Page 4. MAINE COASTAL NEWS September 2010


Maine Coastal News P.O. Box 710


(207) 223-8846


Winterport, Maine 04496-0710 U.S.A. E-mail - igmatats@aol.com


Web site: www.mainescoast.com Fax (207) 223-9004 Lobster Boat Racing Continued from Page 1.


on the hard headed for Rockland, so there was only one boat, CRY BABY, which came to the line for the Gasoline Free-for-All. Five boats came to the line for the Diesel Free-for-All and it was no surprise that it was STARLIGHT EXPRESS, who crossed the line first.


Maine Coastal News is dedicated to covering the waterfront of State of Maine. It covers commercial fishing, yachting (power and sail), boat yard and waterfront news and maritime history. Maine Coastal News is published 12 times per year. The distribution of Maine Coastal News is from Eastport to Kittery and is free on the newsstand. It also can be by subscription. A year subscription, 12 issues, is $20.00. A single copy is $2.00, which covers the postage. Foreign rates for subscriptions are $40.00 per year. The Maine Coastal News office is located at 966 North Main Street, Winterport, Maine. Comments or additional information write: Maine Coastal News, P.O. Box 710, Winterport,


Maine 04496.


Next, was the Wooden Boat Race, which had six boats on the line. This was going to be a great battle between SEA FLEA, ABIGAIL & CARTER and MELANIE JEAN. As the racers came up the course it was SEA FLEA in the lead, but as he neared the line the engine slowed and she went dead in the water and ABIGAIL & CARTER went by followed by MELANIE JEAN, who would finish one two.


Only two boats came to the line for the Fastest Lobster Boat, STARLIGHT EX- PRESS and SUNBIRD. It was a great race and SUNBIRD gave it her all, but it just was not enough.


Publisher Editor-in-Chief


Jon B. Johansen Rachel Elward


Advertising Deadlines: The deadline for the October issue is 17 September. The deadline for the November issue is 15 October.


MCN's Calendar


AUGUST 27-29 PHRF New Englands Marblehead, MA


27-28 Northeast Harbor Race Northeast Harbor Fleet


28-29 Antique & Classic Boat Festival Hawthorne Cove Marina Salem, MA


Info: (617) 666-8530 www.boatfestival.org


SEPTEMBER 10-12 Eastport Pirate Festival Eastport


Info: (800) 691-8182


16-19 Newport International Boat Show Newport, RI


18 PYC Fall Series Portland Yacht Club Portland


18-19 Maine Rocks Race Rockland Yacht Club Rockland


23-26 Norwalk Boat Show & Waterfront Festival


Norwalk, CT


25 PYC Fall Series Portland Yacht Club Portland


9 PYC Fall Series Portland Yacht Club Portland


16 Maine Lobster Boat Racing Banquet


Trade Inns Motor Inn


OCTOBER 2 PYC Fall Series Portland Yacht Club Portland


25-26 Working Waterfront Festival A FREE celebration of New England’s fishing industry: music, seafood, children’s activities, cooking demos, harbor tours, fishermen’s contests, authors, films, bookstore, artisans & more.


New Bedford, MA Info: 508-993-8894 and


www.workingwaterfrontfestival.org.


HARPSWELL: When I left the house at 0530 the rain was coming down in buckets and it did not look like this was going to be a very good day for racing. Well, as I passed Waterville the weather changed for the bet- ter, first the rain became a mist and just south of Augusta it stopped. The sun was still not out and I still worried about fog. I arrived at Harpswell and it was overcast, but no fog, so the race was good to go.


The race course at Harpswell was moved off of Mitchell Field. Harpswell has a week- end of activities going on at Mitchell Field and they hoped that the lobster boat racing would bring more people, and it did. There were several hundred people on the beach watching as the sun came out and the tem- perature climbed.


There were three entrants in the Wooden Boat Race, ABIGAIL & CARTER, MELANIE JEAN and Jake Dugas’ GRASS- HOPPER (Will Frost, 1959, 31-foot Will Frost, 1959, 260-hp Volvo). ABIGAIL & CARTER had just too much power for the other com- petitors, with MELANIE JEAN second and GRASSHOPPER third.


There were only three entrants in the four Gasoline Classes, one each in A, B and D. The winner of Class A was CRY BABY; Class B, Chris Smith’s LINDA CAROL (Repco 30, 350 cu. in. Chevrolet) and Class D, FOOLISH PLEASURE.


In the Diesel Classes there were no en- trants in Class B, G, H, J and M. In Class I, Chip Johnson’s THREE STARS (Mitchell Cove 35, 650-hp Mack) and Scott Wood’s WILD ONE (Crowley/Beal 33, 892-GM) has been doing battle the last several years with WILD ONE dominating. This time it was THREE STARS taking the win by two boat lengths with Zach Donnell’s HAPPY HOUR (Mitchell Cove 35, 575-hp Scania) third. There was only one entrant in Class K, Tom Clemon’s MOTIVATION (Duffy 37, 900-hp Mack) and he raced with Class L, which pitted him against STARLIGHT EXPRESS, with Alfred Osgood at the helm, and Rick Albertson’s ALL SET (Holland 38, 1,200-hp MAN). As the racers came up the course it was STARLIGHT EXPRESS in the lead, but then she went dead in the water with trans- mission trouble. MOTIVATION went on for the win with the winner of Class L being ALL SET. In Class N there were four entrants on the line. Andy Johnson’s WHISTLIN’ DIXIE (Holland 40, 1,000-hp Caterpillar), Tom Clemon’s 4 GIRLS (Wesmac 46, 1,000-hp Caterpillar), ABIGAIL & CARTER and BAILEY & BELLA. The crowd wanted to see just how fast Clemons’ new boat was and if it was fast enough to get by Johnson’s WHISTLIN’ DIXIE, but it was not and the two


finished first and second with third going to ABIGAIL & CARTER.


In the Gasoline Free-for-All it was FOOL- ISH PLEASURE over CRY BABY. In the Diesel Free-for-All six boats came to the line and the battle was going to be between WHISTLIN’ DIXIE, MOTIVATION and 4 GIRLS. As they came up the course it was real close, but it was MOTIVATION holding on for a half boat length lead at the line with 4 GIRLS third.


The final race was going to be a rematch between WHISTLIN’ DIXIE and MOTIVA- TION, but three others FOOLISH PLEA- SURE, SUNBIRD and 4 GIRLS were also a threat. FOOLISH PLEASURE shot of the line and grabbed the early lead with a speed registering on the radar gun of 68.0 mph and went on for the win. SUNBIRD grabbed sec- ond, third was WHISTLIN’ DIXIE with MO- TIVATION a very close fourth.


WINTER HARBOR – The forecast for the weekend was sunny and hot and we were not disappointed. Again we dodged the ‘F’ word, fog, and had a great day before us. Now we just needed the racers to show up and as the sun rose they did. When sign up was over we had fifty boats registered. The number was a little lower than last year, but since fishing has been good it was more than understand- able.


Winter Harbor does not run the work boat classesso the first racers to line up were in the Gasoline Classes and there five boats entered in the four classes. There were no entrants in Class A and Class D. A lot of the spectators were hoping to see a face off between FOOLISH PLEASURE [Custom 30- footer, 632 cid Chevrolet] and UNDERDOG [Libby, 548 cid Chevrolet], but it was not happening today as both were no shows. In Class B there were three entrants. Doug Dodge from Beals Island came with BRENDA [Doug Dodge, 305 cid Chevrolet], Thomas Young of Winter Harbor brought his ETHAN R. [Richard Alley, 1967, 350 cu. in. Buick] and Stephen Cowperthwaite of Birch Harbor en- tered his ROUGH-N-READY [Novi, 350 cid Chevrolet]. It was a great race as BRENDA and ETHAN R. battled it out with ROUGH-N- READY back a few boat lengths. Unfortu- nately for ETHAN R. she just did not have enough to get by BRENDA.


In Class C there were two entrants. BLACK DIAMOND [Holland 32, 454 cid Chevrolet], owned by Randy Durkee of Islesboro, and WANDA LOU [Repco 30, Oldsmobile, 8 cyl.], Fred A. Young of Winter Harbor. WANDA LOU. It was another great battle and they were close when they passed the half way point, but at the finish line it was BLACK DIAMOND by two boat lengths. In the Diesel Classes there were only two races, I and L, which did not have an entrant. Class C has been dominated by David Grant’s VENOM, which would face off against Danny Walker’s REBECCA LYNN [RP 31, 250-hp Cummins] and Hollis Smith’s HAKUNA MATATA. VENOM was the win- ner with REBECCA LYNN second. Cory Robertson’s PISSCUTTAH II [South Shore 34, 300-hp John Deere] has been out four times and has four firsts. She was pitted against Stephen Strout’s ELANA JANE (Mitchell Cove 35, 300-hp Cummins) and Herman Faulkingham’s SEA ODDITY [Osmond 36, 340 hp Cummins]. It was a great battle between ELANA JANE and PISSCUTTAH II and too close to call at the half way point, but at the finish line it was ELANA JANE by a boat length. After having a major engine issue at Friendship where pistons, rods and other pieces were burnt, bent and otherwise dam-


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