Just a few last minute reminders before we race on Saturday:
If you are planning to sail the National Championships, get your registration in before August 31 to take advantage of the early bird deadline. Check out the NOR and registration page.
The Briody Regatta is fast approaching. If you haven’t attended before, you’re missing out. Newport Yacht Club in Rochester is an ideal venue with great facilities, amazing hospitality and camping on site. The regatta usually has a good mix of top-level snipe sailors, juniors and novice sailors, and a relaxed atmosphere. So if you’ve never been to an out of town regatta this is a great place to start. We had a strong Canadian contingent last year and we hope to build on that.
Inessa and Kristina launching for Briody 2018
If you’ve got any concerns or questions about getting there, just reach out to Harri or myself, or you can contact the regatta chair John Dentinger with any questions.
Canadian National Championships/Ontario Open were held on Guelph Lake this past weekend. Despite some rain and a few thundershowers interrupting things on day one, the wind held through the entire regatta with a relatively constant (for Guelph Lake) 8 to 12 knots throughout. Giving us two days of fantastic racing.
It was not a great weekend to be a daggerboard trunk though.With water levels getting dangerously low, avoiding the edges of the lake was an important strategic consideration. Every competitor hit the bottom at least once during the regatta…luckily Harri was on hand to do some quick fiberglass repair and keep everyone floating.
The competition was at times intense, but Palm and Kurvink dominated overall, and once again emerged as the decisive winners dropping a third place finish to to give them straight bullets across the board. The competition for second place was fierce, with Inglis/ Vascotto battling it out with Richards/Perry through the second day. Richards strong showing on the fist day gave them the edge and they ended up taking second place by a point. So in the end it was 1.Palm/Kurvink 2.Richards/Perry and 3. Inglis/Vascotto on the podium.
Juniors Inessa Townsend Fish and Kristina Harris, fresh from the women’s worlds the weekend before, took the top junior spot to win the Howie Richards trophy for the second year in a row. See Full Results. 
John Dentinger and Jen Perena came up from Newport Yacht Club to make it an international event. It’s always great to welcome our American friends to Guelph Lake.
A special thanks to PRO John Booth and Travis Raw for (as always) running a great regatta. 
The NOR, registration form, and payment portal are all live on the regatta registration page at sciracanada.com
The 2018 Canadian Championships began with a sense of deja-vu, as competitors sat on shore on day-one and waited for wind. With cloud cover early in the day and 0-4 knots forecast, we were all pinning our hopes on the breeze that was on it’s way for Sunday. However when it came, it came with more strength than expected and some very big waves. The consensus among the fleet was that it was not safe to race, and so the second day was cancelled as well. So… for the second year we are in the position of having to re-sail the regatta at a later date in the summer.
On a positive note though, despite the lack of sailing everyone seemed to still have a good time. The traditional Cook-your-own-steak dinner was a hit as always. Our southern neighbors and good friends John Dentinger and Jenny Perena escaped Trump-Nation for the weekend, and in exchange for some Tim Hortons doughnuts, regaled us with stories of $1000 (CAD) cocktails and filmed embarrassing docking moments. We look forward to paying them back in August at the Briody.
It was also good to see new blood in the snipe class. Jeff Fullerton, and John Ryan were both first timers at the National Championship, and Inessa Townsend Fish, the reigning Junior Champion was in attendance and ready to defend her title. We look forward to seeing them all back on the water very soon.
After deliberation with the SCIRA Canada membership we will announce plans for a re-sail…Stay tuned.
The Deed Of Gift for the Leckie Trophy stipulates that the Snipe Canadian Championships Regatta shall have three races to constitute a regatta, and after the original attempt in Toronto back in early July only managed one light air race, the Canadian Snipe sailors decided to try again at Guelph Lake on Sept. 16-17. This time they got their championship.
Again it was a light air affair with PRO John Booth only managing two races the first day. The winds were tricky and no lead was safe. Defending champs Harri Palm and Molly Kurvink won the first race by starting clean and just staying in the pressure. The second race look like a replay of the first however Gord Richards and Ryan perry found some breeze on the left a hundred metres from the finish and Palm/Kurvink were stuck in a hole on the right and could not defend and Richards nipped them at the line. The two teams went to shore tied for first at the end of day one. Harri Palm mentioned how the day was very similar to the conditions he had just experienced at the recent US Nationals at Mystic Lake although he added the caveat that “ there is nothing quite like sailing in Mystic Lake”.
Day two provided more breeze and the crews actually found themselves in the hiking straps on many occasions. With the wind from the south it was Guelph Lake at its finest; warm and sunny with 6-8 knots of breeze, thirty minute races and the lake to ourselves. Sailing a newly acquired JibeTech #30765, Palm/Kurvink stayed out of trouble and in the pressure and had very good speed all day. They ended up winning all three races but not without John Dentinger giving them a real challenge at the finish in the last two races.
It should be noted that the Howie Richards Trophy, designating the Canadian Junior Snipe Champion, was handed out to Inessa Townsend-Fish and Andrea Baker back in July at the initially attempt of the Senior Canadians. Only one race is neede to award the Junior crown.
Canadians Re-Sail Sept 16-17 results.
Here is the NOR for the Snipe Canadians Re-Sail at Guelph Lake September 16-17. As only one race was sailed in July and the Deed Of Gift requires three, SCIRA Canada decided to give it another shot. The Junior Canadian Championship and the Ontario Open will not be awarded as they were awarded at the original regatta in July. (They only require one race to constitute a regatta).
Update: SI’s are now available 2017-Snipe-Canadian-Championship-Re-Sail_SI_prelimin_11sep17
In an unprecedented move, SCIRA Canada has decided to re-sail the Snipe Canadians at Guelph Lake on the September 16-17 weekend. The first attempt in July at Outer Harbour Centreboard Club ended with only on race being sailed and only the Ontario Open being awarded. The Canadians need three races to be a regatta so it was decided to give it another go. Teams can register here. Entry fee and food will be determined on a break even basis and should be very reasonable.
Note: On Saturday we will be sharing the racecourse with the Laser fleet as part of their Laserpalooza Regatta.
Conditions on Guelph Lake were ideal over the weekend for the Canadian Snipe Championship/Ontario Open. Day one was breezy, with gusts topping 25 knots. Over the course of the first three races, the ten boat fleet was reduced to five, as several dramatic capsizes, gear failures, minor injuries, and general mayhem ensued. PRO Irene McNeill sent the fleet in for the day as the breeze continued to build into the late afternoon.
Coming out of the first day, lone Americans Andy Klein and Kerry O’Brien led the standings with consistent first and second place finishes, and three Canadian boats were tied for second spot and the national title: Julian Inglis and Rachel Oktem, Harri Palm and Molly Kurvink, and Chris Hains and Barbara Mann.
Much steak and salmon was consumed, and more than a few participants were seen lying in the grass stretching out sore muscles and trying to recover.
Day 2 saw a diminished 10 -12 knot North Westerly that still packed a few surprise punches and kept crews on their toes. Klein and O’Brien continued to dominate, and Palm and Kurvink pulled ahead of the rest of the Canadians through the day with consistently strong finishes and a very quick capsize recovery in the 6th race. After seven races, Klein and O’Brien won the regatta and took home the coveted Ontario Open Trophy, Palm and Kurvink were crowned Canadian Champions.
Junior Skippers Bridget Walsh, Simon Miley and Owen Durocher battled for the Canadian Junior title with the Miley brothers, Simon and Gordon, taking the Howie Richards trophy.
SCIRA Canada 