Team Seacats

The first cluster of boats is well over halfway here. Our evil GPS lady has steered us to East Hell and back so we haven’t even gotten checked into our rooms at Fernandina. We’re almost there now though. Seacatas White and probably every other Ground Crew are unpacking to make ready for the arrival of the teams on this, the penultimate leg of the 2009 Tybee 500.

My in-laws have come down to greet us with their grandkids, our beautiful twin neices who live not too far away from here. I’ll be spending some time visiting with them but will continue to update from my Blackberry should I hear something exciting.

I will say that Royal green has either lost their transponder or has had a breakdown because they are still showing up at the same spot as they were in my earlier post. I hope they’re alright and will be underway again soon.

According to the transponders found on the live tracking found on the the official Tybee 500 site, it looks like Royal Green has dropped to last place, a well ways behind Cat in the Hat. Royal Green had a great start and were the third to pop their spinnakers behind Royal Yellow and Seacats Orange so I’m only guessing that Jamie and Leondro may have encoutered some technical difficulties. This map from Topofusion isn’t an indicator of the overall positions since only about six boats are covered by the technology although it is quite nice to estimate the general position of the fleet. As it stands from the last time I checked TCDYC, Royal Yellow, and Royal Orange were rounding up the top three.

I forgot to mention that there was a good bit of contact between two sets of boats as they got turned sideways in the surf while trying. I think Cat in the Hat was in the mix with Chums and then earlier two other teams did a fair bit of bumping and grinding as well. I apologize for the vague nature of this intel but I was taking photos and not notes this morning, plus carrying a bag with ground crew phones and sunglasses.

Here are a few:

Pre-race man candy (aka Tripp Burd), just for my friend Karen.

Lee Wicklund and Jake Kohl

Todd Hart of Catfever

Catsailing is sometimes a contact sport

Ready for the first start

TCDYC and Royal Yellow

Cluster at the Daytona start

Although very far away yet. I’m going down to the beach now. I have visitors here from home to meet and greet. I’ll keep you updated from the beach.

Here is a note to thank the rest of the sponsors for Team Seacats this year without whom we would be unable to participate in the Tybee 500.

Closest to our hearts is the main man who is the lifeblood of Team Seacats, Frank Moore. Frank is an attorney with Mansmann & Moore a company based in Pittsburgh, Pa. They are a group of five attorneys who specialize in many areas of law, including personal injury and workers’ compensation. The partners are both former district attorneys for Allegheny County and have more than 40 years of trial experience between them. They also practice in Ohio, where their most recent branch expansion is in the city of Cleveland. Frank’s financial support to Team Seacats and enthusiasm for the sport have been invaluable to Team Seacats for several years. In fact, Frank Moore is the only sailor to have participated in every Tybee 500 since its inception.

I want make sure that I mention our good friends at Layline. Mike Krantz is not only an accomplished sailor from the Tybee 500, Great Texas, Alter Cup, and many other regattas (including this year’s Tybee 500), but he’s got a great company that supplies whatever your little heart desires in the way of sailing paraphernalia including hardware, clothing, and cordage. Added to which, the price is right and customer service is guaranteed. They even include live, online chat for any questions you may have regarding your order. Layline is also the distributor for Zhik Sailing Gear which is a sponsor of this year’s Tybee 500.

Astral Buoyancy is a great little company out of Asheville, NC that manufactures PFD’s for kayaking. We’d love to see them further expand their exposure to the catsailing community. They have quite a clever and artistic approach to their craft, with the added benefit of exploring less toxic, easily recyclable foams and other buoyant technologies in their manufacturing process. The PFD market has historically used the flotation qualities of PVC, which is an extremely toxic substance. Astral prides themselves in creating strong and durable products that people can trust, with a steadfast commitment to outstanding customer service. The little details of their products are so incredibly well thought out that I’m sure any performance sailor will be impressed. Both Jake and Frank love theirs and highly recommend them to anyone else in the market for a new and improved take on PFD’s. They will not only meet but exceed your expectations with both performance and design.

Another water sports specific company that has also been a sponsor in years past is Amigos Drysuit Repair. Their background is in paddling gear, however they are proficient in repairing suits for sailing, diving, barefoot skiing, and other high impact water sports from a wide range of brands. As a small family run business, Robin and Charlie Morris are dedicated to personal attention for each and every customer. Providing a one week turnaround for most repairs, their work is both flawless and very affordable. Please check out their web site for even more information, special deals, and their network of East coast drop off centers to save you time and money on shipping!

Last but certainly not least is the local vendor who helped organize procurement of our Costa Del Mar sunglasses (highlighted in a separate post with a photo of our model Daryl Moss) is Fowler’s Pharmacy in Greenville, SC. In business since 1957, Eugene Estes opened Fowler’s with a simple vision to be much more than just a pharmacy but to provide exemplary customer service along with an incredibly extensive line of specialty and designer sunglasses. With over 8000 pairs of sunglasses in stock, brand names include Costa del Mar, Gucci, Maui Jim, Dolce & Gabbana, Oakley, and many more. Whether you’re primarily looking for fashion or functionality for any type of sporting activity, you can find both in the same pair at Fowler’s Pharmacy.