I just got back to Detroit from the Express 27/Antrim 27 Nationals at
Richmond Yacht Club on San Francisco Bay. Much credit should go to
Jason Crowson and the folks at RYC for running a great event.
Twenty-three E27s and 10 Antrim 27s sailed in the 3-day, 7-race event
(3 windward-leeward races on day one, a distance race around the Bay
on day two, and two windward-leeward races on day three).
Twenty-three is the best participation in the Nationals in recent
memory. San Francisco Bay came through with sunshine and nice breezes
on Friday and Saturday and sunshine and light and flukey winds on
Sunday. The Antrims and Expresses were quite compatible with separate
starts on the race courses.
Congratulations to the new champions Tom Baffico and Forest Baskett
and their crew on Baffett as well as the second and third place
boats, Swamp Donkey and Motorcycle Irene. Consistency paid off for
Baffet with scores of 3-3-1-3-2-8.
We'll try to get some pictures up on the class website ASAP.
PS. Jason Crowson is our new Class Commodore. Also, the class enacted
a rules change--full-length top battens are now permitted. The
rationale: longer life for mainsails.
The possibility of finding a builder for the "Ultimate Sailing
Machine" was discussed. One builder has been approached but there is
nothing conclusive yet to report.