CARLYLE SAILING ASSOCIATION                     
                                Lightning Fleet 266             
                                       2006
                               Mid Continent Regatta            
         5 Races in series.   0 Races needed to qualify.   5 Races scored.
                         17 Boats participated in series

 Sail  Skipper                                 4/  4/  4/  4/  4/   Place Score
  #    Crew, Crew                              /29 /29 /30 /30 /30

 15234 Todd Wake                                1   2   1   2   2     1    8.00
       Kristine Wake, Jim Walker                ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14834 Matt Burridge                            2   1   3   4   3     2   13.00
       Jen Algets, Jim Sears                    ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14636 Dan Moriarty                             3   3   2   5   1     3   14.00
       Tobi Moriarty, Ian Moriarity             ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14614 Scott Zerban                             5   4   4   1   6     4   20.00
       Rob Zerban, Mike Heffernan               ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14766 Terry Burke                              7   6   7   3   5     5   28.00
       Edd Burke, Bryan Burke                   ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14920 James Chapin                             4   7   6   7   4     6   28.00
       Nick Beckman, Jeff Coppens               ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 13657 Michael Franceschini                    11  11  10   8   8     7   48.00
       Michael Connelly, Brent Miles            ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 13836 Michael Reed                            13  13   9   9   9     8   53.00
       Susan Reed, Greg Polonik                 ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14901 Ian Schillebeeckx                      DNS DNS   5   6   7     9   56.00
       Maxim Schillebeeckx, Marc Schillebeeckx  ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14260 John Folwell                            14  10   8  10 DNF    10   60.00
       Bob Lacker, Brad Hamby                   ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14769 Bob Stoller                             15  12  11  11 DNF    11   67.00
       Mary Ann Bryne, Mike Taber               ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14958 Mark Wessel                              6   5 DNS DNS DNS    12   68.00
       Denise Cornell, Dave Bronson             ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14798 Rick Bernstein                           8   8 DNS DNS DNS    13   73.00
       Stacy Zerban, Karen McKinley             ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14009 Paul Hanson                              9   9 DNS DNS DNS    14   75.00
       Kelle Hanson, Andrea Sepanski            ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14005 Matt Wierzbach                          10  14 DNS DNS DNS    15   81.00
       Jake Der Boer, Nate Komoroski            ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 11589 Brad Gruneburg                          12  15 DNS DNS DNS    16   84.00
       Scott Jelinek, Chris Ross                ^   ^   ^   ^   ^
 14449 Dale Krcek                              16  16 DNS DNS DNS    17   89.00
       Mary Gemberling, Pete Mc Ginnty          ^   ^   ^   ^   ^

Number of boats
       in each race                            16  16  11  11  11

  Explaination:  DNF - Did Not Finish  DNC - Did Not Start  DSQ - Disqualified
                      ^ - Race counted
 

Mid-Continent Regatta 2006

By Todd Wake

            Before starting the 400 mile drive to Carlyle from Sheboygan I decided to give the forecast one last look. The forecast called for SE winds at 20-30, heavy rain, and likely thunderstorms on Saturday with more of the same on Sunday.  I wondered if we would get to sail at all. Since we wanted to see our friends from St. Louis and knew there was a 100% chance of a good party, our team decided to make the trip. My wife Kristine and I left Sheboygan around 4:00pm and picked up Jim Walker on our way through Milwaukee . Since this would be Jim’s first time in a Lightning I gave him some vague instructions like “don’t let the spinnaker get away from boat when it really starts to blow”. We pulled into the Carlyle Microtel at 11:30pm .

            We woke up early on Saturday, drove to the club and rigged the boat. The wind was blowing 20 by that time but the rain was holding off. The first race went off as scheduled and featured multiple lead changes between our team, Matt Burridge’s, with Jen Algets and Jim Sears (all the way from CA), and the Moriarty family boat (Dan, Tobi and Ian). At the end of the race it was our turn to be in front followed by Matt and Dan. The second race saw the wind drop a bit and become fluky. We led at the first mark but after a brilliant gybe on the downwind Matt passed us and never looked back. We took second and Dan was third. After the second race the committee sent us in for lunch.

            As the sailors sat in the club house eating lunch it became apparent the forecast of 20-30 was wrong. The committee measured sustained winds in the 40-45knot range for the better part of an hour. There was a frantic rush to secure all the boats and get them out of the water. Luckily no damage was sustained. The wind eventually calmed down to a gentle 35 and stayed there the rest of the day. Around 2:00 , when the racing was cancelled for the day, I decided to break into my rum stash. An open bar was set up out of the back of our van and most of the sailors enjoyed a cocktail or two. There was a lot of discussion about the last time people had seen a sustained wind like we were experiencing. Eventually the party moved inside for the wonderful lasagna dinner prepared by James Chapin and his wife.  James posted a strong sixth place finish and served as regatta chairman. He deserves extra thanks from all who attended. Matt Burridge gave a short presentation on his trip to the California Circuit along with some boat speed tips. After an early afternoon start to the party most people went home early to get some sleep and prepare for what Sunday would throw at us.

            Sunday morning the winds were 20+ and the race committee sent us out as scheduled. The wind continued to build throughout the morning and made for some challenging boathandling along with great rides on the downwinds. I don’t know exactly how strong the wind was. At times the main and jib were both luffing on the upwind. Thank goodness Matt and I had a gentleman’s agreement not to use new sails. Despite the heavy breeze the race committee ran three good races. Scott Zerban with Rob Zerban and Mike Hefferman showed some serious speed in the heavy stuff and won race 4. Matt demonstrated how far you can heel a Lightning without officially capsizing while trying to get around the leeward gate. Nobody cared too much about what place they were in while surfing along in puffs that went up to about 30 knots. It was all about enjoying the ride and trying to stay upright.

            Our middle crew Jim Walker did a great job in his first lightning regatta. He hiked hard, watched the shifts and most importantly kept the spinnaker under control. Thanks to Jim and Kristine’s crack crew work we sailed a 1,2,2 on Sunday to win the regatta. Matt’s team was second followed by the Moriartys, Scott Zerban and the Burke family in fifth. As usual the folks at the CSA were gracious hosts and put together a top notch regatta. Mark the last weekend in April on next year’s calendar and come join the fun.