Our 24th consecutive
Corinthians Frostbite Regatta
was held at Mystic Seaport
on Saturday, April 2, 2016 in
a day of pouring rain. Tem-
peratures hovered around
50oF with winds for most of the
day between 0 and 5 knots.
This facilitated lots of drifting
around the race course. We
managed to run four races in
the morning and five races in
the afternoon. The last race
of the day finally saw 10 knots
of air and as the fleet headed
for the barn, the rain stopped
and the breeze freshened.
The event was attended by
approximately 45 Corinthians
and guests with 12 partici-
pants opting to race, and 11
making
it to the
starting
line. The
fleet is
definite-
ly aging,
as we
lost four
of our
“usual
suspect”
past
racers to
various
geriatric
injuries
and
surgeries. Hopefully, we
can motivate some of our
younger members to get on
the course next year. Racing
this year was quite demand-
ing given the lack of wind.
(A 10-year-old in the Seaport
sailing program was over-
heard one day to
say “Real sailors
don’t need wind!”)
Despite the lack of
wind, we did man-
age to have one
participant test the
water temperature
in the Mystic River
(a tepid 48oF). Ted
Corning’s attempt
at a “rolling jibe “at
the leeward mark
resulted in a very
slowly executed 10o
“down bubble” and
a fine water entry.
In all fairness to Ted,
we discovered that
his centerboard
had broken off a
couple inches below the hull,
Not good!
Heidi Steinmetz and Jay
Weissman once again head-
ed up the food services at the
Seaport. Panic set in when
it was discovered that the
grill temperature was being
suppressed by the continual
downpour of rain. However,
moving the grill to cover fa-
cilitated lots of burger flippin’
and Heidi’s clam chowder
was a definite warmer upper.
Continental breakfast and
a lunch of chowder, burg-
ers, chips and condiments
kept all participants well fed.
The hardest part was getting
back on the water for the
afternoon racing but hearty
Corinthians “Aaaarghed” and
attacked!
This year, the Mystic Sea-
port exhibits were in full op-
eration and the events of the
day were open to all our reg-
istrants—one of the benefits
of registration in our event.
Given the weather, it was not
surprising to see the specta-
tor group going for the indoor
exhibits.
Following racing and haul-
ing boats, the group moved
on to nearby Mason’s Island
and the home of Dan and
Betsy Van Winkle for cocktails
and awards. A feast made
for a very convivial afternoon,
and no one went away hun-
gry or thirsty. Of course, the
best part was all the chatter
regarding who should have
done what and when on the
race course!
With the crowd warmed
up and lubricated, our Race
Committee head and “mas-
ter roaster,” Dave Bradley,
presented the awards. Third
place honors went to Todd
Williams with a total of 30.75
points, while second place
honors went to Tucker Brag-
don with a total of 28.75
points. First place trophy went
to Chris Sinnett with 16.25
points. Chris also received the
“Ed Colie” Frostbite Trophy.
Our special thanks go to
Hallie Payne, director of the
Mystic Seaport Community
Sailing Program. Hallie and her
staff once again facilitated
the event, providing person-
nel, mark boats, crash boats,
and a fleet of Dyer Dhows. We
especially congratulate Hallie
since she has recently been
elected to membership in The
Corinthians. She will definitely
be an asset to our club. Give
a shout out when you see her!
Race committee par-
ticipants were Dave Bradley,
Fred Chester, Ray Huber and
Jay Kiszkiel. Our special appre-
ciation and gratitude to the
Team that makes it all hap-
pen and especially to all The
Corinthians who come out to
support the event.
Mark your Calendars for
April 1, 2017, The 25th Co-
rinthian Frostbite Regatta.
Imagine—a Frostbite Regatta
on April Fool’s Day! Hope to
see you all there. We have 55
boats so there is a boat for
you!