Entries Tagged 'Wisconsin' ↓

The 2009 Windpower Championships and Super Crossing successfully kicked off the 2010 MOWIND Race Series last weekend. Details of the Super Crossing can be found here, and event scores are linked below:

A Fleet Results

Sport & Workshop Fleet Results

Super Crossing Results

A quick look at the A Fleet results show how competitive an event it was. Top competitors mixed it up in light shifty winds throughout the weekend, and every extra pump and correctly read puff determined the outcome. Ten races were run, with five different racers taking at least one bullet (interestingly, all winners were either an Anderson or a Gratton…there might be something in the water). Tim Cleary, Don Altmyer, Alex Monroe, and Peter Hartwhich all also posted finishes better than 4th. That’s nine racers competing for the top four spots! It’s nice to see that kind of parity and it shows how competitive the fleet is getting.

Adam Anderson used his nose for the wind and top class upwind speed in the puffs to win the regatta, leading the way with 4 bullets and a total of 152 points. Arden and Andrew Anderson tied only two points back with 150 points, and each of them winning two individual races. The tiebreaker went six levels deep as they each had the same number of 1st’s, 2nd’s, 3rd’s, 4th’s and even 5th place finishes. That covered nine races. Their lowest score finally broke the tie, with Arden’s worst finish a sixth place while Andrew had a seventh place. So even their throwout races mattered in the end results.

Tim Clearly led the pack in the 8.5 Limited class, and finishing a close 4th overall. His ability to read the wind showed several times as positions shifted back and forth throughout each race. Alex Monroe also made a strong showing in the Limited class. His time on the water is paying off and we expect his improvements to continue.

The Sport Fleet results show similar competitiveness with Gary Lovrine winning a tight battle with Steve Willits in the Men’s Division. Kelly Johnson (1st Women’s Division) and Larry Reed (1st Senior’s Division) were also in the mix. We are especially proud of first-time racer, Devon Anderson (Andrew’s wife), who toughed it out for all 10 challenging races to place 2nd in the Women’s Division. She and Andrew win the long-distance award this year, coming all the way from Oakland, CA.

Continuing the theme of close competition, 4 points separated 1st through 3rd place in the Workshop Fleet. Youngin’s Niels Zaunmueller (1st), Austin Hamburger (2nd), and Kylan Johnson (3rd) all looked impressive throughout the weekend and we look forward to seeing more from them.

What a start to the 2010 MOWIND Race Series! Thanks to the birthday boy (Kevin Gratton) and the whole gang associated with Windpower Windsurfing for putting on another great event. The racing was great, the MOWIND Series awards banquet Saturday night was great (a big shoutout to Don Altmeyer for helping with the trophies both financially and with his time), and the bonfire and camping were great.

For even more info on the event, check out the Race Director’s report, complete with some great videos at the bottom of the page, but don’t believe anything they say about the fleet pushing over the line early ; )

– Arden Anderson reporting

The Fall Wind Power regatta took place in Fond du Lac Wisconsin on Sept 19-20, 2009.  This is the first event for the 2010 MOWIND Race Series.  Welcome BACK everyone!

More event details to come later, for now we are just posting links to the scores.  

09 Fall Wind Power A-Fleet Results  
09 Fall Wind Power Sport and Workshop Fleet results

Winnebago SuperCrossing

The weekend started early with Jeff Knutsen (www.a-aexteriors.com) sponsoring and running the 2009 Winnebago SuperCrossing on Friday the 18th.  10 racers left Roosevelt County Park and headed north (upwind) to Wendt’s Supper Club located half way to Oshkosh on the west side of the lake.  It’s just west of the big island.  Six of the ten who started made it all the way to Wendt’s, the longboarders prevailed in these conditions and the shortboarders came up short.  Magnus Zanmueller (Beaver Dam, Wi.) was first, very closely followed by Del Carpenter (Iowa) and then Dan Thornton (Fond du Lac) in third.  Jeff treated the racers with a beverage at the bar and then they set sail for the return race.  The wind picked up and formed white caps right after the start to provide a fun and fast downwind ride back to Wind Power.  Jim Edlebeck (Muskego, Wi.) took honors with Jim Magnuson (Beaver Dam) second and Magnus Zanmueller third.  As usual Jeff provide a fun time for all considering the forecast.  The Supercrossing is due for epic conditions, providing a true crossing from the south end of the lake 28 miles to the north end.  Niles Book holds the claim to fame for sailing to the north end and back during a Crossing a number of years ago.

09 WinnebagoSuper Crossing

The 2009 Door County Breeze Regatta was held July 3-5 in Ephraim, WI. A record 37 sailors participated in the event.

Racing over the weekend was blessed with sunny skies and moderate winds. A fun sail was held on Friday with several people touring out to the Horeshoe Island visible from shore in Ephraim. They were accompanied by the committee pontoon boat. Winds were light for most of the fun sail, but built into the teens near the end of the sail.

Saturday morning the winds were 5-10 mph out of the northwest with the forecast for things to swing around out of the south later in the day. With that info in mind, Steve set a simple windward/leeward gate course and got in two good races before breaking for lunch. During lunch the workshop fleet got in some nice racing near shore with plenty of spectators.

After lunch, the wind had shifted to the south as forecast so Steve simply  switched the direction of the Start/Finish line and continued racing the windward/leeward gate course shown below (the green marks were now the windward marks though they had been the leeward marks in the morning). Two races were completed on this course before calling it a day. The gps tracks show that I always chose to round the windward gate at the mark nearer to shore as it was a bit lower, while I chose each of the leeward buoys about equally based on which side of the course had more wind as I approached the rounding.

Saturday afternoon course

After racing was complete we were treated to a fantastic dinner right by the water at the Ephraim Visitor’s Center. Thanks to the Vande Corput family and everyone that made it happen! One of the best things about the Door County regatta is the amount of things to do after racing is complete. There are lots of shops, fireworks displays, restaurants (even after the great dinner it is hard to resist some ice cream at Wilson’s), and windsurfing camraderie. A lot of the gang headed over to the campground at Aqualand for a camp fire and some of the Russian folk singing that is becoming a tradition. As for me, we headed to a double feature at the local drive-in (where do you see those anymore?) and the kids enjoyed an animated film (Up) and then fell asleep on queue as the second show started.

Sunday morning we got to the race site and saw absolute glass on the water, but as we ate breakfast within eye shot of the bay the wind was building. At one point prior to the race start there was 10-15 mph from the south. However, at the time of the skipper’s meeting the wind had swung back to the northwest at only around 5 mph. A modified “M” course (shown below) was sent with the first lap consisting of running upwind to mark A, then downwind through a series of jibes (yellow) on the way to the leeward mark E. The 2nd lap was a windward/leeward from the E to A, back to E, and then back up to the Finish line. Two races were run with the wind both puffing and shifting. The gps track shows a trace that cuts from the windward green mark to just inside mark “B” and then turning abruptly straight to mark “E”…Well, that was me thinking during the first race that both laps required going through the jibes, but my brother Adam showed some good sportsmanship by hollering over that I just needed to go straight to the leeward mark. Adam and Josh were right on my tail as I got to the leeward mark after sailing the extra distance, but I managed to hold them off.

Sunday morning course

After two races in the increasingly unstable winds, Steve decided to have us break for lunch to see if the wind would settle in. During lunch the workshop fleet got in even more racing, and Kevin Gratton from Windpower Windsurfing did a great job showing off the new O’pen Bic sail boat that is coming on strong as a modern fleet for getting youths on the water. It should also be noted that Kevin’s brother, Andy, was sailing a 20+ year old tandem board with Mike Reed throughout the day, and making impressive time on the race course, esepecially upwind with twin 11.0 sails powering it. I was also impressed with the maneuverability of the board through the jibes in the morning races until Andy reminded me that the board actually has a rudder with foot-operated tiller for enhanced steering. Still, the sail handling required made the turns impressive.

After lunch, the wind had built some, but still had not steadied. Steve decided to make the course a bit less sensitive to changes in wind direction, so he pulled mark C, and realined marks B & D to make a box course with an outside loop. So, the mark order is now Start-A-B-D-A-D-E-Finish as shown below. We got in three races in ~10mph winds with aggressive shifts. To showcase this point, notice that there are two traces of me making the beat on the outside loop from D heading towards the middle of the course on port before tacking over to starboard to round B the 2nd time. Those two traces show me taking the same lay line to B on starboard, though they do differ by around 20-deg on the heading I am able to take on port, with several wavers from shifts along the way. So where’s the trace for the third race? Well, look at the line that runs from just to the right of D to just to the right of B….that was me laying the windward leg on one tack due to a significant shift.

Sunday afternoon course

Competition was stiff in these final three races as Josh was consistently pushing me on the windward legs, and Adam was showing great speed and some saavy on the downwind runs. Adam won the last race by leading it start to finish as I nipped at him all the way around and still couldn’t make a pass. Steve Johnson and Woody were also coming into their own as the breeze picked up, and Peter Hartwhich and Timmy Cleary were in the mix as always. Plus, the tandem board with 22 meters of sail was always right to make things interesting. Woody and Adam even had one race where they had a big lead but then took each other out rounding the leeward mark as a large wind shift got the best of their large sails and close proximity. As Josh and I sailed by though, we saw a big bloated carp floating in the water and we wondered if they were just going for some Great Lakes sushi.

The regatta came to a conclusion with an impressive 9 races completed. I managed to win the Unlimited class followed by Adam and Woody, while Josh Woodworth won the limited fleet (and 3rd overall) with Tim Cleary in second (4th overall) and Alex Monroe (newly married…congrats!) in third (9th overall).

The Sport fleet was very competitive with FIVE different sailors winning a race. Dan Thorton came away with the win, followed closely by Kelly Johnson, and Mark Schmitz.

The Workshop fleet featured five sailors, and Kylan Johnson from Minnesota got the top score. He was followed by Niels Zaunmueller from Beaver Dam, WI, and Marc Dascenzo.

Thanks again to the Vande Corput family and everyone who made this event possible. They did a great job. Thanks also to the sponsors; it is safe to say this regatta has some of the best community support of any of the events we have.

Up next is the Menominee Festival Regatta August 8-9. Be sure to check the MOWIND calendar for other events this year, as well as the updated MOWIND Series Scores.

– Arden Anderson reporting

Results:

2009 A Fleet Scores

2009 Sport Fleet Scores

2009 Workshop Scores

Photos by Jan Vande Corput (click on thumbnails for higher-resolution picture):

The 2009 Walleye Wagatta windsurfing race was held on Lake Winnebago in Fond du Lac, WI last weekend (May 9-10) off of Roosevelt Park. This event was put on by the Wind Power Windsurfing Center as part of the MOWIND Race Series and 17 sailors from WI, MN, IA, and IL were in attendance.

Saturday racing conditions were overcast with 10-15 mph winds and intermittent rain. Still, six races were completed and competition in the A-Fleet was tightly contested between Andy Gratton of Oshkosh and Don Altmyer of Taycheedah, with Peter Hartwich of Excelsior, MN in third place. The Sport Fleet was also tight with Mark Schmitz of Fond du Lac, Greg Anshus of Rochester, MN, and 13-year-old Magnus Zaunmueller of Beaver Dam as the top three after the first day.

Racing resumed Sunday morning to brighter skies and light winds. Fortunately the winds increased just prior to racing, and four more races were completed in 15-20 mph winds. Gratton and Altmyer continued their battle and ended the regatta tied for points, with Gratton taking the title on a tiebreaker (he had five 1st place finishes to Altmyer’s four). Hartwich continued his strong sailing to finish in third place.

In the Sport Fleet, Magnus Zaunmueller came on strong to win all four races in the higher wind to close the gap on Schmitz, also resulting in a tie at the top of the Sport Fleet. Magnus won the tiebreaker with all four of his bullets coming Sunday to give him the title with Schmitz finishing second overall (two first place finishes). Third place went to “Low Boom” Larry Reed of Des Moines, IA after he came on strong in Sunday’s racing.

A Workshop Fleet was also offered during the event, and 12-year-old Niels Zaunmueller (brother of Magnus) was the only participant to brave the challenging spring conditions. He showed remarkable board control and was able to successfully navigate the courses throughout the weekend. We look forward to seeing more from him as he moves up the fleets.

Del Carpenter won the event raffle and is now entered as a season finalist in the 2009 MOWIND raffle for the following three prizes: a KA Speed Sail, a GT-31 GPS (with memory card and Aqua Pak carrying case), and a cutting-edge wind meter.

The next race in the MOWIND Race Series is The Dam Jam in Des Moines, IA May 16-17, 2009. The MOWIND Race Series returns to Fond du Lac September 19-20 for the Wind Power Championships which are also part of the US Windsurfing National Race Tour.

RESULTS:

2009 Walleye A Fleet Results

2009 Walleye Wagatta Sport Fleet Results

2009 Walleye Workshop Fleet Results

PHOTOS (courtesy Igor Tereshchenko):

Yes,

 May Regatta’s are just around the corner!

The Midwest Speed Quest is now OPEN for business and touts some $5000.00 in prize money to the fastest sailors in the midwest.

Alum Creek, Saylorville Dam Jam, and the Walleye Regatta are just a few days away and need your support to be a continued success!

All Ages and Skills from beginners through experts are encouraged to attend. These events have a structured tiered racing level that allows you to race against others in your skill level and learn, while having a blast sailing with so many other friends!

Check out the event Notice of Race (NOR) on the event section(s) of this website.

Don’t forget to purchase raffle tickets for a chance to win some really cool gear at the end of he season!

See you on the water!