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Broken mast, scraping bottom and great fun

By Robert Harris

Charlie Modica, Sr. with a big smile on his face. He must have beaten his brother, John, in that race. Charlie, Jr., sail 5, is in the background. (Credit: Betsy Colby)

For the second week in a row the weather was perfect for the Menantic Yacht Club’s Sunfish races on Sunday, Aug. 10, the seventh series of the season.  

At the start of racing the wind was light, but steadily built up to a howling seven or eight knots by day’s end. Some sailors went swimming to cool off, others suffered that unintentional dip for various reasons. Two sailors suffered broken parts, three sailors needed a tow back to shore, and one must have been a devoted MacGyver fan. 

All in all it was a successful day, and fun was had by all 29 sailors who participated.

In between races, I overheard Joan Butler say that her main block broke. It just so happened I had a spare line, not block, onboard that I use because my halyard is too short. I sailed over to her, and in true MacGyver fashion Joan rigged a rope block that not only kept her in the races, but she even took a first place finish in one race.  

During the fourth race, on the second upwind leg, I suffered a broken mast that no amount of jury rigging would have fixed. The crew on the mark boat did double duty on Sunday, setting marks and performing rescues. Matt Fox, back from a day off last week, Lucy Browne and Mike Donlon were all smiles when they saw that it was the Commodore who needed a tow to shore.

They even towed me past my wife, who was observing from a kayak. Shortly after I was towed in, Mary Vetri also needed a tow after experiencing some problems, and Mike, who happens to be Mary’s brother-in-law, valiantly dove in to give her a hand.  Thanks, all.

Commodore Bob being towed past his wife in the kayak after his mast snapped.(Credit: Lucy Browne)

Betty Bishop and Lizzy Cummings, on the chase boat, were rescuing a sailor who had slipped off his boat, and were assisted by Eric Ryan, who wasn’t racing on Sunday, but was watching the races from his home. Eric jumped into action and headed out in his power boat to lend a hand. Fortunately, all ended well. Thanks, Betty, Lizzy and Eric.

During the first race, Charlie Modica, Jr. thought that the race was twice around and sailed around the gate heading back up wind instead of to the finish. Linda Gibbs, who was solidly in second place, followed suit until another sailor informed them that they were sailing the wrong course. Charlie, Sr. has been known to sail to the wrong mark also. I wonder if there is something in the water. 

Unfortunately, I wasn’t close enough that it would have altered my score. Charlie, Jr. still came in first on the day, taking only two first place finishes instead of three, and Linda placed 11th overall. She was all smiles when she commented during the after-race party that she is not familiar with looking back at the fleet.

Timothy Mitchell commented that he had his best race ever in one race, and he sailed well overall on Sunday. Linda also sailed well on her relatively new boat.  Unfortunately, it was christened in the wrong way when she T-boned Denise Fenchel, turtled, got the bottom muck stuck on the top of her mast, which then rained down on her.  Yuck. Luckily no damage was done to either boat or sailor.

Linda Gibbs completing a race after turtling with the bottom muck decorating the top of her sail. (Credit: Betsy Colby)

Betsy Colby chaired the Race Committee and ran five races, ably assisted by Marian Thomsen, Amy Cococcia and Susan Donlon. Thank you all, for a great day of sailing.

Matt and Shelly Fox hosted an after-race party that was well attended by an enthusiastic crowd. Matt’s home-cooked pulled pork and chicken were a big hit, as were all the trimmings. There was also an abundance of desserts, including Betsy’s famous Key Lime pie, as well as two other Key Lime pies ordered specially by Lisa Modica from Pies by Jane, all delicious. Many thanks for your hospitality Shelly and Matt.

We are a very congenial family-friendly club, open to all. We may not have a clubhouse, but the sailing is great, the camaraderie is superb, and we just have tremendous fun. All sailors, novice to expert, are welcome. Just show up in West Neck Harbor at 2 p.m. on any Sunday through Labor Day, check in with the Race Committee, giving them your full name and sail number, and be sure to bring your life jacket. Non-sailors are also welcome to assist with the race committee boat and the stake boat. 

You can get more information about the MYC on Facebook at Menantic Yacht Club, or from Bob Harris at [email protected] or 505-235-5844. Steve and Melissa Shepstone have a fleet of loaner boats available on a first to reserve basis. Contact Melissa at [email protected] to reserve your boat. 

See you on the water 

Results:           Pts    Place

Charlie Modica, Jr.    13 1

Peter Beardsley 16 2

Caitlin Cummings 18 3

Melissa Pumphrey 30 4

Paul Zinger   30 5

Joan Butler   39 6

John Modica   42 7

Alicia Rojas   45 8

Rachel Beardsley     51 9

Charlie Modica,Sr.    65 10

Linda Gibbs   68 11

Will Lehr   68 12

Eugene van Rynbach  69 13

Peter Maes   71 14

Denise Fenchel 74 15

Tim Mitchell 76 16

Peter Due   81 17

Tom McMahon 84 18

Kate Duff   93 19

Peter Zahn 95 20

Bob Harris 97 21

Bill Martens 97 22

John Colby 104 23

Jonathan Brush   105 24

Jodi Sisley 116 25

Isabel Parra    120 26

Mary Vetri 133 27

Sharon Wicks    140 28

Brett Mintz 144 29

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