The 2012 District 22 and Flathead Lake Laser Championships were held the weekend of August 18-19 at the North Flathead YC in Somers, MT.  Many Northwesterners were busy with big events out on the coast, but we were very happy with the healthy turnout of quality sailors who did attend, including the local talent.  Half the field had competed in major championships, the North Americans, and/or the Masters Worlds in the past year.

Our neighbors in Alberta brought a contingent of skill and experience, with seven boats registered.  Northern California sent one, Wisconsin one, Washington one, as well as people from across the state of Montana.  Twenty full rig boats sailed, plus three 4.7s in a first for MT.  A bigger group of 4.7 sailors were unable to make it because of early fall school sports activity.

Three different sets of father-son sailors raced, with the youngest sailing for only his 7th time. 1980 North American Champion Susie Pegel taught a rigging, trimming, and body position clinic on the lawn Friday afternoon.

The Ians sailed strong - Ian the Pirate, Ian the Younger, then Jim the Legend came in 1-2-3.  That’s Ian Elliott, Ian Hern, and Jim Christopher, our D22 member for life and past repeat champion.  The top three finishers were all within one point of each other.

In the 4.7 class, three sailors from Montana and Alberta duked it out in common-start, one-lap races, with the full rigs going around again.  In the end Caleb Gillam squeaked by Dylan Eve for the win.

Saturday produced a nice early morning thermal breeze in a clear sky, not as strong as most years, and dying out by mid-day.  Four races were completed, with one triangle course, and one general recall.  A fifth race was started and abandoned as the breeze weakened and clocked around.  

Dinner was served on the club terrace Saturday night, with grilled chicken, salmon, and burgers.  A technical game of the classic board game “Regatta” broke out, with seven sailors and lots of rules and strategy discussion.  Later, Ian Hern impressed everyone with a Flash-based sailing computer game he designed.

Thin cloud cover Sunday morning caused the thermal to not fully form, but we completed two good races early. As the Committee Boat waited to see if the Southerly would develop, the sailors were treated to views of the Swan Range, the Mission Range, and the lake sprawling over the horizon South. The Southerly didn’t stabilize, so it was decided to call it a regatta after six total races.

After the awards ceremony, the Southerly started up and produced a nice medium breeze for the afternoon as we drove home.

Flathead Lake was spectacular as usual, with 90 degree temps and 70 degree water.  Some regional forest fires added a smoky haze to the horizon, but it was clear and blue on the lake.  A couple of sailors made it to Glacier National Park, some went road biking, some mountain biking, and one fly-fishing on the Swan River.

Our farthest travelers were Susie Pegel at 1560 miles, Jim Christopher at 990 miles, the Elliotts at 490 miles, and the entire Billings MT contingent at 450 miles.

2012 District 22 & Flathead Lake Laser Championships                                            
August 18-19, 2012   North Flathead Yacht Club  - Somers, Montana                                            
Full Rig:                                            
Finish    Sail #    Name    Homeport    R1    R2    R3    R4    R5    R6    Total    Net
1    195601    Ian Elliott    Alberta    2     (5)    1     2     5     2     17     12
2    162333    Ian Hern    Alberta    1     (3)    3     3     3     3     16     13
3    174350    Jim Christopher    California    4     (10)    2     6     1     1     24     14
4    194593    Nicolas Hamilton    Alberta    6     2     5     1     7     (8)    29     21
5    189805    Liam Quinlan    Alberta    3     7     (10)    8     4     5     37     27
6    143225    John Underwood    Montana    9     8     4     5     (11)    4     41     30
7    165895    Tim Sauer    Montana    7     4     (9)    9     2     9     40     31
8    170757    Susie Pegel    Wisconsin    5     1     6     12     (15)    11     50     35
9    185926    Richard Quinlan    Alberta    8     9     8     4     (13)    7     49     36
10    184536    Luke Harrison    Alberta    (12)    6     7     10     12     6     53     41
11    160965    Mike Gilbert    Montana    (16)    11     12     11     6     10     66     50
12    188874    David Elliott    Alberta    (14)    12     13     7     10     14     70     56
13    NFYC 8    Dennis Muri    Montana    15     (16)    11     14     8     16     80     64
14    NFYC 84    Galen Healey    Montana    13     13     16     13     9     (18)    82     64
15    175143    Peter Aronsson    Montana    11     14     14     (15)    14     15     83     68
16    196817    Frank Caccavo    Washington    10     (18)    15     16     17     13     89     71
17    NFYC 82    Nelson Roosendahl    Montana    (17)    15     17     17     16     12     94     77
18    69468    Austin Gilbert    Montana    (19)    17     18     18     18     17     107     88
19    NFYC 7    Robin Westlake    Montana    18     DNS    DNS    DNS    DNC    DNC    118     98
20    NFYC 20    Sarah Bleyer    Montana    DNS    DNC    DNC    DNC    DNC    DNC    120     100