Ben and I traveled to the Privateer Yacht Club in Chattanooga last weekend to participate in their District Championships. Two boats from that club came to our districts/Glow this year and this was an opportunity to reciprocate. Plus, it's just a really friendly club and one we get to every year, though usually in the spring. Anyway, the wind was strong both days. Probably about 18 mph, but the race committee did say one gust on Saturday measured 23.5. So, it was hard work.
 

This year's Glow Regatta held a little extra significance since it was also the Midwest District Championships. We had to be prepared for more boats participating and two sets of trophies since the Glow is open to all Scots but in order to trophy at the Districts you had to be a member of our district.

We had 20 boats participate, with sailors coming from as far away as Minneapolis (Larry Klick, a longtime supporter, and his crew James Williams, as well as Walter and Michael Barniskis) and Chattanooga (Rob Fowler and Scot Cline, as well as Bill Humphries and Linda Lind).

Six or seven sailors turned out for the small boat racing clinic held by race committee chair Gerry Christman. Gerry walked us through several elements of racing at the chalkboard at the pavilion, including finding the lifted tack, how to negotiate rounding the mark with other boats around and how to figure out where on the course you want to be. Then he sent us on the water where we did several tacking drills and then some short races. We sailed for more than an hour, until we all noticed some very large and dark clouds heading our way.

Probably about the time that stage structure was blowing over at the state fair in Indianapolis last Saturday, a group of us was huddled in the marina hallway watching one of the craziest storms I've seen at the lake. The wind and rain were horizontal, you could not see the other side of the lake, or even to the end of any of the docks.

My dad and I went to Deep Creek Sailing School in June. We were 2 of 18 students learning how to sail Flying Scots. During the week we spent lots of time out on the water with our instructors, Kerri, Ed, Josh, Gary, and Joan. We sailed a couple of different Flying Scots owned by the school, 4944 and 5287. As you can see from the pictures, we started the week with a capsize drill. Capsizing the boat was a little scary at first. The water was really cold. But it was fun climbing back into and up the boat.

The Flying Scot Fleet hosted Boy Scout Troop 12 this past Wednesday and I think everyone had an awesome time. We arranged for the Scouts to come at 5 pm so we could give them rides before our 6 pm races. Five boys and two parents came and we fit everyone on a boat by dividing them between Ben's boat and Eric and Rod's boat. By the end of the evening every boy had had a chance to steer the boat, most had also trimmed the sails.  One boy asked Ben how long it would take to get rescued if he fell in, so Ben demonstrated with a life vest.

Clinton Lake's Flying Scot Fleet 135 received an award for fleet growth from Flying Scot Sailing Association. The award was presented at the North American Championships this past week at Cedarpoint Yacht Club in Westport, Ct.

There is something so lovely about Wednesday evenings at the lake, but I thought yesterday we may have lost our mojo. By the time Ben and I showed up, and two boats, Dave/Emory and Carole/Terry, were already out on the water but they were just bobbing there like corks. We waffled. It was really hot, the water was like glass, what was the point? But finally I said that we should get on the water, at least to be companionable. Also I was looking forward to just hanging out on the boat with Ben. So, being the good husband he is, he complied.

You know that old saw about "for want of a nail, a shoe was lost .." etc? Well, we almost had something like that happen this past weekend at Cowan Lake. This morning (Sunday) as we headed to the racecourse for our second day of racing, Ben found that he had a screw loose ... in his glasses, I mean! He was on the verge of losing the lense. He contemplated electricians' tape, which we never leave home without, but instead I offered him my Leatherman, a tool I also always keep in my pocket.

Well, it was pretty darn windy Wednesday night when we had our regularly scheduled Flying Scot racing program. Still, several intrepid souls came out; Ben Williams and Deb Aronson, Eric and Rod Bussell, Dave Sherwood and Emory Luth and the Dunne family, Jim and Debbie, with their 11-year-old twin sons, A.J. and Nick. Considering the wind conditions we did a little juggling.