Sail Black Rock Intersectional

SAIL BLACK ROCK, which hosts the intercollegiate sailing teams of Fairfield and Sacred Heart Universities, was honored to host this first time ever intersectional between NESSA and MASSA.

Saturday began in warm sunshine with a light to moderate Westerly breeze and strong ebbing current at the mouth of Black Rock Harbor, in unprotected waters on Long Island Sound. Those who came out on top in the morning nailed the start, found the pressure and played the current. At 11:30 the breeze shut off completely forcing a long postponement on the water. Sailors rafted up around the rotation platforms and inflatables and a few even went for a swim. Looking toward Long Island it was a sea of glass and things didn’t look promising. However the forecast predicted that a sea breeze would fill in at 1:15 and sure enough, at 1:15, the 8-12 knot sea breeze filled in from the SW, accompanied with some chop, making for an afternoon of exciting and more competitive racing. Given our long postponement, RC decided to stay out until 5:30, as long as we had wind. After completing 10 races for the day, the North Kingstown Skippers dominated with 35 points followed by the Rumson-Fairhaven Bulldogs and Annapolis Panthers, tied with 42 points. Upon returning to the docks, the sailors were treated to delicious Pepe’s pizza and soft drinks from our sponsor, Regatta Ginger Beer and Sail Black Rock, on shore at the sailing center.

On Sunday, a very strong westerly breeze from 15-25 knots forced the racing to be held in the protected inner harbor, making for exciting racing not only for the competitors but also for the spectators watching from shore and the coaches from the coach boat. The fleet was close and the racing, competitive. The occasional death roll downwind kept the competitors and safety boat on their toes. Getting a front row start, playing the shifts, staying in the pressure and out of the middle were the key ingredients for the day. Only one point separated first and second after the 20 races all in. The Annapolis Panthers came out victorious with 78 points followed by the North Kingstown Skippers with 79 points and in third, the Christian Brothers Colts with 89 points. There were no filed protests and 1 request for redress. Kudos for a great job to the race management team led by Jamie Fales, Dave White, Jill Fattibene and Ginny Worcester and thanks to Chris Crane (Moses Brown) for running the red inflatable and to Jim Kavle (Annapolis) for helping in the chase/mark boat. Thank you to Captains Cove Seaport, Fairfield University, Sacred Heart University and Sail Black Rock for the use of their fleet of FJs and for hosting this exciting High School Intersectional.

Respectively Submitted, Ginny Perry Worcester Head Coach, Sail Black Rock

The following chart shows the relative rank of the teams as of the race indicated. Note that the races are ordered by number, then division, which may not represent the order in which the races were actually sailed.

The first place team as of a given race will always be at the top of the chart. The spacing from one team to the next shows relative gains/losses made from one race to the next. You may hover over the data points to display the total score as of that race.