Floatline - Chesapeake Bay News: IC or Icy?

IC or Icy?

Eighty sailors--half of them from the Annapolis area, the rest from New York and Massachusetts--raced in the IC Midwinter Regatta held out of Severn SA last weekend in increasingly pleasant and breezy conditions, for January, that is. Ic_sm_1_3

The 11.6-foot InterClub dinghy was designed for the Larchmont YC as a frostbite class more than 50 years ago. Larchmont still breeds more IC sailors than other east coast locations with 6o registered boats; Annapolis has about 20 boats. With 315 pounds being the upper limit of weight on board, "You don't see any big Star sailors out here," says Annapolis fleet captain Ian Mutnick. As a result, the class is couple- and family-friendly. Combine that notion with the fact that the boats are only sailed in winter, and you have an eclectic fleet that enjoys soup-eating and beer-drinking together by the fire as much as they do competition.

Bissell_3 "The fun factor was the reason I did this event, and I wasn't disappointed," says Annapolis sailor Brian Bissell (left), who placed second along with his A-Team crew Alexis Rubin and B-Team Matt and Lori Schubert. A California guy at heart, Bissell swore that after college, he'd never sail in cold weather again, but when he heard how much fun the IC Midwinter event was, he went out and bought the warmest hat he could find, "even if it looked dorky or girly."