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2009 J/22 Lake George Open and Northeast District Championship, September 26 - 27, 2009 at The Lake George Club, Diamond Point, NYKevin Doyle Wins 2009 Northeast District Championship By Bill Dutcher and Tom Linville, Fleet #61, Lake George, New York
"What a fantastic place to sail," "an incredibly beautiful venue," and "we always love to come to this regatta." These are only a few of the superlative comments visitors said about the 2009 Lake George Open and Northeast District Championship Regatta held September 26-27 at The Lake George Club, Diamond Point, NY. Hosted by J/22 Fleet #61, with the coordination of hard working Regatta Chairman Willy Lund, the event was blessed with abundant wind, bright sunshine, good times, and the customary incomparable hospitality.
No doubt Kevin Doyle, from Youngstown, NY, and this year's winner, would heartily agree. Kevin is a frequent participant and has won the regatta in the past. In the 35-boat fleet, Kevin scored two bullets out of the six race/one throwout series and totaled only 10 points. Mark Sertl from Rochester, NY also won two races and finished a close second with 16 points.
Another race winner was Tom Sitzmann from Severna Park, MD, who finished third with 20 points, and the other race winner was Jed Hoffer from Marion, MA, who finished fourth with 23 points. Rounding out the top five was Kevin's brother Peter Doyle, also sailing out of Youngstown, NY, with 24 points. The Top Local Boat trophy, awarded to the top Fleet #61 boat, was won by Alfie Merchant in eighth place. This was, as usual, hotly contested on Saturday, but Alfie sailed well on Sunday and with a first race 22nd discarded, ran away with the honor.
This year, fall in upstate NY (Lake George is about 200 miles directly north of New York City) arrived early, bringing unusually cool temperatures. But Saturday was a sunny day with winds that started at 10 knots and built to about 15 by the end of the day. The sailing was ideal, save for the 20 to 30 degree shifts! But the RC, headed by club Fleet Captain Rodger Voss with Reid Stava from Rochester the P.R.O., was able to run all four races scheduled for the day. After the first day’s racing, Kevin Doyle already had a nine point advantage, so it was pretty clear who might win the regatta. Some of the local fleet took heart, as a few of our boats were doing better than in past years, scoring some top-ten race finishes.
The venue is such that it's a short sail to the race course from the club. So the format allowed two morning races, followed by a sumptuous lunch (hot soup, warm fires, restrooms!!), and then two windy afternoon races. There was much merriment in the bar after a cold day on the water, followed by a fine dinner (blazers suggested) and live band. Where else is sailing like this?
Sunday morning brought a cold mist blowing along the lake, and two races were held, with the wind speed increasing to around 14 knots in the second race. The RC had some trouble selecting the median wind direction and setting the line, but after a general recall they decided to use the "Z" and "I" flags Preparatory Signal, and after a properly adjusted line successfully got off the final two races. With the SIs not allowing any Warning Signal after 1300, everyone was happy to not have a third Sunday race and get back to the club for a warm lunch, to haul out, and get ready for the trip home. For some, home was a six to seven hour drive (e.g., Annapolis, Buffalo).
We do sincerely appreciate visitors from those distances and would welcome more. It's less-than-a-day-drive from most points in the northeast, and the payoff is fantastic. Just ask those who made the trip this year to see if they enjoyed the regatta and are looking forward to returning. As Tom Sitzmann from Annapolis posted on "Scuttlebutt" (9/20/09) after attending, "J/22 one design sailing is alive and well in upstate New York."
Check out the complete results, along with some photos and information about The Lake George Club, on the club's website www.thelakegeorgeclub.com. Click on "Guests" and then under "Sports", click on "Sailing" to find the results.
Top Five:
Kevin Doyle 489 Mo' Money Youngstown, NY RDG-4,1,2,1,2,(DNF-36) 10
Vic Snyder, Aaron Snyder
Mark Sertl 1466 Money For Nothing Rochester, NY RDG-4,(10),1,2,1,8 16
Rick Egloff, Joe Tomaselli
Tom Sitzmann 1464 Loyal 9 Severna Park, MD RDG-6,(9),3,6,4,1 20
Colin Robertson, Matt Schubert
Jed Hoffer 940 Nutashif Marion, MA 1,3,5,8,(13),6 23
Kym Lee, Rich McNeil
Peter Doyle 317 Frosty Youngstown, NY RDG-5,2,7,5,(17),5 24
Pat Whelan, Jason Suitor
Not to be confused with the fall J/24 "Changing of the Colors" regatta, also at The Lake George Club, held the following weekend, our "J/22 Lake George Open" and “NorthEast District Championship” regatta is held annually the third weekend after Labor Day weekend. So make your plans to attend next year on September 25-26, 2010.
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