BROOKLIN — On its 20th anniversary, the
Eggemoggin Reach Regatta reminded contestants
why sailors sail and also why they curse.
After a spectacular downwind start off Torrey
Island, spinnakers billowing in a steady breeze,
the fleet of 92 boats danced out to Jericho Bay
in brilliant sunshine, rounded Egg Rock … and
stalled.
The breeze faded away while most of the fleet
was between Egg Rock and Halibut Rocks, where
the course turns back to Brooklin and WoodenBoat
headquarters in Great Cove.
The wind picked up slightly later on, but by
then 46 skippers had called it a day and turned
on their motors.
“I was one of them,” said Taylor Allen of
Rockport Marine, which sponsors the race with
Brooklin Boatyard. Allen was sailing Northern
Crown, once the boat of his late father-in-law,
yacht designer Joel White of Brooklin Boatyard.
“We were sitting out by Halibut Rocks and the
tide was taking us to Isle au Haut.”
Pulling out of the race was a safety decision
in some cases, Allen said.
“Some of the people backed out of the race
because they were being swept to the shallows.”
While the smaller, older boats had an earlier
start and were farther along in the course when
the wind died, the day favored boats with
lighter, modern hull designs and taller rigging.
Allen noted, however, that “the ability of the
skipper and crew go a long way to make up for
other disadvantages.”
Goshawk, the new 76-foot Robert
Stephens-designed sloop out of Rockport Marine
and Brooklin Boatyard, was the “scratch boat,”
finishing the course first in four hours, 55
minutes and 12 seconds.
In corrected time, however, Goshawk bowed to
Hoi An, a 50-foot cold-molded Stephens–designed
sloop built by Brooklin Boatyard and skippered
by Marc Heilner. Hoi An posted a 4:47:22
corrected time, 5:03:09 elapsed time.
Wild Horses, the 76-foot Joel White-designed
W-Class sloop skippered by Donald Tofias, came
in third with a corrected time of 4:55:56 and an
elapsed time of 4:57:45.
All three of the fastest boats were in the
regatta’s “Spirit of Tradition” class, modern
wooden boats whose designs hark back to older
times. “They are designed to perform well and
look good,” Allen said.
In the Vintage A class of older boats, Litan
Van, a 34-foot Hinckley sloop skippered by Roger
Green, won with a corrected time of 6:16:52
(elapsed time 7:05:38). Tannis, skippered by
John Cronin, finished second with a corrected
time of 6:17:16 (elapsed time 6:49:08). Third in
the class was Mako, skippered by Greg Smith,
finishing with a corrected time of 6:29:21
(elapsed time 7:16:24).
Alera, a newly restored New York 30 skippered
by Knight Coolidge, headed the Vintage B class
of larger, older boats with a corrected time of
4:56:16 and an elapsed time of 5:50:59. Hayseed,
skippered by Connie Ulbrich, came in second with
5:01:52 and 5:29:43. Gentian came in third with
Debra Rogers at the helm, posting times of
5:02:06 and 5:26:52.
In the Classic A class, the winner was Fiery
Jubilee, a 32-foot sloop skippered by Maine
Boats and Harbors publisher John Hanson. Hanson
posted a corrected time of 5:56:21 (elapsed time
6:38:52). Second was Noeta, skippered by Tony
Correa, with 6:18:58 corrected (6:55:46
elapsed). Heron, skippered by Andrew Crain, came
in third with a corrected time of 6:18:59
(6:59:50 elapsed).
Katrina, a varnished Concordia yawl skippered
by Jan Rozendaal, won the Classic B class with a
corrected time of 5:25:49 (5:59:38 elapsed
time). Allure, skippered by Ben Niles, came in
second with a corrected time of 5:33:50 (6:05:51
elapsed). Third was Snow Star with Barb Hills at
the helm, posting a corrected time of 5:43:25
(6:09:45 elapsed).
Thunderhead led the tall Classic C boats. The
50-foot Rhodes cutter, skippered by Greg
Carroll, posted a corrected time of 5:27:29
(5:47:38 elapsed time). Second was Aloft,
skippered by Jack and Julie Farrell to a 5:29:25
corrected finish (5:56:09 elapsed). Susanna,
skippered by Charles Nethersole, finished third
with a corrected time of 5:29:38 (5:46:52
elapsed time).
Despite the uncooperative winds, often a
feature of the Eggemoggin Reach Regatta, Allen
was ebullient about the success of the event as
a whole.
In honor of the regatta’s 20th birthday, the
annual feeder races from Castine to Camden and
Camden to Brooklin were scheduled a day earlier
than usual to accommodate a “lay day” in
Brooklin Friday.
Fog cancelled planned match races out on the
Reach. But the sailors held wild and woolly
dinghy races around WoodenBoat’s anchorage,
involving a dozen or so nutshell prams and
shellbacks. Then the sun came out for the real
race.
“It was a lot of fun,” Allen said. “I hope we
do it again next year.”
Racers danced at Brooklin Boatyard Friday
night in addition to the usual Saturday night
barbecue and music at WoodenBoat.
The regatta would not take place at all,
Allen noted, without the enthusiasm and support
of WoodenBoat, whose staff member Pat Hutchinson
does the monumental “landside” coordination from
taking registrations to organizing the
concluding chicken and rib dinner.
“WoodenBoat deserves special mention,” Allen
said. Told that Hutchinson was taking Monday off
to rest up, he said fervently, “I hope she is.”
The regatta has been based in Brooklin for
all but two of its 20 years, Allen said, with
sponsorship shared between Steve White at
Brooklin Boat Yard and Allen at Rockport Marine.
It was based at Dark Harbor on Islesboro when it
wasn’t a Brooklin-based race.
Brooklin, Allen said, “is where it seems to
belong, as long as WoodenBoat continues to want
to host it.”
In awards handed out at the barbecue, Goshawk
won the honors for shortest elapsed time.
Snow Star won the prize as the first Aage
Nielsen boat to finish, while Katrina won the
award for first Concordia. Gentian was the first
S&S designed boat to complete the course. The
Joel White Award for the first plank-on-frame
boat went to Alera.
Tony Correa, skipper of Noeta, won the Egg
Cup for his contributions to the regatta over
the years.
The crews of Madrigal and Fifi won the award
for best costumes. Henry and Judy Kohn, skippers
of Jenny Ives, won the drawing for a trip to
Antigua. |
