race week-ing ...

Anyone who was here last summer probably remembers the extreme tie to sailing that our seaside community has ... and my manbug is deeply (as in: thoroughly and permanently) rooted in that culture - he would sooner sell his soul than give up his life on the water ... he sails competitively and volunteers endlessly for the local race committee, for his fleet, and for his old junior sailing club where it all began (the same sailing club where our ladybugs now sail).  In short, my Manbug eats, sleeps, and breathes sailing ...

just another Saturday for the Manbug (in yellow)

The last weekend of July every summer marks the peak of the sailing season when our town hosts hundreds sailors from all over the country to a full week of racing, first the kids (Monday-Wednesday), followed by the adults (Thursday - Sunday).  Manbug has won first place in his fleet about 3-4 times over the years (including last year!) and was once selected by Race Week's sponsor (Sailing World magazine) as the 'overall' winner among all the fleets, earning him the trip of his dreams: a chance to compete in a championship regatta in the British Virgin Islands against 7 other 'overall' winners from various sailing towns in the country (Annapolis, Larchmont, Chicago, Miami, etc).  In any event, Race Week is big - it's the halfway point of summer, it's the pinnacle of the sailing season, and it's some good ole' crazy busy fun.

And this year's Race Week was no exception in the 'crazy busy fun' category ... it starts early in the morning with the packing of the lunches and the gear, followed by the rigging of the boats and sailing out of the harbor to the race course out in the open water by 10:30/11:00 ... and depending on weather conditions you could either be floating and waiting all day or you could race in as many as 5 back-to-back races.  This year I had the opportunity to watch the junior races from the water instead of the shore since manbug was (of course) volunteering as a 'help boat'.

What a difference a front row seat makes ...

big ladybug is in the center - sail# 40775

the sisters check in with one another during a break

as you can see here, the junior fleets are huge - as many as 60 boats at once!

big ladybug stops to smile

little ladybug trims the sails while steering to maneuver around a tight spot

Manbug gets full credit for all of the above photos ... he's quite the photographer, isn't he?   He was as excited as I've ever seen him to be on the water watching both of his kids following in his footsteps and sailing their little hearts out ... Manbug nirvana.