March came in with some vigor (at least for one day) as the FD fleet joined other classes at the Davis Island Yacht Club recently for their Midwinter regatta.
The event actually started as the Fireball Midwinters, but over the years other classes have been invited to join. The regatta is now known as Fireballs and Friends. DIYC is a very active, sailing oriented club that hosts many noted regattas each year.
We are trying again this year to participate in the Fireball & Friends Regatta at the Davis Island Yacht Club. This is a good venue on the other side of Tampa Bay NE of MacDill AFB. The location tends to provide better wind this time of year and Davis Island YC has an active racing community and race management group. We would like to make this a regular deal.
FD teams from as far away as California, the Northeast and Ohio converged on the St. Petersburg Yacht Club for a three day weekend of sailing and get togethers. We shared the bay Saturday and Sunday with the Snipe fleet.
Conditions ranged from 2nd grommet for a lighter team on Friday, to lighter the rest of the series, but in the end seven races had been ably run by the SPYC race commitee. There were the usual current and particulars of a north breeze that St. Pete is famous for, with dividends being paid to those selecting the correct (usually left) orientation to the strong flood current upwind.