The 2002 Vintage Traditional Watercraft Regatta got off to a fine start at 9:30 on Friday morning, September 27 when registration opened in the lobby of the Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons, MD. Jose' Medina, from Des Moines, Iowa, with an 8 ½ ' Schooner was one of the first to register for his first regatta. By noon 13 of the expected 26 captains, with almost 50 model boats, had registered. They then toured the museum and spent time at a special exhibit on model yachting set up by Jimmy Langley and the Exhibits Department staff.

Meanwhile Solomons Island Model Boat Club (SIMBC) members were setting the buoys to precise GPS positions. (Do you believe this?) Friday afternoon some captains were interested in rounding the marks and fine tuning their rigging for the upcoming races. This practice was extremely beneficial since the wind was consistently out of the east-northeast all weekend Other captains continued to arrive throughout the afternoon. In the photo below, Andrew Charters from Meggett, South Carolina, had just arrived with his six boats -- four schooners and a cutter all fully rigged in a horse trailer with his Skipjack in the back of his pick-up truck.

Early Friday evening the group enjoyed a wine and cheese gathering held under the Small Craft Shed, a perfect haven for model boats since that's where the museum's traditional watercraft are restored. The oyster shells and wood shavings on the floor, with plenty of tools lying about, added realism to this regatta. Richard Rogers sounded a homemade cannon loaded with black powder, rammed hard with cotton and a firing cap, thus officially starting the festivities. Friday provided a fine time for greeting new and old friends while watching the sunset and anticipating the next day's races.

Saturday Morning dawns bright and clear!

Saturday the skippers awoke to a glorious September morning with blue skies and great racing winds. After a 9 a.m. Captain's meeting, the Vintage M. Class began their racing. Six captains signed on for a spirited race and the Vintage M challenge began. Here we see Ned Lakeman's #17 in the lead with Harry Mote's #25 hard on his starboard quarter. These boats present a beautiful sight as they glide through the water with a fair breeze.

Saturday Morning continues!

Next on line were thirteen Skipjacks seen here rounding the outer mark . The Skipjacks were the largest class of entries with seventeen models registered. Thirteen of the Skipjacks raced in some or all of the five Skipjack races. The close proximity of the boats brought on occasional collisions and tie-ups requiring the use of the chase boat. With the acceptable confusion due to the number of boats, the starts were clean. The downwind legs for the Skipjacks are especially demanding. The large mains take control and the skipper must be alert and ready.

Schooners, 50" or less, also contended with the wind and the tight sailing quarters especially when rounding the mark! However, our sailors were so good, we did not hear one protest although one model was required to do a 360. Of the eleven entries in this class, nine were raced and judged. They participated in nine races

After enjoying a break and a bag lunch, prepared by club members' wives, four captains competed in two open class races. The SHARPIE's captain was a little hesitant to take her out due to the high winds and seas as she has a large open cockpit and no bilge pumps. Thankfully the wind moderated and things went smoothly for all captains. Photos by Dan Gresham

Andrew Charters' GLORIANA Less topsail!

Saturday afternoon brought additional racing activity. First up were the large schooners. During the Regatta, eight of the nine schooners, which were registered, participated in four races. The winds were blustery, however, the schooners were prepared and showed us a beautiful race. If one squints ones eyes, one can almost see the sailors on board these beautiful vessels of a bygone era. Small schooners and Skipjacks had additional racing time on Saturday afternoon.

Throughout the day a chase boat was available to rescue tangled boats as well as those which lost battery or signal power. In this photo, Buck McClellan, SIMBC's Fleet Captain, our man behind the Regatta and Jason Williams, our youngest member, rescue Homer Bowen's Lobster Smack. Later Jason was seen barefoot in the marsh, he said to rescue a boat but we think he was after a soft-shell. Jason was a great asset to the regatta with many captains commenting on his behalf.

The wives and significant others cheered the captains on throughout the day plus had time for networking of their own. Sandy Younger arranged for a group to be given a special behind the scene tour by Carin Stringer of the Estuarine Exhibit tanks, especially the seahorse exhibit. Comments were extremely positive and the guests felt very special.

Saturday events concluded with a grill your own steak dinner at the Solomons Island Yacht Club. There were more than a few comments about the men doing the grilling while the women provided coaching! The evening was a great success -- beautiful view of Solomon's harbor from the deck of the club complementing the networking and camaraderie of participants.

Photos by Dan Gresham

Sunday morning dawned clear and gorgeous with lighter winds but still great for racing. The Vintage M again started the day, followed by the small Schooners and then the large Schooners.

After a full morning of sailing and networking, noontime found all enjoying a delicious barbecue lunch from Jethros, a local restaurant. Desert was a sheet cake decorated with the regatta logo -- almost too beautiful to cut, that Tom and Sandy Younger provided. While most were relaxing, Buck McClellan and George Surgent finalized racing/static results. Note: the Schooners were judged equally for static construction and racing abilities. The official results of the 2002 US Vintage Model Yacht Group Traditional Watercraft Regatta found trophies awarded as follows:

And The Winners Are ... Front Row (left to right): Richard Rogers, Harry Mote, George Dankers, Jose' Medina, Bob Ray. Back Row (left to right): Richard Lamsfuss, Tom Younger, George Surgent, Alan Suydam, Ned Lakeman, Charles Roden, Andrew Charters.

In reflection the regatta was indeed a special event. There was quiet, focused concentration on the part of the captains as their boats glided over the water with beautifully set sails -- and the occasional collision, tie up, or loss of wind. To accompany this silentitude spectators provided lots of fun and loud cheering especially Go George Go! Perhaps this, plus all the white sails, caused some captains to admit that at times they may have been sailing someone else's boat -- one of the many joys of remote control racing!

No one was left out of the USVMYG Traditional Watercraft Regatta. Seaworthy Small Ships, set up their pond near the Calvert Marine Museum Exhibit Hall where young visitors (future model Skipjack, Schooner, and Vintage M captains) were able to build and sail their own free sailing square riggers, Bermudas and two masted sharpies. These working pond models looked and sailed great!

Special thanks to:

Calvert Marine Museum staff for their help and guidance with this event!
Dan Gresham for the multitude of digital photos he took!
Frank Pettelli for a great regatta web site http://www.pittelli.com/schooner/events/2002/USVMYG

On behalf of your hosts, the Great Schooner Model Society and Solomons Island Model Boat Club, thank you for attending. You were delightful guests. In closing and in tribute to SIMBC's late Commodore Leroy Pepper Langley, "We did you proud!"

Respectfully submitted: Annie Michnowicz & Richard Rogers, SIMBC newsletter staff
October 15, 2002

Solomons Island Model Boat Club
Calvert Marine Museum
P. O. Box 97
Solomons, MD 20688