'Best Ever' Holmes Hole Season Comes to a Strong Close

Photo: At Last gets a 3rd on season's final day

Photo: Another full house at the HHSA line.

Photo: Bow Van Riper's Tyche captures August series with a string of top
finishes. All Photos by Susan Waldrop.

Special to MV Gazette & MV Times

By David Lott

The best ever. That's the conclusion of of racers and committee members
alike as last Sunday's two races closed the books on the 2014 Holmes Hole
Sailing Association summer season.

Twenty boats came to the starting line in the morning race—11 in the A
division and nine in the B. And 11 showed up for the afternoon loop to put
an exclamation mark on the satisfying argument that Holmes Hole had achieved
a milestone summer in participation and the simple enjoyment of sailing. All
the
contenders for season honors came to the line in order to cement their hold
on
their respective positions.

And by all accounts they did.

A southwest wind that started the morning's race in the mid-teens and built
up close to 20 with higher gusts by day's end, allowing the skippers to
demonstrate the power and speed of their respective boats and their ability
to smartly maneuver around the course.

Among the A's, Mo Flam skippered his Alerion 28 Penelope to a pair of
second-place finishes to maintain his grasp on the season's top spot.

And in the B's, Avanti, a Cape Dory 270 captained by David Lott, finished
well
enough to capture the B title. The official standings were revealed last
Wednesday
evening at the Annual Meeting and Pot Luck Supper held at the home of John
and
Lisa Stout in Vineyard Haven.

All racers tried to make the most of the day and their opportunities. In the
morning race, the fleet followed Course 2 in reverse. Frank Sutula captured
first place in the A division aboard the Hanse 335 Soma Holiday. Sutula hasn't
raced many times this summer, but when he did, he often finished at the top
of his division. Taking third was Jim Dixon and his Alerion 28 At Last.

In the B division, Frank DeSimone guided his Columbia 32 to the win,
followed by Dave McDonough on the C&C 37 Trinity. Veteran Dan Culkin
captured third, elevating his Vineyard Vixen Magic Time into the season's
top 3.

In the afternoon's shortened race, Commodore Jerry Goodale took the A gold
aboard Stormalong, a Pearson 33, while Roger Becker got the bronze aboard
Gloria, a C&C 24.

In the B's, Bow Van Riper finished a strong month of August with another
first aboard his Vineyard 15 Tyche. Magic Time and Trinity finished second
and third,
respectively, to round out the scoring, and a most satisfying season.

Race Alert. Watch Vineyard Haven harbor on Saturday morning when the annual
George Moffett Race begins with a first gun at 11:10 am. More than 40 boats
of all shapes and sizes will fill the horizon as they compete for the
coveted
summer-ending trophy.