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t’s been at least a decade since Lightning boats have competed in one-design races in Oriental. That changed on the weekend of May 17-18 as a dozen Lightnings — and their from Virginia, Maryland and the Carolinas competed in the Southeast Lightning Regionals.

The race course on Sunday as clouds moved in.(Photo: Bob Luhrs)

It was the first of three small-boat one-design racing events in Oriental and Pamlico County this year. Two weeks after the Lightning regionals, the Sunfish Masters takes place in Oriental and is expected to draw dozens of sailors 50 and older. And in October, at Camp Seagull, the Sunfish Worlds. The Superbowl of Sunfish racing.

And the winners are: Henry McCray captain of the winning boat, and, Beryl Foster, and Scott Weller of Charleston, SC. The red Lightning bolt trophies were made by student at a school in Virginia.(Photo: Joe Mattea)

A group of sailors in Oriental – Joe Mattea, Jerry Dasson, Gordon Kellogg, Jim Flaherty, John Rahm, George Secrist, Bill Wheeler, Bill Michne, Grace Evans, Carol Dixon – has been working to bring more races to The Sailing Capital of NC. They started last year to pitch Oriental as a place to have one-design competitions. As Joe Mattea puts it, “we really felt like 2014 would be a year of just getting the word out that Oriental is ‘Open for Business Again‘”.

Instead, the waters off of Oriental are seeing a flurry of racing activity this year.

There was wind to fill a spinnaker.(Photo: Bob Luhrs)

Joe Mattea says that the first weekend with the Lightnings went well. The Lightning sailors “were pretty positive about the job we did this time,” says Mattea, “and I’d be surprised if there weren’t 20-25 boats next time.”

And skies hanging low.(Photo: Bob Luhrs)

He says that they “told us they would like very much to come back.” There’s no formal commitment yet – schedules need to be worked out not only for the racers but for the race officials, who come from the Oriental Dinghy Club.

Joe Mattea, left, checks in another of the three dozen sailors who would take part in the races. Participants were given commemorative mugs.

This group promoting Oriental as a racing location doesn’t have a formal name though most of those involved are members of the Oriental Dinghy Club, and are working in parallel with ODC. ODC provided race officials on Saturday and some of its members will be very much involved with the upcoming Sunfish Masters.

After a long day of racing, boots put out to dry.

More photos ahead…

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A lot of effort and energy was expended before the boats even hit the water. The parking lot at the Wildlife ramp was a staging area for stepping masts on Saturday morning.

Randy Beauchamp and Charlie Wardwell worked to get the mast in place, with Charlie’s son, Mason providing management. They’d traveled to Oriental from Roanoke, VA

Stepping the mast.

Jim Dillard of Fairfax, VA says he was the oldest sailor in the race. He’s been racing Lightnings for more than half of his 80 years.

Jim Dillard takes a look at the mast.

The results. Crews from North and South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland competed.

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Spinnaker deployment. (Photo: Bob Luhrs)

Spinnakers.(Photo: Bob Luhrs)

Lou Mac Pier vantage point on the first day of racing.

The racing fleet returns from the course and, still under sail, makes for the Oriental bridge.

One boat, three crew approach the bridge.

Point and..

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.. balance

Out from under the bridge.

Dousing some sail.

Catching the wind and the sun’s angle on Green’s Creek.

L’heure verte sails out from the bridge. (Do not try this under the influence of absinthe.)

Three make their way to the Wildlife ramp for the night.

Posted Thursday May 22, 2014 by Melinda Penkava