Fun and fretting in the fog, as the Vineyard Cup sails of age
Light air, heavy air, no air. Pea-soup fog, searing heat. Fierce opposing current, fair tides, slack water. Deep water, sandy shoals, rocky coastline. Sail-slatting tedium, rail-in-the-water exhilaration.
The crew of a Friendship sloop looks for position among other racers. Photos by Louisa Gould
The fourth Vineyard Cup regatta was a study in sailing contrasts, testing the range of racing skill of more than 50 boat crews over three days of racing in Vineyard Sound, Nantucket Sound, and Menemsha Pond.
"That's a lot of boats," said Brock Callen, director of Sail MV, the organization that sponsors the regatta as a fundraiser. "People like to come here to sail. It's what community sailing is all about, public access for everybody, that is not driven by cost."
"We really have an event now," said Phil Hale, a member of the Sail MV board and a racing competitor as well. "It's really established. It's becoming known as a fun, affordable event."
The Vineyard Cup was a test of endurance - not just the sailing, but also the parties in Owen Park.
It was also a grueling test of endurance - not just because of the demanding sailing, but also the parties held under a big tent in Owen Park each evening.
Men's Journal magazine returned as the regatta's presenting sponsor this year. "The Vineyard Cup supports a nonprofit that protects the Island's heritage by providing free sailing lessons to Vineyard children, so it's a fitting partnership," Men's Journal publisher Francis Farrell in a press release.
The Black Dog joined the event as the new hosting sponsor, and won rave reviews for three days of good eats, including Friday evening's lobster roll feast. Also a hit was Sunday's wrap-up dessert, enormous cakes complete with frosting logos of the event sponsors.
"The support we got was wonderful," Mr. Callen said. "The support we got from our sponsors was incredible. It's a good formula."
Over the line
Shortly after the skipper's meeting on Friday morning, competitors piled on their vessels for an afternoon race in Nantucket Sound. A strong current running east and fluky, light winds made for a challenging day, more so for the bigger boats than the small. With most of the fleet stuck between the first and second buoys, the current took control of the race.
Two classic gaff-rigged competitors emerge from the fog and drive for the turning mark in Quick's Hole. Photo by Steve Myrick
Aboard King Kiwi, a fast Sabre 38 sailed by owner Irving Gates, the difficult elements were brought into focus approaching that second mark. As the fleet was swept east, the King Kiwi crew enjoyed the illusion of a position near the front of the pack. But the current grabbed the boat, and reality set in. "A lobster pot is beating us," Mr. Gates said to his crew. Really, King Kiwi was making its way toward the buoy at about one knot, while the current was pulling the boat away from the mark at about three knots. That made the stationary lobster pot appear to be passing the boat at a good clip. The best tactic at that point would have been to anchor up. A few minutes later the Vineyard Cup race committee mercifully abandoned the race. Everyone "hoisted the iron topsail," or grabbed a tow, to get back to Vineyard Haven Harbor.
Saturday's race was as full of adventure, and not necessarily the kind most sailors wish for. At the starting gun, visibility was about a half mile in fog. Shortly thereafter, the soup descended and visibility varied from 25 to 100 yards. The distance race, a 31.5-mile course, west through Vineyard sound, briefly into Buzzards Bay, and back to Vineyard Haven, is new to the regatta this year.
Off Woods Hole, ferry horns, fishing boat engines, foghorns, and racing competitors sounding their own warning signals, raised a veritable symphony of fog sounds. None of the sources of this nerve-jangling cacophony were the least bit visible.
This reporter, sailing in the Vineyard Cup for the first time, adopted a primitive survival strategy: Look out ahead, look out behind, and if you see land, tack. That strategy somehow put us near Quick's Hole, the passage into Buzzards Bay. At that moment, the fog quite suddenly lifted, revealing much of the fleet rounding the prescribed mark and heading back up the Sound for a glorious run to the finish line.
"That race placed an emphasis on good seamanship and good navigation, and the fleet handled it," Mr. Callen said. "We were all impressed with the quality of seamanship. There is a lot of skill here."
The third day of racing featured a short course pursuit race to a mark in Nantucket Sound, then to a mark off Edgartown Harbor entrance, and back up to Vineyard Haven.
The first leg was hot, slow, and tedious, with the fleet on a dead run to the leeward mark. The breeze built steadily, and when the sailors rounded the first mark, the boats took off like rockets. With many rails in the water, the racers rounded the final mark and screamed back to the finish line. While the first leg frustrated many competitors, the final haul up the Island coastline was exhilarating.
"What a beautiful shoot of water that is," Mr. Hale said. "That's why we're here."
Race Results
When handicaps were calculated and placings set for the two official races, Mischief, a Herreshoff 26 sailed by skipper Bob Lurie, was at the top of the list, with the overall best corrected time performance, and the winner of Class 1. Second place in Class 1 went to Gloria, a C & C 24 sailed by veteran local skipper Roger Becker. Third in Class 1 was Stormalong, a Pearson 31 in the capable hands of Jerry Goodale.
In Class 2, skipper Ehren Federowicz took top honors aboard the Nonsuch 30 Miss Marilyn. Second was Kitty Hawk, Winthrop Stanford's Nonsuch 33. Third was Carpe Diem, Gianfranco Rigamonti's Nonsuch 30.
Gaff-riggers got their own class this year. "We're going to make an effort to grow," Mr. Callen said. "Where better than Vineyard Haven Harbor?"
First among the gaffers was Malabar II, a familiar sight in Vineyard Haven. The Alden schooner was sailed to victory by James Lobdell. Second, by virtue of a tiebreaker, was Sheena, a Holmes Hole 29 launched just last month, sailed by boat builder Ross Gannon on Saturday and Seaver Jones on Sunday. Third was Ishmael, a 47-foot schooner owned by Fred and Sarah Murphy.
Complete results for the Vineyard Cup are available here.
