July 1948

The National Championship Regatta program for the third annual event is released. The regatta will be held over Labor Day weekend at Canandaigua Yacht Club in New York, with races scheduled September 3-6.

Harvey Bunch in NAN TOO and Bob Clabaugh in WEATHER each won one of two races in a series held June 26-27 on Cleveland's downtown lakefront. They were awarded the trophy equally after a coin toss. The regatta featured 17 boats total.

The O.I.C.Y.A. Regatta was held June 19-20 at Chippewa Lake with a dozen Thistles participating in three races. Sandy Douglass won with 3.5 points, followed by Harvey Bunch and Dr. Harry Spangenberg.

A collection of short items about Thistle activities at various clubs, including new boat additions, humorous anecdotes, and equipment notes from Edgewater, Leatherips, Onondaga Lake, Cleveland, and Sandusky.

Two Thistles competing at the Annapolis Y.C. Regatta (July 10-11) won first place in the handicap class race because no time correction rules were applied. George Gail's WAVE and J.W. Wilkinson's BUNNY tied in points against Lightnings and Chesapeake sailboats.

New Sound Thistles are dominating Long Island Sound races with their speed. Willard Lenz's No. 78 is leading the pack, with Rising's WHISTLE, Kittelle's POOCH, and Beck's KITTEN also showing strong performances in the fleet.

The Mohican S.C. fleet at Mansfield, Ohio reports that Thistling is catching on well locally. Frank Jammen's EGYPT I TOO leads the club series, with Walter Brandstat's TAXI CAB and Bob Fletcher's MY BABY also showing strong performances.

Fleet standings in the Toledo Y.C. Thistle fleet after five races show Bill Schwalberg's TIMES in first place, with Bill Miller's CANOE COO second. A new recruit from Harbor is joining the fleet, and several Toledo boats will compete at the National Championship.

Tony Herrmann's STICKERS and Sandy Douglass's FIANCE demonstrated the superiority of Thistles over other sailboat classes at the L.M.Y.A. Regatta at Macatava, Mich. over July 4th weekend. The Thistles outperformed larger boats in three races across different wind conditions.

Cleveland Y.C. sees intense competition with eleven to twelve boats racing. Bob Clabaugh's WEATHER wins the Williams trophy series, and John Lovett's WEE LOVETT TOO claims the club championship. Strong racing continues in the Saturday series at Edgewater Y.C. and Mentor Harbor.

Eight new Thistles in the Onondaga Lake fleet held their initial demonstration on July 10th with three races. The regatta featured various mishaps including splits rudders, broken equipment, and one competitor ending up in the lake, illustrating the challenging conditions on the lake.

Fleet standings at Watkins Lake (Mich.) Y.A. show Don Zamnoth's SEAWEED leading, with Vic Helenski's MAUTO second and Karl Kreitz's KREITZ KRAFT third. A memorable incident involving Commodore Frank Foster in FOSTER'S FOLLY demonstrated persistence in extremely light wind conditions.

A humorous account of George "Sue 'em" Bridgman from Canandaigua Y.C. who gave his wife topiders and jibsheet gloves for their 39th wedding anniversary. Soon after celebrating, the Bridgmans failed to win any races, finishing fourth and third in two attempts.

Reports of new Thistle fleet activity from Mechanicsville, N.Y., where W. Tallmadge Bullock is promoting interest in the Albany area, and near Dallas, Texas, where a new fleet is on the verge of formation.

Announcement that Thistles built from kits can be measured by club measurers. A form is available from National Secretary Fred Best for recording measurement data to send to chief measurer Del Cline.