RACE REPORT 25th Annual Fast Women Regatta & Ladies Trilogy Final, Josephine, AL, July 30 By Kim Kaminski This year is the silver anniversary for the Fast Women Regatta. Twenty-five years in the making, the Point Yacht Club celebrated not only the women sailors who came to compete in the final race of the Ladies Trilogy Series, but also to encourage new skippers to join in the fun and helm a boat for the first time in this special regatta. After watching the success of the Bikini Regatta by the Navy Yacht Club and the success of the Race for the Roses by the Pensacola Beach Yacht Club…the Point Yacht Club near Pirates Cove (a favorite local waterfront gathering location along Perdido Bay) decided to try their hand at a Ladies Race, and in 1992, created the Fast Women Regatta (a regatta that allows only a female skipper with 50 percent female crew). In order to gain momentum for this new regatta, the establishment of the “Virgin Skipper” award was developed to help encourage and increase the number of new and upcoming sailors into the sport of sailboat racing. And—of course—with a name like “Fast Women,” a unique perpetual trophy was created and given to the best all-female team. Starting in 2001, a campaign was initiated to create an officially “sanctioned” race event by the GYA (Gulf Yachting Association, the organizing authority for racing in the Gulf Coast area) for a Women’s PHRF Championship. To aid in this endeavor and persuade more women participants in the newly created GYA event, representatives from the three area yacht clubs: Kathy Coates from the Point Yacht Club, Maryanne Hayes from the Navy Yacht Club and Rick Zern from the Pensacola Beach Yacht Club helped to support the creation of the Ladies Trilogy Series Trophy, given to the top finishing participant who raced in all three races. The first winner of the trilogy trophy was Pam Rowell, a Point Yacht Club member, on Cuda Been Paris. The first winner of the GYA Women’s PHRF Championship was Susan Kerzweg from Mobile, AL. This year, the Fast Women Regatta was the last race in the series. Nine boats were registered to sail with five spinnaker boats (four all-female teams), four non-spinnaker boats (two all-female teams) and five boats sailing with a “virgin” skipper (two Spinnaker and three Non-Spinnaker). Principal Race Officer George Hero (from Southern Yacht Club) set up a double-triangle course with an added windward/leeward finish for the Spinnaker class. The battle was on for the Ladies Trilogy Trophy, which started out with seven boats challenging each other throughout the series for the top prize, and ended with only four boats embarking on the final challenge. After a demanding race series, Rachel Gillette from the Pensacola Yacht Club and her crew aboard Atlantic Union rose to the top of the leader board to earn the Ladies Trilogy Trophy. Not far behind in points, Ellen Hunt, from both the Pensacola Yacht Club and the Pensacola Beach Yacht Club, and her crew aboard Reach Around earned second place in the series but captured first place in her class for the Fast 44
October 2016
SOUTHWINDS
Rachel Gillette and her team aboard Atlantic Union had a great sailing season—earning first place in the first two races in the Ladies Trilogy which helped her in the overall points standing. Although her team earned second place in the Fast Women Regatta, their total points for the series gained her team the Ladies Trilogy Trophy for 2016. Photo by Kim Kaminski.
Women Regatta, earning the Overall Fast Women Best Female Team Perpetual Award. Hanna Davidson, from the Point Yacht Club, aboard Evelyn, in the Non-Spinnaker class earned the Virgin Skipper award with the fastest time—all female crew—on the racecourse with a time of 1:54:03. Connie Fuqua (virgin skipper), also from the Point Yacht Club, aboard Madcap, in the Spinnaker class had the fastest time—mixed crew. In honor of the 25th anniversary, beautiful silver trophies were provided to all the winners to remind them of their accomplishments and the heritage of ladies sailboat racing along the northern Gulf Coast.
2016 Sarasota Sailing Squadron 70th Labor Day Regatta, Sarasota, FL, Sept. 4 By Charlie Clifton Sarasota Sailing Squadron’s 70th Labor Day Regatta included trademark swims in the bay and diving off the docks. True to form, the wind did eventually fill in both days. Four to seven races were run for 10 classes on four courses Sarasota youth sailors dominated the 63-boat Red, White and Blue fleets, taking the top three positions. Bryce Tone (Red) was first by 16 points. Mia Hanes (Red) took second, edging out Thommie Grit via tie breaker. First in White Division was nine-year-old Gil Haskel from Pensacola Yacht Club. Michael Carton from the Manatee River Pram Fleet won the 30-boat Green Fleet with four bullets in six races, throwing out a three. Matthew McGonigal of Clearwater Community Sailing Center took second by one point over Paul Benjamin Strom, who took third, and Alex Liebl, who took fourth—both from Sarasota Youth Sailing. For most of these sailors, it was their first regatta. Alex and Joshua Temko from the Clearwater www.southwindsmagazine.com