THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 22, 1995 TAG: 9510220010
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CINDY CLAYTON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
After experiencing all the fair and foul weather the Chesapeake Bay could serve up, nearly 30 schooners docked at the waterfront Saturday to celebrate the end of the sixth annual Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race.
This year's race, with the largest fleet in its short history, began Thursday with a hazy day that gave way to fair weather for a parade of sail in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
The starting guns for the four classes began sounding at 3 p.m. just south of the Bay Bridge near Annapolis with 31 boats crossing the starting line.
At least nine boats dropped out of the race by Friday because of light wind and some 15 other boats failed to meet the race's deadline of 10 a.m. Saturday.
First across the finish line at the Thimble Shoals Lighthouse was the 74-foot Woodwind, with a time of 23 hours, three minutes, 59 seconds.
Home-ported in Annapolis, Md., Woodwind crossed the line a minute and a half ahead of the 139-foot America out of Alexandria.
Both Woodwind and America placed first in their respective classes.
First place in Class B went to the 65-foot Adventurer, of Middle Haddam, Conn. First place in Class C went to the 47-foot Farewell, of Annapolis.
``The Bay threw everything that it possibly could at them,'' said Bill Beach, a race committee member.
A mix of light and gusty wind, fog and rain hampered the efforts of many of the skippers on the 120-mile trip.
But the stresses of the race weren't evident on the faces of the 650 skippers, crew members and spectators who came ashore for the festivities.
``The captains and crews came in and acted like nothing happened,'' said Bill Ripley, race chairman.
Jennifer Kaye, whose family owns and sails Woodwind, said the varying weather conditions allowed crews to strategize more than in years past.
``For us it was so much fun because the weather conditions were exactly what we wanted,'' Kaye said.
``As far as the race goes, out of all the races we're asked to do this is the best,'' said Marco Liebig, captain of the 135-foot New Way.
Each year, the race committee donates all entry fees to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation . This year $3,442 was raised.
The race is supported by sponsors and members of the community interested in raising awareness of the Bay, Ripley said.
Lane Briggs, founder of the race and owner of Rebel Marine in Willoughby, said he was pleased with the race and the money raised .
Among the other sponsors are Festevents and the Town Point and Fells Point Yacht clubs.
In 1989 Briggs challenged the captain of the Pride of Baltimore II to a race down the Bay.
Though Briggs lost, he decided to organize the Great Chesapeake Schooner Race in 1990.
The first race brought seven boats into downtown and began an annual event that Briggs says serves to educate the public about the Bay. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
JACK CARPENTER
The 156-foot schooner Tole Mour departs Baltimore's Inner Harbor on
Thursday, en route to the start of the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner
Race at the Bay Bridge near Annapolis. This year's race featured the
the largest fleet in its six-year history.
by CNB