Utah Summer Games keelboat races held at Utah Lake

PROVO — High water from record winter snow and spring rains flooded out the annual Utah Lake State Park Festival, but didn’t put a damper on the Utah Summer Games Keelboat Regatta held Saturday, June 4 at Utah Lake State Park.

Crews varied from teams of seasoned racers to groups of friends and family out for nothing more than a fun time.

These particular keelboats were not the flat-bottomed boats used for hauling large loads in shallow waters, rather they were large sailboats with big heavy keels that kept the boat upright and steerable. Keelboats can be crewed by as few as two to as many as you can fit on the boat.

Twelve teams competed in three classes based on each boat’s Portsmouth Yardstick Index. To account for the variety of keelboats, the Portsmouth ratings handicap the faster boats so those racing slower boats can compete.

Crews raced on a course made up of four buoys in a square shape like bases on a baseball diamond. The starting and finishing line was positioned in the middle where the pitcher’s mound would be.

The course the teams followed around the buoys changed from race to race, and the judges determined the course used in each race on the committee boat moments before each race began and depended on factors such as which way the wind was blowing and how strong it was.

After four races, scores were tallied and the following medals awarded:

Portsmouth rating over 100 (tugboat class)

Gold — Skipper Stan Hansen and crewperson Carrie Hansen

Portsmouth rating under 90 (raceboat class)

Gold — Skipper Todd Frye and his crew of Dale Browne, Jordan Rasmussen and Allan Seawright.

Silver — Skipper John Atchison and his crew of Terry Judd and Megan Judd

Portsmouth rating between 90–100 (intermediate class)

Gold — Skipper Pat Sullivan and crewman Dave Pendell

Silver —Skipper Darin Mangum and his crew of Elizabeth Jefferson, Brandon Espinoza, Matt Pugh, and Brandon Barney

Bronze — Skipper Roger Bliss and his crew of Richard Oman and Mike Munnerlyn

Reed has volunteered at the Utah Summer Games Keelboat Regata and Sailboat Races for the past five years. Details about Utah Summer Games sailing events at Deer Creek State Park on June 25-26 can be found at http://www.utahsummergames.org/index.html.