WOW! What a beautiful day to be on the Choptank.
I can never understand why so many boats remain in the marina on days like Saturday.
The wind forecast was doubtful. 4-6 knots (SSW) all day, maybe less at times. Our Fleet Captain had a tough decision. To race or not to race that was the question. He rubbed his crystal ball and decided to go for it. He could not have been more correct. The wind speed varied from 4 to 10 knots, mostly around 7-8 knots.
The second concern was how the average speed method of handicapping would work out. After all, the math dictated a 1:31 hour delayed start for Aura and a 1:27 delay for Jambo. All that and matching spinnaker boats with non-spinnaker boats in a 14.9-mile catch-up-and-pass pursuit race.
On the first leg, the wind direction favored the early boats: one point of sail to the R14 mark. The later boats had to tack through a wind shift. On the second leg, the wind shift favored the spinnaker fleet. Much of the course became a downwind run.
With a 9:00 AM start, Jitterbug led the race until the last mile. The spinnaker boats could be seen bearing down as Jitterbug passed Hambrooks. First Jambo, then Aura, both giving a friendly wave as they passed. That's the way it ended.
Jambo is the 2019 Wild Goose Chase Champion. Congratulations to Trevor and his crew.
Results:- Jambo, Trevor Carouge elapsed time: 3:51:26; finish: 14:22:26
- Aura, Bob Gallagher
- Jitterbug, George Breig
- Reveille, Tim Mulcahy
- If..., Greig Mitchell
- Gabrielle, Branden Spear
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