SPSA – February Update and What’s Next!

Hello Sailors,
February has been a busy month for sailboat racing. Among the clubs around the bay there were racing opportunities every weekend. We had cooler temps, light winds, brilliant sunny days, heavy winds and rainy conditions – typical Florida winter.
We started out the month with our second installment of our Spring Series Races – races 11 & 12. It was a light air day. We were only able to get one race off. Thank you Guy Van Doran and Fiddlesticks for being the Race Committee for the day. Winners for the day were Tack Tick in the Racing Division, Legacy in Cruising Spin, Slow Bell – Cruising, and Sonar Burney in the Sonar/Non-Spin Class. Congratulations to all!
The Helly Hansen – Sailing World Regatta took over the Bay February 16-18. Well over 200 boats participated in this international regatta series race. Friday started out with postponements waiting for the winds to fill in and only one race was completed. Saturday was a "sporty" day with gusts over 20 and Sunday brought a very windy and rainy day, a racing challenge for all. 9 SPSA member boats participated in the PHRF Distance Race with 4 taking the podium – Ray Mannix/Semper Fi, Tony Sampere/Cayennita III, Jeff Lewis/Slow Bell and Dave Roberts/Legacy. Members Lon Ethington and Meg Gimmie sailed their Windmill Pig Headed and took second place in a one design Division Congratulations to everyone, especially the crews that slogged through the conditions on Sunday.
This past Saturday Tampa Sailing Squadron held its Gasparilla Regatta. Alway gracious hosts, the TSS race brough great weather with healthy winds that made for a fun race and a pirate themed after party with food, a band and dancing and rum all around. Again, 9 SPSA member boats participated. Taking home some pirate treasure were Slow Bell, Hula Girl II, Cayennita and Legacy. Well Done SPSA!
March Events for SPSA:
Saturday March 2 is our Commodore's Cup. This is a pursuit race with the first start at 1100. All start times will be posted by Friday afternoon. Post Race Meet-up will be at Localz. Even if you don't get the chance to race try to make it to the post race gathering. If you are new to the club this is a great opportunity to meet other members. 
Tuesday March 5th is our next Board of Directors meeting, 6:00PM at the Sailing Center. All members are welcome to attend. Attending a meeting is a great way to get a little more involved in the club and find opportunities to offer ideas and volunteer. If you plan to attend please let us know by sending an email to commodore@spsa.us
Saturday March 16 – Spring Series Races 13 & 14  Our St. Patrick's Day Race☘️. Start time 1100. Hula Girl II will be RC – expect some leprechaun shenanigans🍀 on the Bay. Details for the Post Race Party are upcoming. For sure there will be awards for the best dressed boat and crew.
Saturday March 23 is our Spring Full Moon Pursuit Race – start time 1930. All start times will be posted by Friday afternoon. Don't miss out on the magical experience of racing under a full moon. 
Other Racing Opportunities around the Bay in March:
March 9 – SPYC Pennington Cup – this is a Gulf Race out of their Pass-a-grille clubhouse. If you want to sail and not deal with the Grand Prix traffic this is a great event. See here for details https://yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=16458.
SPYC Twilight Series begins on Friday March 25th. The best way to round out your week is to sail. Go here for registration details.
March 23 – SPYC MOA Race – this is a 60 nautical mile race. A new race for this year, one of the SPYC Ocean Racing Series Race. It will be a good challenge for boats and crew. Don't miss out. 
Don't forget you have a few more Days to try to win the King of the Bay for February. Brian Conlin sailing Obsession currently holds the flag as winner for January. His time also put him in the 6th spot for fastest overall time.
Whew!
See you all out on the Bay