The Tartan 42 Great Whisper began Day 1 of the 2003 Sailing World Detroit NOOD regatta in fine fashion, blaring “Eye of the Tiger,” by the 80s band Survivor from their deck speakers on their way past the Bayview YC and out to the racecourse this morning. It might have been the retro tunes, but could just have easily been the pent-up anticipation of the crews of the 188-boat strong fleet that finally convinced the breeze to come up after close to three hours of postponement. Classes A and B each got off two races in breeze that never went over ten knots, while the smaller boats in Class C had to content themselves with one.
“Some of the crew napped while we were waiting, but once the wind finally came up, it wasn’t bad,” said Jim Goldenberger, of Fairhaven, Mi., who sails his Cal 25 For Sail out of Port Huron. “It was a little shifty and the right side was favored, which, once you figured it out, was OK. The biggest thing was that if you made a mistake, the conditions were unforgiving, and I zigged when I should have zagged.” Goldenberger and his crew of four finished deep, but are looking forward to Saturday’s racing, which is forecast to be much windier. “We’ll just tighten a lot of stuff up,” said Goldenberger.
The crew of the Melges 24 Remarc, owned by Brian Cramer (get it?) of London, Ontario, finished 7th in the 12-boat class. “Be still, be patient, and try to find a lane that the five classes who started in front of us aren’t in,” said Cramer, explaining his tactics for the day. “With only a mile-long weather leg, it’s tough.” Sailing downwind in the light meant that the asymmetric spinnaker-rigged Melgii had to sail the corners, which wasn’t a bad thing. “We were jibing wide angles,” said Cramer, “and that helped keep us clear of the other classes sailing upwind.”
Barb Stapleton, of Allen Park, Mi., trimmer on the C&C; 35 Contender, had mixed feelings about her team’s 4,5 finish for the day. While it left them fourth in class, it meant that her husband, sailing ona another boat in the class, beat them for the day. “We usually sail much better than that,” she said. “We knew where we needed to be but just couldn’t get there.” Stapleton’s prediction for tomorrow? “We’re going to kick ass.”
Frank Schinco’s One Design 35 Avanti, which he’s owned for three years but just recently brought out of mothballs, had a “somewhat difficult” time in the mixed class today. “We try to have a strategy when sailing against larger boats,’ said Schinco. “We tack away early and try not to mix it up with the larger boats. We rely on our agility and use J/105s as picks against other boats.” Tomorrow’s breeze doesn’t particularly worry Schinco. “The crew is great in a breeze,” he says, “especially downwind. We’ll be fine.”
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| Tony Bessinger|
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| Crowded mark roundings were the name of the game in the light breezes of Race 1.* * *|
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| The crew of the Simpson-esque J/24 Homer J. had a solid first day, finishing third in their 9-boat class. “Weight placement was crucial today in the light stuff,” said J/24 skipper Dan Webb, of the Detroit Northstar Sail Club, “But tomorrow, we may use our old spinnaker.” Webb’s sentiment was echoed by many of the crews and skippers under the tent tonight, who, in varying degrees of trepidation and anticipation, were already thinking about Saturday’s forecast. “We’ve been here before in big breeze and won,” said Melges skipper Cramer. “We just sailed the downwind legs without a chute and we were faster than the boats that tried to carry one.”
Results after Day one:
C&C; 35 Class
(Skipper/Boat Name) (Hometown) (Race Finishes) Points
1. Brian Geraghty/ SIOCHAIL Grosse Pointe Shores, MI 1-1 = 2
2. Frank Tenkel/ BRAVO Grosse Pointe Shores, MI 2-2 = 4
3. Don Ragan/ GANDALE Grosse Pointe Shores, MI 3-4 = 7
Cal 25 Class
1. Dale Marshall/CLYTIE Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 1 = 1
2. Frederick Shinske/ MAGIC St. Clair, MI 2 = 2
3. Robert Orr/ STORMALONG Grosse Pointe Shores, MI 3 = 3
Crescent Class
1. Stephen Hume/ MANON Detroit, MI 1 = 1
2. David Hume/ UTOPIA Detroit, MI 2 = 2
3. Geoff Blake/ NUTS Grosse Pointe, MI 3 = 3
Express 27 Class
1. Harald Kolter/ DAS BOOT Harper Woods, MI 1 = 1
2. Ralph Deeds/ LORAX Birmingham, MI 2 = 2
3. Peter Fortune/ AIR FORCE Grosse Pointe, MI 3 = 3
Gran Prix Class
1. Herbert Misch/ TIKI II Bloomfield Hills, MI 2-1 = 3
2. Curtis Kime/ VICTRIX Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 3-1 = 4
3. Clune Walsh/ UNDAUGHTED Birmingham, MI 1-4 = 5
J 105 Class
1. Brian Smith/ SORCERY Rochester, MI 4-2 = 6
2. Todd Amsdell/ PATRIOT Rocky River, OH 2-4 = 6
3. Cynthia & Jim Best/ PHANTON Beverly Hills, MI 3-6 = 9
J 120 Class
1. Robert Kirkman/ HOT TICKET Northville, MI 3-1 = 4
2. Don Hudak/ CAPERS Mentor, OH 1-3 = 4
3. Robert Amsler/ MERLIN Clinton Township, MI 2-2 = 4
J 24 Class
1. Josh Kerst/ INSTANT KARMA Ann Arbor, MI 1 = 1
2. Jim Van De Velde/ MIND GAMES Macomb, MI 2 = 2
3. Dan Webb/ HOMER J Harrison Twp., MI 3 = 3
J 35 & T 35 Class
1. Michael Elliot/ BERNOULLI Linden, MI 2-2 = 4
2. Ed Bayer/ FALCON Grosse Point Park, MI 3-4 = 7
3.Chris Herriges/ NIGHT TRAIN Clinton, Twp. MI 7-1 = 8
Level 123 Class
1. Gordon Morian/ AVATAR Grosse Point Park, MI 2-1 = 3
2. Brian Bascom/ LIBERTE Holland, MI 1-2 = 3
3. James Rapelje/ BENJAMMIN Clinton Township, MI 3-3 = 6
Level 141 Class
1. Michael Salter/ BOOMERANG Tecumseh, Ontario 1-2 = 3
2. Alan Johnson/ ZAMBONI Windsor, Ontario 4-1 = 5
3. Nat Towle/ FREEDOM Bingham Farms, MI 2-3 = 5
Melges 24 Class
1. Mike Dow/ FLYING TOASTER Traverse City, MI 1 = 1
2. Chuck Holzman/ FLYER 02 Farmington Hills, MI 2 = 2
3. Tom Hager/ WOOD MGT. Rochester Hills, MI 3 = 3
NA 40 Class
1. Marc Hollerhach/ MANDALAV Grosse Pointe Park, MI 1-1 = 2
2. John Barbour/ VELERO VI Detroit, MI 3-2 = 5
3. Steve Steckert/ KEMOSBE Rochester Hills, MI 2-3 = 5
S 27.9 Class
1. David Grover/ PRIMETIME Farmington Hills, MI 1-2 = 3
2. Bob Von Hoorn/ LEBER Shelby Twp, MI 2-3 = 5
3. Boston/ FREQUENT FLYER 5-1 = 6
Tartan 10 Class
1. Tim Britton/ TROLL Mentor, OH 1-1 = 2
2. Jeff Smith/ DIXIE NORMOUS Ferndale, MI 4-5 = 9
3. Mark Van Fossen/ PEARL Vermillion, OH 7-4 = 11
Ultimate 20 Class
1. Bora Gulari/ WONDER WOMAN Ann Arbor, MI 1 = 1
2. Hollerman/ GONZA 2 = 2
3. David Crall/ PANDEMONIUM Loveland, OH 3 = 3
Warhorse Class
1. Dane Christy/ HELLION Bloomfield Hills, MI 1-1 = 2
2. John Trost/ PENDRAGON Grosse Pointe Woods, MI 2-4 = 6
3. Fran Anderson/ BUSHWACKER Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 3-3 = 6
