Fraser Finally Wins Halloween Grudge Match

Lance Fraser and his crew from Canada have competed in Oakcliff’s end-of-season Halloween Regatta for the past five years. Every single year they’ve advanced to the finals and come just shy of first place. Three out of the five years, it was Oyster Bay local Chris Poole and Riptide Racing who beat them. After five years of second place finishes, Lance Fraser and his team finally found victory at this year’s regatta.

With the first of two days of racing being cancelled due to a storm, the regatta was scored from the results of the second day. PRO Patrice Gallo did a fantastic job getting in a full round robin for the ten teams. Fraser and Poole advanced through the round robin conquering each of their opponents until they finally met in the seventh flight out of nine. Both of them were undefeated. Tensions were high. They knew that their match could easily be the difference between second and first place.

By the fourth and final leg of the race, Fraser was leading by three boat lengths carrying a penalty. Typically you need four to kill a penalty and still win. The breeze was a gusty 15 knots. Fraser caught a puff and extended his lead by half a boat length; almost at four but time was running out. They were almost at the line. They had to go for it. They started the penalty kill. Poole was coming in hot. Fraser and crew got the kite down, went head to wind, and completed the tack. Poole had almost caught up when Fraser and crew headed up to a beam reach. Penalty cleared! Poole was overtaking but just before his bow crosses the line, Fraser gets his over and seals the deal.

Both of the teams went on to win their remaining two matches and ended up tied with eight wins and no losses so Fraser and his team won based on that race.