New Website: The Hampton Roads Sunfish Challenge and Distance Race

The Hampton Roads Sunfish Challenge and Distance Race has a new website.  This event will be sailed September 22 and is open to Lasers among other classes.  Check out the new website.

Sunfish Challenge & Dinghy Race

Just wanted to remind everyone that the Hampton Roads Sunfish Challenge & Dinghy Distance Race will be held on Saturday, Sept. 24, with a start off of Willoughby Harbor Marina and ending at the ODU Sailing Center. There will be free food, free libations, and several bands playing. We will also have a huge post race nautical raffle as well as fully stuffed Regatta Bags to give away. Go to www.hrsunfishrace.com for more information and to sign up today.

For those of you who are not racing, we still need volunteers in key positions at the Starting Area, Finish Area, and Registration. So if you want to help and join in on the fun, contact Jonathan Romero at romeroarms@cox.net.

Looking forward to seeing you all at the Hampton Roads Sunfish Challenge!

Jonathan Romero
Event Chairman
HRSC&DDR

Regattas This Weekend

Looks like we have a busy weekend for D11 Laser sailors this weekend. Severn Sailing Association is holding their Crab Claw Regatta. 20-30 sailors are expected with starts for both standard rigs and radials. http://laserdistrict11.org/events/e375

Southern Maryland Sailing Association in Solomon’s Island is having their annual fall two day regatta. A dozen or so Lasers are expected to be at the line http://laserdistrict11.org/events/e414

In Norfolk the Hampton Roads Sunfish Challenge Long Distance race has 13 Lasers registered among the 116 competitors from all classes. Racing will start at the Willoughby Boat Ramp in Norfolk and finish at the ODU Sailing Center. Event website: http://www.hrsunfishrace.com/

Several D11 sailors (including myself) are headed to Cape May New Jersey for the District 10 Championship for 2 days of racing on the Ocean at the Jersey Shore.

Are you headed to a regatta not listed above? Email me jon@laserdistrict11.org

Hampton Roads Sunfish/Laser Challenge Long Distance Race

Please mark your dinghy racing calendars and save the date for the Portsmouth Boat Club’s Hampton Roads Sunfish Challenge & Dinghy Distance Race. This race, held on September 25, 2010, closes out the dinghy-racing season in our area. This race is a long distance sprint down the Elizabeth River, past the world’s largest naval base, on one of the East Coast’s busiest shipping channels to a finish line at the Old Dominion University’s Sailing Center. The total distance is just over 9 miles in length.

There will be a Laser Class as well as an Open Class, utilizing the Portsmouth Rating System for scoring. Transportation will be provided for trailer and tow vehicle placement. Breakfast and lunch, along with a copiously stuffed, “swag bag” of nautical goodies will be awarded at the conclusion of the race and party.
So check the Portsmouth Boat Club’s website, www.portsmouthboatclub.org, as well as www.hrsunfishrace.com, for more information and updates.

You can register online, so register early.

See you on the water!

Long Distance Sunfish/Laser Long Distance Challenge

The 1st ever Sunfish/Laser Long Distance Challenege was sailed this past Saturday.  The winds were 16 knots, gusting to 22 knots. We had 27 racers sign up with 21 showing up to race, with one racer trailering his boat all the way from Lawrenceville, va, and another making the trip down from Fredericksburg!

Due to the tremoundous response to our call to race from dinghy sailers of all types, Lasers, Moths, Windmills, etc, we decided to split the fleet into an Open Class and a Sunfish Class, with 13 Sunfish sailers and 6 Open class racers. Two racers had to drop out due to equipment failure, with the rest of us brave (foolish?) souls completing the 8 mile race. The course took us from Willoughby Bay, down the Elizabeth River, past the Norfolk Naval Base, to the ODU Sailing Center on the Lafayette River. The ODU Sailing Coach, Mitch Brindley, graciously allowed up the full use of the facilities to hold our post race festivities.

After a great lunch, with food provided by Subway of Chesapeake/Hickory, the trophies, provided by Islander Trophies and Engraving of Poquoson, were handed out, and fully stocked, “Swag Bags” were distributed to all racers. Everyone that raced walked away a winner, but most important of all, I beat Jimmy Schools!!!

We could not have pulled this race off without the help of a large cadre of volunteer, namely, Leon Garber, John Boama, and Homer Babbit doing yeomans work as the Race Committee, Bob Gump, provided the Norfolk Public Schools bus for shuttling the racers back to the starting area, from ODU. Bob, along with Raleigh Martin, Javaugn Ramsey, and Frank Giordano, manned the safety boats, which trailed the fleet the entire distance down the Elizabeth. Margaret Chewning roamed throughout the throng of racers, registering everyone just moments before the start. Claudia Croneburger, took a bevy of pictures that will soon be posted on our website, http://www.hrsunfishrace.com, so keep checking the site for race results, pictures, and more information soon. I hope that I didn’t miss anyone of the volunteers that helped to make this race the huge success that became.

Now for the winners in each class:

Open Class
1. Tom Dixon Javelin 14 Hampton, Va.
2. James Hardesty Laser Virginia Beach, Va.
3. Robert Suhay Laser Norfolk, Va.

Sunfish Class
1. Jim Brunson Williamsburg, Va.
2. John Sherwood Norfolk, Va.
3. Charlie Grau Virginia Beach, Va.