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
