The 67th Annual ‘Round Island Race was another resounding success. While the breeze did not reach the heights that many of us were hoping for, it was solid enough to allow for a full circumnavigation and an early start to the party on Saturday, September 2, 2023. As always, the race was snakes and ladders due to the mysteries of the island tides and eddies. It really makes for an exciting day where you can be sure of one thing: the race isn’t over until you cross the finish.
Thank you to Elby Burr for piloting Kachina with the Race Committee aboard, peerless Club Manager Beth Arsenault and her crack staff for coordinating and facilitating dockage for the competitors and keeping the party running, Commodore Tom duPontand Kirk Razza for driving the photo boat, and a special thanks to members Steve and Nette Head for shooting and curating 1,400 pictures (!), capturing every single competitor in the regatta. And there were a lot of competitors—77 boats across 9 classes. Thank you, to all the sailors who competed, to the Mudheads for RCing and organizing, to our great FIYC staff for putting order to chaos (as much as possible), and to all the members who volunteered their time to make things run smoothly.
Steve and Nette are working comprehensively through the 1,400 race photographs. They’ve managed to capture the beauty, grace, camaraderie, and spirit that has long made the ‘Round Island Race the crown jewel of the racing season. The images will be shared below shortly.
