2006 Merrimac Memorial Regatta

Jack H

Member
The 2006 Merrimac Memorial Regatta will again be held Labor Day weekend in Portsmouth, VA. The race will be Saturday, May 27 in the Western Branch of the Elizabeth River in the waters off of Portsmouth City Park. The regatta is open to all sailboats (including multi-hulls) 22' and under. Any 4 boats of the same class will recieve thier own one design start. Last year we had 2 Capri 14.2s. If they return and we get 2 more there will be a C14 start. The offical NOR, SIs and website shold be up by the end of the week. In the meantime check out www.seadated.com for pictures from previous years and a forum discussing the race. Also check out Portsmouthboatclub.org/ for more info. Merrimacregatta.org will be the official site and should be operational by week's end.
Thanks.
-Jack
 
Almost forgot, free camping and/or boat storage for out of town compettitors at the Portsmouth Yacht Club. So even if you stay in a hotel, you can leave your boat at the club.
Also, $10 entry fee; same as last year.
 
www.merrimcaregatta.org/ is up and running. Information including the NOR, directions, a chart of the race area, pics and results from last year as well as links to our sponsors is available.
Please pre-register. Also, don't forget, we have had 2 C14s in the past years. If we have 2 more there will be a one design.
Thanks.
-Jack
 
Thanks for the info

Thanks for alerting me to the Regatta. It sounds like a lot of fun. I'm trying to see what I can do to attend. I've never raced before and it sounds like a great informal way to get my feet wet ( hopefully not!). My problem is I live in Bethesda, MD and it's a 4+ hour drive on Memorial Day weekend down 95. :eek: Would have to take Friday off from work. We'll see.
 
Keep us in mind. Last year we had folks from NJ, PA, OH, SC, and NH (she flew, the others drove). The drive from DC can be a grueling one, especially on a holiday weekend, but you might be ok if you just leave work a couple hours early and get in to Portsmouth a little after dark. It would be a lot of fun. We'd love to have you here, and it is indeed a great, informal way to try racing.
If you do decide to take the day off, you will most likely get here in time for our "big boat" race. Friday nights are the nights that we race PHRF on the big sailboats, out in Norfolk Harbor. Last year we invited the out of town Merrimac sailors to crew on the big boats.
I hope you can make it.
Talk to you soon.
-Jack
 
Looks like we talked Bob into driving down. So I think we can expect 3 Capri 14.2s at this point. If one more boat signs up, there will be a C14 start!
 
Ok, at this point we have 2 C14s registered online; Bob Sievers and James Reeves. Neither of the boats that competed last year have registered. If anyone knows Steve Spratt or Karl Liebert, ask them if they are coming out this year. If they come back we will have enough boats for a Capri 14.2 start.
-Jack
 
Merrimac Regatta

This is Steve Spratt. I sailed there last year and plan to be there again this year with my Capri 14.
 
It looks like we have 4 confirmed Capri 14.2s for the Merrimac! Actually we have 5 but I had heard that Mr. Reeves had changed his mind. Anyhow, you guys will have yor own start on Saturday! See you then!
-Jack
 
MMR tomorrow

Last years MMR was my first time racing on a C14, and it was a hoot. It was my son's first time out in a small boat. I highly recommend this event for first timers. The course is sheltered, and the crowd is casual.

Coming up on June 24 is another open small boat regatta in Solomons, MD. Southern MD Sailing Assn is hosting. They run a great event. The course is at the mouth of the Patuxent River just off Solomons. 5 boats are required for a start. Otherwise, we're under the Portsmouth Handicap fleet. Camping and boat lift use are gratis.

-Karl
 
Sounds like you guys will have a great time. I've never sailed on a river. The local knowledge on the currents should be huge. Have fun and I look forward to the reports of how your sailing goes.

cheers,

Richard in San Diego:)
 
MMR didn't dissappoint

4 Capri 14s showed up. We had a start.
There were three races run, however with building, squirrelly winds, by the third race two boats retired (one was mine :eek:).

The first race had enough wind to be fun, but we started to get a taste of the shifts that would continue throughout the day, from a prevailing N to a sever pain in the rear SE. Of course these shifts were accompanied by gusts to 20 knots.

Steve Spratt nailed all starts and dominated the fleet with solid sailing.

I was very late for the two starts I made. In the second race, when I did finally cross the start after sitting in a lull, the rebuilt wind was accompanied by one of the aforementioned shifts. I got layed over. It was my first time, but we got going again and finished the race for a third. We lost about a lap to Steve on a 3-lap course.

Bob Seevers picked up my brother Dan as crew. The two of them were who I was sailing against most of the time. We didn't beat them by much in the first race and traded leads a couple of times. Lunch was between the second and third races, after which many of the crew retired.

That left Dan, Bob, and I as Steve's competition in the third race. We were late getting back on the water and missed the start. But we ran the course and got a taste of how much fun it is to get a C14 going with a lot meat hanging out over the rail.

Next thing on the agenda is more practice!

Cheers,
Karl
 

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