Thanks to those energetic Tacoma folk we’ve got a regatta report and photos to boot! Thanks! -KH
By Gregg Reynolds and Margaret Paterson
Who said there is no wind in August? A fantastic weekend of racing in Tacoma with breezes from 8 to 15 both days kept sails full and the racing interesting. The second annual T-Town Sailing Championships was held on Commencement Bay and in Quartermaster Harbor followed each night with a great dock party at Rock-The-Dock on the Thea Foss waterway. Sailboats lined the long dock, and the music of steel drums on Friday and a Beer Garden band on Saturday provided a festive atmosphere.
Course A: PHRF and Cal 20 one design racing was held in Quartermaster Harbor with Charley Rathkopf doing the PRO duties this year. The consistent north wind (except for a lunch lull both days) created lively starts for all eight races including a north to south flip that caused the RC to abandon at the beginning of race 6 until it settled back to north. While the J35’s were quickly in front of the pack on the windward legs and had their spinnakers full on the leeward legs, the Olson 30’s battled back for the top places. Dire Straits and Sidewinder were tied going into the last race with Sidewinder having a great 1st leg to put them in front.
All photos by Jan Anderson. See more and order your pictures at Jan’s smugmug site. Click on any photo to enlarge.
The Cal 20’s were challenged both days with lively winds and currents. The first day had a consistent placing of finishes, but Sunday, with a change of some crew and new confidence saw more tightly spaced starts and new strategies on the course. Willie Tippit clearly had command of first, but Déjà Vu, Lilikoi Pei, Vitamin C, and Sunseeker traded the next three spots. A man-overboard and a couple of equipment failures kept things interesting. Lilikoi Pei is one of TYC’s club boats and was crewed by TYC’s Junior Sailing staff of college students who had never sailed a Cal 20 before.
Course B: One thing that sets T Town Sailing Championship apart is the inclusion of the Windseekers (NFS) fleet. This is not your daddy’s cruising division! The starts were hot and contested. Lead changes were a common after each race. Windseekers got a real taste of regatta style racing at this year’s TTSC!
Billy Carter and his RC were able to get five starts off on Saturday and four on Sunday. Glen Cowling’s Something Special (J35) fired five bullets on Saturday and a couple more on Sunday to take Division A. Division B saw Klatawa (Cat 380) trading places with Red Splash (X342) all weekend. Bruce Campbell and the Klatawa crew sailed well enough on Sunday to take Division B by two points. Laura Crews sailed her Catalina 30, Silver Heels, away from everyone to take Division C. Rick Collin’s Wandering Star (Cat 320) was the winner in Division D.
Tacoma is synonymous with some of the finest glass artistry in the world. Once again, hand blown trophies were created by local artists and awarded to the top three places in each division. One thing for sure: T Town’s has the best awards of any regatta in the PNW.
T Town Sailing Championship is a non-profit group and a collaborative effort between three organizations: Tacoma Waterfront Association, Corinthian Yacht Club of Tacoma & Tacoma Yacht Club. TTSC wants to thank the sponsors, volunteers, participants and our Race Committees.
Cal 20 and PHRF results here. Windseekers results here.
More details at www.ttownsailing.com.
