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.