October 2017 Papoose Article

The Lightning Spring Series ended on July 30^th. It was exciting and the results were very close. For starters, every one of the Lightning skippers won at least one race. In the Gabor Cup Regatta, the first open regatta of the year, Rich Miner won the first race and Perry Anderson won the second race, setting up a tie. In describing the tie breaker (combined overall time), John Miller, the Regatta RC, said it couldn’t have been any closer and was a virtual tie, because, even though Rich was a second ahead in elapsed time, Perry won the Regatta by a second on Portsmouth adjusted time used in regattas.

In the next open regatta, the Marine Base Regatta, Brent Cherry had two come from behind wins to win the Regatta, with Perry Anderson in second place. Based on the overall scores in the Spring Series Rich Miner came in first with a 1.286 average, Perry Anderson was second with a 1.429 average, Don Okner was third with a 2.0 average and Brent Cherry and Joe Fleming rounded out the top five.

The Fall Series began on August 6^th with three Lightnings and one Snipe competing in two races run by race officials Perry and Margaret Anderson. Rich Miner took two firsts, followed by Brent Cherry placing second in both races. Don Okner was third in the first race but did not sail the second. Tim Mackey came in fourth in race one and third in race two.

On August 21^st, Don Okner and Joe Fleming went head to head in their Lightnings with Joe capturing two firsts. Tim Mackey competed in a Snipe in first race, coming in third. Rich Miner and Hank Jelinek were the race officials.

The last races in August took place on the 27^th with four Lightnings and one Snipe competing in light and variable wind. John Marx was our race official. Brent Cherry snagged two firsts and Joe Fleming finished third in both races. Rich Miner only sailed the second race in which he took second place. Perry Anderson was a DSQ in race one and did not sail race two.

Our final regatta for the year, the Commodore’s Cup, was scheduled to be held on September 3. However, it rained until start time and light air followed resulting in a cancellation and rescheduling of the race. The Commodore’s Party however took place at the home of Perry and Margaret Anderson and a good time was had by all.

Remember, racing continues through October 8th. The following are the Race Official assignments for October:

• Oct 01 -- J. Fleming
• Oct 08 -- H. Gooblar / H. Jelinek

We still have two, well used Sunfish and one Snipe for sale, as well as a double deck Sunfish trailer. John Marx is also selling his Lippincott Lightning. If you are interested in any of these boats or the trailer, call John at (973)729-0313.

Whether you are an experienced sailor, a novice or if you are interested in social events, we offer it all! Why not plan to join us in 2018? You can visit us on the web at www.lakemohawksailing.org. For more information, email us at lakemohawksailing@gmail.com, or write us in care of PO Box 29, Sparta, NJ. Until next month, smooth sailing and God bless America!

Don Okner