[Rhodes22-list] First Race

[Robert Dilk]

I had the fun and excitement of my first race in my 1976 Rhodes 22. With a half a dozen sails under my belt, my confidence exceeded my ability.

My sons have out grown the my ability to "order" them as crew and my wife just smiles and says 'you go have fun' so here I am my first race single handed.

The winds were 15-20 Knots on the Pamlico River Saturday with gusts close to 25 knots. Several times I had to jib around rather then tack.

My thanks go out to Stan and associates for building a fine boat. Several times the boat got away from me, but never did was it more then just exciting.
Several of the more popular names in boating  had the speaders in the water that afternoon.

The 27 year old GBI roller Reefer never let me down.

You may ask how I did. Well, the race was abandoned when the only tri-hull in the Fleet flipped Down wind after lapping me at the first weather mark ( my class was the third start).

 I did get several complements on how well the boat sailed in those condition, since I was single handed. I pass that on to GBI. It was their boat, not my skill.

I decided to race as a way to learn how to sail better. I think that was a good idea.

Bob
S/V Knot Necessary