Race results:  un-Regatta (.pdf)

photos by Wind Power

                The 24th annual event went off with great weather but could have used more wind.  There was enough wind to hold 5 races a day for a total of 10.  Attendance was good with 40 racers from 4 mid-west states and Andy and Devon Anderson [...]]]>  

Download A-Fleet Race Results (.pdf) 
Download Sport & Workshop Fleets Results (.pdf)

                The 24^th annual event went off with great weather but could have used more wind.  There was enough wind to hold 5 races a day for a total of 10.  Attendance was good with 40 racers from 4 mid-west states and Andy and Devon Anderson coming all the way from San Francisco. The light wind in the forecast deterred some from traveling to the event, sad to say.  Regattas are a lifestyle where windsurfers get together with family and friends and have a great time wind or no wind.  They also make the most use of the wind they have.  We were happy we didn’t have to resort to Stand-up Paddle Boarding, a board toss, volley ball and more beer drinking to appease the sailors in No Wind conditions.

                Sat. morning started with registration and then a skippers meeting for all fleets.  The Workshop Fleet (beginner racers) had a special skippers meeting to meet the rest of their Fleet, study the race course, learn about the start sequence and answer all their questions.  A gate course was chosen for the day with the A-Fleet doing 2 laps, the Sport Fleet (who started with the A-Fleet) did 1 lap and the Workshop Fleet starting second with 1 lap and the downwind leg shorter than the other Fleets.  3 races were held before a lunch break where the racers could treat themselves to the WAK (Winnebago Association of KiteBoarding, www.wakkiteboarding.com ) brat and hamburger fry.  The winds were light to very light with 90 degree wind shifts so setting a square course to the wind was very difficult.  A few races the wind shifted and the start was a reach with the course almost being a slalom race. 2 more races were held after lunch in a pretty steady SE breeze.  The three Anderson brothers (Andy, Arden & Adam) were dominating the A-fleet, Adam (1^st overall) worst finish was a 5^th.  Andy & Blaise Gratton, Tim Cleary, Don Altmeyer, Alex Monroe and Peter Hartwich all had top 5 finishes at some point.  Gary Lovrine, Steve Willits, Kelly Johnson, Larry Reed & Dan Thornton were taking the top 5 finishes in the Sport Fleet.  In the Workshop Fleet Neils Zaunmueller and Kylan Johnson were dominating on windsurfers but Austin Hamburger on an Open Bic was right in there with them. Mary Duester, Peggy Wing and Jennifer Wettstein from the Wind Power Academy Ladies night were also on the race course trying to beat the junior boys.

                In the evening the racers along with friends and family were served a great meal at the Sunset Supper Club, next door to the event site.  The 2009 MoWind year end awards were held there after supper.  See the MoWind web site for the results, www.mowind.org/wp .  After the awards the group crossed the street and headed to Wind Power’s back yard to participate in the annual Bonfire.  As usual a boat was sacrificed with much celebration.  It didn’t take long after that for someone to start the Bite the Bag game.

Kathy Leifer and Rodney Scholz were the finalist with many others including Leah Altmeyer showing impressive stretching skills.  Does alcohol improve your stretch?  At midnight the group sang Happy Birthday to me.

                Sunday morning saw everybody getting their equipment set for the new day with the sun and warm wind.  A short Skippers Meeting was held and then Ann Gratton presented the quilt she made to Mike Reed for his beautiful 15 year old daughter Elyse, who is undergoing Chemotherapy.  Ann collected cloth squares that she handed out at earlier regattas, where the racers could write comments and sign them for Elyse.  The quilt was beautiful with the center being purple, Elyse’s favorite color. It’s very impressive to see what a great family the members of MoWind are, supporting their fellow racers in tough times.

The wind was light with the race committee setting the gate course due to conditions.  But they really wanted to challenge the racers with the famed M Course that has 5 jibes.  As the late morning and early afternoon wore on the wind became stronger and more consistent from the SE.  Sometimes they could even plane going down wind.  5 consecutive races were completed, with the final race starting at 2 pm. 

In the A-Fleet again the Anderson brothers dominated with Andy Gratton (Oshkosh) and Tim Cleary (Pewaukee) right in the mix with them.  In 5 races there were 4 different winners!  In the Sport Fleet Gary Lovrine turned on the heat, winning 3 of the 5 races.  Steve Willits (Barrington, IL.) was right on his tail with Mark Schmitz (Fond du Lac), Jim Magnuson (Beaver Dam) and Jack Sullivan (Mequon) following.  Neils Zaunmueller (Beaver Dam) won 4 of the 5 races with Austin Hamburger (Brownsville) and Kylan Johnson (St. Paul, Mn) following closely.  See Wind Power’s web site for the final race results and MORE!    www.windpowerwindsurfing.com

After the final race, the racers all came to shore tired and hungry and were treated with foot long sub sandwiches.  Final scores were tabulated followed by awards.  Trophies were a plaque with a group picture and a picture of the award winner sailing.  The MoWind raffle was then held with Larry Reed from Iowa the finalist for the Wind Power Champs.  His name was added with the finalist from the other 2009 MoWind Regattas and the winners were drawn for the KA sail (Del Carpenter, Cedar Falls Iowa), GPS (Brad Woodworth, Dryden Canada) and Windmeter (Chris Barry, Toledo Ohio).  Door prizes were drawn by all and everyone left with a smile on their face, a winner.  Mike, Lois and Elyse Reed (Cary, Il.) would like to thank all those who have shown their support in the quit and participating in Elyse’s care pages web site. www.carepages.com/carepages/Elyse15/updates/2348917?client_code=default&ipc=mur

Last but not least I would like to thank all those who made this great event possible.  My mother Joan, brothers David and Andrew, nephew Blaise, Jennifer my girl friend, Mary Davies who runs the shop, Greg Leifer, Holly Hamburger and Leah Altmeyer who helped have fun on the committee boat.  I also want to thank all of you who participated and those who supported the event in any way plus the family, friends and others who sat on the beach or sailed and watched the races.

Updated 10-8-2009, Kevin added the ‘Winners Movie Montage’!
Enjoy the 5 Video compilations put together by Wind Power of the Event —  Cheers,  Kevin Gratton

This is the 24th Anniversary of this fall windsurfing event.  It is on the US Windsurfing National Race Tour and a MoWind (Mid-West Organizers of Windsurfing) Event.

Don’t let all the hype fool you though, it’s a great event for all.  Even First Time Racers!  Wind Power caters to the [...]]]> Wind Power Championships 2009 Notice of Race!

This is the 24^th Anniversary of this fall windsurfing event.  It is on the US Windsurfing National Race Tour and a MoWind (Mid-West Organizers of Windsurfing) Event.

Don’t let all the hype fool you though, it’s a great event for all.  Even First Time Racers!  Wind Power caters to the beginner and novice racer.  We try our best to make them comfortable, educate them and make them feel part of the Windsurfing Racing Family.  Course and Slalom and Long Distance Racing will be offered, wind permitting.

New this year is the addition of the O’Pen Bic Kid’s Sailboat Class.  Click on the blue link and see a detailed description of the boat and it’s uses and the 1st Annaul Event.  Wind Power held the 1st annual O’pen Bic un-Regatta Aug 22nd.  With 22 racers it was a great success even though it was chilly and very windy in the morning.  By noon the sun was out and the wind subsided some to offer perfect conditions for all the kids.  The kids and parents unamiosly voted to make next years a 2 day event.  Wind Power will have boats available for kids to race in the Championships.

Saturday afternoon the Winnebago Association of Kiters  (WAK) will host a brat & hamburger sale.  Saturday night a meal and drink are provided at the Sunset Supper Club located next to the race site.  At the meal the 2009 year end MoWind Awards will be presented.  A bonfire at Wind Power will follow.  Don’t forget to bring your Tent!  Free camping in Wind Power’s backyard.

Sunday starts with a 9:30 skippers meeting followed with racing.  Sunday afternoon will be awards, prizes and sub sandwiches.  Bring your friends and family and watch or be a part of the 2009 Wind Power Championships.

On Saturday, August 22nd, the First Annual Lake Winnebago O’Pen Bic Un-Regatta was held at Wind Power Windsurfing Center in Fond du Lac, WI. The O’pen Bic is a fast and fun new sailboat designed for kids that is very easy to learn and progress on. [...]]]>

from the Official Press Release (.pdf)
or visit article at sail-world.com

On Saturday, August 22nd, the First Annual Lake Winnebago O’Pen Bic Un-Regatta was held at Wind Power Windsurfing Center in Fond du Lac, WI. The O’pen Bic is a fast and fun new sailboat designed for kids that is very easy to learn and progress on. If and when it is tipped over it can be righted easily and immediately drains the water from the boat because of the open transom so No Bailing is required. Steve and Sara Eliasen along with Kevin Gratton from Wind Power have been promoting this new boat around Wisconsin this summer, ending with the Un-Regatta. An un-regatta is a sailboat competition, but instead of being scored on how fast they sailed, the kids were scored on their attitude, their promotion of sportsmanship, and how much fun they had. Unlike an orthodox sailing regatta, an un-regatta has other obstacles to do besides racing through a course, such as standing up for a race, tipping the boat over and back up, or doing freestyle tricks on the boat like making it do a wheelie or standing on the front. Slalom racing is also part of the format.

A total of 20 youth sailors participated in this event, coming from Fond du Lac, Madison, Oshkosh, Winneconne, Sturgeon Bay, Sheboygan, and even Illinois. Participants got a full day of sailing in, with lots of wind and waves in the early afternoon making it fun, challenging and interesting. There were many capsizes with one kid saying he capsized 26 times. After a lunch break the kids went out and did down-wind slalom racing. Competition was close. One of the slalom races the kids were required to stand-up and sail. For some it was new and challenging but they all had fun and were better sailors by the end of the un-regatta.

All racers received a North Sails gear bag with some goodies. The winners in the 12 and older class were: 3rd Cameron Keaton 14 from Sheboygan, 2nd Austin Hamburgur 12 from Brownsville, 1st Sheridan Hearn 15 from Madison. The Winners in the under 12 class were: 3rd Taylor Burnsvold 10 from Sturgeon Bay, 2nd Dakota Snow 11 Oshkosh, and 1st Owen Eliasen 10 from Oshkosh. Owen was also the 1st Annual Lake Winnebago O’Pen Bic un-Regatta Grand Champion. He sailed most of the regatta with a friend Dana and placed very well. Due to popular demand Wind Power will host a two day Lake Winnebago un-Regatta next year at the same time.

The O’Pen Bics are now on sale through Kevin Gratton and Steve Eliasen.
For more details go to WindPowerWindsurfing.com or call 920-251-1002.

Welcome to the new Wind Power Blog!!.

Wind Power has created this web-log, or blog, to better communicate with the Windsurfing & Kiting communities. The blog offers a sophisticated publishing system that allows quick and easy posting of articles and content as web pages. It has a built in search engine (at left). Visitors can [...]]]>

Welcome to the new Wind Power Blog!!.

Wind Power has created this web-log, or blog, to better communicate with the Windsurfing & Kiting communities. The blog offers a sophisticated publishing system that allows quick and easy posting of articles and content as web pages. It has a built in search engine (at left). Visitors can leave comments or questions on posts. It is a greay way to leave your thoughts, ask a question or even provide an answer to another comment. So get involved and we care what you have to say! Enjoy our newest posts below.