by Ray Seta
We're always racing in Texas, 12 months a year!
It was a close call to maybe cancel the regatta as the last week before the regatta was dwindling down. The forecast was calling for a very cold weekend in Corpus Christi, Tx, but then again it was probably the warmest place in Texas that weekend and it had been a year since we got to race with C-Rigs again in Corpus Christi, TX. Eric Gregory did a miraculous job pulling this regatta off in such a very short time. With the ever always cooperation of the City of Corpus Christi's Park & Recreation, and City's Harbor Master our now famous racing venue was reserved and ready to go for us. Yes the weather did keep a few skippers away, but we were still able to get nine(9) hearty “never too cold as long as we have wind” type skippers to make the trip. including a very warmly dressed and prepared Race Committee and PRO Sylvia Dimayuga and Chauncey Piper. It may be one thing to race in these very cold condition and be able to walk around to stay warm, but try being part of a Race Committee and be out there to volunteer and just have to stand there. These two women deserve more than a “Thank You”.
With temps in the lower 40's with the winds blowing 10-15 out of the North, this put the wind chill into the 30's for most of the day. What started out as skippers tried there A-Rigs in the protected harbor, soon turned out that the B-Rig was actually faster with better control. After the first 5 races, it was clear that Todd Carrico and Chris Macaluso, both from Houston, were going to battle for the weekend with Al Ross, from Mandleville,LA close behind them throughout the weekend also. The skippers talent went very deep in this regatta with all of the top 5 skippers on Saturday all scoring a 1st place in at least one race, and by the end of the regatta we had 7 of 9 skippers scoring 1st places at sometime throughout the weekend's series.
Saturday evening came with enthusiasm as we can all go back to hotels, get warmed up and go get some hot BBQ dinner. I have never seen a regatta where 100% of the skippers and wives all showed up for dinner that night. It was a really nice group with everyone helping out in many ways throughout the weekend.
Sunday came way to fast, knowing we were going to start the day cold again, but with more winds! The good news was that this was Texas and the high temp later that day was going to near 70*. It started out colder than the day before but most of it was the wind chill. It was a day starting out at the upper limit of B-rig racing and then dropping to even C-rigs for the morning races. This is what Corpus is all about with RC Racing. As the day's racing continue it was appearing that Todd Carrico had his boat dialed in perfectly taking home 6 – 1st places in the Sundays 12 races. This gave him a commanding lead by the last 3 races to win out the series with 43points. Chris Macaluso coming in 2nd overall with 61 points and Al Ross with 65 points. Congratulations to Todd Carrico for his long trying effort to finally win the 2022 Saltwater Challenge RC Laser AMYA R5 Championship.
In closing I just want to mention that this was a very special group of folks that attended this regatta. Just showing up to brave the weather is one thing , but to also stick around on both Saturday and Sunday to make sure all regatta logistical items were all collected and safely stored for the trip home in the back in Eric Gregory's truck....thank you to all skippers for helping pull this off. But the heroes for the weekend were still our Race Committee Sylvia and Chauncey. We can not thank them enough for there dedications to all of us. One last item of mention would be the very special visitor we had on Saturday. Mike Gale, one of the original founders and past Treasurer of the Coastal Bend MYC, has been battling cancer for the past year. He knew we were all in town and insisted with his daughter to pack him up in the car and take me out to the venue to see the guys. We were so happy he was strong enough to come out on such a cold day that we stopped racing for a break to just all have a minute with Mike. Smiles from ear to ear from Mike and everyone! Mike will always be with our thoughts and prayers for his continue fight!
Submitted by : Ray Seta
Summary of the 2022 Saltwater Challenge RC Laser R5 Championship
Date: Feb 26-27, 2022
Location: Corpus Christi, TX
Host Club: Coastal Bend MYC – AMYA # 334
Entries: 9 boats
Races Completed: 27 races
Winds: Saturday N 7-12mph, Sunday N 12-18mph
Scoring: Low Points with 4 throwouts
Race Committee: Sylvia Dimayuga, Chauncey Piper, Eric Gregory
Valuable Assistants: City of Corpus Christi, Lea & William Gregory, All skippers for helping pack up at the end of the days!
2022 Saltwater Challenge RC Laser R5 Championships
Place Skipper Sail # Points
1 Todd Carrico 707 43
2 Chris Macaluso 75 61
3 Al Ross 17 65
4 Mark Cooper 50 77
5 Ray Seta 93 107
6 Eric Gregory 11 109
7 Bob Piper 65 118
8 Vicki Stone* 14 171
9 Tirza Dabdoud 13 181
*Awarded Special Finisher – Highest Score/Finish Every Race!
