CATAWBA YACHT CLUB FLEET 365
2003 Fleet Report

Southeastern District

Sailing on Lake Wylie

Charlotte, North Carolina

Fleet Captain/Secretary……....Ron Wright

The 2003 Lightning season began at Catawba Yacht Club the kick-off regatta for the Southeastern Lightning District – the Cottonwood Regatta.  This year, the club initiated the Brevard Myers Cup to the highest finishing CYC boat.   Bill Wiggins in the Vanguard Class took the honor.  Pierce Barden won the event for the Lightning class..    The regatta party featured southern bar-b-que complete with a ten-piece bluegrass band.

The 2003 year began with the conclusion of the CYC winter series.  John Holmes placed third in a combined Lightning/J22 class.  The club’s spring series ran April 5 to May 30.  John Holmes showed all the improvement he has made in that past few years by winning the Lightning class.  The CYC summer series started on June 10 and ran through August 12.  This is a winner take all multi-class series.  Bill Wiggins won the overall award in a Vanguard.  Ron Wright was the highest placing Lightning at third.

The Catawba Fall Series cranked up on September 7 and ended on November 1.  We tried something new to build participation by making it a two-man–no-chute series.   The results were exceptional.  Six boats competed and all six completed the minimum number of races required to place.  Ron Wright won first, but the remainder of the fleet all placed within a few points of each other.  Chip Arnett took second.  Newcomer Steve Milsap, 9398, won his first Lightning race as a skipper on October 18.

Ron Wright, Tom Martin, John Homes, and Steve Milsap continue to venture outside the CYC gates for district and regional sailing.  Ron, Tom, and John completed the minimum number of races to qualify for the Southeastern District Traveling Trophy for the second year in a row.  They finished a career best fifth at the VooDoo Regatta on Lake Norman.

Our 2003 report would not be complete without mentioning two events.  Ron Wright and John Holmes embarked on a one week “Sailing Safari” that took them from Raleigh, NC to Solomon’s Island, MD in June.  We sailed five out of nine days and met many new friends in the Lightning Fraternity.  That event is chronicled at http://www.sailsoutheast.org/SafariHome.htm.   The second event was the 2003 Wrightsville Beach Regatta.  On one hand, we tamed incredibly tough conditions.  One the other hand, we survived a harrowing capsize.  The whole story is at http://www.sailsoutheast.org/wrightsville_beach.htm. 

2003 was an up year for Fleet 365.  We are highly encouraged by the participation of six boats in our fall series.  Participation in SELD district racing has grown also.

We look forward to another season of great racing and friendship in 2004.

-Ron Wright     

Ron Wright, Tom Martin, and John Holmes tame Jordan Lake at the 2003 SELD Championships.  Photo by Jim Kransberger.  www.southeastsportsphotos.com