Notes on the regatta from Y-Knot President Mark Carnevale:
As in past seasons, AQVA put on a very well run regatta at the Point Claire Yacht Club in Montreal on Saturday and Sunday, 24 and 25 July 2010. With AQVA’s Paula Stone coordinating all aspects of the regatta, the gold and silver fleets had an enjoyable and successful sailing event both days in spite of the very different weather and sailing conditions. The Y-Knot participation of handicapped sailors was by myself and Steven Mintz, Y-Knot’s most experienced sailor and king of all things sailing.
On Saturday, things started with the gold fleet in the morning and silver in the afternoon; both fleets had very limited air to work with, 3 to 5 knots at most. However, this can make for interesting sailing when factoring in things like the current in the St. Lawrence and occasional clumps of seaweed that can foul a keel and rudder. Yes, I do mean “seaweed,” something we seldom see on Lake George.
In spite of the light wind on Saturday, two races were completed in each fleet. Steve and I both competed in the silver fleet. There wasn’t too much action in the light wind, neither Steve or I finished higher than fifth out of nine boats in either race that day. We did have fun watching the fish jumping out of the water after insects on the surface. Some fish looked to be 24 inches long. Maybe we should have fished during the race, I don’t think it would have slowed things much more. It was still a good time: warm hazy sun, lots of scenery and fresh air.
Sunday was quite different. A cooler weather front came through in the night with significantly higher winds — at least 10 knots with gusts to 15 knots. No time to watch fish that day. There were only two races completed in each fleet because of delays due to windy conditions. Things got so hectic that the silver fleet in the morning had three collisions during the race. I’m glad to report that no Y-Knot boats or others were damaged and there were no injuries, just some embarrassed sailors who are now more experienced. I had a fifth and seventh place finish with the help of Y-Knot volunteer and boat rigging specialist Peter Hogg who was my able-bodied sailing companion that day. Steve had a second place in the first race but was disqualified in the second race for an early start.
Final results for the Gold Fleet: first place to Aaron Wong-Sing, second to Marc Villeneuve, and third to Erick Poirier. Silver Fleet results were first to Guyves Actari, second to Elizabeth Winkelaar, and third to Laurent Kendirgi.
All things considered it was a great time with good friends and great competitors who particularly appreciate that Y-Knot Sailing brings four Martin 16s to the event. Along with their three AQVA boats and two private Martins, we had a solid field of nine boats for a good competitive regatta.