshong and John Baker took the first 2 places while Gibson Island boats, Courtenay Jenkins and Ralph Sponar, claimed third and fourth. Fair enough!
A special mention has to be made for Race Committee Chairman Terry May and his crew who ran flawless races on perfect courses. He made the courageous calls to race – with spinnakers – on Saturday, got us in before the storms and on Sunday banged off the final two races using up the last of the breeze. As the boats returned slowly to their moorings, the flag on the causeway staff gave its final wave and hung exhaustedly over a now calm Chesapeake.

210 Last Chance Regatta
Series Standing - 5 races scored
Division: 210 (10 boats) (top)

Pos Sail Boat Skipper Race 1 Race 2 Race 3 Race 4 Race 5 Total
Points Pos
1 461 Charrett Too Deshong, Mark [2] 1 2 1 2 6.00 1
2 407 Big Dig Two Baker, John 4 3 1 2 [8] 10.00 2
3 GI 6 Double Eagle Jenkins, Courtney 3 [4] 3 4 3 13.00 3
4 390 Longtail Sponar, Ralph [6] 6 4 3 1 14.00 4
5 431 Relentless Sullivan, Greg 5 2 [7] 5 4 16.00 5
6 GI 2 Heron Price, Tom 1 5 6 [9] 5 17.00 6
7 GI 5 Coot Leigh, Murray [7] 7 5 6 6 24.00 7
8 GI 3 Loon Schluederverg, Scott 9 [10] 8 7 7 31.00 8
9 GI 1 Egret Mitchel, Walter 8 8 [10] 8 9 33.00 9
10 444 Quatro Lemaire, Thomas [11/DNF] 9 9 10 10 38.00 10

Notes

(1) Scoring System is ISAF Low Point 2005-2008
(2) Finishes in [brackets] denote throwouts

Information is provisional and subject to modification

Principal Race Officer: Terry May