September 13-14, 2014
On September 13 and 14, some of the most dedicated Etchells sailors in the country gathered at the Portland Yacht Club on the beautiful waters of Casco Bay, Maine for the 2nd annual Etchells Lobster Bowl regatta. The sailors gathered with 3 goals in mind: sail “wicked fast” on the flat waters and consistent fall breezes on the bay, to drink some great locally brewed Craft Beer provided by event sponsor Rising Tide and enjoy a traditional Lobster Shore Dinner. After two great days and 7 races, all agreed their goals were met.
The Lobster Bowl is unique in that it offers a Heritage Division for older Etchells who still have their original keels. Boats qualifying for the Heritage division race in the overall regatta but are also scored in their own separate division. Race organizer and Fleet Captain Ralph Carpenter, speaking about the Heritage Division, said, “We wanted to establish an opportunity for folks who own and love to race their older Etchells a chance to compete in a major regatta against similar boats. Major regattas in our class tend to be dominated by newer boats and professional sailors. The Heritage Division was established for those in the class who really love to race their older boats in a major event and where they have a reasonable chance of bringing home some hardware.”
This year’s event kicked off on Friday night with an opening gathering featuring Chili and Chowder provided by Portland Yacht Club, and the tapping of the first keg of great Rising Tide beer. The highlight of the evening was the introduction of each of the crews by their skipper and the unveiling of the Dave White award, a beautiful perpetual trophy honoring Dave White for his many years of service to Fleet 27 and the greater Maine sailing community. Dave has had a long and eventful sailing career, primarily in Lightnings, J24s, and Etchells. For years he handled Race Committee duties for the Monhegan Offshore race, and after being one of the early members of fleet 27, has served the fleet the past 4 years as PRO for its popular Tuesday night racing series. The White award is to be awarded annually to the winner of the Heritage Division in the Lobster Bowl regatta.
The racing started on Saturday, and halfway through the first race, the wind went light, then almost totally disappeared. Competitors were beginning to wonder if they would be able to get a race in. PRO Gretchen Sullivan knew the light winds would be giving way to a nice Easterly, and she shortened the course and kept the race alive. She was right: the boats finished in the building Easterly breeze. Veteran Vermont Etchells sailor Don Brush won the first race, closely followed by two local boats, 7-time fleet 27 champion Schadenfuede, and Butter, sailing in its first major Etchells regatta.
In the second race of the day, another veteran Etchells sailor, Rob Hitchcock, of Dorchester and South Dartmouth, MA, took the bullet in first place, closely followed by Alan Kelly. Tim Caven finished third, in Touch of Gray, Hull 186 to claim the victory in the Heritage Division.
The third race was all about Daniel Brouder and his crew on USA #3, the oldest competitive Etchells in the world. Daniel and his crew led most of the way, and took the bullet as the race’s overall winner. He also won the Heritage Division. Brouder said, “What a great moment to see old #3 hull, not only compete, but also win over some of the best Etchells sailors in the Northeast.”
The fourth and final race of the day was won by another veteran Etchells sailor, Alan Kelly, who travelled from the Washington D.C. area to compete in the event. Second in this race went to local sailor Tim Tolford in White Hawk, Rob Hitchcok ended a good first day finishing third. Another local sailor and charter member of Fleet 27, Seth Sprague, took the win in the Heritage division.
The fleet returned to shore reveling in the great day of racing – ready to further relieve the keg of its contents and enjoy the Lobster Shore Dinner being prepared for them on the Yacht Club lawn. Results for the day showed a dogfight brewing for overall regatta champion between Hitchcock, Brush, and Kelly. The 3 were separated by just two points at the top of the pack heading into day 2. At the completion of the Lobster dinner the daily awards were presented, with Lobster mugs going to the race winners. Tim Tolford won the Lobster Pajamas, with a 2nd and 16th place finish. The pajamas are presented to the day’s most inconsistent finisher so he can go home and “sleep on what went wrong, and dream about what went right.” The entire fleet enjoyed a big laugh on Tim’s behalf, as the pajamas fit him perfectly.
Sunday was a beautiful fall day with a steady breeze from the start. Three races were completed with Rob Hitchcock taking bullets in the first 2 to jump past Kelly and Brush for the regatta lead heading into the last race. Bruce Avery from Essex Connecticut stepped up his game on day two with a second and fourth in Sundays first two races. Scott Thomas won the Heritage division in race 6, being the 5th race winner in the division in 6 races.
In the last race with the regatta championship up for grabs between Hitchcock, Kelly, and Brush, the 3 veterans all delivered terrific performances, finishing 1, 2, and 3. Seth Sprague won his second Heritage Division victory in the regatta coming in 4th overall. The entire fleet knew results for both overall and Heritage division were extremely close, and when the results were posted, they were not disappointed. Rob Hitchcock was the overall regatta winner by one point over Brush and Kelly. Daniel Brouder beat Andrew Carey by two boats in the last race to claim the Heritage Division championship by one point. At the awards ceremony, 14 year old Ethan Brouder, who sailed with Jay Corson on Tuesday’s Witch, was awarded the Generations award, as the event’s youngest competitor. The award was presented by Patricia Stadel and Dave White, the event’s senior skipper and crew. Carpenter mentioned that almost 20% of the regatta competitors were under age 25. “To attract that many talented young sailors to a major regatta is a great sign for our class and the future of this regatta,” he added.
As the awards ceremony ended and farewells were extended to our friends traveling home, everyone surely felt the weekend was complete. The goals were met and all agreed it’s a great time when friends can gather to enjoy a great microbrew, savor a traditional Lobster Dinner, relax in the hospitality of the host family’s homes and enjoy some extremely competitive racing in the challenging conditions of Casco Bay. It was a weekend worth remembering, and repeating again next year.
Pictures of the event can be seen on Fleet27s Facebook page.