Based in Falmouth, Maine, Etchells Fleet 27 is an enthusiastic group of racing sailors who compete against each other in sleek Etchells class knockabout sailboats on beautiful Casco Bay. Spirited one-design fleet racing is held each week on Tuesday evenings from mid-May through mid-September. Also, the fleet participates in the Portland Yacht Club’s weekly Thursday evening racing from June into September. The annual Etchells Lobster Bowl Regatta draws boats from regional fleets in Canada, Massachusetts, Vermont and beyond for an end-of-season regatta/party in September. The fleet welcomes interested sailors to participate, no matter what their level of sailboat racing experience.
The history of Etchells racing in Casco Bay dates back to the early 1970’s soon after the designer, Skip Etchells, started building the boats. A group of PYC sailors, which included prominent Maine artist and gallery owner Tom Crotty and legendary local racer Merle Hallett formed Fleet 5 which raced together on the Bay for only a few years before disbanding. Then, in 2000, PYC members Chris Robinson and Jeff Bennert promoted the idea of finding a suitable one-design keelboat to race as an alternative to the successful J-24 fleet. Chris and Jeff recruited Tim Tolford, Win Fowler, Seth Sprague and Ralph Carpenter to the cause. At a memorable organizational meeting at Three Dollar Dewey’s the group voted 4-1 to do their racing in the Etchells, overcoming the objections of one unnamed founder who feared the lack of a head and an auxiliary engine would not go over well at home. The intrepid group set about finding boats and they started arriving over the early spring of 2001. Win and Tim made a road trip together to Nova Scotia, returning with a pair of boats. Chris took delivery of USA 493 from the San Diego fleet which he named Miss Margaret. Ralph Carpenter started sprucing up USA 75 VooDoo which he had inherited from a member of the original fleet and which had been converted into a “Croozah”. Seth bought USA 310 Medusa out of the Texas fleet. Jeff found USA 175 which he bought for a song as it was in tough shape, but that never kept him from consistently being at the top of the fleet. Having met the five boat threshold required by the US Etchells Class Association, Casco Bay Etchells Fleet 27 was launched. On an early May evening with a cold and blustery breeze from the north, the eager group of sailors started their never-to-be-fully-achieved quest to master the art of making an Etchells go fast. The fleet grew quickly…
Currently, Fleet 27 has more than 25 boats. The Fleet hosted a world championship qualifying regatta in 2013 that drew boats from around New England and Canada. Sailmaker Robbie Doyle from Marblehead won the 13-boat regatta. PYC hosted the 26-boat 2005 New England Championships. Fleet 27 now hosts the annual Lobster Bowl Regatta, usually held in mid-September, providing a great weekend of racing for 25+ entries. Drink beer! Eat lobster! Sail wicked fast! (This says it all.)