Stanwich Sailing 2008

The water temp is 56 degrees, the days when it isn't blowing over 20 or raining are becoming fewer and farther between, and the air temp is rarely reaching 60 these days, so short of putting on dry suits, it's time to call an end to the Stanwich School sailing season for the year.

This was the second year of existence for Stanwich Sailing, which is an impressive program considering that most schools don't offer sailing in gym class. Our group of fourteen 7th, 8th, and 9th graders did a great job this season in their club 420 fleet. They proved they could sail in the cold, the rain, and wind gusting to 25. There were only a handful of capsizes. We ran close to 100 races run throughout the season. All we need is somebody to race against...

Thanks for a fun season!

Annapolis November 2nd

It was a great day on the Chespeake on Sunday November 2nd, and a great season finisher for many.Pictured above is the Soling fleet sailing their Nationals near the Bay Bridge. Also on the water were a J105 fleet sailing the Chesapeake Bay Championship and the IRC East Coast Championship Regatta- both sailing down near Thomas Point Light. It was a great day to get our last photos of the season and it's always great to have a reason to go to Annapolis. Next stop: Florida. We're looking forward to taking photos at Key West Race Week 2009.

See the 2008 Soling Nationals photos here.

Click here for the 2008 IRC East Coast champs photos.

J105 Chesapeake Bay Champs photos: click here.

2008 Heineken High Performance Dinghy Open

The 2008 Heineken HPDO could have had more breeze overall, but we were still grateful for about two hours of ten knots between Saturday and Sunday. It's been a little bit frustrating for weekend sailors this fall, with heavy breeze coming more frequently during the week. But at least it's warm...

The HPDO has grown significantly since we first photographed it in 2006. With the growing RSK6 and Viper 640 fleets on Long Island Sound, the event has doubled. The Moths, of course, added some nice hype this year and a big A Cat fleet came from far and wide. But still, the classic High Performance boats are fun to watch: International Canoes, 505s, I 14s, Flying Dutchmen, Fireballs, Contenders and more. They'd be even more fun to sail, of course. If I had time to sail at these events instead of photographing them, I'd be in one of these boats, if not a laser.

Thanks to Heineken for being such a great sponsor, including covering our fees for the event CDs and awards photos.

See the photos here.

American Yacht Club Fall Series 2008

Despite a mediocre forecast for around 10 knots and rainy, the conditions in the middle of Long Island Sound created some dramatic photos afterall thanks to the fact that Long Island Sound opens to the East. After three days of strong Easterly breezes, the sound was still pretty bumpy on Saturday morning. Here, the J44s are looking good in tight competition. We played with the saturation a bit in photoshop. Normally we are minimalists when it comes to photo tweaking, relying on our ability to take good photos, not to make them, but when you take as many as 10,000 photos a month, sometimes you just need to do something a little different to stay interested.

Allen happened upon a classic yacht regatta out of Hempstead Harbor and got some great photos of classic yachts punching through the waves. The photos are mixed in with the AYC Fall Series photos, sorted by boat name. Check out the photos here.

2008 CT Opti Champs

These are the kids that don't just race in the summer to get a tan and go swimming; these kids were racing on a rainy fall Saturday, getting ready for the Atlantic Coast Champs (won by a Long Island Sound sailor last year) in a few weeks. Many of these kids go to regattas in Europe and other parts of the world, in addition to different parts of this country. See the photos here and look out for these kids in the future- they'll be the collegiate All Americans.

Connecticut Maritime Association 12 meter Regatta 2008

The Annual CMA 12 Meter Regatta in Greenwich almost didn't happen this year, with a forecast for 25-30 knots and 100% chance of rain on Friday September 26th. But they made a great call and nine 12 meters went out in moderate breeze and raced. In fact, the classic 12s were all asked to shake out their reefs by the end of the day. Pictured to the right are the two Grand Prix 12s, which were match racing each other during the CMA regatta. The significance here is that both yachts are named America II, both having been built for the same cup campaign in 1987. US 42, to windward with the unfortunate "Be Fabulous" on the jib, and US 46, to leeward, were built along with US 44 to become the NYYC syndicate. 46, deemed faster in the heavy air and big seas of Perth, Australia, went on to sail in the Louis Vuitton cup but did win the challenger position for the America's Cup; 42, it can be said became more notorious, however, as it "starred" in the '90s movie "Wind". In fact, it was repainted only last year after keeping the Geronimo name and design for years.

US 42 is owned and sailed by the 12 meter Yacht Development Foundation, which is dedicated to restoring and maintaining 12 meters. Read more about the Greenwich, CT- based non-profit organization's mission and become a member here.

US 44 is a charter boat in Hawaii.

See more CMA Regatta photos here.

2008 Viper ACC

The breeze was on the lighter side for the 2008 Viper 640 Atlantic Coast Championships, held Sept 20-21st out of Stamford Yacht Club, but the enthusiasm was strong. The Viper fleet has been growing rapidly on Long Island Sound, and across the East Coast. We're looking forward to photographing Vipers again during the Heineken HPDO in Rye, NY over Columbus Day Weekend. Let's keep our fingers crossed for some good breeze. Still, these boats look pretty good even in 5 knots.

See the Viper ACC photos here.

2008 Greenwich Cup photos

It's not an uncommon occurance for a group of 20 or so racing sailboats to be sitting around waiting for wind to fill in on Long Island Sound, but for some reason at the Greenwich Cup, people got very creative. The waiting became part of the action. It's a huge help for a photographer sitting alone in an 11' boat to have people doing tricks for him.



Here, SoulMate topped the USMMA's spreader jumping with a spreader dive. Kids, don't try this at home.



Still, the creativity points go to the USMMA for "floorboarding". Believe it or not, a Farr 40 can easily tow a USMMA male student standing on a floorboard.

The group still managed to get three races in over the light-wind weekend and PhotoBoat provided 8x10s in the club's engraved frames for the awards. They looked great!

See the Greenwich Cup racing and fun photos here.

The Vineyard Race and the Denmark Race

Ironically, the Vineyard Race is not quite to the Vineyard and back and the Denmark Race is most definitely not to Denmark and back. Both races are held by Stamford Yacht Club and are among the most important on the Long Island Sound annual racing calendar.

See the 2008 Vineyard Race Photos here

and the 2008 Denmark Race Photos here

Labor Day Weekend's Vineyard Race was a bit of a floater this year, but it's still a great race with a lot of history and importance on Long Island Sound. Conditions at the start were light, but the setting sun and some interesting clouds made the 60-or-so yachts nicely photogenic without even heeling over.


We got a kick out of seeing Donnybrook at this race just a few weeks after photographing them in a race from Annapolis to St. Mary's City, MD- the Governor's Cup.

The Stamford Denmark Race, also known as the Cheese Race, is a one-day race outside of Stamford Harbor that always has great attendance, particularly among boats that don't necessarily race a lot. This year the weather was similar to 2006, with nice clear skies on the heals of a cold front. The breeze was a lighter northwesterly, but still brought a few good gusts in.

See both events' 2007 and 2008 photos at www.PhotoBoat.com

2008 Opera House Cup photos

The 2008 Opera House Cup was an amazing regatta: big breeze, sunny skies, and beautiful classic yachts. View the photos here.

It was a perfect culmination for Nantucket Race Week, with more boats, more wind and a lot of spectators. The fanfare began with the Rainbow parade in the harbor at 10 am, then within a couple of hours, all of the classes in the classic yacht race were started and off around Nantucket sound.

The only negative for the day was the high number of boats that had to retire due to equipment failure. It's so great to see these old boats mainained in racing form, but when parts break, the owners can't just order new ones from West Marine.

But spirits were still high at the party and awards ceremony at Jetties Beach Sunday night, and with that it was the end of another Nantucket Race Week and Opera House Cup.

The photos tell the story; see them here.

Nantucket Race Week 2008: business and pleasure

Nantucket is the place to be for classic yacht enthusiasts. The local boats alone amount to a large collection of historic vessels that are wonderful to look at. Add Nantucket Race Week and the Opera House Cup, and you've got one of the biggest collection of classic yachts that we've ever seen.

See the photos here.

We can see it all from our spot on anchor in the harbor and even got to see some too close as we woke up in the middle of the night "rafted" with a ketch. Not our fault...we were here first and thought they had set hook a little too close. No damage done, just some time on deck during a downpour at three am.

We beefed up our anchor system in Key West so we are pretty confident in our hold here in 7 ft of water, even though we just watched an unmanned C&C drag by us and alerted the harbormaster.

We've got some great shots of 12 meters, International One Designs, and other classic and some not-as-classic yachts during Nantucket Race Week on Thursday and Friday.

See our photos here.

Saturday we did something a little different and opted to sail instead of taking pictures. With a pretty light forecast and overcast sky in the morning, and many of the same boats racing as the day before....and a desire to do more of the thing we like most that got us into this business...we "played hooky" and raced instead of photographing. The W class yacht White Wings had us aboard trimming jib and it was a great change of pace.

With the event-culminating Opera House Cup next on the docket, we're looking forward to even more classic yacht action and Nantucket harbor excitement.

Underway: Norwalk to Nantucket

Sunrise between Block Island and Martha's Vineyard, August 13th, 2008.

We left Norwalk at around 2 pm Tuesday, August 12th, a good time to leave to hit the Race right at an average speed of 6 to 6.5 knots. With 10-15 from the Northwest, shifting to Southwest, in the forecast, the trip was looking good. Our boat (Gulfstar 37, aka condo that sails fast on a reach) doesn't like to sail upwind- or really, we don't like to sail upwind at 55+ degree tacking angles- so we usually do our best to avoid big upwind stretches in high seas. No issue here.

The overnight "sail" was pretty easy, with lighter breezes than forecasted oscillating between NW and SW. We motor-sailed the entire way, never having enough breeze to push us at more than 5 knots under sails alone and liking the idea of getting our fridge nice and cold since we'd be on battery power alone for the coming week.

We went through the Race at 11 pm, passed close to Block Island at 3 am, and arrived in Nantucket at 3 pm. If that's not enough info for you...you can track us at our SPOT page.

Next on the event list, Nantucket Race Week and the Opera House Cup photos.

Meet Connor Fitzpatrick

Connor Fitzpatrick has been helping us cover local events this summer on Long Island Sound. He can call Longshore Sailing School his turf, and he’s done a great job capturing the kids in action. See the photos here. Connor got the hang of PhotoBoat-style photography very quickly- understanding how important close-up shots are and maneuvering confidently and safely in the dinghy. His AP photography training and professional equipment made the technical aspect easy for him. Connor has also done a lot of underwater photography and studied under Armando Jenik, who we had the pleasure of working with while shooting for Yacht Shots BVI in 2006.

Connor is a rising senior at the Brunswick School in Greenwich and a former JSA of LIS sailor out of Noroton Yacht Club. He’s got all the skills necessary to do well in this business, including a great entrepreneurial drive.

See more of Connor's work here.

Introducing Nick Pro

Nick Pro is a marine photographer to keep an eye on. At the age of 15, he has already been hired for some photography jobs and has collected a nice portfolio of images. Nick helped us cover the Red Grant Jr. Regatta in July, enjoying a first chance to try photographing while harnessed into the dinghy. He did a great job and his photos can be seen on our site, here.

Nick is a laser radial sailor from the Philadelphia area; he sails regularly on the Delaware River and also travels to Annapolis and other mid-atlantic sailing venues. He has also competed in some star regattas, including this year’s Bacardi Cup in Miami.

More of Nick’s photos can be seen on his Flickr site,

Keep an eye out for Nick Pro's work on PhotoBoat...he'll certainly be taking some more shots with us in the future.

YRALIS Champs 2008

A little bit of breeze went a long way yesterday as it often does on Long Island Sound in the summer. The YRALIS Championship Regatta was rescued by about 12 knots from the Southwest at 1 pm Sunday.

See the photos here.



The YRALIS Champs, in its third year, is a great event that brings LIS clubs together. Larchmont YC hosted one-design racing for S Boats, Etchells, Shields and RSXs; Indian Harbor ran a very efficient Laser and Ideal 18 race course inside Captain Harbor, and Riverside managed the PHRF course mid-sound.

The three courses create a lot of distance for us to cover, but we had two dinghies out there to make it possible.

We got a chance to try out our new toy/lifesaving device, the latter feature being what justified buying it (though it is actually very affordable). SPOT gps tracker is pretty cool. See Allen's track from Sunday here.

For more info about YRA LIS Champs 2008, see the YRA website, www.YRALIS.org .

For photos, click here.

Governor's Cup 2008

Yes, we were back on the Chesapeake, and here's a shot of another screwpile lighthouse to prove it. This time it's the Thomas Point light, left to starboard by Governor's Cup racers on their way from Annapolis to St. Mary's College at the mouth of the Potomac.

See the 2008 Gov Cup photos here.


We did this exact trip in November '06 on our way to Key West from CT, but we did not have to anchor in the middle of the trip to avoid drifting backwards like many of these sailors did. That's the beauty of a working engine (not always to be taken for granted) and a need to get South before it gets even colder.



But enough about us. Around 150 boats of varying sizes started at sunset and finished throughout the next day on the 70-mile race down the Chesapeake.



Conditions were very light at the start, but the setting sun created some nice soft light, as expected.



This event includes a photography competition and also draws a lot of spectator boats from Annapolis, especially on such a calm evening. The result, lots of spirit for the race- a good thing- but also a lot of big boats buzzing around the start on a light wind night. Dude, get a dinghy.


This wake was the result of something big. I watched American Flyer and Dame Blanche get knocked to a standstill. It took them several minutes to get any boatspeed back while the rest of their division pushed ahead.

As the sun set, we dinghied back to Annapolis, put the boats on the trailer and drove to Historic St. Mary's City. St. Mary's is the original capital of Maryland, but is not in our GPS or in Mapquest. It's a beautiful place if a little hard to find.

The next morning, with a dozen or so boats already on the dock after a nocturnal finish, we captured many boats heading toward the finish in a variety of conditions, including pouring rain in the middle of a storm.

The nice light before the storm and the banks of the river made for some great shots, like the is one of the St. Mary's College team on Hendonism.


With only one or two hours of sleep behind them, hundreds of sailors enjoyed a 12-hour party on St. Mary's College campus, with three bands, many local vendors, ice cream, and a beer truck that opened at 10 am.

For photos of the 2008 Gov Cup, click here.

For more about this event full of tradition and fun, including this year's results, see the SMCM website: www.smcm.com/govcup

7,000 photos later: Screwpile Lighthouse Challenge 2008

135 boats raced in this year's Screwpile Lighthouse Challenge in Solomons, MD...and two dinghies were buzzing around them taking photos. Three days, 20 knots, 4-foot seas, one super thunderstorm, countless bottles of Mount Gay, 3 bands, and 7,000 photos later, everybody was exhausted, but happy.

We had a great time at this event, which is packed full of onshore fun (it's the only regatta with a band formed in its honor and therefore named after it). It's kind of a mini Key West Race Week, just a little more friendly and laid-back. Chesapeake-style.
Sunday's conditions were first rate, with a building breeze and growing seas; by 2 pm it was hitting 20 knots and it was getting bumpy. Even this double-jibber in the non-spinnaker division is flying downwind. Double-jibbing was quite popular on the West Course and we got a kick out of it.

For more info and results, go to www.screwpile.net.

For the 2008 Screwpile Lighthouse Challenge photos, go to http://www.thephotoboat.com/Screwpile_Lighthouse_Challenge_Photos_2008.html

Red Grant Regatta 2008: Fun, wind, and great photos

Raritan Yacht Club knows how to throw a party. Thanks to a great volunteer organizing committee, the forethought to hold a big annual event that includes many types of boats and sailors, a modern club, a good reggae band, and many other factors (including PhotoBoat slideshows, of course), the Red Grant Regatta is a good time.

The party was good, but the sailing was better! See the 2008 Red Grant Regatta photos here.

89 boats plus a bunch of Optis and other kids fleets, combined with good sea breezes and sunny skies, is enough to make you forget that the water isn't quite Key West green or BVI blue. Who cares? We had a lighthouse, the NJ and Staten Island coastlines, and a lot of commercial traffic to put in the background of our shots. When you take around 4,000 photos a week, little things like interesting backgrounds and this shot with the cormorant being startled by Project Mayhem on her way to the weather mark keep us interested.

The J80s called the Red Grant their ECCs and a 15-boat fleet added an exciting complement to the cruiser and PHRF divisions, which were also incredibly strong in numbers. Throw in some J105s and J109s and a couple of First 36.7s and you've got a diverse bunch of boats.

We thought the trophies were pretty cool, too.

Next stop, the Screwpile in Solomons Island, MD. We've never been, but it sounds like it will be another fun event.

Red Grant Results: http://www.redgrant.org/

2008 Red Grant Regatta photos: http://www.thephotoboat.com/Red_Grant_Regatta_Photos_2008.html

Law Trophy 2008: photo coverage

The Law Trophy 2008 was an event for photographing roll tacks and other close up action, just like many other events will be during the July doldrums that plague Long Island Sound Jr. regattas. But light wind sailing is a skill and these Law Trophy participants proved their prowess.

Competition was tight in the Laser, Laser Radial and 420 fleets, with some big names on LIS competing. The results can be found on IHYC's website, http://www.indianharboryc.com/.

Photos are sorted by last name and sail number and we have several of each boat. See them here.

The law trophy marks the first big event of the JSA season and we look forward to a month packed with regattas. For details, see http://www.jsalis.org/.

There's nothing like a PhotoBoat slideshow to kill time during a protest hearing...

2008 Newport to Bermuda Race photos

What a spectacle! 198 yachts sailed across the starting line in Newport as hundreds of spectator boats lined the "sidelines", the Coast Guard protected the racing area, people lined the cliffs and the lawn at the Inn at Castle Hill, and 5 helicopters flew overhead. See the photos of the sailboats beating their way away from Newport here.

With sixteen starts, it took two and a half hours to get every boat across the line, many of them a little overzealous. I couldn't believe how many boats were called over early; in fact the PRO was making special announcements reminding people not to jump the gun. The ebbing tide didn't help.

From a dinghy-bound photographer's perspective, this was a challenge, and the helicopters were looking pretty cushy. We'll see what happens between now and 2010's Bermuda Race, but nothing beats the close up photos.

Allen got great action photos of most of the boats, including some great crew shots to commemorate the trip. We're wondering...will they stay on the rail the entire time?? We've delivered a sailboat to Bermuda, but haven't raced there yet.

It was time to call it a day for dinghy photographer man when he found himself 9 miles out, couldn't feel his legs anymore and almost hit a shark. No joke. Only a six-footer or so, but that is half the length of the dinghy. Other than that, he could have stayed out twice as long. Engine was working well, still about 3/4 tank of gas remaining, gps working, plenty of spare water, life jacket and kill switch on.

We were pleased to see a bunch of Long Island Sound boats cross the line. Cabady, Christopher Dragon, Avra, Gold Digger, Devocean, Gracie, Stampede, Charlie V, Challenge IV, Vamp, High Noon, Patriot, Maxine, Snow Lion, and many more. Go Long Island Sound.

Best of luck to all 133 boats for a fast, safe trip. Speedboat is probably already there...

To see the 2008 Newport to Bermuda Race photos, click here.

Block Island Race Week Photos 2008

Block Island Race Week is always a great place for photos (click here to see the 2008 photos), whether it's an even year or an odd year. The logistics are always tricky for everybody, including PhotoBoat, because dinghying* from Pt. Judith to Block for a daily commute is...actually where we draw the line. So we sailed here and anchored in the harbor for the second year in a row. If only we could afford the time to travel to every regatta by sailboat!


*Dinghying and any form of "to dinghy" is probably not actually a word, but it's definitely part of our vocabulary.

We took advantage of our extra photoboat by sending Allen up the mast to get some photos on Tuesday. Take that helicopters! Only .9 gallons per hour. Hence our photos will be posted and available at our normal prices.



Wednesday, regatta participants sailed their Around the Island Race, which is always great for photography. Block Island is such a beautiful place, with lighthouses, dunes, cliffs, and mansions; all of these are among the top backgrounds for sailing photos.


This year, it's a small fleet at Block Island Race Week, with a handful of Swan 42s, over a dozen J105s, and others, totaling just over 50 boats. It's nice being on Block Island when things are a little quieter than the rucous created by the 200 boats in 2007. The low participation is due to conflict with the Newport to Bermuda race, which starts Friday, June 20, 2008. We'll be headed there next. Keep an eye on PhotoBoat.com for the Bermuda Race photos.

See the Block Island Race Week photos by Allen Clark here.

NYYC Annual Regatta 2008 photos - Around the Island Race

The outlook was bleak this morning as we arrived in Jamestown, RI to take photos of the NYYC Annual Regatta's Around the Island Race. The forecast for 5 knots had held. But the start was postponed about 45 minutes and it was worth the wait; the glassy water turned to whitecaps as the seabreeze filled in. With bright sun, interesting background scenery and a decent amount of wind, what more can a photographer ask for? How about the fastest, newest boats to photograph...Puma, the new Moneypenny, Bella Mente, Rambler, and many more.



Today's course was clockwise around Conanicut Island (Jamestown), just like last year. This year visibility was a lot better and we are much more familiar with the area, but where's the challenge there?..





The Around the Island Race photos are a must see. Check them out here:



http://www.photoboat.com/




The New York Yacht Club regattas are always great ones to photograph and we are big fans of hanging out in Newport, but we had to head back to Connecticut this afternoon. Saturday we head to Larchmont to photograph 2008 Vanguard 15 Nationals for Sailing World Magazine. This regatta is the biggest V15 Nationals in history, with over 100 boats entered. We're keeping our fingers crossed for some breeze like today's.

Upcoming 2008 photos: New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta, Block Island Race Week, and Newport to Bermuda

The busy season is upon us! We're looking forward to an action-packed upcoming week with New York Yacht Club 154th Annual Regatta, Block Island Race Week 2008, and Newport to Bermuda 2008. Zipping around a great line-up of boats competing in the Bermuda Race this year will be a blast. Too bad we can only cover the start. We've sailed to Bermuda before, but a 60' Swan was a much better ride than a 12' dinghy would be. If only we could find a place to re-fuel...


We loved the NYYC Annual Regatta Around the Island Race last year, and the fog made for some great photos. 2008's entry list is looking strong as well.

Regatta participation seems to be better than ever right now. Keep it up!

See all of the 2007 and 2008 photos at http://www.photoboat.com/ or directly in the gallery: http://www.photoboatgallery.com/lightbox/index.php