Davis Island Yacht Club hosted this year's Frontrunner Midwinter Championship.  This event is always graciously hosted by DIYC in conjunction with the North American Midwinter Championship for Fireballs and served as a tune-up for dozens of Flying Scots in preparation for their Midwinter Championship in St Petersburg.  Many thanks go to DIYC and Paul Leonard the event chair.  I am especially thankful for Paul’s eye for detail and years of experience in preventing our fleet from displaying bad form when Paul denied our request to call this the “Frontrunner Intergalactic Winner Takes All Throw Down Regatta”.  I was also amazed by his good nature in hosting those zany Fireball sailors who still think it is hilarious to put one lucky competitor’s boat in the club pool.

This year the participants where welcomed to DIYC amidst the newly completed club house with elevated views of Hillsborough Bay and Tampa’s prominent downtown.  Both the weather and the accommodations  were excellent.  Once everyone figured out how to rig a Frontrunner and that our spinnakers are faster with the head up, we were treated to a spectacular weekend of competition.  The first day tested most with light and shifty conditions that reinforced two old axioms: “sail to the shore” and the “first shall be last and the last shall be first”. Needless to say that where you started on the line had little to do with where you finished and everyone experienced the ups and downs of 45 degree shifts and frequent holes. 

The wind filled in for the remaining two days allowing a total of nine races.  The  warm northwesterly wind built enough each day to provide steady wind with no more than 20 degree variations.  Most races started or finished in conditions between 10-15 knots.  All in all the conditions created a great start to our racing season with no one reporting any major equipment failure or disastrously bad decisions that often plague the first outing of the year.  The finale of the event was a well-attended awards ceremony with entertainment provided by the very lively and vigorous Fireball fleet.

Mar. 6, '05                              Davis Island YC                                   14:47

                                2005 Frontrunner Mid-Winters Regatta

                                        March 3-5, 2005

                                FrontRunner Class Series Summary

Pl Sail Crew             Boat Name       T   1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9   

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1  111  Joe Williams     Sling Blade     13  2    (5)  1    1    1    1    1    2    4   

       DougMagargee                                                                          

2  102  Lee Farinholt    Blue Sparks Fr  17  (4)  1    3    2    2    3    2    1    3   

       RickFarinholt                                                                         

3  124  Bill Spencer     Red Dog         24  3    2    4    3    4    4    3    (5)  1   

        Kenny Cobb                                                                              

4  121  Matthew Braun    No  Go Tippy     28  (5)  3    5    4    3    2    5    4    2   

       PaulHowle                                                                             

5  147  Graylon Macfall  Mogo            29  1    4    2    (5)  5    5    4    3    5   

        Chris Schmidt