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El Toro Fleet 16 2003 RACING RESULTS (Top 8 Finishers): |
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Cherry Blossom 2003 April 26th The 2003 Cherry Blossom Regatta was as challenging as always in the Tidal Basin. Jacie again showed her familarity with the Basin and always seemed to know where the wind was going to come from next. We welcomed this year Steve & Jacie's son Kyle Swenson for the first time and hope he will continue with the class his granddad founded in the DC area. Results: 1. Jacie Swenson, 2. Hank Muma, 3. Geoff Schneider, 4. Bill Schneider, 5. Chisolm McAvoy, 6. Val Taliaferro, 7. Alex Jacob, and 8. Brian Taliaferro. |
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Tuckahoe Spring Regatta, June 7th The Persistent Pouring Precluded this from Proceeding. The eastern US set records this year with rainfall at the expense of the Tuckahoe Spring Regatta. |
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The Rogers Regatta on the Corsica River, June 29th We had a good turnout, Tom & Carol came down from New Jersey, the Schneiders arrived on Nightingale and anchored out, and Hank drove down from Towson, having put his toro on top of his car all by himself! (We've been waiting ever since for him to show us how he did it. Results: 1. Bill Schneider, 2. Hank Muma, 3. Geoff Schneider, 4. Brian Taliaferro, 5. Chisolm McAvoy, 6. Val Taliaferro, 7. Tom Jones and 8. Carol Jones. |
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Cambridge Annual Regatta, July 12-13th The Cambridge Annual Regatta was the El toro Atlantic Coast Championship this year. It was held in threatening weather, but we mostly lucked out. We did see some high winds at times and some of our more conservative (smarter?) people elected to play it safe and returned to the club - Chisolm even tried to emulate a submarine for a while. We had split results in the usual father-son matchups. This time, Geoff trounced his dad Bill, but Val managed to squeak by his son Brian. The top eight overall were: 1. Geoff Schneider, 2. Val Taliaferro, 3. Brian Taliaferro, 4. Bill Schneider, 5. Hank Muma, 6. Chisolm McAvoy, 7. Tom Jones, and 8. Chisolm McAvoy. |
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Plantation Regatta, August 9th The Plantation Regatta was held at Bill Fry's summer home on St Inigoes Creek off the St Marys River close to where the Potomac River meets the Chesapeake Bay. As usual this summer, rain and thunderstorms were predicted. We dashed in from the second race for a premature lunch when lighting flashed all too near. Following the storm, we went out to finish the series in drifting conditions with occasional surprise puffs. Ye olde web meister won, but I can safely attribute that to optimising my luck. I should have gone to Los Vegas - I would have come back rich! The top eight overall were: 1. Bill Schneider, 2. Skip Fry, 3. Geoff Schneider, 4. Hank Muma, 5. Bill Fry, 6. Val Taliaferro, 7. Brian Taliaferro, and 8. Chisholm McAvoy. |
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Leukemia Cup Regatta, September 6th The 2003 Leukemia Cup was held by the Potomac River Sailing Association September 7th at the Washington Sailing Marina next to National Airport. This year we sailed with the Penguins, Lasers, plus a few miscellaneous classes. We sailed south of the basin in the main Potomac and had a tough time dealing with very light air, often barely enough to fight the outgoing current. The jets overhead on their final approach to National Airport were an important part of the tactics since they gave us a burst of air each time. The larger one-designs raced off of Hanes Point - they did not manage to finish any races at all! Finishing places: 1. Geoff Schneider, 2. Tom Jones, 3. Bill Schneider, 4. Hank Muma, 5. Carol Jones, 6. Val Taliaferro, 7. Brian Taliaferro, and 8. Chisolm McAvoy |
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Tuckahoe Fall Regatta, September 28th Some of us may still have been cleaning up from hurricane Isabel, but we did get 6 boats at the upriver Tuckahoe regatta, again well-hosted by Tom & Carol Jones at their riverfront home, aka Jones Boat Works. The regatta was mostly downwind during the hour sail up the river but gusts were interspersed with lulls where the wind circled around you numerous times. Hank Muma disappeared into the distance on this leg, although we closed in during the light shifty air upriver just before the turning mark. It was an entirely different picture returning back down the winding river - and the picture wasn't always pretty! The wind was mostly on the nose, occasionaly light to moderate, but most of it was boiling gusts whipping in from ahead. Bill capsized three times but managed to bail out and eventually finish. Tom capsized twice, but the rest of the fleet rode it out. Geoff & Hank handled it the best and they both disappeared into the distance. Many thanks for Griff & Anna Maria, and Barry Taylor for helping us with the much-appreciated crash boats. The finishing order was: 1. Geoff Schneider, 2. Hank Muma, 3. Val Taliaferro, 4. Carol Jones, 5. Bill Schneider, and 6. Tom Jones. |
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(calculated for those who got enough races in): 1. Geoff Schneider, 2. Hank Muma, 3. Bill Schneider, 4. Val Taliaferro, 5. Brian Taliaferro, and 6. Chisolm McAvoy. 
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