|
T-10 North American Championship
Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club
August 22-25, 2008
|
Work Sail Sleep, Work Sail Sleep, not necessarily in that order.
That’s the life of a T-10 sailor from May through September each year.
The Tartan Ten fleet out of Montrose Harbor is an active group, and we’re
part of 30-odd Tartan 10s in the Chicago area. Our fleet friends
are as far north as Waukegan Harbor and as far south as Burnham Harbor.
Our racing schedule includes weekend series buoy racing (windward/leeward),
port-to-ports, Wednesday night beer cans, and other regattas. The
port-to-ports include overnight trips to Waukegan, Michigan City, and the
infamous Tri-State from Chicago to St. Joe to Michigan City & home.
Of course we also participate in the Mac Race, ’02 being a historic year
for the Mac. Chances are we’ll wait 20 years for winds like that
again.
| History of the Tartan 10:
The Tartan 10 fleet is made up of two types of T10s: the original design
Tartan 10 and the recently designed LS10. Introduced with the 1978
model year and designed by the renowned Sparkman and Stevens design team,
the Tartan Ten is arguably the company's most successful model in this
genre. Although the first 350 T-10 models were built between 1978
and 1982, the model remained in limited production through 1988, and slightly
more than 400 boats were built over the production period.
The Tartan Ten is no longer in production, but the LS10 revives this
design. The hull, sail plan, and weight are the same as the T10, but the
transom design, cabin and shroud configuration have been modified. |
 |
A Tartan 10 is approximately 10 meters, with a weight of 6700lbs.
It is operated with jib & main or spinnaker & main sails.
Under normal conditions, a crew of six or so, having a collective weight
of 1100lbs or less, will operate all jobs on the boat. Positions
on the boat include the driver, main trimmer, jib trimmer, foredeck, pit,
tactician & flying the chute. Often the same person has multiple
jobs as part of the crew. Bow boy & beer girl are optional positions,
and are high ranking jobs on occasion.
 |
Life of a Sailor:
A sailor’s life is busy & challenging, as one might show up for
boat call early in the morning and often returning in early evening for
weekend racing. You must get used to meager rations, as pretzel rods
& cheez whiz are often boat food staples. You will forget
about friends & family during the season, since you won’t have time
to see them. You will deal with ALL types of personalities as personality
traits of a sailor may include highly competitive, seasonally unstable,
and just plain crazy at times. |
If you or someone you know is interested in getting involved in this
fun & rewarding sport, contact Todd Hildwein, fleet captain, at toddsail@enteract.com
|
