EG Yacht Club's Annual Regatta Benefits Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Some are walkers, some are bicyclists, others swim. Yesterday, the sailors got in the charitable act by racing 40 boats around Narragansett Bay with the beneficiary being the Rhode Island Chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (RILLS).

The East Greenwich Yacht Club's (EGYC) annual regatta took place under near perfect conditions with breezes out of the northwest at 15 knots and seas under 1 foot. The course ran from just south of Patience Island, down to Quonset, over to the north tip of Jamestown, and back - approximately 15 miles.

The regatta's steering committee was inspired by a visit to the club in April by ESPN Commentator . Udo Schroff, also a Lymphoma survivor, suggested that the regatta become a charitable event for the RILLS modeled after a similar regatta held by the New York Yacht Club.  The rest of the committee agreed enthusiastically.

The race committee did a masterful job of keeping track of the race's start and finish with a handicap applied to equilibrate the boats' performance.  There were 3 categories:

Family - 1. Noah's Ark (Mike Reynolds), 2. Carousel (Bill Hertel), 3 Spartina (Dave Wehr)

Non-Spinnaker - 1. High Maintenance (Ron LaCroix), 2. Haraka (Craig Forges), 3. Estesea (Grant Brandon)

Spinnaker - 1.Seaquest (Todd Johnston), 2. Coconut (Tom D'Albora), 3. Rabbit (Dan Dyer)

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