Racing Sheet

BY DOUG HANSEN

Columnist DOUG HANSEN recounts Race Week and reflects on the tragic loss of one of our own, sailor Greg Mueller.

PHOTO BY JAN ANDERSON

After a year and a half of uncertainty surrounding racing events, it was finally announced that Race Week Pacific Northwest (previously known as Whidbey Island Race Week) was indeed on for late June and had moved to Anacortes. The five-day event invited all manner of keel boats to the waters off Guemes Island. The community responded with enthusiasm as 68 boats signed up and were ready to race after a long absence from competition. The week would not have the normal shoreside festivities, but it was going to be a week of sailboat racing in a great town with great people, and that is all we have ever wanted. Monday morning racing kicked off with a beautiful northwesterly wind and some seriously flowing current mixing everything up. Shifting breeze and swirling current made for a total reset of what we were expecting. With only one racecourse to choose from due to limitations set forth in the sailing instructions, we buzzed around the course having barely enough time to get the spinnaker ready for the next rounding and downwind leg, while other fleets were converging at marks that made for some stressful moments as dramatically faster boats overtook packs of smaller fleets. Back on the dock, it was all smiles as friends began to reconnect and all the tall tales began to be told about the day’s racing. Upon returning to the marina Tuesday afternoon, sailors began to learn the very sad news that a fellow competitor, Greg Mueller, lost his life on the racecourse during that day’s sailing. He was knocked overboard in an accident during a downwind leg. Greg was a regular face in the sailing community, and his loss is felt deeply throughout our sport. Onboard our boat we discussed what we knew about the events leading to the accident and the potential reality that is always present whenever we are out on the water, even for the most experienced sailors. While we continue to reflect and learn from this tragedy, we are keeping Greg’s family and friends in our thoughts. (See box for a note from our entire NWY team.) Wednesday was a much lower key as the wind held off in the morning, but eventually, the it began to settle in and flow into the bay from the southwest. Sails went up and we were off to the races in a steadily building breeze and beautiful flat water. Thanks to an updated racecourse by the committee, there were now two weather marks and two leeward marks to choose from and this allowed the fleets to be spread out. It was picture perfect sailing into a beautiful afternoon. On Thursday, a series of courses were set and the big boats in the ORC and PHRF 0 fleets were sent northward to Lummi Rocks, while the other fleets set into the familiar two lap buoy format from the days prior. The steady breeze built into the afternoon and all fleets sailed two races before heading for the dock. Unfortunately, due to the time limits posted in the sailing instructions that kept all races to ninety minutes, several fleets’ races for the day were thrown out, leaving many racers frustrated. Friday brought out the big guns with a wind forecast topping into the twenties and tight racing in all the fleets. With three-way ties for first in several fleets, it was now or never to take home a win. Fleets took in two heavy air short course races, with boats fully powered up downwind, surfing through the fleets still heading upwind with huge smiles and the occasional raised voice. After a week of solid racing, it was a full-on crescendo to bring things home. Wrapping things up after some high intensity races and all the emotion that came with Mueller’s passing, it was a fitting end to this week of sailing in the Pacific Northwest.

We here at NWY would like to extend our deepest sympathies and condolences to the family and friends of Greg Mueller, who passed away on Tuesday, June 24, following the accident that occurred during Race Week 2021 in Anacortes. He was 58. A longtime member of the Washington Yacht Club, Mueller was an avid racer and frequently participated in races throughout the Seattle area. “He was great about including other people,” Raz Barnea, a Washington Yacht Club friend said in The Seattle Times piece. “The club really places emphasis on students who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to sail, and Greg helped a lot of people get their sea legs.” We are saddened to have lost this valued member of our community.