Top 3 Spots Shared by Five Lightning Crews Sunday

Gil Chesbro doing final calcs on "Wind Dancer"

Blaine Severin and crew celebrate their Race 2 win

Jonathan Ahlbrand gives thumbs up for Race 3 finish

Dolan, Severin, Koster, Fletcher and LeFevre all found their ways to top three finishes in Sunday Lightning Racing, despite challenging wind conditions.

It was the kind of day that is the stuff of nightmares for Race Committees - and sailors. The wind was solid - then nothing - then a 90 degree shift - then something else. Be in the right place at the right time was the tip of the day - but where was the right place and when was the right time.

The course was set for a windward mark at 360, and as the starting sequence wound down, the wind went right 30 degrees. Then, as boats neared the windward mark, there was a 90 degree shift to the left. The start line was moved for the next race to accomdate a right shift, but the wind went even further left. For the final race, the windward mark was moved left again - and the wind went back right - then left - then died - then right - then left.

How did the sailors do? Well it was easy to find yourself on the wrong side of the course so some serious loud sailor expletives could be heard. Meanwhile, others celebrated their foresight in being in the right place at the right time.

Race 1 found "Wind Dancer" coming to the windward mark on starboard, but Susanna Tellshow came in on port to tack and round the mark ahead. Unfortunately, she gently rubbed the mark and, by the time a circle was completed, several boats had gone by. Pat Dolan and Gil Chesbro on "Wind Dancer" thought they were extending, but suddenly Larry Koster, Michael-Salomon Jost and Gary Marx were coming up fast on a puff as the finish line approached. With a little luck, "Wind Dancer" won by a narrow margin. Jim and Maribeth Fletcher sailed "Splash" to a third place finish.

In Race 2, going left seemed to pay off - but particularly so for Blaine Severin, Julie Pierce and John Kolstoe. Starting to leeward, they found their own wind and climbed in front of "Shibumi". They kept climbing and found themselves several boat lengths in front of "Wind Dancer". As Dolan-Chesbro tacked away for clear air, Severin continued on several boat lengths and tacked on the layline. Here they found their own wind again and catapulted themselves into a 200 yard lead that they never relinquished. Dolan and Koster went around the final windward mark together, but a gybe set by "Wind Dancer" turned out to be a decisive call and Koster settled for third.

Race 3 had barely gotten underway when there was a right shift that made it possible for all the baots to sail directly toward the mark. Fletchers looked to be in the best spot, holding an inside position - but a few boat lengths from the mark, the wind shifted left again and only "Wind Dancer" made the mark without tacking. With the lead, Dolan and Chesbro took advantage of all the breaks that naturally seem to occur for those at the head of the fleet. However, Severin came up quickly on a puff to close the gap to only a couple of boat lengths before Wind Dancer was able to find her own wind and sail across the finish just ahead. John LeFevre and Jonathan Ahlbrand teamed up for the day and put everything together in the final race to come in third.

Detailed results and standings are available on the Lansing Sailing Club website at www.lansingsailing.org. Click on "Racing" in the left hand navagation column, then on the icon of the fleet results are desired for.

Don't Forget Labor Day Picnic Next Monday (Sept 3)

Balloons were dropped for sailors to chase last year

Don't forget the Labor Day Picnic at the Lansing Sailing Club. It starts at noon. After the picnic there will be an on-water activity. Other fun games and events are traditional and also on the agenda this labor day.

LSC provides meat for grilling, soft drinks, paper and plastic. Partcipants are asked to bring a dish to pass. Bring a guest and have the kids invite a friend to come along.

Leukemia Cup - Please Donate to Save a Mermaid

"Rusalochlka"

In cooperation with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, sailors have created a special Regatta called the "Leukemia Cup". In addition to having a good regatta, the goal is to raise money for a very important cause.

Lansing Sailing Club member John Quensen has a special reason to care about this regatta and to ask for the support of other sailors.

"I have given the name 'Save a Mermaid' to my own campaign to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in remembrance of my girlfriend Olga Maltseva." says John Quensen. "Olga was so at home in the water; she loved swimming and snorkeling. After we went SCUBA diving off Cozumel, I began calling her my Rusalochka - Russian for 'dear little mermaid.' Olga died of a rare and aggressive form of lymphoma in December 2003."

"Olga and I sought the best medical treatment for her that we could find," John continues his story, "but there was hardly any medical literature about her form of lymphoma, and there was no specific treatment for it. To better treat Mermaids like Olga, doctors need better treatments to specifically target cancer cells. They need more information about how to control the outcome of bone marrow transplants. It is my hope that research supported by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society will provide knowledge enabling more effective treatment for other Mermaids in the future."

It is with that hope that I John asks you to support his participation in the upcoming Leukemia Cup Regatta at the Port Huron Yacht Club by making a tax-deductible donation to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Help Save a Mermaid. Thank you.

Contribute easily online by going to www.active.com/donate/leukemiacupmi/rcmiJQuense.

Please Chain the Front Gate Properly

Correct Gate Locking

Don't do it this way

Help save the Club some cash and the need for someone to do repairs.

When locking the front gate, members are asked to wrap the large chain around the gate post and padlock the links together.

The small chain that holds the padlock is not designed to be used for locking the gate - only to hold the padlock in place when the gate is unlocked.

In recent days, the small chain has been broken several times because it was used improperly.

See examples of proper and improper gate locking techniques in the pictures on the right.

Wednesday Racing Provides Great Sailing
New Start Time for Wednesday Racing: 6 pm

With sunset coming earlier and earlier, Wednesday evening races will begin a half hour earlier than usual - at 6:00 - for the last two weeks of the season.

In last Wednesday's racing, ten Lasers were on the water until a dying breeze and lightning in the distance brought things to a halt. Doug Carlson ran off three firsts. Seconds were claimed by Olav Messerschmidt in the first race and by Susanna Tellschow in the remaining two races. George Siegle took third in the first race and Messerschmidt sailed across the finish in third place for the other two races.

Eight Sunfish participated with Jim Fletcher taking two firsts and a second to lead the fleet. John Fishbeck took the other first and added a third place finish. Neil Harrision went 2-3-2 on the evening while Maribeth Fletcher got the remaining top three spot.

Detailed results and standings are available on the Lansing Sailing Club website at www.lansingsailing.org. Click on "Racing" in the left hand navagation column, then on the icon of the fleet results are desired for.

Tasks That Need Attention at LSC

Repair Siding on Sail Shed. The siding on the back of the Sunfish-Laser Sail Sheds is coming loose at the base. This needs to be reattached.

Add Electrical Outlet In Kitchen. Add another electrical outlet in the Kitchen area of the Clubhouse near the one used by the refrigerator. When installed, add a six outlet plug-in like the one in the existing outlet, then plug the refrigerator, water cooler, coffee maker and microwave into the new outlets - removing the extension cord currently in use.

Remove Weeds from 20' of South Berm. Remove the weeds from 20' of the South Berm (both sides) in preparation for wood chips to be put down. Be careful not to remove evergreens, bushes or ground cover (Bishop's Weed?) planted there. This is a long berm, so there are multiple 20' sections that need attention.

Reinforce Spar/Sail Supports in Small Sail Shed. Reinforce where possible, otherwise replace the spar/sail supports in the Small Sailshed that are loose so that sails and spars have solid resting places.

Recent Tasks Completed - Thanks
Repair Accessory Outlet on Committee Boat Thanks Doug Carlson	Replace Broken Chain on Front Gate Thanks Larry Koster