Vicki Palmer, Windward Leg Editor

By Gail Turluck

     The 2023 Sunfish North American Championship, United States Sunfish Class Association’s 60^th running of the event, was held June 8-11 at Island Bay Yacht Club, Springfield, Illinois, gloriously returning to Lake Springfield. The championship had been sailed there in 1979 and 1993 as well. 
      US Sailing assigned the regatta to serve as a 2023 USA Men and Women Pan American Games Trials Qualifier for four men and three women who elected to compete for the honor and were not yet qualified. 
      US Sailing asked the United States Sunfish Class Association to have the event also serve as the 2023 US Sailing Singlehanded Championships for the O’Day Trophy and the Hanley Trophy, to which the USSCA Board enthusiastically agreed.   A side benefit of doing so provided the former standard trained race official liability insurance coverage in alignment with changes to the US Sailing/Gowrie organization insurance program. 
      In November the US Board asked Gail Turluck, Midwest Region Representative, if a Midwest host could be found for the regatta after another Region backed out.   Turluck contacted the Midwest fleets and was thrilled when eventual Chair Nancy Peterson stepped forward, got approval from the Island Bay Yacht Club Board, and set things in motion.  
      Sailors began arriving as early as Monday to set up boats, practice, and learn about the venue. Contestants received long sleeved technical shirts, a nice bucket, and sunscreen samples. Sailors enjoyed the club’s heated swimming pool, showers, two launch areas, and beautiful facilities. Notably there were competitors from twenty-two states and six countries.  There were sailors from all USSCA Regions. A small tent city sprung up and a number of vehicle campers were sprinkled in the boat park.
      Thursday was consumed with rigging and measurement before the Practice Race at 4:00 pm.  While there was enough wind to get through a few starting sequences with General Recalls, as the race progressed the wind died and the race was abandoned. 
      Thursday evening had an Opening Ceremony with the Country Flags for competing nations and club burgees from most competitors flown on the Island Bay Yacht Club’s flag staff.  A hearty welcome was shared to all by Chair Nancy Peterson. This was followed by a fresh, hearty dinner buffet. The USSCA Board met Thursday evening, freeing up Friday night for all to be able to explore Springfield a little.  
      Each morning there was a Continental Breakfast buffet including yogurt, donuts and fruit as well as bagged lunch pickup.  Fresh ham and cheese or turkey and cheese sandwiches, chips, and fruit were offered. 
      On Friday, unfortunately, the Answering Pennant was hung at 1000, due to there being no wind under the bright, sunny skies and temperatures in the pleasant upper 70s. By about 1330 some up and down zephyrs seemed to be growing steadier and the fleet was sent out. Sadly, the zephyrs came and went, and swung 30° to as much as 180°, making it impossible for the crack Race Management team led by Principal Race Officer Russ Sobotta of Wisconsin to set a fair course. By 1515 signal flags AP over A were hoisted, much to the drifting sailors’ relief, and the brood went ashore. Island Bay had a snack buffet each day after racing with fresh watermelon and keg beer on the patio. Seeking to ensure opportunity to maximize racing time, the Start time for Saturday was moved up to 1000. 
      Saturday morning dawned with a light breeze, more sunshine, and moderate temperatures that reached 80°. Eager racers headed out in light South winds that ranged from 3-11 mph, but mostly 4-7 mph. The beautiful weather brought out the locals in powerboats which made for some completely unpredictable chop that more than one sailor called “washing machine.” The conditions didn’t seem to bother Conner Blouin who claimed three out of four races that day. The third race had the most difficult sailing; fifteen of the sixty-eight sailors did not finish in the fifteen-minute finishing window and were graced with a DNF score. Lighter wind and high powerboat activity contributed to that outcome. Yet, there was an unusual experience at this regatta. Russ Sobotta noted, “I was very surprised to have four (Code Flag) “P” starts today, on the first day of counted races. It was great that the fleet honored starting cleanly. I don’t remember ever having that occur at a major championship.” Saturday post-race refreshments were enjoyed followed by a delightful buffet dinner. At the dinner competitors received 60^th Anniversary Sunfish North American Championship stickers. 
      On Saturday night a cold front moved in. It brought steady rain, winds out of the North of 10-18 with gusts over 22 mph, and temperatures in the upper 60s, a radical change from the day before. The powerboats were gone, but the wind over the length of Lake Springfield built a decent chop. Racers perceived that the “pin end” (a staffed boat) was favored for starts. General Recalls came in Race 5 and Race 6; a Black Flag was displayed while the line was reset for Race 6, but then Code Flag “U” was utilized for Race 6 and Race 7. This adjustment kept things moving with only one sailor falling victim to the dreaded UFD penalty. The General Recalls had slowed progress making it questionable that Race 7 could be started before the 1300 cutoff; this skilled race management tool made it a lock. 
      The Sunfish Class 2023 North American Champion is Conner Blouin, of Charleston, South Carolina, who also claimed the U.S. Sailing Singlehanded Championship for the O’Day Trophy and was already qualified for the USA Pan American Games Trials-Men.  He won four of seven races and never finished out of the top five.  
The top finishing U.S. woman, Elaine Parshall, of Columbia, South Carolina, won the U.S. Sailing Singlehanded Championship for the Hanley Trophy and was already qualified for the USA Pan American Games Trials-Women. For the full O’Day and Hanley Cup article: Blouin; Parshall Win O’Day and Hanley Trophies - US Sailing
      The top woman was eleventh place finisher Maria Jose Poncell of Santiago, Chile.   She counted only two finishes out of the top ten. She arrived four days early to practice and learn the venue, though there were a couple days with no wind. Jose Poncell will sail for Chile in the Pan American Games. 
      The top Youth was Andre Patin of Blue Point, New York. Patin also took home the Sportsmanship Award for performing a rescue on the last day of another competitor who had capsized and not finishing the race due to the rescue. He’ll be one to watch later this year at the 2023 Youth/Junior North American Championship in North Carolina. 
      The Marco Polo Award (longest traveled) went to Maria Jose Poncell of Santiago, Chile.

USA Pan American Games Trials Qualifier entrants who were not already qualified were:

Men

• Richard Chapman             Lake Bluff Yacht Club
• Dan Norton                        Devils Lake Yacht Club
• Paul-Jon Patin                    Sayville Yacht Club
• Josh Kerst                            North Cape Yacht Club
• Dominic Simonetti           Sarasota Sailing Squadron
• David Krausz                      Columbia Sailing Club
• David Michals                    Lake Bluff Yacht Club
• John McClain                      Wawasee Yacht Club

Women

• Gretchen Seymour           Lake Bluff Yacht Club
• Betsy Davis                         Lavallette Yacht Club
• Gail Turluck                         Gull Lake Sailing Club
• Susan Mallows                  Hunterdon Sailing Club
• Jacqueline St. Germain   Union Sailing Club

     The Top Four Men: Richard Chapman, Dan Norton, Paul-Jon Patin and Josh Kerst qualified for the USA Pan American Games Trials-Men at Sayville Yacht Club, Blue Point, New York, in July.
      The Top Three Women: Gretchen Seymour, Betsy Davis and Gail Turluck qualified for the USA Pan American Games Trials-Women at Sayville Yacht Club, Blue Point, New York, in July.
      The regatta also served as the Canada Pan American Games Trials.  There were two contestants.  Notably, they tied for second overall.  Lee Parkhill of Oakhill, Ontario, had a race win which was the tiebreaker and he will sail for Canada in the Pan American Games. 
      On site dealer was Jim Koehler of The Dinghy Shop who provided competitive charter boats, Sunfish parts, and great support.  Due to a snafu, the charter boat count was off so Jim ended up not sailing. He filled his days fixing parts for sailors, applying sail numbers, and performing other helpful actions with his always warm smile. 
      The Sunfish Class can be very grateful for the team of volunteers that ran the event:  PRO Russ Sobotta, Deputy Race Officer John Palizza, US Sailing'sNancy Mazzulli, Race Committee Boat helm Hayden Davis, Scribes Pam Cox andElizabeth Budinger, pin boat Nancy Peterson and Stephen Smeulders, mark setboats LJ Powell, Mike Reisinger, Doug Slater, Bill Herndon and chase boatsJohn Brewer, Debbie Brewer, Brooke Peterson, and Pat Brewer, Chief JudgeClifford Black, International Judge; John Porter, National Judge and Area KJudge Coordinator; Tom Londrigan, International Star Class President; Bruce Martinson, International Judge; Tom Hodgson, Regional Judge, Chief ScorerRick Brethorst, dolly management and boat recovery Chris Downen, DaveChilds, Chuck Pell, Bob Carson, Piper Staley, and the club staff whosesupport was flawless. This six-in-one event went as smoothly as could be dreamed of thanks to dedicated planning, preparation, and performance.

Thank you to the photographers, Tina Powell and Gail Turluck. 

Welcome to beautiful Island Bay Yacht Club in Springfield, Illinois

Hosted the Sunfish NA's in 1993 (won by Jeff Linton) and 1979 (won by Alan Beckwith) 

By Mike Stratton

     Lauren Anderson is full of surprises. After only a few years of sailing camp at Hueston Woods with the Hueston Sailing Association in Ohio and crewing for dad Eric in a Y-Flyer, the fifteen year old high schooler decided this year that she wanted to do more racing.

            More racing meant showing up in May of this year at a Midwest Regional at her home club after only a few races in a Sunfish. The experience motivated her to ask her parents to let her go to the Sunfish North Americans in Springfield a month later, no doubt surprising her parents.

            When the Sunfish class found out she was coming, they offered her a scholarship to attend and the family gratefully accepted. Lauren was the first youth sailor to receive the scholarship from the Class.

            Her teammates from Hueston Sailing were surprised that she wanted to go, but before long they were on their way to Springfield. The first morning there she got out of her tent at 5:30 and ran four miles, something she does every day, apparently, to stay in training for her cross-country team.

            But cross-country running and sailing in big fleet championships is not all this young lady does. At her school in Tipp City, Ohio she is in the marching band, participates in theater, the track team, and swim team.

            How did it go at the Sunfish NA’s? “The regatta experience was one that I will never forget. Full of ups and downs,” she said. “It was a roller coaster of emotions, but just like a roller coaster, although it may seem new and scary, as soon as you get off, you want to get back on again.”

            The regatta’s first day was wiped out by lack of wind, so it wasn’t until day two that she found out what it was like to start with 67 other boats. She stayed on the water with the other competitors for seven hours that day and still got up the next morning and ran four miles.

            On Sunday, with cool temperatures and wind in the 10-25 range, she surprised her teammates again by getting into her foul weather gear and heading out for the biggest challenge of her young racing life.

            Just before the start of race one, her tiller extension broke off the tiller. She got some tape from another competitor and sailed her boat back to the club where dad Eric got her a new rudder. She then proceeded back out on the course just in time for the start of race two.

            “I was excited to test my ability to handle the high wind on the upwind leg,” she told us. “I found myself near the end of the fleet but happy not to have capsized.” Relieved to reach the downwind leg, a second mishap occurred. Her mainsheet figure eight came loose and the sheet flew out of the blocks on the boom.

            After getting help from a support boat that put the sheet back through the forward block, she sailed in to get the sheet done properly. No doubt to her dad’s surprise, she headed back out and made it to the start of race three. This time she made it around the course both laps and finished in 44^th place.

            “The Sunfish NAs was a fantastic opportunity that I’m so thankful for,” she said afterwards. “Ultimately what made this experience so valuable was all the people I met, each person sharing their own stories and advice makes for a beautiful collage of memories. I walked away with a new definition of competition.”

            Lauren says she is looking forward to her next race. “I can’t wait to get back out on the water and sail again.”

            We are not surprised.

United States Sunfish Class Association 2023 Annual Meeting

Island Bay Yacht Club  Springfield, Illinois

June 9, 2023

Call to order:  John Butine, President Pro Tem, 11:51 a.m. CDT.

Attendance:  John Butine, Chris Williams, Gail Turluck, Kate Zurinskas, Elaine Parshall, Paul Dierze, Joe Collins, Larry Suter, John McClain, Brad Wagnon, David Michals, Annie Lancaster, Scott Shirley, Jacqui St. Germain, Leland Brode, Porter Peterson, Lee J. Montes, Susan T. Berg, Gretchen Seymour, Rich Chapman, Mark Kastel, Matt Glover, Doug Warren, Ron McHenry, Jeff Goff, Jim Knab, Janet Murphy Ryan, James Irwin, Peter Fraker, Tom Katterheinrich, Susan Mallows, Art Haggerty, Gerard Haggerty, Kira Munger, Graham Leonard, Lauren Anderson, Mike Stratton, Laura Peters, Karyn Herndon, Eric ‘Cricket’ Herndon, Stephen Smeulders, Andre Patin, Paul Jon Patin, Ken Charles, Chad Coberly, Andy Beeckman, Dominic Simonetti, Sabrina Hernandez, Chris Carroll, Glenn Howes, Aidan Howes, David Krausz, Hank Saurage

Treasurer’s Report—Sonya Dean

USSCA membership has increased in 2022 from 2021, but it is still below the average for the last ten years. It is still pending review to identify the source of the decline.
 
USSCA continues to cut costs toward holding five years of operational expenses in savings. In 2022 the class replaced electronic Wild Apricot class management system to Membership Toolkit with a significant savings of 60%.
 
$40K in savings at 1.0% yearly interest has been transferred to a 4.21% yearly interest 7-month CD.
 
The positive net income of USSCA, a 501(c)(7) corporation, is an income tax exempt organization whose funds should be directly spent to the purpose of the exemption. The earnings may not inure any person having a personal or private interest in its activities.

President’s Report—Will Kresic

First and foremost, I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to every one of you for making the previous year such a resounding success.  Our major events spanned the nation from North Americans in Cape Cod to US Masters Championships at Bay Waveland Yacht Club.

The members of USSCA are truly a unique welcoming group of sailors and the camaraderie is unique among the sailing community. From thrilling, down to the wire regattas like the first New England Regional last week (decided by one point) to pure local sailing fun like the annual Around Harker’s Island race, the US Sunfish sailors continue to host exceptional events.

Last year we hosted 16 Regional Championships, many of which drew more than 20 competitors, and some attracted nearly as many as North American Champions.

The Sunfish sailing experience is not only about competition but also about fostering a close-knit community of passionate individuals who share a common love for the sport. Our organization embodies this spirit, providing a platform for friendship, mentorship, and lifelong memories.  I hope that each of you can find the time at your local regattas to continue to build those relationships and share the joy that sailing brings each of you.

Thanks to a fantastic showing by some of our top sailors at the US National Championship at Midwinters this past March, the US is qualified for both the Womens and Mens Pan American Games in Sunfish. This will be the first time there is a split event bringing more participation.  USA Pan American Games Trials will be held in early July and 30 of our top US sailors will compete to determine our male and female representatives at the Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile in the fall.

Continuing to look ahead, I am delighted to share that we have an incredible year of sailing regattas planned for our members.  Sixteen Regional Championships are once again scheduled for this Summer and Fall with our final regional in San Diego right before Thanksgiving.  If you’re up for traveling, Mission Bay is always a fantastic place to sail.  Women’s North Americans will be in Lewes, Delaware and is scheduled during the Summer for the first time in many years.  US Masters Championships will be at Niantic Bay Yacht Club in Connecticut with fantastic fall breeze.

USSCA Regatta Organizers have been hard at work scheduling ahead into 2024.  Personally, I’m looking forward to the North Americans at Lavallette Yacht Club in New Jersey and the annual Saratoga Lake Small Boat Regatta. Whether you are a seasoned competitor or a newcomer to the Sunfish class, there will be opportunities for everyone to participate, learn, and grow.

This year we welcomed our new class administrator, Martine.  Please introduce yourself to her and thank her for all her hard work updating the website and porting the class information over.

One of our goals is to schedule major events multiple years into the future.  We are looking for hosts for Midwinters, North American Championships, U.S. Masters, and Womens North Americans going out multiple years.

If you feel like your venue has what it takes to host a major event, please let one of us know and we can work with you to help find the right time and the right regatta for your venue.

• 2023 Womens North Americans at Lewes Yacht Club, Delaware, in August
• 2023 US Masters at Niantic Bay Yacht Club, Connecticut, in October
• 2024 Midwinters and International Masters at Davis Island Yacht Club, Florida, in March
• 2024 North Americans at Lavallette Yacht Club, New Jersey, in June
• 2024 US Masters at Milwaukee Yacht Club, Wisconsin, in August
• 2024 Womens North Americans at South Bay Sailing Center, New York, in September
• 2025 US Masters at Lake Norman Yacht Club, North Carolina

Please let the Class Office and Susan Mallows, our regatta coordinator, know of any local regattas not yet on the schedule.

As we embark on this exciting year, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to our dedicated volunteers, race officials, regatta hosts, and all those who contribute their time and resources to make our events possible.  Especially the organizers here at Island Bay Yacht Club for the countless hours they’ve put into organizing this event on short notice.  All of your unwavering support is the backbone of our organization, and we are immensely grateful for your commitment to our shared passion.

In closing, I encourage each of you to set sail with enthusiasm, determination, and a sense of adventure. Let us come together as a community to celebrate the joy of Sunfish sailing, pushing our limits, forging new friendships, and creating memories that will last a lifetime. May the wind always fill your sails, and may the year ahead be filled with fair winds and unforgettable regattas.

World Council Report-

The 2023 World Championship scheduled to be held at Ecuador was canceled because of our builder, LaserPerformance, pulling out of providing boats.  Alternatives were explored without avail.

The 2023 World Championship has been rescheduled to Coconut Grove Sailing Center, Miami, Florida, December 3-10.  It will be a bring your own boat event for US sailors. Sunfish Direct is planning to provide prioritized charters for foreign sailors. There will be uniform sails for the fleet with fee. The sails will be available for sale after the event. Those qualified for Ecuador are now the invitees for Miami. We expect to publish the Notice of Race over the weekend and to open registration next week. Qualified competitors will have to enter by August 1, registration will close November 1.   Event planned for 100 boats. Waitlist is activated.

ISCA sails and spars were approved by World Sailing for distribution by designated dealers.   Production and sales began to much success.

The World Sailing plaque fee issue has been paid for by LaserPerformance.  Members with boats since 2019 and a few early 2000s without proper plaques still need to obtain proper plaques.  The Class will be controlling plaque distribution going forward, as do most Classes.   ISCA will control the issuance of all plaques and will be getting production, hull numbers and plaque number reports from LaserPerformance.

Boats at this North American Championship were all checked and plaques purchased if required.

Further World Championships are set for: Rush Creek, Texas in 2024, Bonaire in 2025, and U.S. Virgin Islands in 2026. If any changes are made, we’ll notify everyone as quickly as possible.

OLD BUSINESS 

None.

NEW BUSINESS

Third Party Parts – John Butine

The last two years USSCA has made an exemption to Class Rules where at Regional Championships boats could participate if they do not have builder supplied Class approved parts.  These boats could compete but were not eligible to qualify for the World Championship. The USSCA Board voted to extend this provision through December 31, 2024 while supply issues get ironed out.

Election of Officers – Tom Katterheinrich

140 voted electronically.

• Mary Ellen Brown was elected Secretary.
• Doug Kaukeinen was elected Masters Coordinator.
• Gail Murphy Heausler was elected Womens Event Coordinator.
• Jim Koehler was elected Advisory Council Representative.
• John Condon was elected Advisory Council Representative.
• Tom Katterheinrich was elected Nominating Committee Chair.
• Gail Turluck was elected Midwest Region Representative.
• Jennifer Lee was nominated from the floor and elected West Region Representative.
• Clinton Edwards was nominated from the floor and elected Gulf Coast Region Representative.
• Scott Shirley was nominated from the floor and elected Southwest Region Representative.

Motion to adjourn by Rich Chapman at 12:08 p.m. CDT.

Respectfully submitted,

Gail M. Turluck

Secretary Pro Tem

Hueston Sailing Association - May 6-7, 2023

By Mike Stratton

     The shifting winds of Acton Lake tried to act up like rebellious adolescents but were eventually disciplined by the fleet of 22 competitors. It was a Midwest Regional Sunfish Championship, the first of three in the Midwest this summer, and Michigan’s Dan Norton walked away with this one.      
      Norton, who is no stranger to Midwest Regional titles or to National top ten finishes, collected another Regional win with Lake Bluff SC’s Rich Chapman, another racing sailor with a long resume of titles, in a somewhat distant second place. 
      With the wind Saturday behaving somewhat better than normal for the lake at Hueston Woods State Park in Ohio, the regatta began with six races in wind ranging from 2-15 mph. Norton won four of the six to take a commanding lead.
      A storm overnight and heavy rain and flooding followed by the wind’s sudden departure led to Sunday’s second day cancellation, but Norton was too far ahead for it to matter. 
      Hueston Sailing Association (HAS), which hosted the event, had two of its racing sailors in the top five with Brian Callahan taking third and Laura Peters taking fifth place and the top female finisher trophy as well.
      LaFarge, Wisconsin’s Mark Kastel, who has won this event before, won the races that Norton did not and finished in fourth overall. Norton is the first Midwest qualifier for the 2024 Worlds after winning this event.
      The host club, Hueston Sailing, was represented by eight sailors, but nearby Louisville Sailing Club was able to bring four of their members to the regatta. The Louisville Club is hosting the region’s third Midwest Championship in October. 
The only youth sailor present was HSA’s Lauren Anderson who had a 12^th place finish in the first race and finished 18^th overall. Well done.

INSERT PHOTO OF WINNERS: (L to R) Dan Norton/1^st, Rich Chapman/2^nd, Laura Peters/Top Female 5^th, Mark Kastel/4^th. Missing from photo is Brian Callahan/3^rd.

Blackbeard Sailing Club – May 20-21, 2023

By Peter Fraker 

     Sailors assembled Friday evening for a 2-hour rules seminar given by Jerry Thompson who made an excellent presentation. 

      Saturday morning started out with a medium shifty breeze of about 10 mph and decreased as the afternoon progressed. The race committee attempted a 4th race only having to abandon the race after the river current was moving everyone backwards. Everyone was towed back to the club. Saturday’s evening was topped off with an excellent meal provided by a local Italian restaurant. 

     Sunday morning wind started out about the same as Saturday’s 10 mph but constantly increased. By the end of the 3rd race the breeze probably about 20 plus mph and some of the sailors were getting tired. The race committee decided to called it a day. 

      Top honors goes to Elaine Parshall; 2nd place went Scott Elliot and was followed by Mike Kerman in 3rd. 

      Many thanks goes to Sonya and Alex Dean for putting this event together. Also, many thanks to Joan Wilson and the numerous members of Blackbeard who served as race committee, support boats, and ground support. Thanks to Ray serving as the PRO for this regatta. 

Brigantine Yacht Club – May 20-21, 2023

Results from the first Mid-Atlantic Regionals held at Brigantine Yacht Club. Two races were sailed on Saturday in rain and a breeze that may have occasionally hit 12-14 mph. Four races were held on Sunday in a pretty steady westerly topping out with occasional gusts to about 15 mph.

Canandaigua Yacht Club -- May 27-28, 2023

June 3-4, 2023 -- Barrington Yacht Club

First day of racing was 55 degrees and windy. The cold, wind and breakdowns caused a lot of attrition. It was a good day for a dry suit. Quite a June day! (Facebook post by Chris Williams)

Final Results from a Windy New England Regional. Bill Brangiforte took the top spot with a consistent effort in some very challenging conditions! Elaine Parshall came all the way from SC and nearly pulled of a big comeback by dominating things on Sunday after just 3 races on Saturday. (Facebook post by Eric Woodman)

By Bob Naylor

      Take comfort in knowing this - for all those times this past Fall and Spring when Jen totally shellacked you (… and me and the rest of us) at TTL, you were smoked by the very best - the fastest sailor in Arizona! 
      Congratulations to Jen for taking first place in the Sunfish Fleet again this year, and then going on to convincingly win the Club Championship in a very exciting day of match racing aboard C-14.2s at Lake Pleasant. 
      As with last year, the championship came down to Jen versus Laser sailor Paul Miachika, himself a very accomplished and fast sailor. In two windy, heart-stopping, head-to-head races, Paul led Jen in the first lap of each race before being overtaken and left in the dust on the final lap. It was an incredibly exciting duel between two of AYC’s finest sailors; but, in the end, Jen owned him on both tactics and sheer speed. Congrats Jen! Read more about it here: AYC Championship.
      And congratulations to Randy Adolphs and Jose Vicente for their respective second and third place finishes in the Sunfish Fleet this year! Despite too many light air days, we had a strong fleet and a fun season!

Langtoft Cove Yacht Club, Orland Park, Illinois -- May 13, 2023

 By Gail Turluck
 

     After racing at the 2022 Great Pumpkin Regatta on Johnson Slough in Hinsdale, Illinois, the Slough hosts enthusiastically agreed it was time to finally restore the spring Icebreaker Regatta. But, not on the Slough, for whatever reason.  Coincidentally, Kristine Lang, who lives on Lake Sedgewick in Orland Park, Illinois, came forward seeking to fulfill a life dream to host a regatta on the lake that her father dug when he was operating the family farm and a lumber yard. What he dug got sold as topsoil out of the lumber yard. The lake is as deep as 30 feet. 
      After some coordinating, Dave Anderson from Johnson Slough, with help from Mike Phlamm who loaned the family pontoon boat while on his honeymoon in Europe, agreed to tow the boat to Lake Sedgewick and help run races. Kristine recruited Susan Tonon who helps with Race Committee at Columbia Yacht Club in Chicago, and Victor VanDoorn, of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, long time Race Committee friends, to help Dave. 
      With some help from Gail Turluck to prepare race documents, the pieces were in place to launch from Centennial Park and have a go!  Saturday morning was partly sunny, about 60 degrees, with light wind. By the time the racers and race committee boat arrived and got launched, registration got underway, sailors enjoyed a little coffee and donuts, Sunfish got rigged, skippers meeting held, and it was time to go racing. Wind was East-Northeast, 4-12, in the higher range later. It warmed to about 68 degrees but became a little cloudier.  
      The first four races were triangle windward-leeward.  The last two races were double windward-leeward.  Races lasted about 20 minutes.  The part of the lake that was raced is fairly round.  The lake level was down; a few briefly ran aground. The racing was very tight with a lot of passing, losing track of where marks were, unexpected shifts, holes and puffs, and a few fouls (remedied by penalty turns—great sportsmanship!). Initial plans were to break for lunch, but sailing was going so well the series was sailed to completion. 
      Sailing most consistent, by far, was Gretchen Seymour, who after a throw-out of a 2 only had to keep one more of those!  Big congratulations to Gretchen as it is her first Sunfish Regatta WIN! 
      Then boats were packed up and the group went to Kristine’s home for a sumptuous lunch of Stuffed Peppers, Chicken Salad Croissants, Potato Salad, Fruit, and Cupcakes. No one left hungry!  We all met Kristine’s wonderful dog, Cody, too. A very successful day for the first-ever regatta on Lake Sedgewick.

By Richard Skeen 

May 13^th, Deer Lake, NJ - Steve Manson continued his mastery of New Jersey’s lakes, topping a 23-boat Sunfish fleet representing six different clubs to win Deer Lake’s 4^th annual Spring Kick-off regatta.

Shifty breeze and a big fleet on a small lake out a premium on finding clean air and lanes to break from the pack. Manson’s patience and uncanny ability to find pressure at key moments helped reel off three straight wins before Manhattan Yacht Club’s Justin Huntington won the day’s final race after his  disastrous third race typical of the ups and downs most sailors faced.  

Deer Lake’s Mike Mehring, another patient lake sailor, used consistency to finish 2^nd, while Mike Troxler nosed out last year’s winner Richard Skeen at the boat on the last race to finish 3^rd overall. Lou Di Falco, another experienced Deer Lake sailor, was 5^th, Packanack’s Ron Fazio was 6^th) and the well-traveled Peter Gregory (Chelsea YC), was 7^th.  Kara Licata (SSYC), sailing with a duct-taped tiller extension, was 8^th, edging out Deer Lake’s Jessica Siegel (10^th) for top honors in a competitive women’s cohort.

Racing was close all day, with the difference between a top finish and a back-in-the-pack score just a few boat lengths.  In fact, 12 different sailors had at least one race in the top 7 – and a lot of good racers found themselves with at least one deep score. “The fleet was deep”, said Erik Dykma, who had a 6^th the last race, making up for a 20^th earlier in the day.

The fleet had river, lake and ocean racers, and while Deer Lake won the team title with 4 of the top 5 finishers, the MYC/Hoboken fleet was once again the life of the party and had several good races. Erik Thygeaen (MYC via Denmark) came back from a tiller mishap to grab a 2^nd and 5^th place – only to find himself deep in a pack of laggards on the final race.  “It seems like our winter racing on the Hudson improved our speed a lot”, said MYC’s Hollin Callaway, who had an 8^th in the first race. “By the third race, we realized current wasn’t going to be a factor, which helped strategically”.

A handful of special callouts. Charlotte Andes, with an impressive 9^th in Race #3, was top youth, while her grandfather Joe Grusczynski, finished just outside the top 10. They were but one of many interesting family combinations that included Ken Zorovich sailing alternate races with his young sons, Scott Miniter and his son Scott Jr., sharing their boat so each could get in a race and two sets of married couples racing. “Our marriage barely survived a contentious leeward mark rounding last season”, said Jessica Siegel. “I’m done giving my husband any special marital buoy room-at-the-mark rights.”

Michigan Sailing Club, Dexter, Michigan -- June 4, 2023

By Gail Turluck

The weather Gods smiled on Baseline Lake on June 4, sending North to East winds of 6-16, with sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s.  Yes, it was a bit shifty, but it is a small lake with hills around it. Ask anyone who has sailed a collegiate regatta at the University of Michigan and they’ll be jealous of these conditions.  Regatta Chair Carey Jones pulled things together for the two fleets.  PRO Meg Gower started things promptly, with the Sunfish first.  First race was a windward-leeward.  All finishes were the “Hollywood finish” with the finish line at a 45-degree angle to starboard of the starting line, making sail numbers easy to read for the Race Committee. The rest of the four races were Triangle-Windward-Leeward.  The three-minute start system was used with a break in between Classes to allow starters to clear the starting area.  In the first race both Jeff Weaver and Gail Turluck were over early but restarted. In the second race Carey Jones had the unfortunate experience of one of the fastening pins in the mast cap coming out causing the cap to pull out of the mast and the sail to come down. It was wonderful to welcome Anna Broughton from the host club to her first regatta.  Some of the ILCA Dinghy sailors took advantage of the free camping on the lakefront. A delicious lunch of meaty chili and meatless white chili with fresh watermelon was enjoyed after the races. The club plans to do this again in 2024. 
 

By Paul Odegaard

     As I travel around the regatta circuit and view Sunfish race flicks online, I have noted that many skippers are still not using tufts/streamers on their sails. Racing without these tell-tales is like sailing blind. Ignoring power indicators can result in significant loss of forward driving efficiency.  While beating/reaching, on starboard, your sail may be full and appear looking good. BUT the leeward/ suction side of the sail could still be stalled and you will never know it.  Only with a pair of streamers can you negotiate steering/sheeting at the optimum powerful angle of incidence for your sail.  Due to our Sunfish 
 lateen rig, sail tufts are only really effective indicators on starboard tack due to mast 
 interference on port.
      The use of these simple power indicators goes back decades as noted in C. A. Marchaj’s 1964/1979 books: “Sailing Theory and Practice” and “Aero-Hydrodynamics of Sailing.” Brother Marchaj highlighted the use of sail tufts on many pages of his huge (1100+pages) volumes on sail theory. 

Here is a sample of a few facts derived from surfing his books:

· The greatest contribution to total driving force of a sail is near the luff.

· The aerodynamics of the lee side of a sail contributes 60-75% of the total driving force. Although Marchaj does not put a number on it, one could conclude that sailing with a stalled lee side could reduce your forward thrust by at least ~50%.

· In heavy air, when sails are normally flattened out with a small inlet incidence angle, BOTH the pressure and suction side streamers must be flowing aft for maximum propulsion.

· In light/medium winds, with larger incidence angles, some of the streamers may be allowed to flutter/be nervous.

· Aerodynamic stall (boundary layer separation bubble) on the lee side (ref. Fig. 1B) is what we must try to avoid by managing sail tell-tales.

· To detect leeward/suction-side stall, streamers should be attached approximately 5-15% of the chord length aft of the sail leading edge. A line of 3-4 streamers downstream along the chord line may be effective in detecting re-attachment of the boundary layer.

Marchaj, however, cautions that sail streamers “cannot possibly tell the whole truth as to whether the boat is sailed in a most efficient way”-i.e. There are many factors to be considered to achieve the best Velocity-made good such as sail camber/sea conditions/wind velocity/tiller wagging preferences/etc. 

By Alex Roose

     Many  of you might  have heard the tragic news that our beloved fellow Sunfish sailor, Dolf van der Giessen, 86 years old, passed away on May 17, 2023 while enjoying his other passion, golf. Dolf certainly lived a full and wonderful life.

     His friends and fellow Sunfish sailors considered him a fantastic human being and also a fantastic sailor. That high opinion of him lasted until the moment he left our world.

     We simply forgot Dolf was 86 years of age and, when there was a port-starboard situation during a race, nobody thought about taking his age into account to avoid a collision.

     On the water Dolf was always very competitive. But on shore, Dolf was always present in the best way. When we needed technical or tactical advice, Dolf was the best advisor we could imagine.

     He was always so helpful when asked for help to repair a boat. Or he simply went home with your rudder, and a week later it was returned and looked brand new again.

     Dolf’s Sunfish sailing honors began when he started sailing a Sunfish at the age of 49.

     His first big regatta was the Senior Olympics held in Curaçao in 1986. Randall Swan, Charleston SC, was the winner followed by Claude de Laval from Martinique. In a strong field of seventeen 40+ sailors, Dolf managed to be 12th overall.
      Twelve years later, he got his best result in the Worlds. This was in 1998, Sayville. His airline pilot career had finished a year before and Dolf, in the meantime, at age 61, finished 31st in a 100-boat fleet. His best race was a second with a 17th place just ahead of multiple world champion Donnie Martinborough from the Bahamas.

     Eleven times he represented Curaçao during the worlds with the following results:

Dolf van der Giessen .. A champion on and off the water who will be missed very much.

Dolf’s ashes were entrusted to the Caribbean Sea with many of his friends there to honor his life.

Feb 11-12: FL Regional #1 RESULTS

May 6-7 : Midwest Regional #1 OH RESULTS

May 20-21: Southeast Regional Champs NC RESULTS

May 20-21: Mid-Atlantic Regional #1, NJ RESULTS

May 27-28: Upstate New York Regionals #1 NY RESULTS

June 3-4: New England Regional #1 RI RESULTS

June 17-18: Southwest Regional #1 TX RESULTS

July 22-23: New England Regional #2, Wequaquet Lake YC, MA

Sept 16-17: Midwest Regional #2, Bruce Goldsmith Regatta, Devils Lake YC, MI

Sept. 23-24: Gulf Coast Regional Championship Grand Lagoon YC, Pensacola, FL

Sept 30-Oct 1: Southwest Regional #2, Dinghy Fest, Rush Creek YC, TX

Sept 30-Oct 1:Mid-Atlantic Regional #2, Normandy Beach YC, NJ

Oct 14-15: Midwest Regional #3, Great Pumpkin, Louisville SC, KY

Oct 28-29: FL Regional #2, Halifax SA, FL

Nov 18-19: West Regional, Mission Bay, CA

Regionals still to be confirmed:

• New York Regional #2

Qualifying for 2024 Worlds October 13-19 at Rush Creek YC, Texas

Class Notice with Qualification details

ISCA/USSCA Class Administrator

8070 Willow Tree Way, Alpharetta, GA 30005

www.sunfishclass.org    sunfishoff@gmail.com  404-451-7743