Bike Week Rages, Tartaglino Rejoins the Race, Leg 8 Finish, Race Recap
The drive from Isle of Palms to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina leads
through low country wetlands divided by meandering water courses and
fence-like stands of firs arranged like toy soldiers on the firm
ground on either side of the road. As state Route 17 approaches Myrtle
Beach, the roadside becomes crowded with fast food restaurants, sports bars, and a
unique density of beachwear shops. Waves, wings, eagles, jaws, and
Pacific line both sides of the streets like funhouse mirrors. All
encased in glass, they seem to mock the lowly consumer. The stores have
a sameness that implies that they could only be owned by the same
monolithic beach apparel conglomerate. Boogie boards, trunks, bikinis,
and towels can be had in every shape, size and color on either side of
every street in Myrtle Beach. Happy Shopping.
This is a special week in Myrtle Beach. Bikers from all corners of our
great nation have converged on this restless beach town for its annual
Bike Week. Some 100,000 strong, the bikers are everywhere. At every
intersection, the bikes are parked 10 deep and small clusters of riders
enjoy pleasant conversation, admiring their peers who cruise by revving
their throaty beasts in triumph. They crawl out of manhole covers and
hide in your mirrors, but they always make themselves known when you
least expect them, with the roar of a glass pack.
Leg 8 Finish
Team Guidant must have drawn inspiration from the return of injured
teammate Sandra Tartaglino. They arrived 10 minutes ahead of second
place, Tommy Bahama, and 31 minutes up on fourth place, Alexander's, to cut
into the big lead Alexander's has been building. Tartaglino has
rejoined the race as a spectator after undergoing surgery to help repair
the fractured leg she suffered on the first leg. "I plan to sail next
year," said an upbeat Tartaglino, "it's a way to make sure I push my
rehab to get back to normal as quickly as possible."
Sail for Sight, crewed by Carl Roberts and David Lennard, were satisfied
with their third place finish. "Carl just wanted to beat the black boat
(Alexander's), now he's happy," remarked Lennard, "we finally got those
guys."
Nigel Pitt, of Tommy Bahama, is extremely impressed with Guidant's speed.
"There was a boat we couldn't identify and then they just disappeared
going so fast. It must have been Guidant, they are the only ones who
have had that much speed on us."
The breeze was from the East for most of the race, but died as the leg
progressed. The leaders all stayed as close to shore as possible after
Cape Romaine. They were able to fly the spinnaker for more than an hour
paralleling the beach in the light winds. "We actually sailed inside
the surf-line with the spinnaker for a long time," commented Carl
Roberts. He and Lennard heard breaking waves outside of them at several
points in the evening. Jamie Livingston of Alexander's figures that the
time they lost on Guidant was due to getting a little too far off the
beach at the Cape.
The leg was extremely long and was made longer and more difficult by a
wind shift just miles from the finish. At about 5 AM, the wind shifted
North, and what had been a tight jib reach straight to the finish
turned into a beat. Anybody who was off shore at all got hammered and
was still out there at 7:24 AM. As the Northerly filled the temperature
dropped and the teams that arrived in the dawn were cold.
The boats that were behind lost more time due to the wind shift.
Arriving fifth was Key Sailing, sailed by Kirk Newkirk and Glenn Holmes.
After Key Sailing there was a big gap, then a bunch arrived in a short
spurt. Team Tybee Island, Spitfire Racing, LexisNexis and Team Castrol
finished sixth through ninth.
The cat and mouse game of boat identification is tricky at night. Some
teams try to illuminate their closest rivals to identify how they are
doing while some try to sail stealth, hiding their identity. But one
thing is sure - the flashlight is a safety tool when commercial ships
approach at night. Alex Shafer, of Tommy Bahama, shined a light on his
own sail to illuminate his boat as a shrimp boat approached in the early
morning hours. "It seemed like he headed right at us after we made
ourselves known," noted a bemused Shafer.
Shore Crew Bonus
It's very difficult to exaggerate how hard the shore support teams work
in this race. The first boats hit the beach in the darkness just before
the dawn this morning. But the real spectacle was the shore crews.
Splayed out on beach chairs and wrapped in hotel bedspreads like
cocoons, the shore crews stood a loyal vigil, waiting for their boats.
Some of the racer's called their teams to let them know it would be a
late finish and to get some sleep, but others got "No Service" when they
tried to make the call. At least 50 people slept on the beach awaiting
the finish. The shore crews have been tested more and earlier than
usual this year. There were quite a few late nights of boat repairs
early in the race. Add the usual grind of hotel logistics, van hassles,
laundry and then an all-night wait for the finish on this night leg and
you have some tired teams. The racers and their support crews both
sorely need the day off today. It is probably a relief to some shore
support teams that the wind was so light last night. The boats are
unlikely to need repairs. The start will move back to 10 AM tomorrow
morning.
Race Recap (Previous to Leg 8)
Brian Lambert and Jamie Livingston, of Alexander's on the Bay, have put on
an impressive show thus far, winning six of the seven legs and building a three
hour and 35 minute lead. Despite losing two hours to a breakdown and 1/2 hour
in penalties for crew replacements, Team Guidant helmsman Rod Waterhouse
and replacement crew Katie Pettibone remain in second, but it looks like
they will need a lot of help to catch Alexander's. Dinghy Shop, sailed
by Canadians Reigh North and Scott MacDonald, are third and Fully
involved, sailed by Les Bauman and Craig Callahan are fourth. The top
five is rounded out by Team Tybee Island, sailed by Steve Lohmayer and Kenny
Pierce. Tybee Island is the lone team in the top five that was not able to
complete Leg 3 from Jensen Beach to Cocoa Beach. The five teams that
completed that leg were Alexander's, Guidant, Fully Involved, Dinghy
Shop and Outer Banks. Outer Banks, sailed by John McLaughlin and
Charles Thuman have fallen off the pace a bit after surviving the Jensen
Beach leg, but they have had several good legs to their credit. The
teams who were not able to complete the leg were all assessed a two hour
penalty. Fully Involved and Dinghy Shop are both first time competitors
and have done a great job all the way.
