Key Biscayne Double Distance Race
Sept. 23, 2006, Miami, Florida
By John McKnight

What would you pay to sail to a pristine white sand beach on a tropical isle with your cat? Those who sailed the Key Biscayne Double Distance Race got to do just that. Such a deal! We not only got to sail our cats, we got to race them in two separate races. How good can it get? We got to spend a delightful day with family and friends on the water. What more could you ask for?

Sixteen sailors with eight boats turned out for this annual event. We were treated to temperatures in the low 90's, winds out of the east in the 7 to 10 knot range, and there wasn't a storm in sight. Sweet! The race course departed the Rickenbacker Causeway and proceeded south down the bay and out the Cape Florida Channel into the ocean. There were several lead changes on this leg which made it very interesting. Jared Sonnenklar and Terry Greene cut the corner, scooted over the flats, and made up a huge amount of time in the process. This move is always a gamble. You can run hard aground at low tide. Rafael Quesada and his crew Oscar Coni, on their Hobie 20, learned it is best to hug the shoreline to get the best winds on the west side of the key. As we approached Cape Florida, we were swept out the cut by a very swift tide. You could under stand each tack and still make your line. After rounding the cape and passing the majestic white Cape Florida Lighthouse, we sailed north past the swim beach at Bill Baggs State Park to our finish line just north of the park boundary. There we pulled up on the beach for a break between the races and had lunch. There were many tanned beautiful people sunning themselves in beach loungers or walking on the beach going out to the lighthouse. Our presence always produces great interest. We only use this venue twice a year, and it creates quite a stir each time we pounce upon the beach with the flashy cats.

The return race is a reverse of the first race. We did a Le Mans start off the beach. The winds dictated a starboard start, but we quickly flopped over onto port for the run along the beach. This point of sail had us hugging the beach and skimming the shallows. The swim buoys have disappeared from the Bill Baggs State Park Beach, so we sailed very close to the shore and we were just outside the pods of swimmers. We were getting some interesting looks, like, "Boy, I wish that was me on one of those boats!" We waved at the beach goers and headed for the cape. This time we were fighting the out going tide. You had to over stand every tack to counteract the four knot rip. Oriol and I were first to the cape, but the spinnaker boats shot by us as we turned off the wind. We cut across the flats off Key Biscayne to try and make up time on the leaders. Jared and Terry were on fire. The Inter 20 off the wind is a thing of beauty. It flies. John and Inbal Esquivel were sailing their Tornado. They were doing quite well in this return race until they dumped it while doing the Wild Thing with the spinnaker flying. They were looking real good up until that point. They righted it quickly and got back in the mix. But their mishap allowed Oriol and me to slip by them on our Hobie 20. They tried desperately to catch us, and they were gaining rapidly, but we finished second ahead of them plus they owed us time.

The boats in attendance included 3 Hobie 16s, 2 Hobie 20, and one each Tornado, Inter 20, and a Hobie 18. The attendees included long-time-no-see, Carlos Beckmann and his wife Karime. Carlos and Karime say they are expecting their first child. Congratulations! They finished with a 1st and 4th respectively in the races. They tied for first overall. The races are corrected using the Portsmouth numbers. We had two first time CABB races. The first was Rodrigo Lequerica, sailing on a rented Hobie 16. He soloed the first race and picked up his daughter for the return race. He lives in a condo on Key Biscayne near where we stop for lunch. The second CABB first timer was 10 year old Nicholas Harrington. He was skippering a Hobie 16 which was crewed by his dad, Mark. Nicholas is a skilled Opti skipper. He took a second in the first race and a third in the second race. He tied for first place overall. Not bad for a 10 year old kid with limited time on a Hobie 16. This was all incredible to me since he was only 15 seconds behind Carlos in the first race and beat Carlos by 9 seconds in the second race. Carlos is one of the top Hobie 16 sailors in Miami, so Nicholas was up against some very serious competition. Well done, Nicholas!

We had another youth skipper on the Inter 20. Jared Sonnenklar, a high school student, was driving and Terry Greene was crewing for that team. They also did and excellent job with finishes of 4th and 1st in the races. They also tied for first over all. In fact we had a four way tie for first. Oriol and I, on my Hobie 20, were the fourth boat tied for first place. I had to get out the rule book to figure out how to break a four way tie. Results are below. The Hobie 18 was sailed by Mandi Prats and Dailon Hernandez. They had discovered a crack in their rear crossbeam before the race, so they weren't pushing the boat too hard. Anybody got a spare H-18 rear crossbeam lying around? Mandi says they may be looking for a replacement boat.
Everyone seemed to enjoy yet another perfect day of sailing in the tropics. Below are the results of the disposition of the unprecedented four way tie for first place. Congratulations to Jared and Terry for the win.

Crew--------Boat--Rating--Race-1,-Race-2,-Totals,-Tie break
Sonnenklar/-I-20--59.3----4--------1-------5-------1
Greene

Beckmann/---H-16--76.1----1--------4-------5-------2
Zamora

McKnight/---H-20--65.0----3--------2-------5-------3
Cruzeta

Harrington/-H-16--76.1----2--------3-------5-------4
Harrington


2. CABB's 38th Annual Fowey Light Distance Race will be held Saturday, October 14, 2006. This is the grand daddy of then all when it comes to beach cat racing in Miami. This is the big one; our longest running annual race. The race is very simple. There is only one turning mark, Fowey Light. Fowey Light is a 110 foot tall lighthouse located at the edge of the Gulf Stream, 7 miles southeast of Cape Florida. It is made of cast iron and was competed in 1878. Is there anything else in Miami that has been around since 1878? If you are interested in seeing a picture of the lighthouse and reading some of the history, you can do so at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fowey_Rocks_Light or you can do a search for Fowey Lighthouse and see several more sites with more history and pictures. This is our most challenging ocean race. You and your boat must be in top condition to do this race. If you are novice sailor, I do not recommend this event for you. For the 16 foot boats, there will be an alternate turning point at Bug Light if you wish. This will allow all the boats to finish at about the same time. Mark you calendar and make plans to attend this historic race.

3. In the last newsletter, I mention the CABB Fun Day for Saturday, October 7. Our event will be a fun sail to Elliot Key for lunch on the beach and a return sail in one day if the winds permit. This is the same day as the Columbus Day Regatta. The bay will be full of the wondrous sights of hundreds of sailboat participating in that Regatta. I have heard from 3 boats which are planning on participating. Is anyone else interested? If so, let me know please.

4. The Fall Harvest Regatta will be held at the Miami Yacht Club on October 21 & 22, 2006. Details and a registration form can be found on the MYC website at miamiyachtclub.net. This will be two fun days of buoy racing on the Miramar course.

5. The annual Conch Cup Race, sponsored by the Miami Yacht Club will be held Saturday, October 28. This is a fun distance race which circumnavigated Key Biscayne and ends up at the MYC. The start is just off the Rickenbacker Causeway where we normally hold CABB events. There is an early registration deadline of October 1(read reduced entry fee). Regular registration ends October 27. The entry form and the NOR can be found on the MYC website at miamiyachtclub.net.

6. Mark Herendeen is selling one his boats to concentrate on campaigning his Tornado.

Nacra 20 for sale, price lowered a $1000 to only $11,500 for a 2004 Nacra 20 {2 sets of sails, trailer, storage boxes, racing upgrades, like new condition, etc.}

H (321) 768-8813, C (321) 863-4426

Mark reports that he will be doing the Tornado Nationals and Pre-Trials Regattas in San Diego 10/9 to 11 and then 10/12-10/15. Good luck Mark!

7. New crew: Rafael Cotlear wants to be on the CABB crew list. He can be contacted at (301) 221-0235. Rafael is a student at the University of Miami. He works part time at the beach cat rental concession on the Rickenbacker. He has experience sailing cats. He wants to sail.

8. That's it for now. October can be a very full month if you participate in all the events on the schedule. Everyone should have such problems. I hope you will be able to get out and enjoy your boat at some or all the events. To me, October is our best month for sailing. Enjoy!


John McKnight
Commodore, Catamaran Association of Biscayne Bay (CABB)
(305) 251-7600
CABB Forum: http://www.catsailor.com/forums/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=CABB