With winter now seriously here in most of the USA, I thought you might enjoy seeing how our Caribbean neighbors are doing.

On the second day of the Aruba Heineken Catamaran Regatta 2008, the fleet of 41 teams had to deal with tricky sailing conditions on the Caribbean Sea. From time to time, big clouds brought rain showers and gusts. That resulted in a shifty and variable breeze, which made it an interesting competition. Dutchmen Booth and Nieuwenhuis are still in the lead by one point, with Xander Pols and Frank de Waard (NED) in second position. Last year’s winners Eduard Zanen and Mischa Heemskerk (NED) climbed to a third place. Henk-Johan Hankart and the Grijpma brothers are first overall in the fleet of slower catamarans.

Today’s weather required a lot more trimming and smart racing. The winning strategy was about getting the shifts and pressure right. Sunburned legs and arms had a rest, as it was mostly clouded. The morning breeze was about 8 knots strong, but in the afternoon it picked up to 16 knots and more. During lunchtime on the Aruba beach, the competitors could share their experiences and reconsider their tactics. Or simply enjoy the Aruba hospitality. Late afternoon, they decided to have their happy hour in sea, as the rain was pouring down in a tropical shower.

Day one of the Cat Caper Regatta got off to an excellent start with good wind and 5 races completed. Very gusty conditions made for challenging lake sailing.

More info after day two.

Rank Fleet Class Nat SailNo Helm Crew Rating R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 R6 R7 Total Nett Notes


1st Portsmouth A Formula 16 spi USA 1 Oley Olsen Joanna Lienti 63 2.0 1.0 2.0 1.0 (4.0) 10.0 6.0
2nd Portsmouth A Nacra F17 Uni spi USA 218 Jim Leonard 66.7 1.0 4.0 1.0 (5.0) 3.0 14.0 9.0
3rd Portsmouth A Nacra 20 Slp spi USA 11 Mark Smith Karen Ann Xavier 59.3 (3.0) 2.0 3.0 3.0 1.0 12.0 9.0
4th Portsmouth A Formula 16 spi USA 724 Jody Abrams 63 4.0 3.0 4.0 2.0 (6.0) 19.0 13.0
5th Portsmouth A Nacra 20 Slp spi USA 1015 Philip Mumm Rundell Curtis 59.3 (6.0) 5.0 6.0 4.0 2.0 23.0 17.0
6th Portsmouth A Formula 16 spi USA USA712 Tom Shannon 63 5.0 6.0 5.0 (7.0 DNF) 5.0 28.0 21.0
1st Portsmouth B Hobie 17 (1-up) USA 5887 Jim Brown 74 (1.0) 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 5.0 4.0
2nd Portsmouth B Hobie 16 USA 77765 Shane Gaston Connor Gaston 76 (2.0) 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 10.0 8.0
3rd Portsmouth B Hobie 18 & 18 Magnum USA 8487 Damon Linkous 71 (3.0) 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 15.0 12.0 Square top main
4th Portsmouth B Prindle 19 USA 567 Stan Muse 66.4 4.0 (6.0 DNS) 4.0 4.0 6.0 DNS 24.0 18.0
5th Portsmouth B Hobie 16 USA 110523 Michael Aregood 76 5.0 (6.0 DNS) 6.0 DNF 6.0 DNS 6.0 DNS 29.0 23.0

Pensacola Beach, FL - October 17, 2008
Last Day of racing cancelled due to no wind in the morning. Racing was scheduled to start at 9:00 and this is what the water looked like.

October 16, 2008 - Key Sailing - Pensacola Beach
See Day Four Pictures by Damon
See Philip Mumm's Day four pictures

Now reporting from on the water (A Mark), arrived Wednesday and found a gung ho group of high performance catamaran sailors swapping stories from the first three days of big air sailing. I was amazed how full of energy they were, as demonstrated after the deep fried turkey dinner hosted at the Pensacola Beach Yacht Club across the street from Key Sailing. A turkey dinner didn't put these hardy sailors to sleep, instead a large group was seen enjoying the live music and dance floor well into the night.

Today's conditions were much lighter than the first three days but the racing was just as close. Robbie Daniels is still in command, stretching his overall lead to an amazing 29 points after 15 races with 21 points. Greg Goodall and John Williams look to have nailed down 2nd with 50 points and a 19 point lead over John Casey and Kenny Pierce in third. But only 10 points seperate that third from the next three boats, so medals will still be out their to be won on the final day.

It was announced just a little while ago that Friday's start would be a 9:00am (to a few groans) and two races would be run to be finished as early as possible and avoid some predicted weather.

Additional report and full results on full story.

Pensacola Beach Florida, Key Sailing - October 15, 2008
Photo by Philip Mumm, pictures from the event are available for purchase. For picture information contact Philip at 205-870-8800

Day three continued the awesome conditions and close racing. Robbie Daniels continues to dominate and now holds a 24 point lead over the second place, but then only 11 points separate the next four teams, so it's still a battle for the medal positions. Day Three Pictures by Philip Mumm are posted (195 of them!).

Click Day Three Title or read full article to view results through day three.