2026 ILCA Great Lakes Masters Regatta
Friday
I made the trip to Erie, Pennsylvania for a weekend of ILCA masters racing at Erie Yacht Club. I arrived just after noon on Friday, unloaded the boat, rigged, and headed out to see what Lake Erie had to offer before racing began.
There wasn’t much wind in the bay, but the larger boats out sailing looked to be moving, so I sailed down the bay and through the cut into the lake. About an hour later I reached open water where the breeze was a little better, giving me another hour of worthwhile practice before turning back.
By then the wind had faded again. The evening parade of powerboats heading home for dinner turned the cut into a washing machine, and without much breeze it became a slow battle just to make progress. I eventually made it through and continued drifting back toward the yacht club in almost no wind. I probably would have made it eventually, but Gavin came out in a powerboat and spared me the last part of the journey with a tow back to the dock.
Saturday
Saturday brought the first day of racing with 30 boats entered. The forecast wasn’t especially promising, and after everyone rigged we spent about an hour and a half postponed ashore waiting for enough wind to fill across Presque Isle Bay. Eventually a light northerly settled in, we launched down the single-lane ramp, and headed to the race course.
The first race was about as light as they come. I won the pin-end start and worked left, but the pressure never materialized where I expected it. By the time I crossed back, the left side had finally filled and I had dug myself a deep hole. The race was long, slow, and eventually shortened, and I held position to finish 16th.
By the second race the breeze had built into the 5-8 knot range. It was still light, but it was at least becoming a sailing race instead of a guessing contest. I again started well at the pin and worked left before finding myself farther back than I wanted around the first mark. The downwind leg was respectable, but the biggest improvement came on the second beat. With steadier pressure I could simply focus on boat speed instead of chasing every puff, and the boat felt great upwind. I picked off five boats on that leg and climbed to ninth.
The final race Saturday featured another solid start, this time from the middle of the line. I rounded the first mark around 12th or 13th and continued to feel fast upwind. After a course change on the second beat, I found good pressure on the right side and picked up a couple more boats to finish eighth.
Sunday
Sunday greeted us with more breeze, generally in the upper single digits to low teens, and three more races.
The first race of the day was my strongest of the weekend. I had an excellent start near the pin and rounded the first mark in the top five after keeping the maneuvers to a minimum and focusing on staying in phase. A crowded downwind leg cost me a couple of places, and another boat squeezed by at the final leeward mark to leave me with another eighth-place finish. Even so, it was satisfying to spend most of the race mixing it up near the front of the fleet.
The next race was another lesson in staying patient. The right side paid early, leaving me around 15th at the first mark, but I found some nice shifts on the second beat as the breeze began to soften again. Picking through the fleet, I worked back to an 11th-place finish.
With one race left, the overcast skies continued to threaten without ever delivering rain, and we still had enough wind for one more good race.
For the final start I committed to the boat end, but in trying to hold a couple of boats out I stalled myself and watched the fleet sail away. After tacking immediately to the right, I focused on keeping the boat moving, minimizing maneuvers, and looking for pressure rather than chasing every shift. That patience paid off on the second beat when a left shift and stronger pressure allowed me to pass at least ten boats and climb back into the top ten, finishing tenth after what looked like a very difficult opening lap.
Considering the forecast, the weekend turned out far better than expected. Aside from the closing part of the first race, we had enough breeze to complete a full six-race series and enjoy some competitive sailing.
A big thank you to Gavin and Holli for organizing another great event. Erie Yacht Club put together an enjoyable regatta, and it was well worth the trip to Lake Erie.
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