Dog Napping, Water Balloons and Champagne
May 2, 2008
Bring a Close to the GUNBOAT Shootout
Final Day of GUNBOAT Antigua Race 2008
Friday, May 2, 2009
By Lynn Fitzpatrick
The GUNBOAT Caribbean Shoot-out came down to the final day of racing during the Stanford Antigua Sailing Week. The windy air warriors on Safari did their war dance following their victory in the heavy air Heineken Regatta. All of the other teams retrenched and went into the Antigua Sailing Week with a strategy to take down Safari and her men. The close of the Caribbean sailing season meant light air in the Western Leeward Islands. Spectacular starts, much improved crew work and masterful tactics were needed to win the regatta and the first GUNBOAT Shootout.
Armed with whips and billy clubs, Elvis and his gang sauntered down the dock to Lickity Split. Standing high on his port pontoon, John Kwitek asked for nothing more than for Bruce to get down on his knees and pray that the wind gods die today so that Lickity could put the nail in the coffin and win the series without contesting the final race. Slayden looked deeply into his wife, Nora’s eyes and then into Pickles’ helpless big brown eyes and got down on his knees.
Still stewing over the dog napping within the cat family, hound dog Slayden pulled out his “funnelator” on the way to the starting line and took aim at Lickity Split. The battle royale raged on throughout every leg of the race. With crosses, dips and overlaps Lickity could not shake Elvis as the breeze built. The final spinnaker hoist of the day proved to be Lickity’s downfall. As she ran over her kite and shredded it to pieces, Elvis surged across the finish line about a minute ahead of Lickity who was licking her wounds.
Looking for Elvis
Cream
Safari
Lickity Split 2
BLAST
Hammer
GUNBOAT Class Overall Winners from
Stanford Antigua Sailing Week 2008:
1st Overall: Lickity Split 2
2nd Overall: Looking For Elvis
3rd Overalll: Safari
CONGRATULATIONS GUNBOAT CLASS!
Raising the Profile of Sailing and Sailors, World Regattas’ Lynn Fitzpatrick, has joined the GUNBOAT family for Stanford Antigua Sailing Week.
