Come sail away
Royal Oak yachters to try their craft on Lake Huron

By Christian Davis
C & G Sports Writer

Racers from all over the state, and in some cases from all over the country, are gearing up for the upcoming Bayview Mackinac Race, which runs from Port Huron to Mackinac Island.

The competitors set sail July 12 in 84th edition of the one the world’s largest freshwater races.

Two crews, in particular, are looking forward to the challenge.

‘Whalen’ away
This year marks the 10th Bayview Mackinac Race for Ron Whalen, skipper of Notorious.

But this time around, the Royal Oak resident believes his yacht can beat its best finish of 11th place in IRC D class.

“We’re going to go with two less crew members,” Whalen said, adding that he believes the lighter weight will be the difference. “Last year, we thought we were in the money until the end, and then the wind died. We got up there and floated around for a while.”

The captain’s crew includes his daughter, Trisha Whalen, of Royal Oak, Christopher Cook (Macomb), Steve Wright (Harper Woods), Kurt Mitter (Rochester Hills), Roque Wood (Lake Orion), Joe Ottoy (St. Clair Shores), Tom Jackman (St. Clair Shores), Dave Turner (Lake Orion) and Tim Thompson (Grosse Pointe Farms).

While the yacht floated a bit last year, that’s preferable to what happened to Whalen in the 1986 race.

“I spent four years in the Navy, and never new Lake Huron could get waves 12-feet tall,” he said. “The waves were so big that the boats would disappear between them.”

This year, Whalen said the crew would do four-hour shifts throughout the race, with everyone taking a turn at just about every job, including at the wheel.

“It gets to the point where you’re a little cross-eyed if you’re staring out there too long,” he said.

For the captain, it’s his shift when the stars are out that he enjoys most.

“I’d rather sail by a star than a compass,” he said.

Mr. Rogers and the Kintama
David Rogers is not new to the Bayview Mackinac Race; he even skippered his yacht to a fourth-place finish one year in the Cruising D class.

But this time around will be different for the Royal Oak resident.

In March, Rogers purchased a new boat — a bigger, faster boat — Kintama.

And this year he’ll be racing in the Cruising A class.

“It’s going to take us two or three years to figure the boat out,” Rogers said. “It’s just a lot bigger boat.”

Rogers became a little more familiar with the Kintama just after he purchased, sailing it home from Buffalo, NY.

“It took about 35 hours,” Rogers said. “The weather was a little cold at the time, but it wasn’t a bad trip.”

Rogers is hoping that his voyage to Mackinac Island will take about the same amount of time, 35 hours.

Joining the skipper are Richard Voytowich of Grosse Pointe, Robert Smith (Clinton Township), William Tyree (Westland), Jim Reed (Grosse Pointe), Kit Tomkow (Brighton), Dick Koller (Grosse Pointe Woods), John Klobuchar (Grosse Pointe Woods), John Rogers (North Branch) and Tim Thompson (Grosse Pointe Farms).

Along with the time spent with the crew, Rogers said his favorite parts of the race are the beginning and the end.

“You have maybe 10-15 boats trying to go across the line at the same time, trying to avoid each other but also positioning themselves for a good start,” Rogers said. “It can get the adrenaline up pretty good.”

As for the finish, well, that’s where the sense accomplishment comes in.

“The finish is seeing it all the way through,” he said.

For information on the race, please visit the Bayview Yacht Club’s Web site at www.byc.com.

You can reach Sports Writer Christian Davis at cdavis@candgnews.com or at (586) 498-1062.