toledoblade.com --

Toledo Yacht Club, home of the famous Mills Trophy Sailing Race, was remarkably quiet yesterday morning, even a bit somber. Colorful burgees fluttered in the breeze that blew gently across the docks and riffled the murky Maumee River. But the proud U.S. flag that is normally displayed above them now flies at half-staff in memory of President Reagan.

At 10:30 a.m., most of the boats in the marina were cabin cruisers that belonged to TYC members, but here and there you could spot a few Detroit sailboats that had arrived early for the race. Still weary from their eight-hour trip down the Detroit River, a couple of sailors came up on deck, scratched and stretched, then checked the burgees to see which way the wind was blowing.

What a contrast to the scene just eight hours later. By 6:30 p.m. the same sailors were togged out in blue blazers and khakis and tossing down complimentary wine and champagne. The yacht club lobby and bar were jammed with people and the whole place was rocking.

And that was only the awards banquet honoring the winners of last year's race - the first event in a three-day celebration that will precede the start of the Midwest's best-known yacht race, off the Toledo Harbor Light tomorrow evening.

Tonight, the club will open its doors to the public for another big blow-out - the annual Mills Race party that typically draws well over a thousand fans and racing crews.

According to TYC manager Michael Turley last year's crowd consumed 202 pizzas at the Thursday party alone, "not including the fact that we were also selling barbecued chicken, hot dogs, and lots of other food."

Tonight, he estimates, they'll wash it all down with 10 to 15 kegs of beer or more, and at least eight cases of liquor.

"All this," says on-the-water chairman Don Wood, "is just part of the standing tradition of the Mills Trophy Race - part of what makes it the historical centerpiece of Toledo and Toledo yacht racing."

As of yesterday afternoon, 176 boats had entered the race, about nine more than last year, Wood said. "They come from all over, as far as Chicago and Port Huron, and, as always, a lot of yachts from Detroit and Grosse Ile [Mich.].''

Typically, some skippers wait until the last minute to register, so there may be even more. The race committee has declared a $125 penalty for late entries, but Wood says he would waive it in the interest of building the fleet.

The field will include a nine-boat multihull class - the largest in Mills history - as well as an increased number of boats competing on the 75-mile "long course'' for the Mills Trophy, he said.

Other courses include the 54-mile course for the Governor's Cup, a 38-mile course for the President's Trophy, and a 30.5 course for one-design classes.

"The winds and - particularly the heat - are unpredictable," Wood said. "Having alternate courses provides an option for slower yachts to get to the Bay in time to enjoy the festivities there."

The fastest boats are expected to reach Put-in-Bay early Saturday morning, allowing crews to rest up before a big post-race party at the Crescent Pavillion.

LOGBOOK:

When the subject is boat racing, speed is relative. Take Steve Fossett, the Chicago adventurer whose goal for the past several years has been to shoot down sailing and hot air balloon records all over the globe.

In April, Fossett's 125-foot maxi-catamaran Cheyenne smashed the around-the-world sailing record, making the harrowing trip around Cape Horn to the start-finish line of the island of Ushant, in France, in just 58 days.

That's fast - fast enough to shave six days off the previous record set by Bruno Peyron's Orange I two years ago.

Then consider the mind-boggling feat of Tom Mailhot and John Ziegler, a couple of middle-aged guys who built a 24-foot plywood boat from a kit and rowed 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in a race from Tenerife in the Canary Islands, off Africa, to Barbados.

The only American team among 49 entries in the 2001 Atlantic Challenge, the pair finished in 11th place. Like Fossett, they accomplished their goal in just 58 days. And while that was also relatively fast, it must have seemed pretty slow to the rowers. They did it one stroke at a time, rowing in shifts, two hours on and two hours off, the entire way.

Mailhot and Ziegler will discuss their extraordinary adventure and give guests an opportunity to row the boat at Adventure Quest, a new event sponsored by the Toledo Rowing Foundation, from 2-10 p.m. Saturday at Quarry Beach and Racquet Club in Maumee.

The day will be filled with hands-on experiences for adults, including a chance to soar in a hot air balloon; try wall climbing, fly fishing, scuba diving, kayaking, adaptive sailing, sculling, volleyball, sailboarding, and/or drive a Hummer. There's even a sandcastle competition.

"It's a chance to safely try some things you never imagined you could do," TRF chairman George LeBoutillier said.

Professionals will be on hand to provide information or help you get started in a new adventure. Only 1,000 tickets will be sold, starting at $35.

Proceeds will be used to maintain Toledo Rowing Club's boat house in International Park and to support its high school rowing program.

t●Top finishers in the Detroit NOOD Regatta, held June 4-6 at Bayview Yacht Club on Lake St. Clair, include Josh Kerst's Instant Karma, which took second in the J/24 class; Len Chamberlain's Wildcat, second in Tartan Tens, and Dave and Sue Grassley's ShoWaeCaeMette, fourth in the Beneteau 36.7 class.

JUNE BOATING CALENDAR:

11/12 - Annual One-Design Regatta, Perrysburg Boat Club

12/13 - Thistle Class Lake Erie District Championships, North Cape Yacht Club

18 - Triangle Windward-Leeward Triangle, Lake Erie Race Week No.1, North Cape Yacht Club

18 - Mumm 30 Great Lakes Championship, Edgewater Yacht Club

18 - Roberts Trophy Race/Hurlbut Race, Cleveland Yachting Club

18/20 - Annual Regatta, Toledo Sailing Club

18/20 - Poker Run, Cooley Canal Yacht Club

19 - Around the Bay Race, Ohio Catamaran Racing Association, at North Cape Yacht Club

19 - Buccaneer Race, LERW No.2, Jolly Roger Sailing Club

19 - Annual Regatta, West Shore Sail Club

19/20 - Cleveland Race Week One-Design Regatta, Edgewater Yacht Club

20 - TI-MI Race, LERW No.3, Ottawa River Yacht Club

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