2006 Mohican Chief Regatta

Mohican Sailing Club, Mansfield OH

June 3-4

It was your typical Sunday morning at Mohican Sailing Club's Mohican Chiefs Regatta.  The morning breeze was fading.  Graduates of Ohio State's sailing team (now doing their post-graduate work in Jets) gathered on the porch recalling Saturday night's revelry.  And MSC's leader Marion Zaugg was in a dead-heat race for first place. It was Midwest Jet 14 racing at its best.

 

With only a one-point lead, you'd expect to find Marion checking his rig tune.  Instead, in his typical fashion Marion was concentrating on the event rather than the racing.  You could find Marion and his wife/crew Carol in the MSC galley whipping up the famous He-Man Breakfast.  So much for priorities.

 

The Mohican Chiefs Regatta, June 3-4, attracted 17 boats, all from Ohio.  Racing was hotly contested.  Saturday, the wind started strong as a front moved in.  However, MSC's own Rain Man (meteorologist and Class Webmaster) Chris Hennon placated the Wind Gods, keeping any thunderstorms at bay and leaving some nice 18-knot puffs.

 

In Saturday's first race the left side played really well.  Team Michos appeared to round the first mark in first.  Except Team Zaugg snuck in to take the lead.  Yes, they call Jet #1132 "Little Weasel" for a reason. The Zauggers went on to win the race though several chunks of their ankles were missing as the Michoses chomped away at their lead pretty hard.  The next races were just as tough.  Upstarts #443 Ivan Baker (crew Matt Scantland) won the second race and #1134 Nate Ireland (crew Brad) won the third.  At the end of Saturday's racing, the standings were tight: Team Zaugg #1132 led I#443 by one point and third-place Team Michos #217 three points further back.  Two points further back were Bridget Ireland/Joe Marin #120 and #1133 Mike and Jon Chambers.

 

From Saturday and Sunday's racing two key elements emerged.  First, racing was pretty tight and even.  Of five races sailed, a different boat won each race.  In fact race results were pretty tight from the top to the bottom of the fleet.  Second, two vintages of boats battled at the top of the fleet: either Mueller Jet 14s (now Vermilion Fiberglass) such as #1132. #1133, #1134 or boats out of Dave Michos' garage Messinia Racing, #217 and #443.

 

Sunday's racing pitted Mueller Racing against Messinia Racing.  And while it was personally rewarding to see my old boat #443 (which I won the Chapel Thrill in) fall in to such good hands as Ivan Baker's I thought it would be even nicer if the first boat out of the Messinia Racing garage, #217, was at the top of the heap.

 

Perhaps everyone put too much of that sugary syrup on those He-Man pancakes, though, as the fleet was served a General Recall for being over early.  That worked one pancake off, though.  In the second start #217 rocketed out front and never looked back.  Yes, I did say "Never looked back."  At the final leeward mark Chad and Dana Clark(Dubdam Racing??) tacked and laid the finish line, winning the race, followed by #217 and #1132.  Whoops!  Sure would have been nice to put an extra point on Team Zaugg's final score.  Team Baker/Scantland got mixed up with other boats and finished an uncharacteristic ninth.

 

In the last and deciding race, the He-Man breakfast was wearing thin.  #217 got shut down for its boat-end start by Mueller Racing's #1131 (Peshek/Nichols) and ended up being late and second row.  No problem, at least we were able to go to the right-hand side of the race course right away.  And the Right looked better and better the entire race.  You either wanted to "Tack And Go Right" or "Pinch To Get Right."  Mueller Racing, however, was winning at the first windward mark with #1133 and #1132 out in front of #217.  On the third leg, the wind came up as a rain squall moved in.  Messinia Racing's #217 hit its stride, closing the gap with Chamber's #1133 and was neck-and-neck at the final windward mark with Team Zaugg.  The next few boatlengths' worth of racing could have a narrative like the Kentucky Derby: "Little Weasel #1132 by an eye lash."  "Oh, hear comes Catalyst #217 and appears to have the laid the mark."  "Little Weasel ducks Catalyst."  "Catalyst can't make the mark.  She tacks but can't duck Little Weasel."  "Oh No, There's contact."

 

A 720 and then a jibe set in the squall wiped out the reserve of any He-Man Breakfast as the Little Weasel, manned by Marion and Carol Zaugg, went on to win the regatta.  Several other teams posted some great scores, including the Chamber's who won the last race and wound up in fourth; Nate Ireland finished fifth.

 

Thanks go out to all seventeen Ohio Jet 14 sailing teams that attended as well as Mohican Sailing Club (host of a great regatta), and Joe and Gina Volter of Cleveland who came down and helped run the races on Cliff Peshek's Zodiac.

 

Next stop on the District II Championship tour is Cleveland Race Week where everyone can get a glimpse of the new Vermilion Fiberglass Millennium Jet 14 before it goes into the Messinia Racing shop.

 

See you at the windward mark,

Dave Michos #217 and shortly #1156

Pictures

 

Race

Place

Sail

Skipper

Crew

1

2

3

4

5

Total

1

1132

M. Zaugg

C. Zaugg

1

2

4

3

2

12

2

217

D. Michos

S. Michos

2

4

5

2

4

17

3

443

I. Baker

M. Scantland

4

1

3

9

3

20

4

1133

M. Chambers

J. Chambers

3

3

9

7

1

23

5

1134

N. Ireland

Brad

7

10

1

4

7

29

6

120

B. Ireland

J. Marin

8

5

2

10

9

31

7

1093

C. Clark

D. Clark

9

9

6

1

8

33

8

94

B. Joudrey

K. Smith

5

8

11

11

6

41

9

180

C. Hennon

P. Hennon

10

14

7

5

13

49

10

665

J. Gemperline

M. Gemperline

15

7

8

13

10

53

11

324

P. Joudrey

A. Quick

11

15

13

8

12

59

12

677

B. Stock

Shawn

12

6

15

12

15

60

13

1131

C. Peshek

D. Nichols

6

13

14

16

11

60

14

1138

B. Regan

E. Regan

DNS

DNS

DNS

6

5

62

15

884

K. Hugon

K. Speirs

14

11

12

14

14

65

16

1091

M. Schilke

K. Schilke

13

12

10

15

16

66

17

1127

P. Chengelis

C. Chengelis

16

16

16

DNS

DNS

82


Results Posted 6/12/06

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