Rebel Regatta returns

To the Editor: History, they say, has a habit of repeating itself and so we are going to see Sailboat racing on Greenwood Lake “just like the old days.” For years every Saturday and Sunday the Awosting Yacht Squadron would send out six different boat classes to race and it was a lovely sight to see. We had hobies, sunfish, snipes, lightnings, starboats and rebels sailing. And then the racing started downhill, for a host of reasons. One of the really big reasons was the condition of the lake, as the boats would foul huge weedbeds in their centerboards and rudder, which quickly decreased the interest in competitive sailing to say the least. It was not too long before the only fleet left was and is the Rebel fleet, which not only refused to die, but actually became larger and continues to grow. The lake has become a more pleasant venue for sailing due to a significant decrease in weeds and this has helped the growth of the Rebel fleet. So, as mentioned earlier, history will repeat when the Greenwood Lake Rebel fleet hosts the National Rebel Sailing Regatta, right here on Greenwood Lake, July 14 through July 20. I don’t recall in all the years the Awosting Yacht Squadron hosted races and ran our own sailing club races that a Natioal Regatta was ever held on Greenwood Lake. Well, now it is! Boats from as far away as Texas, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Virginia and upstate New york will be arriving mostly on Saturday, July 14, and the Junior Championship will run over the weekend, ending Monday morning, July 16. The senior championship will run from the July 16-19, concluding with a banguet and awards dinner. We will again see intense competitive sailing on Greenwood Lake, just as we did for many years a few (actually more than a few) years back. Jack Schuchardt Greenwood Lake