Holmes Hole Sailing continued its regular Thursday and Sunday afternoon races these past two weeks, with 10 to 15 boats turning out for each race despite indeterminate weather forecasts. The winds picked up sufficiently, and all enjoyed the lively competition.
On the final Thursday of June, sailors tackled the Vineyard Haven Harbor triangle in breezy 10-knot wind, aided by the flood tide from West Chop to East Chop, before battling an opposing current and fading wind on the final stretch. The Vineyard Haven Yacht Club Sonar boats took first and second place, with the Hammarlunds’ Maitland finishing third.
The Sunday races began with dire wind forecasts, but optimistic skippers were rewarded both times. For the last Sunday race in June, 10 boats joined in to sail twice around the harbor in about five knots of east-northeast wind. The second time around the harbor brought increasing though variable wind, and the race was completed in short order. Maitland won the cup handily, followed by Roger Becker’s Gloria and Mo Flam’s Penelope.
The first Thursday in July was the closest race, with 11 boats sailing twice around the harbor triangle in a brisk west-southwest breeze. The fleet finished in good time, and the scores were exceptionally close, with first to last differing by only three minutes and 11 seconds. Beck Colson’s Silhouette came in first, edging out Woody Bowman’s Julia Lee by only 11 seconds, with Steve Besse’s Après close behind in third.
This past Sunday, despite the discouraging wind forecast, 10 hopeful skippers showed up to sail Course No. 2 to Can RGN halfway to the Cape. The light easterly breeze of six to seven knots carried everyone along, with a double high tide that both hindered and helped. Rounding Can 23A off of East Chop late in the race proved a mighty struggle for the trailing boats that couldn’t find enough wind to round the can and ultimately dropped out of the race. One of these struggling boats was Mike Powers’ Artful Dodger, but he persevered. After three to four tries, he finally succeeded and completed the race. Après handily won the race, followed by Frank Situla’s Zebra and Maitland.
Thursday evenings ended, as always, with sailors gathering at the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club to relive the day’s adventures over dinner — a fitting finish to another memorable couple of weeks on the water.
The annual Vineyard Cup Regatta, organized by Sail Martha’s Vineyard, takes place next weekend, July 10 and 11. Holmes Hole racing will take a pause until Thursday, July 16, though many Holmes Holers will participate in the Vineyard Cup!
We encourage all interested sailors to join Holmes Hole and get out on the water. What’s more exhilarating than a summer day spent on the waters around Martha’s Vineyard? Go to holmeshole.org to sign up! Races are held every Thursday evening at 5 pm and Sunday afternoons at 2 pm. Any monohull boat over 15 feet is welcome for the entire season or just one race. Ratings are updated after several races based on performance relative to the group.