Yup, Upside down yet again (me and Mmmmmmmmm)

The Eastern Seaboard is the hotbed of Viper sailing, at least for now. Large fleets are very active all along the coast. It seems there’s a container that flows into that area every couple of months with a whole new load of boats for enthusiastic sailors. You’ve gotta love the old-style East coast Yacht Clubs. They all bear a striking resemblance to the West Coast’s golf clubs. Opulent and expensive. Part of the tradition I suppose.  Indian Harbor Yacht Club and Stamford Yacht Club are no different. Amenities like swimming pools, beach clubs, clay court tennis and full fitness facilities set these clubs apart from the typical yacht club you might see in the west. The second you walk into Indian Harbor YC the smell of aged oak, walnut and maple fills your senses. Dozens of sterling pickle dishes and trophies are mounted on every wall imaginable. What spaces don’t host an age-old award are filled with models, half models and photos of long gone commodores. It’s amazing that these clubs are filled with Vipers and Viper sailors. Pretty cool actually.

This years regatta promised atypical conditions for West Long Island Sound…wind !!

Photos are now up from the wildly succesful 2009 Viper 640 North American Championship on Long Island Sound.  Many thanks to Stamford Yacht Club for the photo gallery, and to Stamford and Indian Harbor Yacht Clubs for hosting an incredible event.

Gallery

2009 North Americans - Gallery
courtesy of Stamford Y.C.

Huntington Lake, one of the most Southern lakes in the Sierra mountain range offers a unique blend of warm air, cold water and fresh breeze that runs down the length of a somewhat narrow lake. Capping out 7,000 feet Huntington certainly has to be one of the best lake sailing venues in the west.

This year was no exception. A record number of boats vie for the opportunity to race here. Historically, the US forest service carefully guards the number of sailboats that have access to the lake. This year was no exception. The High Sierra keelboat weekend broke attendance records with over 131 boats on what was supposed to be a 100-boat limit…oops. Fresno Yacht club flawlessly runs this event and has done so since the mid-50.

The normal cast of mixed PHRF boats showed along with the Ultimate 20’s always a mainstay at this event. This year the Vipers were awarded a one-design start (on the same line as the U20’s). I went out of my way to thanks the RC promising them 8-10 boats for next year’s event.

I can’t WAIT until... we have numbers like the East Coast and can pack 25 Vipers onto the lake for a West Coast Championship. Perhaps we’ll be rewarded one day by hosting a North Americans here, as the U20’s offered in 2008, a hugely fun event!

“Is this Heaven?”  “No, it’s Iowa.”

… a simple, yet memorable exchange of lines in a classic movie about the creation of the ultimate playground to satisfy one’s dreams.  Well, Field of Dreams was created by a Hollywood studio, Long Beach/Alamitos Bay was created by Mother Nature and it is without a doubt the ultimate playground to satisfy any sailor’s dreams, especially if they happen to be racing a Viper 640 on ‘C - Charlie Course’: a consistent western afternoon breeze, building to 12-18 knots every afternoon under clear, sunny SoCal skies and inside the breakwater of Long Beach Harbor.  Heaven…, why not?

Long Beach Race Week has come and gone, and this year like last, it provided all in attendance with three of the most perfect days of racing for which any of us could hope.  For the Viper 640 fleet, 6 boats were in attendance, a 100% growth from our inaugural visit last year, which gained us not only a fleet start, but further recognition as a growing fleet in the west after many years of a but a few stalwarts keeping the faith in PHRF fleets.