* As sailors, the J/Family's hearts go out to the friends and family of Mark Morely and Suzanne Bickel,
both of whom drowned in an unfortunate incident in this past weekend's
Chicago-Mackinac Race. Both were highly regarded and loved in their
community in Saginaw, Michigan. Our heartfelt condolences to all and
best wishes and prayers go out to the families of those who were lost. Answering the "call of duty" to a Channel 16 emergency/ distress call were several J/Teams- including the J/111 MENTAL sailed by Paul Stahlberg and Richie and Dick Stearns as well as the J/109 REALT NA MARA sailed by Tom and Joe Londrigan. Tom and Joe's crew member, Greg Alm was wearing a helmet cam about the time at 12:40 a.m. Monday, when the storms capsized the winged Kiwi 35 WINGNUTS, and two of the eight crew members drowned (Mark and Suzanne). Alm describes the scene in the description that accompanied the video on YouTube: "Here's edited footage shot from a helmet camera aboard the J/109 REALT NA MARA during the 2011 Chicago to Mackinac Race in 50-60+ knots. The worst of the storm hit just after midnight which made bolts of lightning our only light source. The evening's weather reports indicated winds were not expected to exceed 30 knots. As the wind built, our tack line exploded; we were knocked down immediately and stayed horizontal from winds of 54 knots for about 15 minutes. Shortly after being knocked down, with no steerage, lightning flashed and another boat, just to weather, without sails was planing right towards us. Thankfully, they managed to alter course and avoid a collision. Once the winds calmed a bit, lights shined on our boat followed by the release of an emergency flare. We approached the vessel we now think was SOCIABLE who was first at the scene of the capsized WINGNUTS. They told us there were 8 people in the water. We began searching the area immediately. In a short period of time, more than a dozen boats were at the site; and, after about 45 minutes, the rescue helicopter joined the search as well." Greg's video is compelling. Note, it's exactly what the ED's team on the J/111 IMPULSE saw, too, 52-63 knot winds over the deck, Zeus's' lightning bolts thrown everywhere, horizontal sheets of water blowing across the deck and 4-6 foot wave tops blown flat by violent winds (not 100 knots, but easily 50 to 60 knots plus winds). You can see the J/109's REALT NA MARA YouTube video here
