Sail Race Results for St Patrick's Rock to the Dock
The Inaugural event of the new Veleros de Baja sailing club in La Paz was an enormous success. Not only did it have more entries than La Paz sailboat races of recent memory, but the race finish also proved exciting for the boat crews and provided a spectacular vista along the La Paz Malecon.
The event began with a raft-up in Caleta Lobos on Saturday March 13th with 14 boats anchored in Caleta Lobos about 11 miles north of La Paz. With all of the boats at anchor before sunset, a potluck was held on the committee boat, Ericka and several satellite parties ensued. The fun went on well into the evening.
Sunday morning 3 additional boats joined those jockeying for position at the starting line near Roca Lobos, about 1km west of the anchorage. In very light wind the boats were spread out over a significant area. The race time had been pushed back from 11AM to 12PM to make our arrival in La Paz on a more preferable tide. With just minutes to go before the starting gun the wind dropped to almost nil. It looked like it was going to be a very long day.
There are two challenges in getting boats off to dock to do some sailing in La Paz. The first is the 40 minute trip for most boats out of the Ensenada de La Paz. The second is the uncanny lack of wind on race days. The first hour of this race was no exception. The first boat crossed the starting line about 30 seconds after the starting gun, the last boat to cross the starting line did so 52 minutes later. Even so, the first and last boat were less than 2 miles apart. Sometimes sailboat racing can be like watching grass grow.
Click here to visit the Veleros de Baja Website for more details
But about 1hr into the race the wind began to freshen and the race became much more exciting. But the best was yet to come. With the boats spread out over more than a mile, the lead boat the entire race was Poco Loco Dos. They crossed the line first and never looked back. In the photo below you can see them already headed up the channel in the foreground while the rest of the fleet hasn't even entered the channel.
More below...
Final Standings for the
|
|||
Place |
Boat Name |
Corrected Time |
Skipper |
Division 1 Non-Spinnaker Class |
|||
1 |
Poco Loco Dos |
2:34:33 |
Keith Sangster |
2 |
Seazure |
2:46:41 |
Tom Zyber |
3 |
Sonrisa |
3:03:36 |
Mike o'Neil |
4 |
Hoki Mai |
3:04:25 |
Neil Burson |
5 |
Havfruen |
3:12:32 |
P.K. Conner & Julia Norlin |
6 |
Delight |
3:13:49 |
Al Miller |
Division 2 Non-Spinnaker |
|||
1 |
Myskatonic |
2:34:24 |
Gordon Alexander |
2 |
Tehani |
2:39:05 |
Mike Lancon |
3 |
Smiles to Go |
2:40:20 |
Adam Perry |
4 |
Eros |
2:42:02 |
Shelly Ward |
5 |
Tika |
2:43:11 |
Jeff Brewer |
6 |
Coral Rose |
2:53:21 |
John Aldous |
Division 3 Spinnaker Class |
|||
1 |
Rosilita |
2:50:30 |
Larry Bridenbeck |
2 |
L'Allegra |
2:55:25 |
Bob McAlvain |
3 |
Cloud IX |
2:58:57 |
Bill Sanderson |
4 |
Imagine |
3:03:36 |
David Heaslip |
5 |
Chance |
3:08:10 |
Tom Colter |
Since the La Paz channel can provide significant currents during lunar cycles, the race was pushed back 1hr from the original start time. The strong currents in the narrowest part of the channel, near Marina Palmira and buoy #8 effectively restarted the race less than 2km from the finish line. Although some of the boats had been as much as 2 miles ahead of the pack, 13 of the remaining 16 boats became bunched up with the outbound tide as the race reached the channel just prior to slack tide.
"I wondered why the rest of the pack was waiting for us" said one racer. It did appear that the lead boats stood virtually still while the rest of the pack gained on them. Our vessel, Seazure, was in the middle of the pack entering the channel, but managed to conserve momentum at the change of tide and for a brief and shinning moment moved into 2nd place overall.
With less than 2km to the finish it was a virtual restart to the race with 13 of the 17 boats less than 150 meters apart.
Photo Finish: The Committee boat left is the finish as Tika, Cloud IX Eros and Seazure speed to the line. |
It was gunnel to gunnel racing, as the wind picked up and the tide changed to inbound. Four boats vied for second through fifth position for the remaining 2km to the finish line. As it was a down wind run to the finish many of the boats were flying spinnakers or large drifters, making for a color special for spectators on the pier.
At the finish line 8 seconds separated the 2nd and 5th place vessels to cross the line. Unfortunately, our boat Seazure had slipped to that 5th position in the final 200 meters.
Following the race a beach party ensued on the Magote and was attended by not only the race crews but plenty of spectators from other vessels in the bay. It was a great time for all.
An awards dinner was held at Perico Marinero in La Paz on Wednesday, March 24th and all entrants received a commemorative plaque.
The next event for Veleros de Baja will be the Tax Day Regatta. The event is planned to dove tail with the end of La Paz Bay Fest and Loreto Fest 3 weeks later. With many folks calling it a season and heading north to Guaymas or Loreto, it is a great time to enjoy this two part event. The first portion will sail from La Paz to Caleta Partida on the 15th. The fleet will then sail 25 miles to Isla San Francisco. Boats that wish to attend Loreto Fest or continue north will leave the fleet Monday morning the 17th and the remaining vessels will race the 50 miles to the Municipal Pier in downtown La Paz. All vessels are welcome and there is a $250 peso entry fee. All entering boats will receive 2 Tax Day Regatta T-shirts and commemorative plaque. Depending on the number of entries received the fledgling club will provide additional surprises for the entrants.
Any vessels entering 2 or more of the f4 first season events will become eligible for Charter Membership in Veleros de Baja. Anyone can enter, as all membership fees in the club have been waived for the first season. All race fees will go toward the event and prizes.
We hope that you will come join in the fun and enjoy the spirit of sailing commradery and a little sporting competition.
