It was Jim Higgins' idea to have the Wayfarer class piggyback on the Cottonwood Regatta, and it was genius.  I have to admit that I had my doubts, but once we got the OK from the Catawba Yacht Club, and the Canadian and US Wayfarer organizations got the information posted, it was a force unto its own.   We had 13 boats commit and in the end, 11 showed up to race.  We had participants from as far as Florida and Ottawa.  Most everyone arrived on Friday, a chilly rainy day.   I quickly broke out the beer (Al's note: and most welcome it was, too!!)  By late in the afternoon, after a short sail, and a few more beers, everyone was feeling pretty comfortable.  We dined on burgers and dogs, chewed the fat and relaxed.  The scene was more reunion than regatta.

The conditions on Saturday were odd.   There were thunderheads in every direction, yet little wind.  At 11:30, we all left the docks, and ghosted to the start. By 12:00 the race committee had taken their best guess on wind direction and we started.   I’m not the best race chronicler since I tend to remember very little from any race.  But after the finish, it was suggested we head to the docks due to storm warnings. On reaching the dock, I heard that Bob Frick had finished first. In a tone of resignation, I was informed that Bob is a kind of “Light Air Wizard”.

At about 1:00, the imminent danger had passed, and we headed back to the course.  The conditions were excruciating, the winds were light and variable, the bass boats abundant.  Uncle Al and John Weakley took the second race in the borrowed Quick Chick, followed by the Rahns.  Al and John had agreed to bring the boat down for me with the caveat that they could rig it for racing.  Racing and winning with an unknown boat requires an understanding and knowledge of the boat that few of us will ever achieve.

The Rahns reversed the order of finish in the third race, which distinguished itself as the only race of the day with real wind.  We’d been waiting for a front, and midway through the race, the wind shifted to the northwest, with some real strength.  Boats that had been pasted to the water were off and planing.  Alex and Pete took full advantage of the windfall and consolidated their position.   The Rahns are a text book duo when it comes to execution.  Roll tacks, spinnaker sets, and jibes completed quickly and quietly.  The perfect team.  In the end it was their execution that made all the difference.

The fourth race was a test of mental toughness.  It was late in the day, and the winds were light and capricious to put it nicely. The Vanguards abandoned the race.  The Lightning class had 4 DNF’s and the Wayfarers two.   The Wayfarers split into two fleets, and Michele and I were lucky enough to lead the second.  We would get ahead a little and the pack would reel us in.  Finally, on the second leg, Hubert Dauch and Bob Frick passed us just before the mark. But after rounding, both landed in their own private Lake Wylie high, completely parked.  Michele and I decided conditions weren’t dire enough, so we drifted into the leeward mark.   We completed our expletive laden 360 and set our sights on Bob and Hubert, who were still stuck.  It may have been furious concentration or psychokinetics but we closed the gap with Bob and Hubert.  The wind did another 180 to the northwest, and for once, and by pure luck, we were in the right place.   Alan Hallwood snuck in close behind us in his lovely just purchased W442.

By this time it was after 6:00, the band was playing, and I was a little concerned about going back to the docks.  I’d promised sunny southern weather and topical breezes.   I gingerly sidled over to where Hans, Al, Frank, and John, were sitting on the dock gazebo, and expressed my utter dismay with the conditions.  Frank looked, up and said, "Yeah, well it’s like this in Canada, too."  I was amazed they had just driven 14 hours and about 1000 miles for less than stunning weather and seemed perfectly content.   I gave my wife the car keys and went and got another beer.

Sunday morning could not have been more perfect. The wind was from the northwest, and was building.  The first race was a single round sprint, which John and Al picked off.  The Rahns captured the second race, twice around, with a very solid performance.  Hans Gottschling and Frank Goulay, who had turned consistently excellent races, won the final race, which was particularly satisfying to see.   All the while, Aaron Law was turning in very consistent finishes, and it was blindingly obvious that by the 7th race, he was just hitting his stride.  Aaron was racing with a pickup crew, and due to his schedule at UNC Chapel Hill, he’d not been sailing for a year.  Given a few more races he would have been at the front.  In the end it was the Rahns in Shadow to win,  Al and John in the Quick Chick to place, and Hans and Frank in The Nutshell to show.

Just a quick aside on a few items.   I’d like to express my admiration for Hubert Dauch. It never failed, just when I thought I was getting ahead, there was Hubert right behind me.  Just when I thought I had clear air, there was Hubert to windward.  Sailing alone, he always looked very placid and calm, and yet he was always in the right place.  I look forward to the day I can be sailing as well.  Judd and Cecilia kindly came down from Tawas, Michigan again - with a Wayfarer instead of the J22.  They had never sailed a W before, but wanted to come down, knowing they wouldn’t see the rain they saw last fall.  They were partially correct. They sailed a good series but had to pack up early on Sunday for the long drive back.  Finally, I can’t imagine a W regatta without Mike and Dottie Murto.  They’re wonderful folks and we look forward to seeing them again next winter.

Michele and I can’t remember a weekend we have enjoyed as much, but it was just too short.  My eldest daughter wanted the Canadians to stay longer and didn’t want them to leave. I think we all felt that way.  If only we could have had just a few more hours on Saturday afternoon to enjoy the warm sunlight, and laugh off the day’s racing.  A number of members of the Catawba Yacht club were impressed with the W fleet, because we raced hard and well, but at the end of the day it was camaraderie and cold beer that counted most.  No rock stars, no bitter rivalries.  The Cottonwood 2004 is on the Calendar.  All I can say is Y’all come!