Well, it's not quite as long a haul for me (from Raleigh, NC), but Spring Fever is still the farthest away regatta I attend. Why?

It's not because of the wind - I don't think Georgia lakes have significantly different wind than North Carolina lakes.

It's not because I'm lacking local racing - my local clubs keep me racing 3 weekends a month.

It's not for a big one-design fleet - CSC averages about 12 Isotopes per race on Kerr Lake and only 4 are currently registered for Spring Fever (all local regulars).

It's not for the party either. I'm not really a party-person and would never travel that far no matter how much free beer was included.

No, I go to Spring Fever so I can sail with lots of other kinds of boats. I know how my skills stack up against the other Isotope skippers. Regattas like CatFest and Spring Fever let me test myself against a much broader group of sailors and boats. I really enjoy mixing it up with a bunch of Hobie 17s and 18s.

I also get the chance to meet folks from other fleets, whom I would otherwise never know (such as the F-18 sailors), and perhaps they'll come sail with us at the Governor's Cup. Maybe, just maybe, some of them will even give some of us rides on an F-18 while we're there (hint hint )

Eric