Travel

Laser sailors travel.

We travel to regattas (as they call them in America) or to "open meetings" as we used to call them in Real English in the old country.

Sooner or later most dinghy racers become tired of racing against the same old people around the same old buoys on the same old stretch of water. They decide to spread their wings and sail a regatta at the club in the next town, and then maybe try their hand at the district championship. Sometimes the travel bug strikes so bad that they drive halfway across the country to race in their National Championships, or head south in the winter for the Midwinters, or even travel abroad to international events.

I think Laser sailors travel more than many other classes, partly because it's so easy to transport a Laser, partly because of the sheer number of events to choose from in such a popular class, and partly because of the frequent availability of Lasers to charter at more distant regattas.

There are many reasons to travel to regattas. Variety. Meeting new people. Sailing against better competition. Experiencing different sailing conditions. There's no doubt that if you want to improve as a racer you really have to travel.

After my crazy attempt to sail my Laser 100 days in 2008 when I traveled all over the place, I've been pretty lazy about sailing in regattas over the last couple of years. I had all sorts of excuses. The weather forecast doesn't look too promising. I might have to get up early. It's too far to drive. I hate staying in crummy motels. There's too much waiting around and not enough sailing at regattas. I would rather play with my grandkids. Etc. Etc. Etc.

I had forgotten the real reason I used to travel to regattas. They are (usually) so much damn fun.

Last weekend I sailed my Laser in the Buzzards Bay Regatta. Hardly travel really as it's only half an hour down the road. It was a three day event, Friday, Saturday, Sunday.

Part of my motivation for going was that I am signed up for the Laser Masters Worlds in England next month and I thought it was about time I got some serious regatta practice in, not to mention checking out whether I am still even fit enough to race hard for three consecutive days. (The Worlds format is three days racing, a lay day, followed by three more days of racing - weather permitting.)

I was not disappointed by BBR (as everyone calls it.) Friday was a bit of bust with one light wind race, then a lot of waiting around, and then a second race with two huge shifts. But Saturday and Sunday were awesome. The kind of days that you come to Buzzards Bay for. A strong breeze of 15-20 knots, a little west of southerly, for all seven races on those two days. Gut-busting, leg-trembling, hard-hiking grinds upwind and plenty of waves to ride downwind. There were capsizes. There were breakages. There were retirements. And for those who could handle it, there was lots of fun and plenty of close competition.

That guy was there. The other guy was there. Many other old friends of mine were there. If I can summon up the energy after an exhilarating but exhausting weekend, I will write several more posts about my experiences at BBR 2010 over the next few days.

I came. I saw. I sailed the Buzzard.

Laser sailors travel. But as Frank Sinatra said, "It's so nice to go traveling but it's so much nicer to come home." When I arrived home on Sunday evening after the regatta there was a very pleasant surprise waiting for me. My son and his wife and their three kids were paying us a surprise visit on their way home from Cape Cod. My daughter-in-law and my grandkids stayed over at our house on Sunday night so I had the best of both worlds: three days of Laser racing and a whole day playing with my grandkids!

Life is good.

Laser sailors, "Travel!"