SCIRA Canada

The famous Irondequoit Bay Thermal came in for five of the seven races of the Briody Memorial Regatta this year.  Canadian skipper Gord Richards made good use of it to win the regatta, followed closely by Gene Soltero, John Korkosz, and John Dentinger.  Ricky Trauscht was fifth.

Two boats were of special interest: #19119, Woody, had been rebuilt by Steve Lee and was returning to the regatta scene after a long absence.  Also, #29090 was loaned to Dallas skipper Gene Soltero by Newport YC sailors Maureen McDonald and Steve Mickel.  Gene had sailed the Briody once before, in 1979, when he won his first SCIRA-sanctioned regatta.

Bill Topping did his usual masterful job as PRO, and thanked Harbormaster Phil Morse for having all of the power boats working — a feat not easily accomplished.  Dan Groth posted his regatta photos on the club web site at newportyc.org.

The racing was very close, with tacking and gybing duels, crowded mark roundings, and split opinions as to the favored end of the start line.  Four different boats won races.

After Dinosaur Barbeque on Saturday night, guitar teacher John Wiesenthal sang us some sailing songs and we joined in as needed.   Breakfast Sunday morning was ham and eggs cooked to order by Commodore Paul Riordan, supervised by wife Dorothy Drahzal.

We had welcome visits from Bud and Ellen Booth and from Kevin and Zack Haller.

The 2013 Canadians/Ontario Open were held July 6-7 at Royal Hamilton Yacht Club and the conditions were at the extremes for Snipe sailing.

Day one gave the sailors extremely light wind from the west/southwest and PRO Ross Cameron wisely held of a start until an easterly thermal filled in mid-day. The thermal and the gradient battled throughout the race making for tricky racing. Jno and Karen Disch from Cleveland were on fire and walked away with the race. It would be the only race of the day. After five hours on the water, the exhausted sailors were glad to return to RHYC for the traditional Cook Your Own Steak Dinner.

Sunday was the opposite of Saturday. Starting at 10-12 knots from the southwest and building all day to gusts in the 18 knot range, the racing was thrilling and eventful. Gear failures and capsizes did not dampen the competitiveness of the fleet. Andy Klein and Jessica Claflin were consistent with no finishes worse than a second in the entire regatta. That included going back to re-start after being called OCS in race 3. They win the Ontario Open with an impressive effort.

Snipe newcomer Evert McLaughlin from RCYC and Mooredale’s Anna Sepko were the top Canadian team with consistent finishes. Sailing “The Old Battleaxe” 28045, McLaughlin showed great form in only his second Snipe regatta. With a good boat and some more training, he will be a force in future events. Guelph’s Harri Palm and Molly Kurvink overcame a rough day one to end up second Canadian boat with Chris Hains and Barb Mann only a point behind.

Results-Canadians 2013

Due to rising catering costs, the price of the Canadians/Ontario Open regatta has been raised by $15 to $145. Extra dinner tickets are still $25 and bagged Saturday Lunch is still $5. A few other minor changes have been made to the Canadians NOR 2013:ver.2.

As many of you already know the US Nationals will be held at Buffalo Canoe Club this July 19-26. The NOR and Regatta Info Sheet are now available. As Canadian teams are welcome at this event, please plan to attend this excellent regatta.

The Snipe Canadian Championship/Ontario Open will be held July 6-7 at the Royal Hamilton Yacht Club.  NOR can be found here.Canadians NOR 2013

If was previously posted that the Palm D’Or Regatta would take place on the June 1-2 weekend. In order to avoid conflict with the Colonial Cup, it has now been moved to the previous weekend of May 25-26. Junior sailors will want to note that it is the Canadian Qualifier for the Junior Snipe Worlds in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Sept. 14-20 2013.

As this year gets under way, the regatta dates that are of interest to SCIRA Canada members have started to come in. Dates will be added as they are confirmed.

Harri

Report by Katie Nicoll

It came down to the wire this afternoon at the 2012 Snipe North Americans, held at the Etobicoke Yacht Club in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, between Raul Rios and Ernesto Rodriguez. After two days of light winds, an 8-10 knot SE breeze filled in nicely for sailors from four countries on the waters of Lake Ontario. Up to that point, winds had been light and variable with significant shifts for the past two days of racing.

PRO, Irene McNeil, guessed correctly on the shifts, and was able to set six good courses in the tough conditions to make the fleet of 23 boats very happy. In the end, Ernesto and Raul finished with tied scores, only to be broken by the last race, which Raul Rios and Edgar Diminisch won. Finishing in third, with very consistent races, was Carol Cronin and Kim Couranz  followed by Jim Bowers and Julia Marsh in fourth. Reigning World Champ Alexandre Tinoco and Kathleen Tocke were fifth. Top Canadian Team and winner of the Id Crook Trophy was Harri Palm and Molly Kurvink in 8th place.

After much lobbying from numerous national sailing federations and concerned Snipe sailors around the Americas and Caribbean, PASAF has re-instated the Snipe into the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto. This is great news and welcomed by many countries that would otherwise have suffered if the Snipe had been eliminated.

Current world champ Alexandre Tinoco will be doing a Snipe clinic at the Etobicoke Yacht Club the weekend before the NA’s (September 8-9). This is a great opportunity to be coached and assessed by one of the best sailors in the world and to have your boat tuned and ready for the NA’s.

Updated pricing:

Spots are limited to 8 boats with 5 boats already confirmed, leaving 3 spots left. Cost will depend on how many boats participate but with 8 it will be between $125-$200 depending on how many boats register. Anyone interested should contact Harri Palm at harripalm@hotmail.com or leave a comment here.

Participants will be able to leave their boats at EYC until the NA’s the following weekend.