Year: 2026

US1M/IOM Regatta-6/7/26

The day was not as warm as expected, or as humid, but it was much windier and the gusts kept the racing very interesting.

It’s true that the wind was fairly heavy/gusty, but that kind’a glosses over the fact that there were “patches” of dead space where you would go screaming along and then just stop, with sails flapping.  Somewhat reminiscent of the Star Trek movies when the spaceships would come out of warp speed and seem to just stop.  Then you watch to see what happens to the rest of the fleet.  Sometimes everyone just stops all around you OR everyone just sails around you while you try and figure out why they have wind and you don’t.

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not really complaining.  The day before some of us tried to sail at a pond where there was virtually no wind.  So, if I have to choose, I’ll take crazy wind.

Herb Dreher was able to navigate his IOM through the fickle winds to top the IOM skippers, and I was able to keep my US1M Meerkat floating well enough to keep ahead of the other US1M skippers.

One of these days I must figure out where the Meerkat is taking on water.  I’ve have tried in the past, but unsuccessfully.  It’s not on the verge of sinking, but I must drain the water out  every 4 or 5 races…annoying.

Cliff Martin, Commodore

Over/Under Regatta 5/31/26

Over/Under Regatta 5/31/26

The race day was partly cloudy, with light to moderate winds and no rain expected until evening.

Eight skippers showed up to sail, and a few even brought more than one boat.  Along with his IOM, Herb Dreher brought two Vintage 36’s, and I brought my Canterbury J, a DF95, and a Vintage 36.  Greg LaPlante brought a Soling 50 in addition to his IOM.

During open sailing time Herb and I tested some new sails on his V36’s and new member Howard Samuels got familiar with a DF95 he borrowed from me.  When regatta time came, the field included two DF95s, a Soling 1 Meter, a Vintage 36, two IOMs, and a Star 45. Since I had loaned my DF95 to Howard, I sailed my Canterbury J.

Greg chose not to race his Soling 50 so I ended up all alone in the Over 40” division.  But that’s ok, I still enjoyed sailing the Canterbury, and I still had to battle with Herb and Greg

The shifting winds at Rosemary Lake kept the racing competitive and caused the lead to change hands frequently. Unexpected light rain also passed through from time to time, despite the forecast calling for none.

It was a fun day overall, and Herb Dreher was the fastest skipper in the Under 40” division.  I won’t say the obvious about the Over 40 division.

Cliff Martin, Commodore

DF95/S1M-5/17/26

It’s beginning to look like we will be having more seasonally appropriate weather for a while.  The temperature is in the mid-80’s with variable breezes.

Seven skippers took advantage of the sunny weather to put their boats in the water and try to figure out which direction the wind is coming from.  We had 5 DF95’s and 2 S1M’s approach the starting line.  One of the DF95’s was skippered by David Fine, who is new to the area.  Welcome David!

By all accounts, the DF95’s ruled the day given the winds and sailing conditions.  In the end John Whalen was the top DF95 skipper and Herb Dreher was top S1M skipper.

Aside from the fleet winners, the highlight of the day, for both skippers and spectators, was a boat rescue using our rescue airboat.  It’s always something of a clown show trying to trap a speedy, circling target with a little less maneuverable airboat.  It’s more a statement about the rescue airboat skipper than the airboat.

Cliff Martin, Commodore

Star45/US1M-5/03/26

I checked the weather report early in the morning just as I had the previous two mornings.  It was forecast to be a little cool, a little overcast and somewhat windy, but with no rain.  I had already sent out an email saying it was going to be a good day to sail.

It started raining when I was less than a mile from my home.  Light, but unmistakably rain.  The light rain continued until about an hour before the start of racing.  When the rain stopped, we were left with fairly heavy winds and very cold temperatures.  While we debated just going home, we couldn’t get past the “…are we rugged seafaring men, or comfort loving wimps…” mindset.  So, we reluctantly decided to give it a go.

It was the first race of the season for these two classes, and the high winds quickly found whatever weakness existed in linkage or rigging.  Some skippers had to go to their back-up boat, but we were finally able get 4 boats on the water; two Stars and two US1M’s

In the end Greg LaPlante was the top US1M skipper after his Star broke, and Herb Dreher was the top Star skipper.

Cliff Martin, Commodore

DF95/S1M-4/26/26

I was away for this regatta so I can’t give any comments about the day, so I’ll let the scoresheet speak for itself.

I will mention that there was a guest skipper, David Fine.  He did very well against the rest of the fleet.  He was the top scorer in the DF95 fleet, while Herb Dreher was the top of the Soling fleet.

Cliff Martin, Commodore

DF95/S1M – 4/12/26

The day was bright and sunny, but windy, which made the temperature feel colder than it was.

Eight people showed up to sail, two skippers brought Soling’s and six brought DF95’s.  Greg LaPlante brought both a Soling and a DF, so I borrowed the Soling to sail and add another boat to the Soling fleet.

The wind, when it gusted, made sailing interesting and kept everybody on their toes. Surprisingly, there were no rescues and only one 360, which your author did because he got too anxious to make a rounding and caused another skipper to miss the mark.  It was difficult for the other skipper to recover in the high winds, so I hung back with him while the fleet sailed on.

If it had been a little warmer, it would have been a perfect day.  In the end Greg LaPlante was the top DF95 skipper, and Herb Dreher was the top S1M skipper.

Cliff Martin, Commodore

Ice Breaker – 2026

This year we had some concerns as the start of our sailing season approached.  The temperatures have been so cold for so long, we worried the ice would not melt in time for us to have the Ice Breaker. 

Fortunately, our fears were unfounded.  The scheduled day arrived and it was sunny, in the mid-40’s (seemed colder!), and the pond had no ice.  Winds were as expected on Rosemary Lake; shifty and in the 5-15mph range.

The Ice Breaker race invites Soling One Meter and DF95 model yachts to compete.  There is a perpetual “Ice Bucket” trophy that is awarded to the winner in the eligible fleet.  The eligible fleet alternates between Soling’s and DF95’s.  This year, Soling’s were the eligible fleet.  Six skippers showed up to compete: three with Soling’s and three with DF95’s.

 For those who wonder, Soling’s and DF95’s seem to compete well against each other.  We don’t find that either class has a significant advantage over the other.  Of course, wind conditions and skipper skills will always introduce variability into sailing.

For the first race of the season, this author was expecting some crazy starts, some rusty thumbs, and maybe some lapses in memory regarding the occasional rule.  But the racing was clean with only the occasional bump, usually brought on by the gusty wind.

As I sailed, I also had to wonder how my boat got so out of tune while sitting in the basement.  I felt some other skippers had similar issues as the early heats saw a lot of intense tuning between races.  I and other skippers were undoubtedly looking for the performance that was remembered (maybe erroneously!) from last year.

This year’s Ice Breaker had a special treat as Tylene Jousse made some wonderful Chili, with fix’ns, for our lunch break.  It fortified everybody against the cold so we could sail the last half of the race.

Lastly, I want to thank Sue Martin for sitting in the cold to keep score for us, and I want to thank John Whalen for stepping up and doing a great job as RD.

At the end of the day, a good time was had by all.

Cliff Martin, Commodore