12 Seawind sailors braved a storm riddled weather forecast and were rewarded with perfect weather for a weekend of terrific sailing to contest the Region 3 Seawind Championship held at GMYC in Greenville, SC. The event took place May 21st through the 23rd and was contested through a total of 27 races. Saturday saw a steady southerly breeze at Hartness Pond that provided excellent and very tactical racing. The sailors enjoyed a relaxing catered barbecue by the lake Saturday evening. Sunday’s wind switched from the north and though it proved to be a little more variable, we saw extended periods of strong and steady breeze that rewarded proper boat tuning.
Mike Eades (Arizona) won the event through consistently high finishes with 7 1st place finishes and rarely posting a result outside of the top 5. David Johnson (Asheville, NC) finished just behind in 2nd place with two 1st place finishes and a great deal of high finish consistency. Jake Kohl (Greenville, SC) followed in 3rd place with 6 wins but less consistency. Steve Lang and Nigel Pitt (Hartwell, GA) followed in 4th and 5th place respectively – Nigel Pitt did not contend in the last two races as he had to depart for a last minute flight to contend in a US Sailing Championship in Texas.
GMYC is a very new club in Greenville, SC and facility and we were excited to host the R3 championship this year. Every single one of our 6 club members contributed selflessly to build the facilities and organize the event making it a really great time for all. We have a great lake that provides terrific close and consistent racing conditions and have have already added two new members simply from the interest and visibility that the Region 3 championship provided. We look forward to growing our club and hosting more AMYA events providing South Carolina fun, fellowship, and hospitality.
photos by Robyn Strickland
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http://www.gmyc.org/temporary/pics.zip
May 26th, 2010 at 8:28 am
I want to thank all of you at GMYC for hosting this event and allowing me to come and observe. I did not feel like my seawind skills were up to competing at this level at this time. I enjoyed the day, Learned a lot, and look forward to competing in the future. Come on up and try lake tomahawk when we get the water back up. I hope that will be soon
Bill Jenkins
BMYC
May 26th, 2010 at 10:35 am
Fine report Jake and great photos Robyn! I am amazed it was not closer as I thought David Johnson had a fine consistent regatta. Jake and Nigel were also closing fast on Sunday. I expect the Greenville MYC SeaWind fleet to be a force to be reckoned with for some time. Thanks to all for a fantastic weekend of camaraderie and fun, competitive racing!
Mike Eades
May 26th, 2010 at 7:59 pm
Thanks to all who came out to race! We worked hard on the facility, and it was well worth the effort. It was a great weekend and I really enjoyed meeting you all and the competition was top notch. Special thanks again to Tim, Robyn, and Chris for officiating the event and much more!!
I look forward to sailing with some or all of you in the future.
Ted Bogardus-GMYC
Seawind-”Bogie” #276
May 30th, 2010 at 11:24 am
Great write up and pictures! Sure wish I could have made it- it looks like there was some great racing!
May 30th, 2010 at 11:30 am
Forgot to mention- very nice venue you all have! Looks like all that hard work on the docks paid off.