- Blowing Dogs Off Chains At The Viper 640 North American Championship October 17, 2015
September 17, 2015
Larchmont, NY
Day Three of the 2015 Viper 640 North American Championship, hosted by the Larchmont Yacht Club, was another day of sailing for the record books. The winds started to build as the sailors arrived early in the morning with temperatures in the high 40s. The dress code for the day was “more layers” as the forecast was for winds in the high teens to low 20s with temperatures only in the low 50s.
LYC PRO Charles “Butch” Ulmer ran three exciting and challenging races before significant wind shifts in the afternoon ended the day’s sailing. Regardless, “I believe everyone got his share of sailing today,” said Ulmer, as downwind boat speeds were frequently well above 15 knots in the puffs.
It was an up and down and up day for Day Two leaders and 4-time Viper North American Champion ...
...read more - A Champion Day of Sailing for Viper 640 North American Championships October 17, 2015
September 16, 2015
Larchmont, NY
After a shifty Day 1 with light to moderate Day 1 with major wind shifts, Day 2 turned into the ideal day for racing a Viper 640 sportboat. The winds were out of the northwest as predicted, but the 8-10 knot forecast filled-in at 10-15 knots with gusts to-20. As with any fleet when the winds become brisk, the 48 boats on the line divided into the elites, the really good sailors, and those experienced sailors still learning their way around the Viper.
The top group was larger than smaller as 16 different boats scored at least one top-10 finish in the four races held. As an indication of how competitive the racing was, Day 1’s leader, Zeke Horowitz from the host Larchmont Yacht Club, won the first race of the day but then finished 15-10-11 dropping him ...
...read more - Zeke Horowitz leads Viper 640 North Americans after Day 1 October 16, 2015
September 15, 2015
Larchmont, NY
It was challenging sailing on Western Long Island Sound off Larchmont Yacht Club today as 48 Viper 640s began racing for their 2015 North American Championship, with the leading four boats finishing the day within six points of each other. With the first race started promptly at 1100, the nor’wester of 8-10 knots provided more than its share of opportunities to gain or lose as dramatic shifts created gains that could be quickly given back. It was the host club’s Zeke Horowitz, sailing JENNY with Ian Coleman and Brendan Healy, who won the first race and maintained his fleet leadership throughout the day with a third in the second race and a tenth in the third.
The start of race 2 was delayed as the wind died and then came back as a 5-8 knot westerly that backed ...
...read more - GYA Selects Viper 640 As New Capdevielle Boat!! September 9, 2015
THE GULF YACHTING ASSOCIATION SELECTS THE VIPER 640 AS ITS NEW CAPDEVIELLE BOAT
On September 5, after a democratic vote of its member clubs, the Gulf Yachting Association (GYA) has selected the Viper 640 as the new boat to be sailed in its prestigious Capdevielle Series. The voting process was the culmination of a multi-year selection process to find a successor for the Flying Scot, the boat in current use.
The Gulf Yachting Association was founded in 1901 to support sailing and promote interclub completion. The GYA’s clubs follow the Gulf of Mexico coast from Sarasota Sailing Squadron in Florida, where the Viper holds its winter series, west to Houston Yacht Club, Texas, host to the 2013 Viper North Americans. Thirty-three Regular Member Clubs and five affiliate associations make up the GYA. www.gya.org
To say that the Viper Class Association and Viper owners ...
...read more - Around Fishers Island September 8, 2015
A Supposedly Fun Thing That I’ll Probably Do Again Next Year
By Peter Beardsley
We try to mix up our Viper travel schedule – it’s a good excuse to see new places and if we happen to sail, all the better. Despite growing up in the northeast, I had never step foot on Fishers Island, a tony enclave that through a quirk of cartography and colonial era politicking, is in New York State waters despite being much closer to Connecticut and Rhode Island. In fact, for geography fans, there is a part of the island where at low tide, you can stand at the only “border” of New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Fishers is known for its natural beauty and its exclusivity, which many others have written about previously. In the sailing community, it is known for its many navigational hazards ...
...read more - Tim Carter, Sammy Herrin, and Peter Beardsley Capture Viper PCC Crown September 3, 2015
Team COBRA, traveling the longest distance to the regatta, sailed the shortest distance around the racecourse to win the 2015 Pacific Coast Championship. Class Governor Tim Carter with Farr 40 bow woman Sammy Herrin drove 17 hours to Fern Ridge Reservoir outside Eugene, Oregon to meet up with Former Class President Peter Beardsley, who flew nearly 3,000 miles from New York. The team nearly became the second team in class history to ace a major class championship, thwarted only in the second race by fellow Alamitos Bay Yacht Club sailors Nigel Brownett and Rachel Ellis, who teamed with Class Treasurer Tony Chapman from Arizona Yacht Club to take second overall.
The battle for second came down to the final race, with Long Beach-based SNAKE EYES tied on points with John Leyland’s MOISTENED BINT team from Vancouver, British Columbia. New owner Trevor DiMarco’s ...
...read more - Zeke Horowitz wins Viper 640 division at YRA of LIS 2015 Champs August 3, 2015
Congratulations to Zeke Horowitz, Emmy Stuart, and Ian Coleman for winning the Viper 640 class in the 2015 Yacht Racing Association of Long Island Sound’s one-design championship sailed out of American Yacht Club, Rye, NY, August 1 – 2. Zeke’s JENNY had a score line of 2-3-1-2-1 to nip by two points perennial Viper powerhouses Danny and Megan Pletsch and Cardwell and Jennifer Potts sailing their BLACKOUT PROPOSAL. In third were David and James Owen sailing GHOST PANDA. All three boats are part of the Larchmont Yacht Club Viper 540 fleet.
...read more - Danny Pletsch and Cardwell Pots Win Larchmont Yacht Club’s 117th Race WEEK July 29, 2015
Sailed over the weekends of July 11-12 and 18-19, 25 Vipers competed in all or parts of Larchmont Race Week. Clearly, the Vipers stood out from the traditional, full hull boats on the one-design circle (Etchells, Shields, IODs, and S Boats) as they skipped over the water as the breezed were light to moderate.
After the first two days of sailing, however, it was Peter Beardsley in GHOST PANDA who led the standings with a pair of bullets and a fourth. Danny Pletsch’s and Cardwell Potts’ BLACKOUT PROPOSAL was just two points off the lead with a 2-5-2 line score. LYC Vice Commodore Andy Kaplan’s SIZZLER was in third.
The second Saturday found light breezes again but the Vipers were able to complete two races-both of which Pletsch/Potts won putting them in the lead-and Sunday, after a 2-hour shore postponement, two more ...
...read more - Ron Schute Wins Nepean One-Design Regatta July 29, 2015
GREAT LAKES REGION GATHERS AT THE NEPEAN ONE-DESIGN
Submitted by Steve Chapman
The Nepean One-design Regatta took place June 21-22 at the Nepean Sailing Club just outside of Ottawa where seven Vipers joined 80 other boats for this well organized fixture in the Great Lakes calendar. As always, great music, cold beer, and hot summer sun greeted the visitors who came from Kingston, London, and Lake Champlain to join the local fleet for 2 days of racing.
The fleet headed out on Saturday with shifty winds challenging the race committee with 3 fleets starting on our course. The race officer managed to get off three races for the Vipers in modest 5-7 knot breeze. Local title defender Ron Schute in RUM THEORY (#117) came out strong winning the first race. James Colburn and his sons from Kingston in LUCKY VARMENT, who recently purchased ...
...read more - GIM HOBELMAN REGATTA PUTS VIPER BITE ON CHICAGO July 29, 2015
Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club welcomed small one-design sailboats to the Gim Hobelman Regatta over the July 25-26 weekend. Divisions were open to Lasers, Vanguard 15’s, Viper 640’s and Rhodes 19’s. The weekend’s events included a party at the Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club’s clubhouse on Saturday evening. Happily, the Chicago Viper 640 Fleet will also hosted parking-lot beers for competing boats on Saturday.
Lee Shuckerow dominated the Viper division winning five of six races followed by Tony Bowker and Darren Gilbert. A special shout-out goes
to Nick Kofski (owner of DAMNYOUKOFSKI, Viper 55). Nick did most of the organizing of this regatta and also helped with accommodations for out-of-town boats, set-up the party, got the RC together, assisted with launching, and all the while organizing his own team to sail. He deserves a lot of credit for making this event a success.
RESULTS:
Fun Time-Lapse ...
...read more - UK TATTINGER REGATTA BUBBLED BRIGHTLY July 29, 2015
UK TATTINGER REGATTA BUBBLED BRIGHTLY
Reported by Paul Young
We have just had the Tattinger Regatta at the Royal Solent, Yarmouth. This regatta was scheduled for the first time this year and is sponsored by Tatinger Champagne, who ensured that no one is thirsty, and had a turnout of around 170 boats ranging from old gaffers (leftover from the Paneriai Classics Week at Cowes) to IRC Class 1, through to sports boats and X One-designs. We had several Vipers present including Glyn Locke, a former EFG series winner in North America racing a new ” FER De LANCE”, and Jo Gillespie launching a brand new boat number “241” . There was some great racing, and some very impressive fireworks combined with some great parties; so this will definitely be back on the calendar for next year.
...read more - Jeff Grange Wins SBYC Fiesta Cup July 29, 2015
SANTA BARBARA FIESTA CUP 2015 – IT LIVED UP TO ITS NAME
By Tony the Treasurer
Santa Barbara (CA) Yacht Club and local Viper 640 sailors Jeff Grange and Geoff Fargo hosted the SoCal Viper fleet over the weekend of July 18-19 at its Fiesta Cup that fully lived up to the promises made by the hosts. Everyone was provided with sunny and breezy conditions, a club house and bar on the beach, Volleyball court, beer kegs, food, rum, and a great live band. In fact the promises made were so good that an uninvited guest by the name of (Tropical Storm) Dolores crashed the party and caused a little mayhem. Dolores invited her friends Rain and Fickle (winds) to make the party a little more challenging.
Attendees were welcomed on Friday evening with a beach party to get everyone in the mood ...
...read more - GULF PERFORMANCE SAILING IS NEW VIPER 640 DEALER July 29, 2015
INTRO TO YOUR NEWEST VIPER DEALER
If you haven’t been keeping up with the Viper Class forums, you may not be familiar the newest Viper reps down in the South. Gulf Performance Sailing (GPS) grew out of the need to have solid Viper representation along the northern Gulf Coast. As the Gulf Yachting Association is going through a transition period of moving away from the Flying Scot as the inter-club boat which has been used for 50 years, the Viper 640 is one of two finalists.
Enter Craig and Deborah Wilusz. These two sailors— you may have run into over the last few years at Viper events—took the lead and formed small LLC to promote the Viper 640. Add in some of Craig’s previous experience in the marine industry, a dash of Dan Tucker influence, and a pinch of Paul Young, and ...
...read more - Tom Loutrel Wins 2015 Helly Hanson Marblehead NOOD Regatta July 27, 2015
Tom Loutrel (Charleston, SC) crushed it at the 2015 Helly Hanson Marblehead NOOD regatta (July 24-25). With seven bullets and two seconds in the nine races sailed, Tom and his crew were unstoppable. This win follows on the heels of Loutrel’s recent victory in the 2015 Viper 640 Atlantic Coast Championship reported further down on FB. Well done, Tom.
...read more
