The 76th Annual Queen's Cup boat race ended Saturday, June 28, at the Muskegon Yacht Club, after sailors managed to navigate through 67 miles of water from the South Shore Yacht Club in Milwaukee.
MUSKEGON, MI — With close to 150 boats and more than 1,000 sailors from nearly every state, the 76th Annual Queen's Cup finished in Muskegon Lake.
The cross-lake sailboat race ended Saturday, June 28, at the Muskegon Yacht Club, after sailors managed to navigate through 67 miles of water from the South Shore Yacht Club in Milwaukee.
Bud Ainsworth, the Muskegon Yacht Club race chairman, was there when the first boats began to pull in shortly after midnight June 28.
According to Queen's Cup Race Committee Chairman Peter Engel, the fastest boat – named "Viper" and manned by Frank Laslow of Holland – started at 6:40 p.m. Friday and finished the race at 12:50 a.m. Saturday.
"We were able to handle all the docking and rafting," Ainsworth said. "Our new marina has been an ideal setup for the race."
The boat race that normally comes back to dock in Muskegon's marina once every four years proved to be a "shot in the arm for the local economy" as sailors from all over ventured to local restaurants after the race.
Boats up to 90 feet long were on display, showing some of the most modern, high-tech advantages a sailor has.
Engel has been either taking part or helping coordinate the race for 30 years, and said it is a thrill to see this many boats come together.
"The unique thing about this race is that it is at night, which brings about a lot more challenges than racing during the day," Engel said. "No two boats are the same. So we use a handicapping system that allows everyone to race together at an even pace."
Racers were split into nine different divisions of 10 boats, which were in contention for the Queen's Cup. Three additional divisions were also created for some of the slower boats. Each racer had the opportunity to win his division, as well as the overall podium spot.
However, the race had a hiccup or two when it came to Lake Michigan's weather.
"We had fog for nine days straight in Milwaukee and we weren't sure we were going to have a race," Engel said. "Miraculously, when the first group of boats had to go out and get started, the skies parted and it cleared up. However, as soon as we got started, the wind just stopped."
Carl Hanssen of Grand Rapids ran into the same problems while trying to cross Lake Michigan.
"The conditions weren't really favorable, but we had a great time," Hanssen said. "We had a safe crossing, plus we've done this race several times."
Aboard his boat, called "StandarDeviation," Hanssen – who works as a statistician – rode with a crew of eight and finished in the middle of the pack overall.
Boats that took part in the 76th Annual Queen's Cup docked in the marina next to the Muskegon Yacht Club. (Tony Wittkowski | Reporter)
Coming all the way from Longview, Texas, was Pete Pattullo aboard the "Nelda Ray."
"We come up every summer," Pattullo said. "We've done four Chicago-Macs, five Port Hurons and this year we thought we would try the Queen's Cup."
Pattullo and his crew also came across problems with their boat, which was built in Australia back in 2004, and is only one of nine of its kind in the world.
Halfway across, Pattullo said they blew an "engine" referring to the sails as an engine to a plane.
The climate in Texas this time of year is 100 degrees and no wind. Their search for cooler air came at a price through the frigid 39-degree weather overnight, which forced Pattullo to bring every piece of gear he had to stay warm.
Although after reaching the finish line, Pattullo was surprised by the reception he and his crew received.
"The hospitality here in Muskegon is probably the best we've seen in our 15 years on the lake," Pattullo said. "We've been to over 75 different ports in the Great Lakes and this one is right up there. This is the place to be in the summer, and I'm sure we'll be back."
Queen's Cup division winners
Overall Winner: Frank Laslow – (Boat Name: Viper)
Division 1: Philip O'Niel – (Boat Name: Natalie J)
Division 2: Doug Petter – (Boat Name: Willie J)
Division 3: David Hardy – (Boat Name: Turning Point)
Division 4: Russ Whitford – (Boat Name: Tumultuous Uproar)
Division 5: Don Condit – (Boat Name: Roxy)
Division 6: Jim Richter – (Boat Name: Cheep N Deep)
Division 7: James Devries – (Boat Name: Cynthia)
Division 8: Frank Laslow – (Boat Name: Viper)
Division 9: John Weissert – (Boat Name: Ralis)
Division Multi-Hull: Frederick Warner – (Boat Name: Cheeky)
Division Short-Handed: Chuck Perkins – (Boat Name: Bifrost)
Division Cruising: Robert Cooley – (Boat Name: Cool Change 4)
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