Jun 23

Written by: the reverend petey
6/23/2008 8:46 AM 

After the 13 hour drive from the heart of scowville USA, 17 A scow teams arrived at one of the most beautiful lakes in the country to compete in the NCASA Championships. Never before has there been an A scow event held in Michigan and the excitement was felt by both the competitors as well as the gracious hosts and members of the CLYC. Never before have I seen groups of people walking around the parking lot just to watch teams rig their boats and put the masts up. Clearly they are stoked to have us here and the feeling is mutual. This is one of the most beautiful places I have ever sailed and I am glad we were able to get them to host this event.
The skies cleared this morning to truly showcase the clear blue water that looks more like the Caribbean than a lake in Michigan. The breeze filled to a 12-16 and the 17 teams were off to the races so to speak. The left looked good but there I-28 Andy Burdick close behind. Melvin held the lead for the lap but lost the edge and Andy schooled them on the next beat and held on for the rest of the race to capture the victory. Buddy Melges sailing the I-1 finished second and Pat Hughes on Team Melvin got the 3rd.
Race 2 was started after a bit of a course shift but the left was still looking good. Buddy was set to smoke everyone off of the port end but thought he was over…apparently he wasn’t but that opened the door for the Cosmic Warrior team to blast out left and lead at the first mark, followed closely by V-3 Coleman Norris and M-55 Harry Allen. On the first downwind, there was a bit of a mess. M-11 gybed and found themselves bearing down on the V-3 who was on starboard and heading upwind…much screaming ensued and Coleman was able to avoid being T-boned. M-11 headed up to avoid that collision but in the process sailed right through team Melvin’s chute…sailed over the sheet and both boats were left ass to ass like 2 dogs in a mating session gone bad. Team Melvin took the brunt of the damage as seen in the pic.
The race ended up with Cosmic Warrior winning pin to pin with V-3 and M-55 finished 2nd and 3rd respectively. The free cocktails and food are flowing and everybody is enjoying the scenery. Daily awards ensued where Coleman Norris received the NCASA  “Rock” award…this trophy is awarded to the person who has contributed above and beyond the call of duty and supported the NCASA & One Design A-Scow Racing.  Races 3 and 4 tomorrow.