but did give us lots of time to enjoy the magnificent hospitality of the Lake Eustis SC and its ever so capable volunteers. The traditional free beer provided by the host club (above) and Uncle Al's Dark and Stormies were never more appreciated than on these hot, relatively windless afternoons.

Team North Carolina was in many ways the heart of the 2017 Midwinters, leading the way in both numbers and enthusiasm.

The event was hotly contested by all 20 boats at every level, with shifty, gusty winds making consistent excellence hard to achieve. And when the metaphorical dust had settled, a Lake Eustis SC team that was sailing their first Wayfarer regatta together surprisingly emerged as our 2017 Midwinter Wayfarer champions in what had turned into perhaps the closest three-way Midwinters series ever. After very impressively discarding a 3rd that the rest of us would gladly have picked out of their dumpster, Dave Moring and Arial Harrington (above and below) counted (3)-1-3-2-3-2 for 11 points to win this year's Callengers trophy as Wayfarer Midwinter champions.



Only one point back in 2nd  place were Detroit's Doug Scheibner and Andrew Lockhart (the current Wayfarer North American champion) who scored a pair of firsts and seconds but also a couple of droppables only one of which could be discarded. Their 2-1-(9)-6-2-1 gave them series 2nd with 12 points.

Also winning twice as part of their 1-2-(6)-5-1-4 score were U.S. champions, David Pugh and his wife, Anne the CWA Chair, who were one of only two Canadian entries this year. Their 13 points were easily good enough for Bronze in the Spinnaker Fleet.

In the Non-Spinnaker Fleet, the Gold went to Phil Leonard and Jeannie Allamby of North Carolina's Lake Townsend YC in their beautiful wooden W864.  Even without a spinnaker, Phil and Jeannie scored a fine 11th overall and were decisive winners in their fleet.


N-S Silver went to the Lake Eustis team of Patty Kuntz and Ron Plank (above) who overcame the need for Ron to take the helm after Patty came out on the short end of a run-in with her boom.



Last year's Non-Spi champions (above), Dave Hepting of Lake Eustis SC with Ali Kishbaugh of Charlotte, NC's Catawba YC, took Bronze this year after being well pursued by LESC sailing newcomer, Karlheinz Krüger, who teamed up with LESC Juniors czar, Craig Yates (left below), and ended only one point out of Bronze. Karlheinz proudly sails W2959 to honour the late Mike Murto, a beloved founder of our Midwinters.



Back in the Spi Fleet, seven-time Mids champion, Marc Bennett, and his wife, Julie Seraphinoff, the pride of East Lansing and Michigan State (above), finished 4th overall while uncharacteristically scoring nothing better than a 3rd, albeit they did score three of those. Perhaps Julie's mind was understandably on distractions such as "little" Spencer (her son) (below with girlfriend) about to arrive at the club from Orlando and news that her second grandchild is on the way via daughter, Mallory, who once crewed with Uncle Al in a U.S. Nationals victory at Tawas Bay, Michigan.


Taking 5th overall were Lake Townsend's Uwe Heine and Nancy Collins, who ended up at the head of a very evenly matched group of five North Carolina boats. Uwe and Nancy were regularly near the top and hit their series peak in race 4 which they won very efficiently.

A tie for series 6th was broken in favour Lake Townsend franchise players, Jim and Linda Heffernan, who got the nod due to sailing the venerable composite W2458 to a fine 2nd in race 3. The Heffernans' clubmate, AnnMarie Covington, also counted 30 points, teaming up with Detroit's Nick Seraphinoff, (below) and ending up 7th overall.


The close racing continued as only three points separated series 8th from 10th. Newly moved to New Bern and the Blackbeard SC from Charlotte, NC and the Catawba YC, Richard Johnson and the freshly retired pediatrician, Michele Parish, (above) scored a decent series 8th ahead of another Catawba helm, Jim Cook, who again teamed up with Mike Taylor (below). These two teams placed 3-4 overall last year so it appears that Wayfarer competition is getting hotter each year.


Rounding out the top ten was the other Oakville, Ontario helm, Al Schonborn who got fine crew work from Ava Moring (the 14-year-old daughter of our new Midwinters champion). Uncle Al, winner of eight previous Wayfarer Midwinters, was pleased with Ava's crew work, with the boat speed of SHADES a.k.a. Glory Days and her new main and genoa, thrilled with his and Ava's starts all of which he rated between very good and superb, but in retrospect is less than thrilled with his strategic thinking which on this day at least, seemed to wrest defeat from the jaws of victory with disappointing regularity. We shall see.


Series 12th went to Lake Townsend newcomers, Evan and Mary Trudeau, wedged in the overall standings between the top and 2-3-4 Non-Spinnaker boats who have already been mentioned.


A pair of Lake Townsend Wayfarer helms (above) teamed up for a learning experience in W449, beautifully restored by Ken Butler who sailed with Trish McDermott, his more-or-less neighbour, and made a quite respectable showing by placing 16th overall while finishing only four of the six races.


Tied with Ken and Trish at 80 points was Mike Tighe (above) of the host club who was scheduled to sail with his wife, Mary, but her sailing days - Friday and Sunday - never got any races in. And on Saturday, Mike pressed his son-in-law, Jason Palosaari, into action, making it through the day without notable incidents.


A popular favourite was the Michigan team of Dave McCreedy and his daughter, Sarah (10), (above). It was lovely to see Sarah smiling all day long, and helming whenever dear old Dad flew the spinnaker. Our future is in good hands!!


North Carolina's Jack Davidson (above) got a surprise request to sail with Izak Kielmovitch on the Saturday as solo sailing became a less attractive option in ever more gusty winds. This pair coped very nicely until their mainsheet block broke and they had to sit out races 5 and 6.


Special thanks to the many volunteers who worked so hard and well to make our regatta and memorably enjoyable event it was:

• Dave Hepting and Patty Kuntz were regatta co-chairs.
  
• Jane Hepting and Mary Seraphinoff managed meals with able assistance from kitchen staff headed by LESC Commodore, Monte Stamper.
  
• June Howell and Dave Moring did registration.
  
• Ray Laguna - as previously praised - was PRO
• thanks for perhaps our best ever photographic coverage, with contributions from John Cole, Trish McDermott and husband, Scott Bogue, Jeff Baker, Nancy Collins, Sherry Magno, Monica Kaitan, François Simon as well as Uncle Al with able occasional assistance from Ava Moring.
• accompanying Trish McDermott, Lake Townsend YC newsletter editor, were her husband, Scott (below right), and his pal, Jack Davidson (below left), who came down to check out one of their passions, old classic outboards, but ended up pitching in with whatever needed doing anywhere, the way Scott does above and beyond the call at Lake Townsend YC
  

• not to be forgotten is François Simon's and Gus Chennell's portable high-volume pump that proved to be a fine success when Jim Burns had the decency to give the rescue team a chance let the pump make its debut (below)

• my own special thanks to Trish and Scott, as well as to Nick and Mary who again gave me a fine roof over my head as needed, and of course, the latter also hosted a Wayfarer Super Bowl party on the Sunday night where I slept through the Patriots' comeback for the ages. It was great to see Dotty Murto looking so well and being an integral part of the hard work as always