Snipe Southern Championship

Birmingham Sailing Club, October 12-13, 2013. Report by Michael Papp

The fifth annual second carnation of the Snipe Southern Championship was held at Birmingham Sailing Club on October 12th and 13th 2013. Eight boats were present to sail in the Championship and Cruising Fleets, with one start for both fleets.

Seven races were completed on Saturday with temperatures in the mid 80s and the wind blowing 5 to 10 mph from the north. Once the wind settled in, it was a perfect day for racing. Since the wind was up and the wind prediction was not good for Sunday morning, PRO David Whikehart opted to run 7 races. This was especially good for our Cruising fleet, as ¾ of the sailors have been racing Snipes for less than a year. The extra starts and short courses gave them lots of practice.

The day’s racing was followed by attitude adjustment overlooking the sailing area, staring hand made tomato tarts by Emily Bridges and a variety of homemade dips my Michael “Dipmeister” Papp. Dinner followed with grill your own steak or chicken, a wonderful shredded potato casserole, sautéed mushrooms and shallots marcella, and a fresh tossed salad. Dessert was homemade cobber by resident baker Emily and ice cream courtesy of Eddie Cothren.

Sunday saw the typical Lake Logan Martin wind at dawn, blowing 0 from the North. Fortunately, we had Emily’s fresh pumpkin muffins to munch on with our coffee. By 9 the wind started to fill in enough for boats to sail out and the race committee to set up a course and start a race. By the end of that race, the wind dropped to nothing, so RC called the event. Boats were back to the dock by 10:30.

After the boats were packed up, racers dined on lunch featuring homemade Greek cheese pies courtesy of Eddie while the scores were tallied. First place in the Championship fleet was taken by Stephan and Monica Irgens. Racing was tight in the Cruising fleet with Dan and Emily Bridges and Eddie and George Cothren tied in points. Dan and Emily won the tie breaker taking first place!

Special thanks to all the fleet 828 members who helped out with the event, especially in the kitchen: Dan and Emily Bridges, Eddie Cothren, Rick Eular, and Robert Bamburg. Also thanks to the race committee!

Final Results:

Championship Fleet:
1 Stephan and Monica Irgens
2 John Coolidge and Alec Ledvina
3 Michael Papp and Susan Cheney
4 Bryson Lesley and Jeb Kinsey

Cruising Fleet:
1 Dan Bridges with Emily Bridges/Will Aycock
2 Eddie and George Cothren
3 Rick Eular and Shane Busby
4 Robert Bamburg and Joy Ledvina