April 25, 2009

Potomac Penguin Fleet #1

Penso Frostbite Regatta

Near record 90 degree heat may have made this one of the warmest frostbite regattas in a while, however the six Penguins that competed were treated to a light but reasonably steady, at least by Potomac standards, south easterly breeze.  The tide was receding as the day went on, so avoiding the left side of the course seemed to be part of the winning strategy, as those who ventured too far over there inevitably found the soft mud.  Bud Dailey and crew Marcus Adam took race one with Scott Williamson with regular crew Aubrey Barringer sailing his second regatta in John Jenkins old boat, 8239, right on his heels.  Charlie and Douglas Krafft had a little trouble getting off the starting line, but managed a recovery to third in the one lap windward leeward race.  Race 2 was lengthened to two laps, which was fine and provided a few more opportunities to find the various obstructions, as John Majane, sailing solo, found the rock pile in front of the Potowmack Landing restaurant in one of the races.  Amy Krafft with Brooke Edgecomb had to dust off a few cobwebs, but were never far behind in the closely contested races.  Sean Surla and Collette Warhurst took turns sailing their dad’s boat, Sean with Collette’s son Dashiel and another friend as crew, and Collette solo, after the crew decided exploring the marina was more exciting than a Penguin race.  It was great to see them out on the water at a Penguin event.  They have plans to participate in the Thursday night series on the Potomac this summer and encourage others to join them.  The light air and smooth water favored the classic wooden boats.  Scott Williamson took advantage of Charlie and Douglas Krafft in Wooden Bucket finding the bottom in race 5 and sailed to a win, which put them in a tie with Bud, which they won by virtue of winning the last race.  Amy Krafft hosted the fleet at her home for a fine repast after the racing.