Fishing Bay Yacht Club held their 84th Annual One Design Regatta on July 22-23.  There were 96 boats in 9 different classes registered to enjoy racing on the Piankatank River.  Saturday morning the winds were coming from the NNE so the race committee set up across the river from the club.  The winds varied in strength, but not much in direction. There were only 4 Albacores so we were placed in the PHRF fleet with three San Juan 21s and three 420s. The RC was able to hold 4 races on a Windward Leeward course.  Starting a race with boats that greatly outweighed us proved challenging, but the long staring line did give us plenty of room – for the most part.  The key to a good race was to play the shifts in the middle and avoid the spinnakers coming downwind.  On Sunday morning there were only whispers on the water so the RC opted to delay on shore.  Ultimately the wind just wasn’t going to fill in in time so racing was cancelled.  The Albacores performed as they should and took the top 3 finishes with Dan Miller/Kaitlyn Lucey in first, Dave Huber/John Huber in second and Lloyd Leonard/Natalie Rehberger in third.

On the social side there was a good barbeque dinner on Saturday night.  Many folks enjoyed the pool at one time or another.  And the on site camping worked out well with good conversations with new friends lasting well into the evening hours.

This was the first time FBYC held their Annual One Design regatta in July.  Many sailors may recall going to Ware River’s Gov Cup first followed a week later by FBYC.  The change was made to deconflict with other races around the Chesapeake Bay.  Hopefully next year we will see more than just 4 Albacores registered so we can have our own start.