# 426 SOUTHERN BAY RACING NEWS YOU CAN USE
on Tuesday January 13, 2009 02:12PM
This is the time of year when event planners get down
to the nitty-gritty while skippers and crew get down and get
gritty prepping boat bottoms!
Here's some early, gritty info for racers planning for 2009
SOUTHERN BAY RACE WEEK
3 days of great racing and 4 nights of great parties!
- Check-in and Welcome Party, Thursday evening, May 28, at Regatta Headquarters, Hampton Yacht Club Hampton, Virginia;
- Racing Friday, May 29 through Sunday, May 31- multiple races each day;
- Racing for PHRF Classes A, B, C, Non-Spin 1 (single headsail), Non-Spin 2 (double headsail), One-Design classes, and a special Cruising Class;
- 2 racing venues - Ocean View and Buckroe circles;
- City of Hampton's Blackbeard Festival happening simultaneously in historic downtown Hampton during SBRW;
- New, streamlined scoring process - scores posted FAST;
- Morning breakfast buffets and carry aboard lunches available at HYC (regatta headquarters site);
- PHOTO BOAT will be on the course and in the post-race party tents throughout the regatta;
- "The Morning Buzz" will be published at race headquarters each morning of racing (courtesy of SBRNYCU);
- BOAT of the DAY recognition and awards each night and presentation of the BLACK SEAL CUP to overall regatta winner;
- Early Bird entry incentives available;
- Awards, entertainment, shirts, vendors, food, drink, and more available each night under the regatta tents;
- And, of course, good, old fashioned Southern Bay Hospitality!!
Look for the event website to be updated soon with
entry form, points of contact, etc. www.blacksealcup.com
LEFT FOR DEAD, by Nick Ward
with Sinead O'Brien, is on your favorite book dealer's shelves in
paperback and is a compelling recount of the famous and tragic 1979
Fastnet Race. It is a personal account of Nick Ward, a crew on
one of the entries, GRIMALKIN, who, in fact was "left for dead" and
until the publication of this book in 2007 had not fully told his
story. There is a southern Bay connection - Christian
Schaumloffel was on one of two boats that spotted
Grimalkin and stood by during Nick's rescue. Nick mentions
Christian and in fact the paperback includes a couple of photos of the rescue
taken by Christian. Set aside a stormy weekend for this one and read it
from beginning to end. The detail of the ordeal is
spellbinding.
Celebrity
Ship - when southern Bay racer Greg Cutter
(Elliott 770, Gremlyn) puts to sea wearing his oceanographer's hat this
Spring, he and his team will be on the KNORR again, the National
Science Foundation research ship that Bob Ballard used to find the
Titanic.
MURPHY'S LAW: Yrs truly,
the Racing Beagle, has one piece of advice before you settle in to read
Nick Ward's LEFT for DEAD - sink an eyebolt in the floor in front
of your recliner and clip on your safety tether before you read even
one page! /S/
Murphy the Racing Beagle, the sailing spirit in us all.