US Snipe Sailor 2017 – The Summer of the Kid As you de-winterize your Snipe this spring and make plans for the summer, consider asking a kid to sail with you from time to time. Maybe even take him/ her to a local regatta in Nebraska, Colorado, both coasts or wherever. The inherent protection that lakes Art Rousmaniere and sheltered waterways that US National Secretary most of the US regattas are sailed in provide for safe ways to expand their (and your) horizons. And this year’s August Nationals in Winchester MA (just outside Boston) is on one of the smaller and therefore most protected sites there can be – not to be confused with it being an easy place to sail: it is the home of the Tufts “Jumbos”, one of the countries strongest college sailing programs).
Wishing you all a rewarding 2017 summer of Serious Fun, while also doing some Serious Sailing. - Art
13 year old Michael Morley, who finished 12th in the challenging conditions at the 2017 NAs, with Art.
“Sailing is such a variable sport. There could be no wind, or there could be 25 knots.You never know what you’re going to get” ― Hannah Mills, 2016 Female World Sailor of the Year
Summer 2017
Remembering “Robin” Gales Robert “Robin” Gales passed-away suddenly of a heart attack in February of this year in his home in Truckee, California at the age of 72. Those who knew Robin and sailed with him over the years remember him as a competitive Snipe sailor who was always sailing whenever he could. Robin sailed with Mission Bay Yacht Club in San Diego, and was active in local and national sailing. He also enjoyed sailing in France and Portugal, and was honored to be a part of Bermuda Race Week . However, his favorite venue was the Southern Circuit in Clearwater, Miami and Nassau, of which he was a regular participant for many years.
summers sailing lasers on Lake Tahoe and helping to build a fleet of lasers that still sail weekly in the summers at Tahoe. Robin strongly supported the Snipe Fleet and kept up with current events in the sailing world. He also supported Junior Sailing at Mission Bay, where he and his family have made contributions over the years. Sailing was in his soul, and he never stopped thinking about getting back into a boat. His son, Robby Gales, is now taking up the Gales helm to continue laser sailing at Lake Tahoe, and eventually getting back into the sailing at Mission Bay. A Celebration of Life was held at the Yacht Club and many of his old friends and sailing buddies were in attendance. It was apparent that Robin was a highly respected sailor, friend, and mentor for several young sailors at the Club.
Having grown up in San Diego, where his father was commodore and a founder of Mission Bay Yacht Club, sailing was in his blood. Over the years he sailed sabots, windsurfers, lasers and, of course, Snipes. In 1993, a new business venture took him away from San Diego when he purchased an RV Park in Truckee, California near Lake Tahoe. Even though he was a sailor out of water, he managed to spend several
Robin will be missed by all who had the privilege of knowing him. Paula Ganley-Gales
SCIRA USA 2812 Canon Street San Diego, CA 92106 619-222-0252 Jerelyn Biehl, SCIRA Executive Director jerelyn@odmsail.com Sherri Campbell, SCIRA Finances sherri@odmsail.com Summer 2017
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COLONIAL CUP by Alex Pline Photo: Ted Morgan
Annapolis served up a chamber of commerce weekend for the twenty competitors at the 2017 Colonial Cup at Severn Sailing Association. A few days before the regatta, the weather forecast was not looking very promising with high pressure system filling in over the Chesapeake Bay. This usually results in a dying northwesterly breeze and the infamous Annapolis "Washing Machine" chop. However, there ended up being two cold fronts bookending the regatta which kept the conditions lively and challenging. With six races scheduled and the uncertain forecast, PRO Steve Podlich took advantage of the unexpected increase in breeze after the first race on Saturday to run four 4-lap W/L courses. The first race was light (NNE 4-6 knots), but the breeze unexpectedly for this direction, time of year, and pleasant day jumped up to NE 15, and the washing machine setting went to the "heavy cycle". Ernesto Rodriguez/Kathleen Tocke put together a commanding performance with three firsts and a second followed by Carol Cronin/Kim Couranz and Peter/ Connie Commette. With four races completed Saturday, the tired fleet was treated to refreshments and a burrito bar at the club while relaxing on a beautiful evening overlooking Spa Creek and Downtown Annapolis. Sunday morning brought an increasing southerly breeze by the time the fleet left the dock. Given the excellent breeze - this is the postcard breeze for Annapolis - it was apparent the final two races would be completed and a discard figured into the scores. With Cronin/Couranz dropping their 12th in race one, the distance to Rodriguez/Tocke narrowed considerably. After Rodriguez/Tocke restarted in race five due to an individual recall (unnecessarily despite a loud hailer that sounded like the voice of God calling a different boat one number apart) and finished 7th, it left the door open just a crack for the Cronin/Couranz team to take the top spot. However, Ernesto and Kathleen showed their winning cards in the increasing breeze to win the last race and finish out the regatta with an 8 pt lead. Second through fifth (Cronin/Couranz, Commettes, O'Hares, Blodgett) were separated only by 10 points with very tight racing especially on Sunday. Christian Filter/Jessica Bennett was the top placing Junior Team (10th) and Steve Jahnige was the top placing Silver Team. Thanks to Fleet Captain Chris Ryan for putting on yet another excellent regatta. It was two great days on the water and I enjoyed sharing the race spectating with friends of competitors on the SCIRA Rep boat on both days. 1. Ernesto Rodriguez & Kathleen Tocke, 6 2. Carol Cronin & Kim Couranz, 14 3. Peter Commette & Connie Commette, 17 4. Gavin O'Hare & Holly O'Hare, 19 5. Arthur Blodgett & Lexi Pline, 23
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Summer 2017
2017 US Snipe Regatta Schedule please send your regatta dates to jerelyn@odmsail.com
Date
June 3-4 June 10-11 June 17-18 June 24-25 June 24-25 July 8-9 July 8-9 July 15-16 July 15-16 July 22-23 August 1-7 August 7-14 August 12-13 August 19-20 August 21-25 Sept 7-8 Sept 16-17 Oct 14-16 Oct 28-29
Regatta
Colonial Cup Atlantic Coast Champs Junior ACCs Whittemore St John/BoG Regatta Fire on the Water Winchester Invit/East Coast Classic Snipe Rally Pacific Coast Championship/High Sierra SSA Summer Series Norm Tanner Memorial Jubilee Invitational Snipe Jr World Championship Snipe World Championship Briody Memorial Regatta US Jr National Championship US National Championship US Master Championship 43rd Mystic Lake Open Frigid Digit Halloween Regatta
Venue
Severn Sailing Assn, MD Surf City YC, NJ Severn Sailing Assn, MD Quassapaug SC, CT Lincoln, NE Winchester BC, MA Hungtington Lake, CA Severn Sailing Assn, MD Bow Mar YC, CO Jubilee YC, MA La Coruna, ESP La Coruna, ESP Newport YC, NY Winchester BC, MA Winchester BC, MA North Cape YC, MI Medford BC, MA Severn Sailing Assn, MD Atlanta YC, GA
Qualifying Regattas for the 2018 Western Hemisphere & Orient Championship date event Qualfied teams/# to qualify NAs - Ft Lauderdale Ernesto Rodriguez May 19: Augie Diaz June 17-18: Junior ACCS, Annapolis, MD contact: Chris Ryan: cryanwork@hotmail.com or 410-703-8935 Registration: www.severnsailing.org
1 team qualifies
August 21: US Nationals, Winchester, MA 2 teams qualify contact: Kevin Hetherinton-Young Registration: https://snipeusa.com/regattas/2017-us-nationals/ October 28: Carolyn Nute Memorial, Mission Bay, CA contact: Don Bedford: bedfordd@gmail.com Registration: www.mbyc.org **Women’s NA berth to be decided Summer 2017
1 team qualifies 1 team from NA