Firstly, I must thank Char Doyle of the St. Petersburg Yacht Club for giving me the opportunity to join her out on the water on day two of the regatta and to Bob Birkenstock for making the arrangements.  Thanks to Bill Burnett as well for doing an excellent job of maneuvering his Pro Line 21 around in what I can only describe as some wild and wacky conditions. 
Racing was cancelled on day one due to lack of wind and if there was only one chance to get out there, day two was it.  There were about 70 participants and conditions varied according to who you talked to.  Some said the wind was around 10 to 15 mph.   Others, including myself, felt it was more like 20 mph judging by the white caps.  In any event, it wasn’t the wind that made the conditions so tough.  It was the chop and the waves that varied between two and four feet and even higher at times, at least to my eyes.   I’ve done video on the Navesink under windier conditions but never with those kinds of waves.   I had to hold on to the boat with one hand while holding the camcorder with the other, resulting in less than perfect but fairly exciting video that I hope everyone enjoys.
Although the forecast called for good wind on Sunday and there was a good breeze inland, it was a different story out on the water.  Race one was completed and race two was abandoned due to lack of wind.
Along with a number of sailors from the Jersey Shore area, we had three boats from Monmouth Boat Club.  They did quite well given the circumstances IMO (not theirs of course).  Many of the boats had already been participating in the two previous regattas on the Southern circuit while our guys hadn’t sailed a lightning since October and they were competing against some of the best lightning sailors in the world.  Nineteen year old Paul Luisi was participating for the first time while Dave Watts was sailing his brand new lightning for the first time.  George Harrington (with crew Art Guerrera and Cole Barney) finished 34th, Dave Watts (with crew Dan Vought and Wendy Thrower) finished 37th, and Paul Luisi (with crew Crissy Van Siclen and Hodge) finish 43rd, just one point behind former MBC members Graham Merganthaler with dad Bill, who have been laser racing at MBC this winter.   Sarah Merganthaler, who crewed for the 22nd place boat, is a graduate of the MBC Junior Program.
On a special note, during the awards presentation on Sunday, Dave Watts and Richard Doyle of the St. Petersburg Yacht Club exchanged club burgees.
All in all, we had a great time despite some very sore muscles and a bit of sunburn.  It wasn’t fun coming from the warmth of Florida back to the still chilly Northeast.  Fortunately, Spring will be here in a few days.   I’m ready.

Doreen