Author: Rodion Mazin

It is with a very heavy heart that we must pass along the news of the passing of one of the legendary USA Finn sailors, Louis Nady.

Louis started sailing Finns in the 1960s, winning the Zellerbach at St. Francis in 1967. He was an alternate on the US Olympic Team in 1972 and raced against Paul Elvstrom, Jacques Rogge and other legends. More than one made the top ten at the Gold Cup.

At 77 years old he still sailed his Finn 3 times a week at Buccaneer Yacht Club.

” He was a true gentleman, on and off the water.” – Jim Revkin

” He will be missed by all who crossed his bow or him theirs.” – Chuck Rudinsky

“A great sailor and man.  He will be missed.” – Phillip Ramming

“I considered him a great sportsman, and Corinthian sailor. He lived a great life, and positively influenced others.” – Peter Mcdonald

“I enjoyed racing against Louie for four decades. Such a great competitor and friend. I have many fond memories, but the most recent of these was chatting with Louie & Karen at the Master NAs at Buccaneer this April, where we talked about Finn sailing, of course, our experiences as chemical engineers, but most importantly and earnestly about the next generation: the joys of grandparenting! Miss you man. Cross ’em when you can. Lou, you are an inspiration to all of us. With fondness, love, respect, and admiration ” – Derek Mess

“While in college in the early 1970s Louie and I along with Ed Bennett and John Bertrand of Australia (the latter two went to the 72 Olympics in Kiel), Finn sailed constantly on the Berkeley Circle and off St Francis YC in San Francisco.  Lou was always ready to help others in the Finn class. I often marveled at how in heavy air he would nail the pin end start, tack on to port and be launched.  I saw him do it again at the 2010 Finn Gold Cup in San Francisco.  He was also a great light air sailor.  My first encounter with Lou was at the 1970 nationals as I was rounding the weather mark ahead in the first race and as he came up to the mark after me and said “Hey, why don’t you wait up”  Typical Lou, always with a smile.” – Peter Connally

Trailering your boat through LA traffic, staying awake on the dusty hot I-99 through Bakersfield and Fresno. But you get to turn to starboard and elevate to a slice of heaven at Huntington Lake (elevation 6k’) in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. 7 Finns, 3 from SDYC, competed in 7 races over the last weekend in July. Gary Mitchell, John Reiter, Lee Hope, and families shared a cabin in the woods near the lake. It was party time for the fleet as most gathered at our pad for food and grog.
Typical lake sailing conditions, as the wind fluctuated from 7-15 knots both days. Many theories about which way to go, but the leaders typically won the drag race to the left side of the lake and never looked back. Beautiful low 80-degree weather, but cold water. Henry Sprague, 74 years old, dominated the fleet with all bullets except for the last race. Henry is coming off the Finn World Masters in Europe, with 250 competitors. Henry finished 12th overall at the Worlds and dominated the Grand Masters Fleet. He is the current reigning World Grand Masters Champion and always shows up to sail his Finn fast.

But Henry almost got chucked in this regatta by the regatta chair (me), as he forgot to bring money to the event. He somehow came up with the $40 entry fee, and paid off the park rangers for his camping fee, just before the trophy presentation.
2nd Overall went to Robert Kinney of NHYC, John Reiter of SDYC in third.

The SDYC July OD weekend was one of the most well attended in recent memory thanks to the promotional skills of SDYC fleet captain Mike Dorgan. Mike was again dominant in his finishes as he pretty much buried the competition, but carded an OCS in the 4th race. The One-Design weekends do not have a throw-out, so overall Lee Hope came out on top followed by Matt Dorgan in second and Dorgan third overall counting his OCS.

by Lee Hope

The Willow Bank Yacht Club Finn regatta has been run annually since 1968. The Toilet Bowl trophy and moniker were added in 1972 when the Toilet Bowl itself was recovered during the renovation of a local train station. The members of the WBYC Finn Fleet saw the bowl as fitting the low-brow sensibilities of the Finn Class at the time, and as a bonus, the trophy would torment the wives of every Finn sailor who took it home. After the trophy was banished to someone’s garden for a year and returned in poor condition, it was restored to its original splendor and put on permanent display in the WBYC dining room.

The regatta is one of the few remaining Finn regattas in the northeastern US. Attendees enjoy small-town setting, the low-key vibe of WBYC and the opportunity to meet old and new members of the Finn class. For more information, see the club website at https://willowbankyc.com

Click here to register

LA SALLE, Mich. – The Great Lakes Finn Championship was hosted again this year by the ever accommodating North Cape Yacht Club from the 6th to 7th of July. Despite storm cells blowing in on Saturday and high water flooding the Club grounds on Sunday, the RC was able to get the 2019 series off and complete. The Championship honour went to Rodion “Rody” Mazin again this year, with brother Nikita “Nik” Mazin taking second place, and Simon van Wonderen in third.

Joining the event this year was first time Finnster Peter “PVR” van Rossem, champion DN sailor fresh off the Canadian ice. Returning local Will Libcke took a break from designing foil shapes at WMU sporting a new low resistance skinsuit that got some attention from the female Lightning and Snipe sailors sharing the course. Steve Marrow, also local to La Salle, made the right decision to put his feet in the hiking strap of his Finn and not one of his many other boats sailing that weekend, apparently inspired after hearing that John Miller risked his health to make it out sailing despite having picked up a severe hangover in Buffalo. “Slim Shady” Peter Frissell again played fabulous host, flipping steaks and showing the travelling sailors his massive home collection of Shad Flies.

The Finn sailors participated in two days of tuning and training ahead of the regatta. Led by Coach Rody who, despite sometimes being at a loss for comprehensible words, mustered the sailors through countless starting drills and practice races in anticipation of the big event. Newbie Finn sailor PVR impressed the fleet with early speed in his 90’s Abbott sometimes matched by Nik in his vintage late 70’s Vanguard, both hanging in with Slim Shady in his Devoti hull newly painted after last year’s haircut.

Saturday racing was postponed and eventually blown off for the day due to advancing storms cells, which meant for another afternoon of practice for the Finns. That night the NCYC put on a great steak dinner. The Sunday racing was met with an early start in the 10-15 knot NE breeze which meant for shifty racing with big waves – perfect Finn sailing conditions. Rody lead the fleet with straight bullets. Not far behind was a hard fought battle for second and third, with Nik taking second place in a late 70’s Vanguard still fast after Gus Miller’s tweaks from prior years and leaving Simon van Wonderen to pick up the 3^rd place position on the tie breaker.

Thanks to Peter Frissell and the NCYC for hosting another great event. And to travelling support crews for participating, Daria and Irene, returning Finn junior Philip, and Lana who had a nice introduction to the NCYC.

Next event is the annual Toilet Bowl Regatta on beautiful Lake Cazenovia, NY. Last year marked the 50^th anniversary of the event and played host for the North American Championship. https://vimeo.com/284562630

By Simon van Wonderen

Pictures by Paula Anderson

Full Results

Finn North American Championship is back on the WS calendar as a 100 point event. All sailors have to comply with the conditions of entry, be the current active member of USAFA/IFA, have a valid sail number, and acquire WS sailors ID. For more details click here. To register, visit the event website.

Today, Henry Sprague won his third title at Skovshoved Finn World Masters. He placed 12th overall in the fleet of 240 boats. More information about final results can be found at the Finn World Masters website. Congratulations Henry!

Finn World Masters 2019 starts today in Skovshoved, Denmark. Follow our sailors at
https://www.manage2sail.com/…/b5a20cc7-61ec-4a1c-a4ca-1f698…

USA/Canada entries: Charles Heimler (USA 32), Hans Claesson (USA 155), Henry Sprague (USA 74), James Hunter (USA 23), Kay Statz (USA 13), Michael Mark (USA 117), and Derek Mess (CAN 115)

Registration is now open for the Finn Great Lakes Championship 2019. Visit the registration page to find out who is coming and to check out the latest NOR.   https://finnusa.org/glc2019/