Fall begins on Long Island Sound

Each year on the Long Island Sound, the bittersweet end-of-summer blues are uplifted by the return of fall sailing. To welcome the new season, American Yacht Club hosts the 2018 Fall Series Regatta over two weekends: September 22-23 and 29-30.

With over 90 boats listed on the scratch sheet, competitors came from across the East Coast and beyond to compete in a regatta that has become popular amongst IRC, PHRF One-design classes, including the J/70, J/44, J/105, J/109 and more. This year, the regatta hosted eight separate boat classes, the two largest being the J/105 and the J/109.

The opening day delivered champagne sailing on the Long Island Sound. The first official day of fall brought beautiful weather, accompanied by breezes ranging from 12 to 18 knots.

On the East Course, the AYC Race Committee was able to get three races in with tight competition. Two Swan 42s, Blazer helmed by Christopher Culver and Quintessence helmed by Roger Widmann, battled it out in the IRC Division tying for first. Kenai skippered by Chris Lewis had a strong start, finishing first in two races in the One Design Division to take a two-point lead. Soulmates helmed by Adam Loory tenaciously claimed first place in the last two races in the PHRF Division. Crazy Train a Melges 24 skippered by Patrick and Brigette Croke had a promising lead on the East Course with a steadfast performance in the PHRF II Division.

The South Course had a productive day of sailing hosting four races throughout the day. In the J/109 Division, Loki helmed by David Rosow had a perfect start winning all four races. In the largest fleet of the regatta, Good Trade a J/105, skippered by Bruce Stone and Nicole Breault, had an impressive performance winning the first two races. By the end of the day, Bazinga helmed by Daniel Goldberg held the lead in the J/70 Division with Alex Meleney’s Truckin’ trailing two points behind. Past Commodore Mike Bruno’s Wings took the lead in the J/88 Division to start the day, although Douglas Newhouse’s Yonder won the last two races to take the lead.

The weather on Day Two felt more like fall with cooler temperatures and overcast skies. The East Course saw three races of neck and neck competition. In the IRC Division, Ticket to ride helmed by Edward Whitmore had a successful day placing first in two races and second in the other, to be tied with Blazer for the division lead. Kenai kept it’s lead by three points in the One Design Division, winning the first race of the day. Competition remains close in the PHRF Division as Soulmates is now tied for first with Craig Albrecht’s Avalanche. Lastly, Crazy Train leads the PHRF II Division by three points.

The South Course made the most out the day, sailing three races in total. In the J/88 Division, Yonder continued to gain ground winning two races to finish the weekend in first place. Good Trade took a commanding lead in the J/105 Division after winning two of the today’s races. Loki had another exceptional day of sailing placing first, second and third in the three races in the J/109 Division to maintain the lead. After three races Bazinga! secured a two-point lead over Truckin’ in the J/70 Division.

Racing will wrap up next weekend (Sept 29-30) for the conclusion of the 2018 Fall Series Regatta.

Race information – Results – Facebook

Source: AYC