COMMERCE
Subscriber Services
Classified Ads
Subscribe
Advertise
NEWS
This Month
Editorial
Letters
F/V Safety
Past Issues
ABOUT US
Contact Us
Latest Issue
Subscribe
History
MORE CONTENT
CFN Archives
Links
Each month exclusively in the PRINT edition of CFN
Along the Coast
Ask the Lobster Doc
Bearin’s
Classifieds
Coming Events
Editorial
Enforcement Report
FISH SAFE
Fleet Additions
Letters
Lobster Market Report
New Boats
News Catch
Quahog Market Report
|
Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 32 Number 12
July 2005
Clouds part for hot racing at Boothbay Harbor
BOOTHBAY HARBOR, ME - Maybe Charlie Begin was looking down on the race course and, to gain a better view, swept aside the fog and rain squalls that had threatened to postpone the opening round of the 2005 Maine Lobster Boat Racing series, which was held here the morning of Saturday, June 18.
For the past decade, Charlie Begin had been the “voice of Boothbay Harbor lobster boat racing,” announcing the contests over the VHF radio from aboard his lobster boat Lisa & Robbie, which also served as the judge’s platform.
Last July 16, Begin, a lifelong Boothbay Harbor resident and pillar of the local fishing community, passed away unexpectedly at age 57. This year’s races were dedicated in his honor and have been renamed the Charles Begin Memorial Lobster Boat Races.
Whatever the reason, a day that dawned to a cold, drenching downpour and severely limited visibility slowly improved itself throughout the morning. The races were able to get underway on schedule at 10 am, and, for the most part, ran in nothing more than a light mist beneath a low ceiling of thick clouds that continued to lift and brighten as the day progressed.
The unseasonably cold and wet weather of the week preceding the race did take a toll on attendance, however, as only about 50 boats turned out for the competition. Though the turnout was on the light side, some good racing was enjoyed and fans were treated to new installments in some old rivalries, as well as some impressive performances from a few boats making their premier appearances.
Of the close calls, none were tighter than in the diesel Class I contest between Gary Genthner’s Lisa Marie and Bill Haass’ Duncan & Blake, the first running of which the judges declared a dead heat.
In the rerun, Duncan & Blake edged out a victory over Lisa Marie, though Haass’ winning margin was narrowing as the boats neared the finish line. Radar readings on both boats showed Lisa Marie hit a top speed of 38.9 mph, compared with 38.4 mph for Duncan & Blake, but she ran out of race course before she could catch up.
When these two boats met on the same course last season, Lisa Marie took home the first place trophy.
Finishing third in diesel Class I was Todd Ritchie’s new Mitchell Cove 35 named Seacock, which he had launched only the previous day. Fourth went to Phil Page’s Nick & Andy.
Another very close contest occurred in diesel Class L, where local lobsterman Bill Hallinan’s Apparition II once again held off a challenge from Long Island boat builder and lobsterman Steve Johnson’s Hattie Rose.
As happened in the 2004 meeting at Boothbay Harbor, the homeport favorite prevailed in a close race. Johnson turned the tables as last year’s season progressed, however, and wound up winning the series cup. Once more, the prologue has been written for another chapter to be added to this ongoing saga of racing rivalry.
Hattie Rose is Johnson’s perennial contender, but most years he also puts together a “project boat” for the racing season. This year it appears he has a strong bid for the diesel Class K title, and perhaps more, with a new Crowley/Beal 33 named Wild One.
Wild One is powered by the same 650 hp rated 8-92 Detroit that was in the 28' Hate Me Rose, Johnson’s ugly project for last year. Hate Me Rose had a cantankerous disposition, belched black smoke, and tried to imitate a corkscrew whenever the throttle was advanced beyond half way open.
Wild One, by contrast, is a serious contender that Johnson calls, “the best sailing boat I’ve ever had.” Wild One took an easy first in its class against Richard Olson’s M.J.R. with an “official” radar reading of 39.9 mph.
In the diesel free-for-all, Wild One finished second behind Andy Gove’s diesel speed record holder (53.5 mph), Uncle’s UFO. Gove was clocked at 47.7 mph on that run, and also in the subsequent overall fastest lobster boat race, which he also won.
Johnson, who says he saw 45.5 mph on Wild One’s GPS during the diesel free-for-all, thinks he can give Gove a run for his money before the season is over.
“This was just the first time out. We didn’t want to push her too hard,” said Johnson, who plans to sit out the July 2 race at Moosabec and make his next appearance at Gove’s homeport of Stonington on July 17.
Another project boat that drew plenty of interest was Cry Baby, a cold molded wood and fiberglass 25-footer with classic lobster boat lines from D&L Boatworks in Lewiston, which ran alone in gasoline Class A.
According to race chairman Clive Farrin, Cry Baby was sea trialed in Sebago Lake, and tasted salt water for the first time at Boothbay Harbor on race day.
And remember Venom, last year’s 28-foot project boat from Hutchinson Composites and Fraser Performance that won diesel Class K for the season and tied the diesel speed record in Pemaquid?
Venom had an Isotta-Frashini “ectomi” over the winter and the hull was purchased by David Grant of Grant’s Marine Diesel, the SisuDiesel folks.
Grant repowered Venom with a 300 hp Sisu 620 and got her back in the water two days before the Boothbay Harbor race, where she won diesel Class C with a recorded speed of 36.5 mph, beating out Dave Taylor’s Andrea & Donna.
Grant is contemplating a name change for Venom, but look for Team Sisu and this slippery hull to put on a show at a lobster boat race near you as the season continues.
Complete race results, as provided by the Boothbay Harbor Race Committee and Maine Coastal News, are listed in the accompanying results box sponsored by Hale Propeller. /cfn/
Back to story list
|
|
Tell us what you think.
