PHOTOS: Marco Island's Spring Regatta sails in like a lion out like a lamb

Weather is an all-consuming topic for sailors. Most casual boaters would have considered the weather and stayed off the water on Saturday, but 17 hearty skippers thought differently.

Sloppy weather threatened the first race of Marco Island Yacht Club’s 2011 Spring Regatta. Misty rain and higher than normal surf pounded challengers. The temperature at race time hovered around 50 degrees. Chill in the raw 16 to 20 knot wind made conditions feel much colder.

“The wind is up. The weather is up,” said Don Mills, a member of the regatta’s protest committee, “I would call this a dismal kind of day.”

Prior to the first race, a memorial service was held for four female members of the yacht club who passed away during the past year including Mills’ wife Genevieve, Joy Shin, Janet Hughes and Cindy Braun.

Just after the ceremony, competitors braving the elements and crossing the starting line for the initial pursuit race were dubbed “true sailors” by Mills.

Racers had a different view of conditions during the seven races of the 2-day event.

“Weather is part of sailing and we’re here to race,” said Brad Collins, crewing on the 39-foot Farr Tippecanoe. He praised the race committee for doing an excellent job, setting good courses and handling conditions properly.

Although Saturday started blustery, weather conditions changed throughout the day. As the sun came out for the second and third races, the wind dropped and seas calmed. The mixed bag of weather conditions meant those sailing tactically raced well.

Ray Yerich, skippering the 47-foot Catalina Barefoot Contessa, ran into some difficulties when his boat snagged a crab trap.

“It slowed us down a lot by maybe 3 or 4 knots,” said crew member Jeff Johnson. “We didn’t lose it (the crab trap) until we were sailing home.”

But Marco Island’s weather never stays disagreeable for long.

Sunday morning sunshine made conditions more favorable. Winds of around 18 knots out of the east-northeast fell to 8 knots by mid-day; and by late afternoon, competitors enjoyed 12-knots winds from the northwest with seas settling to 2 to 3 feet.

Steve Romaine, skipper of the 35-foot Jeanneau Air Supply, said both days’ conditions were almost perfect.

“This was great. This was fun. We had wind and great courses. It was not too hot, not too cold,” he said.

“Sunday morning started out with 4-foot rollers but turned out to be a nice day,” said crew member Tom Barry.

Challenging conditions also challenged equipment. Ken Cort on the 42-foot Hunter Blown Away said some sailboats had minor damage.

“It was a fun time, both interesting and challenging,” Cort said. “No one got hurt but a few things got broken.”

Sunday’s awards dinner was held at the Marco Island Yacht Club where Ed and Lois Dixon on their 24-foot Corsair Tri-Power won the regatta’s “Best of Club.” Lois Dixon is the club’s sailing fleet captain.

Best overall non-spinnaker class was awarded to Air Supply. The 30-foot Wavelength Shock took best overall in the spinnaker class.

Regatta Chairman Dean Heard said all races went as planned with no protests.

Vic Farmer, skipper of the 30-foot J-30 spinnaker sailboat Vee Jay, summed up the two days of racing.

“This is the best regatta in the last five years. We had the whole spectrum of conditions. It was a regatta for people who love racing.”

Final race results for the 2011 Spring Regatta were in Spinnaker Fleet A: 1st place, Tippecanoe with skipper Dan Kendrick and 2nd place, Maria with skipper Joe Bonness. In Spinnaker Feet B: 1st place, Shock with skipper David Huntington; 2nd place, Vee Jay with skipper Farmer; and 3rd place, Foreign Exchange with skipper Gunar Rogat.

In Multihull Fleet: 1st place, Tri-Power with skipper Ed Dixon; 2nd place, Third Tri with skipper Brain Broad; 3rd place, Blitzen Too with skipper Dan Frien; and 4th place, Hot Dog with skipper Dan Vandenbossche.

In Non Spinnaker Fleet: 1st place, Air Supply with skipper Romaine and 2nd place, Bentley with skipper Tom Homer.

In True Cruising Fleet: 1st place, Jabu with skipper Rex Good; 2nd place, Dragon Fly Plus with skipper Ulrich Rhode; 3rd place, Blown Away with skipper Jerry Watkins; 4th place, Barefoot Contessa with Yerich standing in for skipper Frank Rinker; 5th place, Saboutime with skipper John Harkless; and 6th place, EVE with skipper John Hughes.