ROCKLAND — The Pen Bay Sailing League had the final event of its Fall Series this past Sunday on Rockland Harbor. The Apprenticeshop played host to 6 High School Sailing teams from the Midcoast area: Islesboro, Rockland Community, Oceanside, Camden Hills, Mount Desert Island, and Boothbay Community.

At the 11 a.m. scheduled start time for racing, winds gusting above 20 knots were shooting out of Lemond Cove, and the Race Committee postponed racing for one hour. While some sailors lounged around on the floats eating lunch, others took “drag race” runs on a couple of the 420 sailboats near the safety of the float. Many impressed onlookers watched from the Apprenticeshop Pier as the teenage sailors displayed their skills in the challenging conditions.

Winds diminished a couple of knots around noon, and 6 boats headed out towards the Breakwater to race. Conditions on board the boats were extremely wet and exhilarating, and the sailors were visibly exhausted after each sailing four races of about 20 minutes a piece. Most teams capsized at least once, and all recovered and continued sailing.

In the end, Mount Desert Island High School won both the A and B divisions with a show of pure speed and athleticism. The regatta also determined the overall winner of the newly minted perpetual trophy for the three part fall series. The silver Revere bowl was named in honor of former Rockland Community Sailing Director KC Heyniger, “The Man Who Started it All”, and was awarded to the Rockland Community Sailing team. Heyniger was in attendance for the ceremony, and delivered a speech praising the sailors themselves and the many community members that have made the program thrive in recent years.

The regatta organizers would like to thank all of the volunteers that made the event a success; especially Peter Clapp, who regularly anchors the Race Committee; Anne Montgomery who lent the use of her boat “Mt. Battle” for the day; the Rockland Yacht Club for the use of it’s launch for the day; Chris and Debbie Schreiber who are always ready to help wherever needed; Pete Orne for photographing the event; and Coach Mike Horn for donating the silver Revere Bowl as a way to honor Heyniger for his years of dedication and effort in building the sport of sailing on the Midcoast.

Rockland Event Results
1) Mount Desert Island, 15
2) Rockland, 19
3) Boothbay, 27
4) Islesboro Central School, 31
5) Oceanside, 33
6) Camden Hills, 49

Final Fall Series Results
1) Rockland, 4
2) Boothbay, 7
3) Mount Desert Island, 8
4) Islesboro Central School, 11
5) Oceanside, 15
6) Camden Hills, 18

Reach the sports department at: sports@penbaypilot.com.