2012 Wooden Boat Regatta; Part One.

Last weekend was the second year that Wooden Boat Magazine sponsored a two day regatta for smallish wooden boats.  Once again, Rock Hall Yacht Club hosted the event.  Although I got out of my cast two days before the event, my arm isn't anywhere strong enough to safely handle a boat so I was strictly limited to spectator mode this year and MINT stayed in the boat house.  But this is not all bad news.  Carl Cramer, the publisher of Wooden Boat Magazine kindly invited me aboard the launch "Lady Lancaster" for a day of up close spectating out on the two race courses.

Things are a bit agricultural in this neck of of the woods, but at least one knows which road to follow to the yacht club!  The car in front is John Zseleczky.  The boat is a Mistral design Classic Moth.

Bob Patterson brought two Moths.  This is his Duflos design boat.  Derek Chester's Mistral design is a successful attempt to capture Benoit Duflos' elegant but difficult to built shape in a stitch and glue format which can be built from flat ply panels.

However for this event Bob wanted to sail his McCutcheon-built Shelley design Moth.

This curious cloth skin over wood frames sliding seat canoe was unfortunately a no-show out on the water.  Perhaps he broke something during Friday's practice.

Last year there was only a single representative of the Hampton One-Design class.  This year there were several Hampton ODs attending.  I guess the word got around the fleet that this was a good regatta!

There were also several Lightnings at this year's event.

Several Thistle Class dinghies made an appearance.

This sailing canoe and several dory type boats were rigging up on the launching beach.

Larger boats included this B.B. Crowninshield designed cat boat.

Tattoo was one of three Chesapeake Light Craft "Pocketships" competing in the cruising class.

This very odd boat was also in the cruising class.  I'll have more photos of "Utilis" later in the post.

Shortly after the skipper's meeting the mark boats and committee boats headed out to the racing area.

 

I boarded the open launch "Lady Lancaster" and we were soon in hot pursuit.  I'll post the on the water pix in the next post.