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| International Star Class Yacht Racing Association |
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Report By
Magnus Liljedahl The Springs were held on Hillsborough Bay, located inside Tampa Bay, during an extremely hot last week of April. The event, which usually alters between Nassau, New Orleans and Tampa, is one of the major regattas in the Star Class. The winner earns a Silver Star, which should replace the standard Red Star image displayed on the main sail. This year's event had a few more participants (38) then normal, the reason being that the Worlds will be held in Los Angeles later this summer and several foreigners took the opportunity to participate before shipping their boats out west. My race reports usually include a tack-for tack portrayal of every race, but in this regatta there were too many shifts to remember. Most of us knew that we were in for a light wind regatta in "lake-like" conditions, but at least I didn't realize how challenging this place can be. The breeze would usually blow pretty good in the morning, but only last until about noon. Then there would be a waiting game until late afternoon, when hopefully the see breeze would fill in. Hillsborough Bay, surrounded by land, provided more of "lake breeze" then anything else. The race committee appropriately moved to a 10AM start for some of the days. Located about ten minutes from the starting line (nothing is far away on Hillsborough Bay), the club house had the air-conditioning cranking and water fountain flowing. The swimming pool provided another valuable retreat in between races as well as at the end of the day. One significant change at this event was that it marked the first regatta in the U.S. where the new skipper/crew weight rule was in effect. I managed to lose 35 pounds in 45 days and I feel better than I have in many years. Most of my colleagues have lost similar amounts of excess body fat, and as a group, we now look more like what most people would associate as "athletes" than ever before. Some of the crew are even stacking up more girlfriends due to their slimmed down shape. The opening ceremony hors d'eouvres table reflected the new, all healthy, attitude. Veggies and fruit were dominant, while the potato chip bowl was left untouched. Mark and I had a tough time on the water. Our 17th place overall finish reflects that statement pretty accurately. My usual on-the-water input "higher and faster" was replaced by "they are lifted" and "they have now rounded the mark". We usually feel pretty "lucky" on the race course and "things" generally work out in our favor. However, this time was very different, as we seemed headed on every tack. The conditions in themselves were by no means an excuse for our poor performance. Somehow the best team always wins at the end, and this time was no exception. Paul Cayard and Phil Trinter sailed an unbelievable regatta, finishing top three in four of the five races. They never had to make any gigantic comebacks and usually dominated from start to finish. Iain Percy and Steve Mitchell (GBR) won two races, finished second overall, and confirmed that they belong the top of the class. Rookie Rick Merriman, sailing with veteran crew Billy Bennett (USA) also sailed very strong, got a few nice breaks when they needed them the most, and finished third overall. Augie Diaz continues to impress, and sailing with reigning world champion crew Christian Finnsgard (SWE) they continue to improve their results. Rounding off the top five, George Szabo and the "all positive" Austin Sperry showed moments of brilliance and ended up on the podium. This event made me appreciate the Star class in a big way. Not that I haven't realized this before, but for the most part, we battle for top honors and that usually provides all the satisfaction I need. There are so many interesting characters in our class - highly successful individuals in a broad spectrum of professions. This makes it a joy to cruise the boat park and chat with the population on a variety of subjects. The class contains top doctors, lawyers, bankers, insurance agents, researchers and business men (and women) in general. There are a lot of different personalities who make it worth while going to a regatta, whether you win or lose. Thank you all for coming to these events, you make the Star class the best class in the world. |
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