By Rodney Page, Times Staff Writer
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Sailing
Rough Waters end Rainbow Regatta Early
Rita Steel led a trio of sailors from the Luffing Lassies of Sarasota to victory Wednesday in the Sunfish class at the 37th annual Florida Women's Sailing Association's Rainbow Regatta at the St. Petersburg Sailing Center and hosted by the hosted by the Salty Sisters of St. Petersburg Yacht Club.
Steel was followed by Ursula Olsen and Nanette Reuss in the only sunfish race that was completed. The 11-mph winds were steady but combined with an incoming tide to make sailing difficult, so all the pram races were cancelled due to the number of boats capsizing in the waves.
The objective of the FWSA is to encourage education and fellowship in all things nautical between member clubs. Five other state clubs were represented: Bitter Ends of Venice, T.I. Tackers of Treasure Island, Dinghy Dames of Davis Island, Mainsheet Mamas of Tampa and Windlasses of Dunedin.
Things to Do
Biking, learning, more sailing
• The Trek Bicycle Store of St. Petersburg will host the St. Pete Bike n' Eat on April 23; a free restaurant tour by bicycle. Starts at the Trek Store (3169 Fourth St. N) at 3 p.m. and ends at Harvey's 4th Street Grill at 6 p.m. For information, call (727) 498-8655.
• The Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (100 Eighth Ave. SE, St. Petersburg) will host MarineQuest 2011 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 30. Through more than 60 exhibits, visitors can explore the world of science for free at the FWRI headquarters. For information, visit www.myfwc.com/research.
• The Clark Mills Sailing Regatta in the gulf and Clearwater Bay will be April 30-May 1. The Clearwater Yacht Club and Clearwater Community Sailing Center are co-hosting the regatta, which expects 100 sailors in the Opti Prams (designed by Clearwater's Clark Mills), Windmills, Lasers, and 420s. For information, call (727) 447-6000.
Rodney Page, Times staff writer