Faithful Crew and friends of Strategery,

This weekends Red Hook regatta was a blast. We had bruising, fast, foggy, tight, aggressive racing. Strategery’s crew, Mike on the Bow, Jim on the Chute, Chris on Jib and tactics and Dewey on the main delivered an amazing performance in tight racing. We finished tied for second, but earned a third due to the scoring rules (Uproar had first place finishes, we didn’t). That said, we were the only boat besides the winner to place top 3 in each of the 5 races. A serious feat given the level of competition. Kudos to the crew.

Below is the Portsmouth Herald writeup of the event.

Regards,

Cliff

'Ghost' sets sail

By Terrill Covey

sports@seacoastonline.com

PORTSMOUTH – The 13th annual Red Hook Regatta set sail Sunday afternoon as captains and crew got on the water after races were fogged out on Saturday.

"There is a phenomenal community of racers sailing here," Cliff Farrah said. "Sailing is a nice release from everything else that you worry about."

After fog canceled Saturday’s racing, the boats were able to get through four races in each division on Sunday afternoon.

Ken Colburn in his boat "Ghost" won the J-105 division. Brian Harrington’s "Uproar" and Farrah’s "Strategery," placed second and third, respectively.

Chris Lund won the J-24 division in "Whomper," while Caleb Sloan was second in "Blue Scoop."

The PHRF division is an open division where boats are handicapped for competition. George Spiecker placed first in "Airtha" Kevin McCoole in "Mad Maxx," and Tim Putnam in "Mach II," placed second and third, respectively.

"Imagine getting an adrenaline rush at 6 mph," Harrington said. "If you have any competitive nature at all, this is great. You can’t beat the scenery and the environment either."

"Sailing is like chess on the water," said Dave Reynolds, who has sailed with Harrington for 15 years.

Regatta chairwoman Catherine Keenan said the weekend went very well despite Saturday’s weather. The sailors gathered at Captain Simeon’s Saturday night for dinner and were able to get out on the water Sunday.

"The weather (Sunday) was awesome," Keenan said. "We were happy to get four races in. The sailors appreciate that too. It went very well."

Many of the this weekend’s competitors sail weekly with the Piscataqua Sailing Association (PSA).

John McCormack said the PSA organizes the Red Hook Regatta, as well as weekly Tuesday and Thursday races.

"This is a sport where people of all ages and backgrounds can get together and compete," McCormack said. "People didn’t even get to race (Saturday) and they’re still out together having a good time."

McCormack said the history of racing is part of what makes sailing great.

"Cod fishermen used to have to rush back because the first boats back got the best prices," McCormack said. "Trying to make boats go fast was important back then because sailboats were boats of commerce.

"There is a lot of history in sailboat racing and it’s something you can spend your whole life learning," McCormack said.

"PSA has the biggest fleet in Portsmouth," Lund said. "If you want to compete, this is the place to be. It’s great to get friends together and go out."

Keenan said the event wouldn’t be possible without sponsors, which included Red Hook, West Marine, Anson Sails, Eastern Boats, Great Bay Marine, Navtronics, Nextel, Saboutime Sailing and Wentworth by the Sea.

Anyone interested in learning more about PSA and sailboat racing can visit the PSA Web site at: