Written by Mark Whitehead, Tim Wright
Editing Kathleen Whitehead
Photos by Paul McBride, Tim & B.B. Wright, Brooks Campbell, Mark Whitehead, Don Cundy
Layout Paul McBride
Lily Pond Sailing
Regattas on Lily Pond continue to be a wonderful chance to get together to sail. The weather gave us more heat, a little wind, and some good racing. Because the wind shifted directions over the course of the morning we sailed a couple of different courses.
Videos and Photos
- Back Bay Skippers Video (WMUR NH Chronicles)
- Back Bay Skippers YouTube Channel
- Latest Videos: Solings, US12s, Lily Pond
- Latest Photos: Solings, US12s, Lily Pond
- Photo Gallery
Previous Highlights
- Awards for 2019 Season
- In Memory of Tom Greig 1956-2020
- Tim Wright Wins CAN/AM Challenge 2019
- Lake Discovery Camp
- US12 AMYA Region 1 Championship, Nashua
- Sasquatch Footy Regatta (Nor’Easter Footy Series)
- Skippers Spring Party 2019
Score Sheets
As an added bonus, we had a few visitors. Former sailor Ed Kaers stopped by with a friend who flies remote-control planes. It was good to see him, and they stayed around for a while to watch some of the racing. Rick Parent swung by on his motorcycle (with no boat) and sailed a few races, but the most surprising guest was an egret that walked the shore right in front of us, even flying over the dock to get to the other side while sailors were right next to him. We offered it a chance to sail, but it never responded.
As usual, the racing was relaxed, with the sailors enjoying the time together. The season is moving along, and sailing has been a great way to get together to share a common interest while social distancing.
We gather at Lily Pond in Gilford on Sundays at 9:00 a.m. weather permitting, and sail until noon. All are welcome.
HOT ! HOT ! HOT !
The August 11 Soling regatta was on one of the hottest days of the summer — and one of the busiest, with eighteen skippers in attendance. The wind didn’t blow your socks off, but it did remain reasonably consistant for our nine-race competition. The plan was to list all the skippers, but we will just show the pictures instead.
Joining us for the first time was Malcolm Stone from Holderness, and Steve Leker had his boat ready for action as well. Rick Gates couldn’t stand absenteeism any longer and made the trek up from Nashua to join us. Our boat building wizard Bill Quayle tried his hand this week with Al Stevens’ 978. The commodore cooked a servo right from the get-go, so he sailed B.B. Wright’s 285 for five races, even though it’s purple! Don Cundy was having similar problems, utilizing the 285 for the first four races.
Out on the Water
There were four different skippers who took firsts, six who took second, and six who took third. This shows the diversity of skill in our fleet, along with the eight skippers who tied for other positions.
Tim Wright won bragging rights this week with our Thomaston, Maine skipper Rick Lalley on his tail — or should I say “stern”? Don Cundy pulled third place, with Don McBride in fourth and Rick Gates in fifth.
Paul Wallace broke into the top ten this week with a second place in race six. Certainly bragging rights for the Barstow fleet go to Genie Ware, also in the top ten and ahead of husband, John Barstow, and brother in law, Tom Barstow. Malcolm Stone placed eighth overall in his first time out. Good job, Malcolm!
Fair Winds to Mac MacDonald
Mac had not made it to sailing lately so sailing went to Mac. Mac MacDonald, class of 2013, was presented with a remembrance plaque on August 13 at his home. Mac and Suzanne have sold their house and are headed for the coronavirus capital of the world — sunny Florida — to live in their motorhome while taking time to find the right purchase. Needless to say, the two have been extremely busy with packing and replacing their septic system, leaving little time for skimming Back Bay’s water. We do hope he can sail one more time before he heads south so we all can give him and Suzanne a rousing Back Bay Skipper send-off.
Strong US12 Showing
The US12 fleet had its best turnout of the season on Thursday, August 13th. There were nine boats sailing for most of the afternoon. While the wind wasn’t ideal, it did enable us to race eleven races, and there were some memorable moments.
There was a John Simms sighting! He showed up to sail and was promptly given his US12 award for second place for the 2018 Summer Series. That tells you how long it’s been since we’ve seen John. Once on the course, he started off with a win, putting his returning ‘beginners luck’ to good use.
We also had a visitor from New Jersey show up before the racing began. Eric Leitner was given a chance to try out a US12. Eric sails RC Lasers near NYC and had only a small learning curve for the US12. He tried one race, then another. When he finished after a full afternoon of races, Eric had won a couple and was competitive in all of them. In the last eight races, his worst finish was third place.
Bob Brennan also returned to the fleet after a little time away, and won a race. It was good to have him back. Anthony Quinn stopped by for the second week in a row and was talked into racing. He showed great form with a third-place finish. It’s always nice to see Anthony at Back Bay, and it’s especially good to see him at the helm once again. Anthony, Bill Quayle, and Mark Whitehead are responsible for helping to build many of the Solings in our fleet.
The US12 regulars, Paul Wallace, Paul McBride and brother Don, Don Cundy, Kurt Clason, Tim Wright, and Jim Opie all had good showings. It is good to be building such a steady group of regulars for the US12 fleet.
The camaraderie is what makes the group special.
Join us on Thursday at 1:00 p.m., weather permitting, on the walking path at Back Bay.
Join Us if You Like
But please maintain at least that six-foot distance. Bring your camera for the show but also bring and wear a face mask. Sailing always begins at 1:00 p.m. on Back Bay at the Lehner Street/Glendon Street municipal parking area, weather permitting. Solings sail on Tuesday, the US12s compete on Thursday, and “what you brung” at 9 a.m. Sunday at Lily Pond in Gilford. Wednesdays are available should a Tuesday or Thursday regatta have to be canceled.
