The Wellness Cup 2008
We took the day off on Friday to get to Branford. Brewers Bruce & Johnson Marina donated free dockage for the weekend, which was very generous of them. The forecast was for awful weather, with 20-30 kt. easterlies predicted. Fortunately, the wind subsided to about 15 kts. by late morning, so we motored over in the afternoon. After we registered at the Branford YC, Tim picked us up and we went out to dinner at Lenny's with Tim, Lori, and two work friends from England.
The next day after a hearty breakfast we got to the boat by 9AM. We put on our foulies, since the weather was threatening. We nailed the downwind start and took off towards Pond Point and back, which was about 17 nm. Of course, it started raining immediately, but the rain brought decent winds, so we got up to 7.4 kts. in about 10-15 kts. of breeze.
We finished in under four hours and got back to the dock by 3PM. We went out to dinner that night at Darbar India, which was hot and tasty. After an exhausting day, I was asleep by 10PM.
Sunday we had a lazy morning, and we got down to the Branford Yacht Club for the 1PM party. After the awards ceremony, we motored back to Milford under partly sunny skies. Many thanks to Tim & Lori for their wonderful hospitality, and Teri & Pete and the Wellness Cup volunteers along with the BYC for putting on a great event.
There were four classes, and results of the entire race is located
HERE. Full Tilt won our very small class (only one other boat) but we still had a great race and got the boat moving really well. We would have liked to have had another four or five boats to race against, but the weather forecast worked against participation this year. I'm sure next year we'll have a lot more boats entered, especially if we get better weather.
Joyce steers us back to the finish line. A rare break in the rain.
Lori and Tim braved the wet weather to crew for us.
Wild Eyes motors toward the line shortly before the race.
The weather finally broke on Sunday, just in time for the party!
Look at the grip Joyce has on that bottle of rum!
Tim and me, holding the cool looking trophy.
Thursday 9/18
Race Committee tonight!
It's the next to last Thursday night race of the year, and we were RC for it. The breeze was very fresh out of the NE and E, and since we only had about a hour or so until sunset, we put up a fairly fast course.
Crew tonight was Janel, Elizabeth, Derek, and Joyce.
A few crews thought the "B" course was funny for some reason.
Secret and the 30+ fleet starts and heads to Pond Point.
A sunset finish. It was getting chilly after the sun went down, so it was good to get in while it was still twilight.
Next week, The Harvest Moon Race & Raftup!
Vacation photos
Here's a bunch of photos (17) from our recent sailing vacation. You'll notice the weather is PERFECT in every picture. It's rare to sail for nine days and not get a drop of rain.
We had a downwind run from Milford, and along with way we passed Pete & Teri on
Wild Eyes, coming back from Newport; and a little while later we waved to our dock mates at Port Milford aboard
Cat's Paw. Click on any photo to get the full-sized version.
Here's Joyce where we anchored in New London on our first night, right across from Electric Boat. It was great having a very nice anchorage in such an urban area. We watched an endless parade of ferries going in and out until dark, and then the sounds of revelry drifted in from the town.
A submarine at the yard. Sadly, no subs were going out or arriving while we were there.
The lighthouse at the point going downriver from New London.
The New London Ledge lighthouse, a well-known landmark.
A schooner in Fisher's Sound on our way to Watch Hill.
There were a lot of boats racing. It gave us something to watch while we sailed again with the wind.
Another schooner that looks like a pirate ship off Watch Hill as we head to Block Island after a nice night anchored in Watch Hill.
A deer on one of the many Block Island greenways. There's some wonderful hiking on the island. Plus, we brought our folding bikes and did a lot of biking.
A Block Island sunset. I never get tired of these.
Me, under the cliffs at Block Rock Beach.
Joyce from the other direction.
Different day, different beach. Joyce on the beach just south of the New Harbor inlet. Having the bikes brought all the beaches on the island within reach.
And here she is again on the same beach.
A very scenic Block Island farm.
Full Tilt at the very best rental mooring on Block Island: #1. The palm tree got us a lot of fun comments and plenty of friendly waves.
After motoring to Mattituck, the day after that we took our bikes out to the wineries on the North Fork. The Borghese Winery had a great little courtyard and a cigar store attached. Here's Joyce enjoying a Maduro-wrapped Corona.
And me, also enjoying a smoke. After we finished that bottle, it was a little tricky riding the few miles back to the harbor. It's almost impossible to get lost in the North Fork, but we managed. We ended up along a scenic stretch of the old highway and actually enjoyed the detour.
The next day we sailed back to Milford. All in all, it was a fine vacation.
Joyce steers us back to the finish line. A rare break in the rain. 
Lori and Tim braved the wet weather to crew for us. 
Wild Eyes motors toward the line shortly before the race. 
The weather finally broke on Sunday, just in time for the party!
Look at the grip Joyce has on that bottle of rum!
Tim and me, holding the cool looking trophy.
