by Don Verhaeghe
On Saturday, September 17, Harper Lake Model Yacht Club (#56) in Louisville, Colorado hosted the 13th annual Rocky Mountain Regatta for the ODOM class. We enjoyed mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s and 80s. The wind started out at about 8-10mph from the south-southeast but then decreased in the afternoon to 3-5mph.
A course was set up to in anticipation of the forecasted easterly winds with a distant mark placed north of the start/finish area to provide a windward leg to the finish line for the starting SSE breeze. This windward leg involved sailing directly towards shore, making it difficult to judge angles to the wind, laylines, and port-starboard crossings. This made for a great challenge for skippers to earn those green chevrons!
The wind direction stayed very steady throughout the morning which is rare at Harper Lake. After 10 races using this same course, it was time for a lunch break and some pizza. During lunch, the wind started dropping in speed in anticipation of the wind change which was quite overdue.
Resuming racing after lunch, we still had the wind out of the SSE but at about 5mph. We ended up sailing 5 more races with this challenging course until the wind finally clocked around to the predicted easterly direction. The final 5 races were then run with a more conventional windward leeward course with offset marks along the shoreline. Wind speeds had dropped to about 3mph so the final few races were taking longer to complete. After 20 races were completed, the regatta was closed out.
A very big thank-you goes to Stew Williams who acted as our race director and score keeper. And thanks to Chuck Drake for handling registrations. Thank you also to Ken Hegy and Stew for supplying the iced-down water in the cooler.

Summary of ODOM Class 2022 Rocky Mountain Regatta, Green Chevrons
Date: September 17, 2022
Location: Louisville, CO
Host Club: Harper Lake Model Yacht Club
# of Entries: 9
Winds: 3-10mph
Races Completed: 20 (4 throw-outs)
Scoring System: Low Point
Race Committee & Valuable Assistants: Stew Williams - Race Director, Scorekeeper and Hydration
Supplies; Chuck Drake - Registration; Ken Hegy - Ice and Lunch Supplies