(Annapolis, MD)- The Annapolis Fall Regatta has developed into a
Chesapeake Bay tradition since the Storm Trysail Club- Chesapeake
Station founded the regatta in 2002.Longtime Storm Trysail Club member Dick Neville served as principal race officer. The Annapolis resident is widely recognized as one of the best in the business, having served as on-water chairman for Block Island Race Week and Key West Race Week among many major regattas.
Neville sent the fleet on a nice tour of the Chesapeake Bay during the Friday distance race, which will be divided into two parts. The distance race started off Greenbury Point, with a scoring gate at the mid-point, providing competitors with an opportunity to recover from a poor start or bad leg to still earn a placement. “Effectively, it was two races, a fun formula for the sailors,” Neville said.
Then, Neville managed to run three more races (for five total) off Thomas Point Lighthouse to complete the regatta. In the end, it was Robin Team’s famous J/122 TEAMWORK that virtually ran the table on the fleet, scoring a 1-1.5-2-1-1 for just 6.5 pts in the five races to win the ORC Division; no one else was even close.
Robin Team has fond memories of the annual regatta organized by the Storm Trysail Club and held each October. The North Carolina skipper entered the 2008 edition and placed second in class, making the maiden competition for his J/122 a rousing success.
“I will always remember that regatta because it started the current TEAMWORK career 10 years ago,” said Team, a resident of Lexington, N.C. “The boat was commissioned there in Annapolis and we entered that regatta to get a feel for how she sails.”
TEAMWORK has made a name for itself up and down the East Coast in the decade since, capturing the prestigious Palmetto Cup as overall winner of Charleston Race Week four times and securing class championships at Key West Race Week four times. Most recently, TEAMWORK topped its class at Block Island Race Week in 2017.
Team came back to the Chesapeake Bay for the first time since making his debut, hoping to add the Annapolis Fall Regatta to his long list of accomplishments- they succeeded in spades.
“We love Annapolis and racing on the Chesapeake Bay is pretty good during that time of the year,” Team said.
TEAMWORK is a family-based program with Robin sailing alongside his brother Adam and sons Alston and Coleman. Bill Fuqua, who has been best friends with Robin Team since they met at Camp Seagull as youngsters, might as well be family.
Truth be told, three Annapolis-area sailors are also adopted Team family members after racing aboard Teamwork for almost 15 years, dating back to when Robin owned a J/120 that earned PHRF Boat of the Week honors at Key West.
North Sails- Chesapeake professional Jonathan Bartlett is the long-time tactician aboard TEAMWORK while Kevin Ryman is the mainsail trimmer and Jeff Reidle the headsail trimmer.
“Jonathan, Kevin and Jeff have been integral parts of our program and we would love to come up there and win that regatta in their hometown,” Team said.
Jabin's once again served as home base with Storm Trysail Club- Chesapeake Station serving drinks and appetizers in the gazebo following Saturday’s action. For more Storm Trysail Annapolis Fall Regatta sailing information Add to Flipboard Magazine.
|
