QUINCY, MA, JULY 16-17, 2011: This past weekend 7 beach catamarans competed in the annual Lipton Cup Regatta at the Squantum Yacht Club, in Quincy, MA. The regatta served as the Area A and B qualifier for the U.S. Multihull Championship (Alter Cup) event as well as part of the 2011 Narragansett Beer F18 Summer Series. 7 F18 teams competed in the event, completing 8 races in two days. Conditions on Saturday were primarily light winds building to a moderate sea breeze as the afternoon progressed. The shifty conditions saw several lead changes and some very tight racing.
The Saturday night regatta party and dinner for the beach cat racers was hosted by Sam Adelman and Emma Stockley with beer provided by Narragansett Beer Company. The sailors gathered with tales of the day’s events and anticipation of the forecast for Sunday’s racing.
Following Saturday’s on-the-water battles in light winds, the weather god’s awarded the racers on Sunday, as racing took place in breezes building from 10 to 20 kts on the flat warm waters of Quincy Bay. The F18 boats were picturesque, flying downwind at speeds in the high teens/low twenties, with colorful spinnakers and the Boston skyline as a backdrop. Several capsizes and crew/boat separations took place to keep things interesting and make for some good stories once all the sailors returned to shore.
The team of Mike Easton and Tripp Burd were dominant for the second consecutive regatta of the series, winning 7 of the 8 races, and taking the title of area representatives for the Alter Cup Championships. Sandra and Nate followed in second, with Chris and Sam rounding out the top three.
PHOTOS by Squantum YC
PHOTOS by Jason Majane / Lindsay Smith
Part of the Narragansett Beer Eastern Area F18 Summer Series:
