The Naval Academy Sailing Fall Race to Oxford is now on the record books with five CHESSS Class boats on the starting line. It was an amazingly challenging race with almost any kind of wind condition that you might imagine happening on the Bay, from zero wind to gusts into the low 20 knot range and at least one gust that approached 30 knots.

David Tabor and his crewmate on 'Dianthus' won the race after sailing sailed a near perfect race. 'Dianthus' legged out early in the race by carefully playing the winds and currents; staying out of the strong adverse current in the light winds, and crossing the adverse current in the building winds and slowing current. They had a perfect spinnaker raise rounding G-9 at Sharps Island Channel and carrying it in the building breezes then dropping the chute just as the squall came through roughly half way up the leg up the Choptank.

Jeff Halpern, single-handing on 'Synergy' corrected to Second Place. Bob Dunnigan and crewmate on 'Jane Says' got line honors but corrected to finish in third.

It could be argued that this was an unusual race that neither favored the fast rated boats or the slower boats. Reportedly, the faster boats never experienced the zero wind conditions experienced by the slower boats, but they also finished before the high winds filled in that were experienced by the slower rated boats. The faster boats had a reaching conditions from G "9" and coming up the Choptank , with only a short spinnaker leg from Choptank Light to the Finish. The slower boats had high wind spinnaker conditions that resulted in very high speed surfing conditions coming down the Choptank, and high speed power reaching to the finish line.

Congratulations to all who turned out.....