US Nationals - Final - Snipe Class International

Winchester, August 25, 2017.

(There are lots of great regatta and party photos courtesy of SCIRA USA – visit vhetheringtonyoung)

Report by Carol Cronin

“Where is the opening to the real sailing area?” asked the Colombian team when they first sailed out onto Upper Mystic Lake. It was a valid question; lined up bow to stern, the fifty-three Snipes sailing in the 2017 Nationals would have almost touched trees on either side of the tiny lake. But despite a micro-sailing area with mystical sailing conditions, the regatta was a great success—thanks to a well-organized team of volunteers at the Winchester and Medford Boat Clubs, and a serious emphasis on Serious Fun.

For the first time in seven years, enough Snipes attended Nationals to sail the 32 boat championship Heinzerling (and 22 boat consolation Wells) series. And it wasn’t just a bunch of aging class regulars, either; with fourteen college sailors, fifteen recent college grads, eight high school aged sailors, and six sailors younger than high school, youth came out in force. The other end of the age spectrum was also well represented, topped by Gonzalo “Old Man” Diaz, age 87, who won the Masters Endurance trophy for the eighteenth time.

We Snipe class veterans found ourselves explaining to all those younger sailors how the championship would be scored: After a four race qualifying series for the Crosby trophy, the Heinzerling fleet would carry that overall score forward and the Wells fleet would start clean. Unfortunately we forgot to tell local young favorites (and Crosby winners) Cam Fraser and Liz Glivinski about the “Crosby curse:” the winner of that first trophy rarely wins the Heinzerling championship as well. (I doubt Cam and Liz will need to be reminded ever again.)

And why 32 boats, rather than the top half of the fleet? I passed on what I was told at my first Nationals: Commodore Charles E. Heinzerling felt that 32 boats was the “perfect” number of Snipes on a starting line. True or false, it’s just one of many class traditions that was successfully transferred to a fresh generation.

With very short courses made necessary by westerlies (which blew across, rather than down, the tiny lake), collision avoidance and snappy boathandling were key. In addition, there were three basic skills needed to do well. (Some of them will even be useful elsewhere.)

1. Low-risk starting technique. The pin often felt as far away as the weather mark—particularly when it was a beat to get to the “leeward” end of the line. Keeping options open until quite late in the sequence was key.

2. Sailing fast in bad air. With huge shifts that sometimes lasted an entire leg, tacking away to find a clean lane usually wasn’t an option. The race committee did a fantastic job of setting a course that “averaged out” to be right more than it was wrong, but since the lake is surrounded by high hills and trees, they were as clueless as the sailors about which breeze direction was going to win over the course of a twenty minute race.

3. Put on your patience pants. Everyone found a private pothole at some point; the best thing to do was to find the quickest exit, because the only alternative was to stomp a hole through the bottom of your boat.

Forty years of racing Snipes on Mystic Lake finally paid off for winner Jim Bowers and his crew Julia Marsh Rabin; they posted only two finishes worse than sixth over five days and sixteen races to win the event by 25 points. “It’s like the mini-golf of sailing,” Jimmy said. During one lunch break, when asked what to do on a run when the jib backed but the telltales were still streaming from straight astern, he responded easily, “Don’t do anything, just wait—it’s just a hole.”

Art and Jennifer Rousmaniere finished second, proving that it is in fact possible for a husband and wife to run the regatta, sail together well, and still stay married. They also finished third in the Monday night Bocce tournament. (Perhaps there should be a Rousmaniere trophy at future Nationals, awarded to the team that best combines those two usually competing skill sets, Serious Sailing and Serious Fun?)

Third place went to Floridians Augie Diaz and Pam Kelly, who despite their non-local status somehow managed to avoid enough of the lake’s potholes to post only three scores out of the top ten. Five time national champion George Szabo and crew Diana Waterbury had to be content with fourth overall; they were also the only team who admitted to setting a pole to get to the (upwind) finish line.

Fortunately for the rest of us, the racing pain was over quickly each day… and the split fleets made for plenty of time on shore each day to catch up with our old Snipe friends and make a few new ones. Evenings were well occupied with parties, bocce, and a few more fun Snipe traditions like relocating a Snipe to the pool. Boston-area college sailors can usually be counted on for engineering know-how, and they figured out both the lowest point in the fence and also how to securely tie up the boat for its overnight chlorine cleanse.

The final awards dinner was held at a local country club. Besides the long table full of silver class trophies engraved with decades of famous names, there were some less permanent awards handed out: Jacques Cousteau goggles (for teams that capsized on the one windy afternoon); water wings (won by Liz Givlinski, who was not the only person to fall out of the boat but was definitely the quickest to get back in); and pool noodles (for those who failed to keep their masts erect).

This year’s US Nationals took place on a tiny mystical lake, requiring many adjustments from the fifty-three teams in attendance—as well as a reversal of the usual order of priorities, since Serious Fun definitely came before Serious Sailing. And thanks to excellent organization, good sponsorship, and the ability to laugh at ourselves, that turned out to be just fine.

1. Jim Bowers & Julia Rabin, 30

2. Art Rousmaniere & Jennifer Rousmaniere, 55

3. Augie Diaz & Pam Kelly, 67

4. George Szabo & Diana Waterbury, 76

5. Arthur Blodgett & Hannah Chapman, 88

… full results …

Heinzerling:

Position

	Sail Number	Sailor(s)	Boat Name/Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	R9	R10	R11	R12	R13	Total	Net
1	#9 USA 31171	Jim Bowers Julia Rabin	Winchester BC	3	2	6	5	1	1	1	4	1	(14)	(10)	5	1	54	30
2	#3 USA 31280	Art Rousmaniere Jennifer Rousmaniere	Winchester BC	2	1	2	3	9	6	4	(14)	7	4	6	11	(15)	84	55
3	#36 USA 30288	Augie Diaz Pam Kelly	CRYC/CGSC/BBYC	4	3	9	9	6	(19)	7	5	9	(15)	1	8	6	101	67
4	#30 USA 30337	George Szabo Dianna Waterbury	SDYC	16	(19)	4	1	15	4	5	6	3	16	(29)	3	3	124	76
5	#45 USA 30473	Arthur Blodgett Hannah Chapman	LYC	12	10	12	(24)	11	7	(16)	2	13	2	4	1	14	128	88
6	#29 MEX 28701	Alfonso Bringas Danel Belausteguigoitia	na	7	7	19	(29)	3	11	10	(32)	24	6	9	4	2	163	102
7	#37 USA 27861	Connor Astwood Maggie Swanson	Boston Univ	15	8	11	4	12	(22)	9	(19)	2	7	16	15	11	151	110
8	#13 USA 30903	Cameron Fraser Elizabeth Glivinski	Medford	1	(DNF-33)	13	19	14	3	11	9	(28)	11	2	17	12	173	112
9	#31 USA 29727	John MacRae Myrna Chan MacRae	Winchester BC	17	14	1	15	7	24	6	1	10	13	14	(25)	(26)	173	122
10	#16 USA 30904	Lee Griffith NIkki Bruno	Surf City YC	5	23	3	8	20	13	(32)	11	(25)	18	7	10	4	179	122
11	#22 COL 30839	Esteban Echavarria Juan Esteban Restrepo	na	11	4	14	(27)	4	10	14	12	(23)	1	23	21	10	174	124
12	#40 USA 31424	Andrew Pimental Sandra Tartaglino	Sail Newport	13	6	(26)	2	17	15	15	(18)	4	17	12	6	18	169	125
13	#52 MEX 30188	Hector Guzman Hector Guzman Sr	na	(29)	13	8	25	10	2	3	16	(26)	9	15	12	13	181	126
14	#49 USA 29882	David Larson Greta Farrell	SDYC	(30)	11	16	6	2	(27)	22	13	15	27	3	7	5	184	127
15	#34 USA 31313	Robby Gearon Lexi Pline	na	6	16	(27)	11	(26)	16	24	15	16	3	17	2	8	187	134
16	#24 USA 30860	Carol Cronin Hillary Noble	SSA/Sail Newport	8	20	(22)	(22)	8	20	20	7	6	19	13	9	7	181	137
17	#20 USA 29956	Andrew Sommer Jess Hardin	CSC	10	5	17	14	(25)	25	(31)	3	21	8	8	19	22	208	152
18	#51 USA 30606	Peter Wolcott Danielle Stonely	Quassapaug SC	9	21	21	(31)	19	9	19	21	18	5	19	22	(25)	239	183
19	#39 USA 29788	Andre Guaragna Emily Gilreath	AGYC/FYC/Jacksonville Uni	21	15	(31)	21	22	8	2	8	11	26	20	30	(DNF-33)	248	184
20	#18 USA 29671	Tarasa Davis Alan Capellin	Atlanta YC	18	(30)	24	12	21	5	17	(27)	5	24	22	27	9	241	184
21	#28 USA 30404	Bridget Wiatrowski Jessica Claflin	Winchester BC	24	(31)	23	20	16	17	18	17	14	20	5	(32)	23	260	197
22	#8 USA 31309	Andrew Klein Michelle Morphew	Winchester BC	27	(29)	10	18	27	12	13	23	8	23	28	(OCS-33)	19	270	208
23	#46 USA 31013	John Tagliamonte AnnWalt Stallings	Winchester BC	26	9	20	26	23	21	8	20	22	21	(32)	18	(29)	275	214
24	#7 CAN 29317	Harri Palm Bridget Walsh	Guelph Community BC	31	27	18	17	13	(OCS-33)	28	10	(32)	25	11	23	17	285	220
25	#2 USA 30422	Stephen Braverman Ben Braverman	Winchester BC	23	18	29	23	5	(30)	29	22	(31)	12	24	28	16	290	229
26	#1 USA 29704	Kevin Hetherington-Young Audrey Hetherington-Young	Winchester BC	14	12	(32)	10	18	28	30	26	12	30	27	(31)	28	298	235
27	#5 USA 29111	Joel Zackin Ian McCaffrey	Quassapug	22	28	7	28	(29)	23	12	28	17	29	(30)	24	24	301	242
28	#10 USA 29672	Molly Pleskus Lara Dieneemann	SDYC/MBYC	(32)	22	28	7	24	14	26	(31)	30	28	31	14	20	307	244
29	#41 USA 28542	Bob Coyle Jackie Farnsworth	Medford/Cottage Park	25	25	15	16	28	26	27	(29)	27	(31)	18	20	21	308	248
30	#32 USA 30089	Nicholas Giacobbe Tyler Mowry	Tufts	28	24	5	(32)	31	(DSQ-33)	23	25	29	10	21	26	27	314	249
31	#44 USA 30325	Harry Waskow Gabe Vande Hei	SCYC	19	17	25	13	32	29	25	30	20	(OCS-33)	25	16	(DNF-33)	317	251
32	#19 USA 26132	Simon Strauss Hawley Waldman	na	20	26	(30)	(30)	30	18	21	24	19	22	26	29	30	325	265

Wells:

Position

	Sail Number	Sailor(s)	Boat Name/Club	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	R9	R10	Total	Net
1	#42 USA 25090	Kyle Easton Anna Flaherty	na	1	5	1	(7)	2	2	2	(SCP-9)	4	1	34	18
2	#15 USA 29842	Katie Levinson Sarah Levinson	Winchester BC	3	4	3	2	4	(6)	(6)	1	5	2	36	24
3	#43 USA 25412	Chris Sinnett Iain Jaeger	na	2	6	4	1	1	(7)	3	5	6	(8)	43	28
4	#48 USA 30301	Chris Ryan NIcole Ryan	SSA	9	3	5	(12)	8	1	5	3	3	(13)	62	37
5	#38 USA 30082	John Drayton Lily Lichtenstein	NHYC	4	7	8	3	5	(11)	(9)	2	7	3	59	39
6	#14 USA 30470	David Lence Kerry O’Brien	na	(DNF-21)	2	9	4	3	3	4	6	10	(11)	73	41
7	#21 USA 31001	Jim Tomassetti Carol Tomassetti	na	8	10	(14)	5	9	4	8	9	(17)	7	91	60
8	#11 USA 30330	Steve Milt Alex Milt	Winchester BC	5	8	6	10	7	13	(15)	(14)	2	14	94	65
9	#6 USA 30600	Maxwell Hetherington-Young Gus Wirth	Winchester BC	(DNF-21)	11	12	8	(16)	5	14	4	8	5	104	67
10	#50 USA 31204	Ray Schmit Margaret Lawrence	Cottage Park	(DNC-21)	14	(17)	16	13	12	1	10	1	4	109	71
11	#4 USA 29955	Edward Keenan Andy Bowers	Winchester BC	(DNF-21)	1	2	11	12	10	(17)	16	14	9	113	75
12	#27 USA 28442	Susan Lodico Janice Tabor	Winchester BC	7	(12)	10	9	10	(14)	12	7	11	10	102	76
13	#53 USA 27999	Hugh Dougherty Nicholas DeConto	Cottage Park	6	13	13	6	11	(18)	11	12	(18)	6	114	78
14	#35 USA 30336	Gonzalo Diaz Patti Bess	CGSC	(DNC-21)	9	7	13	6	17	7	13	16	(DNF-21)	130	88
15	#25 USA 25991	Jurgen Holleck Brendan Holleck	Quassapaug SC	11	(19)	(19)	18	17	8	16	15	9	16	148	110
16	#33 USA 29008	Venkat Chalasani Jackson Hurd-Messom	Winchester BC	10	16	15	17	(18)	15	13	(19)	12	12	147	110
17	#26 USA 30236	Kay Voss Barbara Mann	CRYC/CGSC	(DNF-21)	15	11	15	14	9	18	17	13	(DNF-21)	154	112
18	#17 USA 29964	Robert Panza Jane Panza	Quassapaug SC	(DNC-21)	17	16	(19)	15	16	10	11	15	17	157	117
19	#47 USA 29972	Peter Bronk Diane Schilder	Medford BC	(DNC-21)	18	18	14	(19)	19	19	18	19	15	180	140
20	#12 USA 30999	Martin Fraser Suzette Fraser	Medford	(DNF-21)	(DNC-21)	DNC-21	DNC-21	DNC-21	DNS-21	DNS-21	DNS-21	DNC-21	DNC-21	210	168