First winners decided

At Rolex Block Island Race Week nears its conclusion reports Keith Taylor

Glassy seas and fickle breezes made for hard luck stories on Block Island Sound today for Day Four of the Storm Trysail Club's Block Island Race Week presented by Rolex.

Fluky winds killed any chance of racing for the big boat class, but three other classes sailed shortened courses in patchy variable conditions after a three-hour wait ashore in sunny, sweltering conditions with only a hint of a breeze. Racing in the 20th edition of the biennial regatta for ocean racers wraps up tomorrow.

For William Baxter, Jr., owner and skipper of the Abbott 33 Pirate the race was a mixed blessing. Baxter's run of top-two finishes came to a screeching halt when he finished fifth. Pirate was holding second to Ed Austin's Chinook (J/30) halfway down the run to the finish of Race 6. Then the wind died, filled in from behind and brought the trailing boats up to the front. Nevertheless, Baxter defended his title won in 2001. With six races completed, Pirate leads second-placed Chinook by 8 points and cannot be beaten on Friday.

Baxter has attended every Block Island Race Week since 1967, on both even and odd-numbered years. He believes he's sailed more races off this idyllic island than anyone else. He rates local knowledge as one of the key factors to his success. "You have to have outstanding crew work," Baxter says. Baxter's crew is comprised of his wife, son, two daughters and tactician Larry Suter, an Olympic coach.

In PHRF 87-120 the Navy midshipmen aboard Vigilant won again, logging their fourth consecutive victory and have the class locked up. Vigilant, co-skippered by Brooke Anderson and Chad Ingle, has the low score of 10 points. Anderson and Ingle have swapped turns each race helming and calling tactics. According to co-skipper Anderson, the key for the midshipmen yesterday was minimising the manoeuvres aboard the heavy displacement Navy 44 (31,000 pounds).

Class honours have yet to be settled in the J/105 class, but Dr. Thomas Enright's Pretty Sketchy has a commanding lead. After winning yesterday's sixth race in the hotly-contested 34-boat class, Pretty Sketchy has the low score of 28 points. Jim Sorensen's Wet Leopard is second with 44 points. As long as Enright finishes in the top
11 in Friday's race, he will win the class title.

Two other classes where the outcome has been decided are the 12-Meter Class where Edgar Cato's Hissar has six bullets for a perfect record and Robert Towse's Blue Yankee enjoys a commanding lead over her nearest competition.

Results, with place, skipper, hometown, boat name (race finishes), total
points:

12-METRE: 1. Edgar Cato, Charlotte, N.C., Hissar (1-1-1-1-1-1), 6; 2.
Alfred Vanliew, Middletown, R.I., Fiddler (2-2-2-2-2-2), 12.

FARR 40: 1. Marc Ewing, Glencoe, Ill, Riot (1-4-3-2-1-3), 14; 2. John
Thomson, Pt. Washington, N.Y., Solution (5-1-6-1-2-1), 16; 3. Eric
Moog, Losijo, Canada, Dynamo (2-5-2-4-4-2), 19.

IMS 1: 1. Robert Towse, Stamford, Conn., Blue Yankee (1-1-4-1-1-1), 9;
2. John Brim, New York, N.Y., Rima (2-2-1-5-3-3), 16; 3. Marco Birch,
New York, N.Y., Talisman (5-4-2-2-2-2), 17.

IMS 2/LEVEL 40: 1. Richard Shulman, Barrington, R.I., Temptress
(1-1-1-1-8-1), 13; 2. Paul Lowell, Hempstead, N.Y., Agincourt
(6-3-4-8-1-2), 24; 3. Ira Futterman, Kew Gardens, N.Y., R-Wave
(2-2-3-4-9-4), 24.

J/44: 1. James Bishop, New York, N.Y., Gold Digger (DNF-1-6-1-4-2), 21;
2. William Ketcham, Greenwich, Conn., Maxine (DNF-2-1-3-6-3), 22; 3.
Scott Dinhofer, Chappaqua, N.Y., Brown-Eyed Girl (DNF-3-2-6-3-1), 22.

PHRF -33-0: 1. David Leuschen, New York, N.Y., Rain Cloud (6-3-1-1-5-3),
19; 2. Andrew Fisher, Greenwich, Conn., Vanish II (3-1-6-8-1-1), 20; 3.
Ennio Staffini, Annapolis, Maryland, Uarshek II (2-2-7-3-6-6), 26.5.

PHRF 3-42: 1. Bob Sachs/Waldek Zaleski, Stamford, Conn., Kiowa
(8-5-2-1-1-1), 18; 2. Clayton Deutsch, Sewickley, Penn., Tazo
(1-2-4-4-3-8), 22; 3. Colahan/McManus, Marblehead, Mass., Boys Are Back
(2-1-1-9-10-2), 25.

J/105: 1. Thomas Enright, Bristol, R.I., Pretty Sketchy (2-3-16-1-5-1),
28; 2. Jim Sorenson, Sag Harbor, N.Y., Wet Leopard (10-14-13-3-2-2), 44;
3. Robert Salk, Jamestown, R.I., Picante (6-1-1-22-8-7), 45.

PHRF 87-120: 1. Chad Ingle, Annapolis, Maryland, Vigilant (4-2-1-1-1-1),
10; 2. Dave Dickerson, Waterford, Conn., Lindy (1-1-3-4-3-3), 15; 3.
William Jessup, Darien, Conn., Rascal (5-3-2-2-4-4), 20.

PHRF 120-141: 1. Bill Baxter, Cutchogue, N.Y., Pirate (1-2-1-1-1-5), 11;
2. Ed Austin, Ridgewood, N.J., Chinook (6-3-2-3-2-3), 19; 3. D. Davies &
A. Eppig, Stonybrook, N.Y., Amethyst (2-7-3-8-3-10), 33.

PHRF 165-175: 1. Roy Sherman, Huntington Station, N.Y., Zephyr
(1-2-1-1-2-1), 8; 2. Chris Fesenmeyer, Norwalk, Conn., Air Express
(2-1-2-2-1-2), 10; 3. Ron Levine, Niantic, Conn., Hellfire
(3-3-3-3-3-8), 23.

FARR 39.5: 1. Craig Albrecht, Glen Head, N.Y., Avalanche (2-2-1-1-1), 7;
2. Prebin Ostberg/Buo Dailey, Edgewater, Maryland, Tsunami (1-1-2-2-2),
8; 3. Roger Widman, Larchmont, N.Y., Quintessence (3-3-5-5-5), 21.

J/120: 1. Rob Campbell, Wilton, Conn., Braveheart (3-1-3-1-3), 11; 2.
Jerry Bertekap, Jr., Oceanport, N.J., Sarah Beth (5-3-1-2-2), 13; 3.
Thomas Lee, Essex, Conn., Ricochet (1-4-2-4-6), 17.

J/109 PHRF: 1. Robert Berg, Miami, Fla, Love That Chicken (1-1-3-3-1),
9; 2. Ray P. Foote, Old Greenwich, Conn., Sapphire (2-3-1-1-5), 12; 3.
Rod & Al Johnstone, Stonington, Conn., Banjo (3-2-5-4-2), 16.

BENETEAU: 1. Ed & Molly Freitag, Annapolis, Maryland, Down Time
(4-1-1-3-3), 12; 2. William Porter, Warwick, R.I., Shadowfax
(1-6-3-1-2), 13; 3. Olhmar Mueller Von Blumencrom, Sterling, Va., Dame
Blanche (3-7-2-2-1), 15.

PHRF 39-78: 1. Jim & Tom Rich, Southold, N.Y., Settler (10-2-2-1-1), 16;
2. Gibbs Kane, Jr., Rye, N.Y., Mutiny. (1-4-4-3-4), 16; 3. Gordon Hall,
Marblehead, MA, Katabatic (6-3-3-6-3), 21.

LEVEL 72: 1. Morton Weintraub, Larchmont, N.Y., Troubador (2-2-2-3), 9;
2. Matt & Randy Baldwin, Ridgefield, Conn., Cabady (6-1-5-1), 13; 3. Jim
Nichols, Old Saybrook, Conn., Zorro (3-5-3-2), 13.

PHRF 87-114: 1. Phil & Carol Garland, Bristol, R.I., Samba
(DNF-1-2-1-1), 19; 2. Cliff Davis & Tom Treat, Milford, Conn., Dr. Evil
(DNF-4-3-2-5), 28; 3. Iris Vogel, New Rochelle, N.Y., Deviation
(DNF-5-7-4-2), 32.

PHRF Non Spinnaker: 1. Sea Scouts Ship 6, Norwalk, Conn., Celebration
(1-1-2-1), 5; 2. Carl Dila, Rowayton, Conn., Festina Lente (4-2-4-2),
12; 3. Paul Pankos, Sudbury, MA, Black Tie (2-6-1-5), 14.