Heros
Bad ass video of the event from Western region hero Jim Mcdonagh.
New England’s called off
I’m really sorry to report that there is a ton of water on the ice making the prospect of getting the New England’s in tomorrow unlikely. So we are not going to try to get them in.
Team Vermont is still going to try the ice and if possible they will try to race for the Vermont state champs. It doesn’t look good right now but who knows. I clearly don’t.
Sorry for the head fake. This yeas weather has been really challenging.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA regatta chair
New England’s launch site update
The Mallets Bay boat club is private property and we have been granted access to launch out of there for the Sunday event.
No one else has been granted access. If you are launching there you need to move to the public access down the street.
We are not allowed to use public access launches for regattas because of permitting issues. Our use of the boat club is critical to being able to run events on Lake Champlain and if we cause any damage to the lawn or property we will not be allowed back. So please do not use the boat club until Sunday for the event.
Individuals are perfectly welcome at the public launching ramp.
The ice still looks good but we won’t be able to check it today given the excessive breeze. But we are still planning on getting an event in.
If there are any questions please call me at 508-728-8095.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Chair
New England Champs are ON!
We are calling the 2016 New England championships on for Sunday February 21 on Mallets Bay. Both inner and outer Mallets Bay have great race courses. We sailed both today. Tomorrow the dogs are getting blown off the chains but Sunday looks absolutely gorgeous. Temps in the low 30s with 5 to 10 knots of breeze and epic ice. Does it get any better?
Launching will be out of Mallets Bay boat club.
https://goo.gl/maps/JBNDVrNQW192
Skippers meeting will be 10 am in the pits at the boat club.
If driving to Madison for the North Americans isn’t in your deck of cards make your way up to Burlington. See you here.
Oliver Moore
US5469
NEIYA regatta chair
Smoke On The Water
I’m feeling a bit like a Goldilocks.
"This day has too much wind."
"This day is too cold."
"This day doesn’t have enough wind."
Well at least the ice was really cool to look at. We tried to get the Beanpot in but the breeze used it self up over the weekend and took Monday off. So no real racing to be had.
The plate inside of Rattlesnake island was about as perfect as it gets with no ridges from shore to shore and some really cool marbling to boot. The marbling was interspersed with patches of perfectly clear black ice which looked terrifyingly like open water by comparison. Fully disconcerting.
There was a good solid 5 to 6 inches of ice so hopefully it will survive this latest pounding from the rain gods. Lets see what happens on the other side.
Oliver Moore
Beanpot Update: New Launch site
So sounds like the wind has been doing some work on the ice off of Ellacoya State park. Word is the plate inside of Rattlesnake island has fared better so we are going to launch out of Ames Farm instead:
Given the fairly radical temperatures we are seeing and the instability of the ice we are going to be very cautious. We are going to try to do some racing if possible but not after doing a good amount of scouting. If racing isn’t in the cards we will do what we can. Should be a nice day on the ice regardless.
See you there.
Oliver Moore
NEIYA Regatta Guy
508-728-8095
Beanpot it is
We are going to celebrate Washington’s birthday by sailing the Beanpot Classic on Winnipesaukee tomorrow. We will launch out of Ellacoya state park. We are going to have to wait for temperature to warm up a bit but will try to get the first race off by 11. There is potential for snow in the afternoon so again our window is small.
Here we go!
Oliver Moore
President’s Day Special
No Eastern champs this weekend. There’s ice in Mallet’s bay but the forecast is for a high of 4 degrees Fahrenheit. Not Celsius. And blowing all holy hell. Sounds like a perfectly miserable time. So Saturday and Sunday are off the table for racing.
But Monday looks pretty nice. I know not everyone gets President’s Day off but try to keep it open if you can. We are going to try to get the fabled Beanpot ramped up on Monday. We are all itching to get some good practice in before the big dance of the North American Champs so stay ready and keep an eye on you local spots. If there’s ice we want to know about it.
Stay tuned here for updates and keep your fingers crossed.
Oliver Moore
Really? Really??? REALLY?!?!?!!?!??!?
Who knows what will be left after this mess clears itself out. Not looking good for any regattas this weekend but we would still like to get in a round of scratch racing and practice if possible. So if anyone sails or scouts anything Thursday or Friday please let us know.
In the mean time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UjDQCqAcDE?rel=0em&cc_load_policy=1
Make sure to turn on the subtitles.
Oliver Moore
NEIYA’s “I wish we could hold a regatta” Chair
Not So Much
Alright.
No New England Champs this weekend.
Informal scratch racing on Lake Sunapee on Saturday and maybe Sunday.
There just isn’t anything good enough that has been checked for me to call a regatta on. Lake Sunapee has 7 inches of kind of bumpy ice. The large part of the lake was sailed today and of the options available to us I think it is the best. So what I propose is we meet on Lake Sunapee for some practice and informal scratch racing on Saturday. There is still some scouting to be done and I am not promising anything but I think we should be able to get some good sailing in.
Launching is best out of the State park. Click the map below for more details:
The forecast is for 5 knots of breeze both days but above freezing temps. Warmer on Sunday.
I don’t know anything about the launch at Melvin Bay. Leavitts was sailed today and has 3-4″ of good black ice but has significant holes. So be very careful.
Squam lake is also sailable. It was sailed yesterday and has a mix of black ice and wet snow drifts. I forget where the Squam Launch is.
There is also ice up north of Burlington but none of it has been scouted. If you find something good up there please let us know. I think the inland sea or Mallet’s bay might be in the cards next weekend.
This is some weird weather we are having. It is going to be warm this weekend so please be extremely careful if you sail this weekend. This is like spring sailing where people can get hurt because the conditions change quickly.
Be safe. Have fun and let us know how it goes.
Oliver Moore
NEIYA “Regatta” Chair
I’m not dead yet!
We still have a shot at getting the New England’s in this weekend. There is ice out there but the recent weather instability had made it really challenging to find a safe plate. Squam lake was sailed today and could but an option but there is a good chance lake sunapee might be better. There is a scouting team headed there tomorrow. Anothr possibility is Leavitts beach on the north end of Winnipisaukee. There is also ice up on the inland sea north of Burlington but it hasn’t been sailed and they might see some snow Friday.
My best guess right now we will be sailing in central New Hampshire somewhere. If I have a definite spot tomorrow afternoon I will call the New England Champs on but if we are still in limbo we will call off the regatta attempt and switch to trying to find a place for some scratch racing.
My gut says we will have some good sailing this weekend. So keep you schedule open and stay tuned.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Person
Don “Doc” Fellows Wrap up
A big thank you to everyone who made the trek up to Moosehead Lake, that was a really fun weekend. If ever you have the chance to sail out of the Birches Resort you should jump at it. Really cool cabins with restaurant and bar right on the race course. I was trying to put a list of people to thank for helping make the weekend happen but it would have included everyone there, because it really was a great group effort making it truly special. The one person who I need to mention was Loretta Rehe. Truly making things happen behind the scene she did all the scoring from her home in Detroit. I sent her photos of all the handwritten scores and she emailed back compiled results while I sat in the hot tub. Pretty freakin awesome. But the weekend wouldn’t have happened with out the scouts, Lee and Roger. The whole CIBC crowd was hugely supportive. It was really special to see so many new faces and old friends getting into the racing scene.
Hopefully we can keep the momentum going. There isn’t much snow in the forecast and it looks like Winni is on the verge. Next weekend is looking promising. We will try to host the New England Champs if we have the ice.
Keep those runners sharp and keep the reports coming.
Yahoo!
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Guy
Doc fellows results
Doc fellows regatta results. Thanks to all who took their turn scoring and Brianna for scoring the last 4 races. Huge appreciation.
Awesome day with primo conditions. Lots of great enthusiasm from some new faces.
Awesome stuff.
Oliver
Maine state champs tomorrow.
The 14 boats on moosehead lake enjoyed absolutely primo conditions today. We got seven races in to get the doc fellows in the books.
Tomorrow we will race the Maine state championships at the same location. Get here if you can.
Report and results to follow as soon as possible.
Updated launch site
Chad and I are on the scene and it doesn’t get much better than this. We are going to change the primary launch site to the marina at the Birches Resort. The following link should get you there on Google maps.
Dropped Pin
https://goo.gl/maps/CtB7dVmqCD62
Follow rt 6 through rockwood and then follow the signs to the Birches Resort. Then bear left at the office and you will see the marina.
Do what you gotta do to get here because this is going to be epic. Book a cabin or a roon at the Birches Resort. There is a bar, resurant and a hot tub with a view of the race course from the room.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA regatta dude.
Yup. That will work.
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It doesn’t get much better than this. Moosehead for the weekend. Not going to need more than a couple knots of breeze
An absolute blast.
Get here.
Doc Fellows is ON!
Get on your horse.
It is time to ride.
I just got off the phone with an ecstatic Bill Bucholtz. And I quote:
"If you don’t make it up here for this one, you might as well move to Florida."
So I am calling the Don "Doc" Fellows on for Saturday January 23, 2016. Skippers Meeting in the pits at 10 and first race to follow shortly there after.
The primary launching site will be the public boat ramp in Rockwood, ME. There will be a sign on your right as you enter Rockwood.
If we are able to get the Doc Fellows in on Saturday we will attempt to get the New England Champs in on Sunday.
If you plan on racing please bring proof of $300,000 of personal liability insurance. It can be a copy, scan or photo of the policy. I just need to see your name on a current policy with the right coverage. Please don’t forget.
Bill says there is miles of perfect super hard black ice. So get those runners super sharp and lets do some boating.
See you there.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Hombre
Moosehead Update
Team Chickawaukie is on the scene making things happen. They have arranged to have the public boat launch plowed, have staked out a lake front cabin that serves 3 hot meals a day and should be rigging up right now. We will make the final official call on regattas this weekend pending a positive report from them.
If you want to get in on the action Chad reports that these are the housing options:
Rockwood Birches- Right near launch 207 534 7305
– $128.99 double bed (3 left I think) $325 4 bedroom cabin (8 beds)
Moose Mountain Inn (Greenville)
$99 Night double- 3-4 left I think
207 695 3321
The Chickawaukie guys have a cabin at the Birches and it sounds delightful.
As this is our first time of the season and there are a bunch of new people in the wings let me explain a couple of things about how this process works. When I call a regatta on I am making my best attempt to pick a time and place to give us our best chances of having a good, safe and fun event given the information I have. It is the responsibility of each sailor to do their own assessment of the situation. Each sailor needs to decide if they are comfortable with the safety, ice reports and the forecast.
For example, the forecast for the weekend is calling for light and variable breeze. Given that we are desperate to get a regatta in and this is the only ice available it is my belief that we should show up and take our chances with the wind. There is a chance we might spend the weekend standing on the ice in a dead calm but you can’t race if you aren’t there. You as a sailor might feel that isn’t a chance warranting the long drive and commitment. I can understand but that is your decision to make.
Most importantly this applies to safety. Every time you step on the ice you need to educate yourself as to the hazards and safety of the situation. This is by its very nature a dangerous sport and each sailor is responsible for his or her own safety. So be careful and double check everything.
Enough of the downer talk. I for one am really excited about the weekend. I am really pumped to get back on the ice
Get those bags packed.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Dude
Game On Moosehead
The dynamic duo of Lee Spiller and Ramblin Roger send in this update from Moosehead. Looks pretty freaking awesome. Six inches of the good stuff.
Problem is its too windy to skate upwind so the plate wont get fully checked until tomorrow. But it’s looking really good for a regatta this weekend.
I won’t make the final official call till we get someone sailing it tomorrow but its looking very likely we will be game on.
We will post launching and housing details when we make the official go call tomorrow.
So get your gear together and get your butt to Moosehead Lake.
Oh baby.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Dude
Caution Moosehead Crossing
It is looking like Vacationland might be hiding some primo ice way up north. Webcams and flyby reports of Moosehead Lake have the Chickawaukie gang as giddy as school girls. Check out the picture below from yeaterday. They are planning on making the trek up there Thursday to check it out. As this is the only game in town this is probably our best chance of getting a regatta in this weekend.
If we get a good report on Thursday we will call the Doc Fellows on for Moosehead lake on Saturday. Chad and I will most likely head up Thursday night to try to get some sailing in Friday.
If we get the Doc Fellows in the books Saturday we will try to get the New Englands in on Sunday.
No definite calls yet but consider yourselves warned. Get those runners tuned up. Tell the wife and kids you aren’t available next weekend. Get ready because it could happen and if it does you don’t want to miss it.
Hang on boys, its coming.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Dude
Whats up Doc?
We are going to try to get the Doc fellows in this weekend. Its not looking very promising but given how desperate we are becoming I am going to reserve the right for a last minute call. If someone can find us a piece of ice by Friday morning we will go for it. Our weather window looks small but lets see if we can pull something off.
Keep those reports coming.
Oliver Moore
US 5469
NEIYA Regatta Dude
Ch-ch-ch-Changes: New Englands Postponed
Turn and face the strange.
On Monday we had lofty hopes for the weekend, but that has all changed now. The weather that went through on Tuesday and Wednesday blanketed what ice there was in Maine with snow so Maine is out. The Vermont team was going to start looking for ice tomorrow but aren’t very optimistic. The only hope in New Hampshire is Lake Waukewan in Meredith, but that got 3" of snow and then a day of MEGA breeze so who knows how bad the drifts will be. Locals are going to check it out today but that leaves me in the position of not having a piece of ice to call a regatta on for.
So no racing this weekend. There may well be sailable ice somewhere but I don’t know where. If you find it please let me know.
Be safe.
Time may change ice
But I can’t trace time
Oliver Moore
USA 5469
NEIYA Regatta Dude
Coming Up Next – Racing and Much More…
Below is a summary of some of the key events to come in the 2016 season.
Please use the links below to pay your dues and to pay for you delicious lunch. Do it now on paypal and it makes our lives so much easier at the event.
2016 Membership and Lunch – $40
2016 Membership for one & Lunch x2 – $50
Meeting Lunch Only – $10
DN 5469
New England Ice Yacht Association 