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LBRW 2013 was sailed in a variety of conditions. A fog bank engulfed the courses on Friday and
made navigation of the upmost importance.
On the Charlie Course the visibility was so low that boats were having
trouble keeping track of where they were at on the race track. Eventually the wind filled in and the fog
cleared, thus making way for some typically awesome Long Beach racing
conditions.
Viper 640’s had the honor of being the largest fleet at the
regatta. Twenty-Five boats showed up to compete for the top prize in this ever
growing one design fleet. They also had
the added bonus of qualifying for the EFG Bank Pan Am Championships. The top five boats would qualify for this
great event to be raced in Miami. Racing
was extremely tight as local favorite team Golison/Flam battled hard to jump
into the top spot on the final day with some great tactical racing. Glyn Locke and team ‘Fer de Lance’ captured
second place with Kevin Taugher, Jim Sears and Ed Feo rounding out the top
five.
A hugely popular fleet at LBRW is the Catalina 37
class. These boats are available by
charter and the crew’s get the chance to sail in a true one design fleet. Racing was tight and not without the
occasional bump and grind. 2013
featured on the water judging so everything was sorted out before the boats
even crossed the finish line. David Hood
and his ‘DH3 Racing’ team battled back from a 10th in the first race
to win the overall division with consistent finishes.
Olson 30’s hosted their National Championship regatta and
were luck to be on the inside course where flat water and good breeze made
these classic boats shine. Larry Spencer
once again dominated and retained his crown of National Champ.
PHRF 2 saw much drama as the J-133 ‘Tango’ appeared to spear
eventual winner Soozal at the start of race 6.
Soozal had to withdraw as they had a gaping hole in their stern. Race two also saw controversy as seven boats
were scored DSQ for missing a mark after a course change. I am sure that the owners and crews had their
own versions of what happened.
Random leg action was strong as local boys team Medicine Man
won the final race and scored a 1 point victory over TP-52 ‘Bud’. It was exciting to watch these powerful machines
tour the bay on the ever growing and hugely popular fleet.
Farr 40’s were once again proving to be one of the most
popular and demanding one-design fleet on the west coast. Jeff Janov’s ‘Dark Star’ dominated
proceedings as tactician Dave Ullman helped steer them to another LBRW victory
and maintain their lead in the West Coast Championship series.
Once again LBRW proved to be a fun and enjoyable regatta and
seems to be growing in stature as boats are now traveling to the regatta from
all over California and the World (thanks to Glyn Locke for coming from
England).
Look forward to the next event… Transpac!
Keith Magnussen
Ullman Sails Newport Beach
