Rick Lyall sent this class update:

For some of us I'm sure the 2011 sailing season is well underway.  For those of us in the northeastern US we are still a few weeks away from preparing for the first regatta of the season. 

Read the full letter 

Shiva Wins Close Race in Warsash Spring Series

The second race in the Warsash Spring Series was a closely fought event with a number of different leaders and only five minutes separating the first eleven boats, after two hours of racing.  Facing light 6-9 knot westerly winds and strong west-going Spring tide, the Race Committee chose to set a predominantly windward-leeward course over Thorn Bank to Bramble.  The start off Lee-on-Solent shore saw VELVET ELVIS take the lead from SHIVA (Matt Boyle), JAHMALI (Mike & Sarah Wallis) and ME JULIE (Dom Monkhouse). The pack split with VELVET ELVIS, OFFBEAT (David McLeman) and J-DREAM (David & Kirsty Apthorp) taking a hitch right to stay in the stronger tide in the North Channel. 

Those who headed out for the main channel including SHIVA, JUMPING JELLYFISH (David Richards), DESIGNSTAR (Roger Phillips) and fleet newcomer JET (Alan Neilson) were led to the windward mark by JUST SO (David & Mary McGough).  The entire fleet rounded the mark and hoisted their spinnakers bow to stern; this was to set the tone for the rest of the race. 

JUST SO lost the lead on the first run to ME JULIE who on the second beat was holding off the challenges of SHIVA and VELVET ELVIS. The second beat saw SHIVA and ME JULIE extend their lead whilst J-DREAM had closed the gap on OFFBEAT and rounded in front of JAHMALI and VELVET ELVIS.  SHIVA and Offbeat were the inside boats at the gybe mark and rounded 1st and 2nd, closely followed by ME JULIE, J-DREAM and JAHMALI.  A beat to the finish saw SHIVA win the race comfortably, whilst the rest of the fleet continued the battle. 

The J/109 fleet thought last week's victory from JAGERBOMB was a close fought affair-until J-DREAM leebowed OFFBEAT five boat lengths from the line to take 2nd place by 2 seconds. Although this was the closest finish of the week, there were plenty of others as JAHMALI took 4th place from ME JULIE by 12 seconds, JUMPING JELLYFISH got the better of DESIGNSTAR for 7th place by 8 seconds, JYNNAN TONNYX (Owain Franks) pipped JEEZ LOUISE (Jamie Arnell) across the line by 6 seconds and JET and AUDAJIOUS, who were both grateful that the PRO had set a course which included inflatable buoys, finished only 7 seconds apart. 

As Easter is late this year, the Warsash Spring Series reconvenes on Sunday 3rd April, followed by the Spring Championship on the final weekends of 9th/10th and 16th/17th April.

UPDATED RESULTS 

David Rosow's LOKI was sailed by Cornell.  Photo by Howard McMichael.  

Maine Maritime's sailing team coach Tom Brown decided to pull his team out of all of its dinghy events Columbus Day weekend so that it could instead sail big boats at the Storm Trysail Foundation's Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta (IOR), presented by Prestige BMW. After driving over eight hours with his 17 athletes, Brown's strategy paid off, as the team won two of five divisions in the 38-boat fleet. Over 300 sailors from 30 schools participated, making the IOR the largest college sailing regatta in the country.

The regatta is run by the Storm Trysail Foundation and the Larchmont Yacht Club, both of which are dedicated to helping the next generation of sailors become better and safer sailors.

Maine Maritime won the seven-boat J/44 one-design division and the eight-boat J/109 one-design division.

The Weather Gods smiled this year, offering sunny skies and breezes that built from 10 knots for the first race to 15-20 knots for the subsequent races on both days. The race organizers worked hard to keep the racing tight, and PRO Butch Ulmer ran seven races in two days. "The student sailors were some of the best we have seen in the ten years that STC has been running this event," said Paul Hoffman who ran the windward mark boat. "Racing was so close that three of the divisions ended up tied for first after seven races. More than once, practically the whole J/109 fleet rounded the marks en masse."

FULL STORY, PHOTOS, AND RESULTS