The annual Battlefords Sailing club regatta took place in front of the clubhouse at Meota on the weekend, and although the number of boats was lower than expected, it was still a great weekend of sailing.
The favorable conditions made it easy for the organizing committee to run the races close to the shore as 10 sailors participated. According to Mike Ritchie of the Battlefords Sailing Club, other events and preparations for worlds reduced the number of participants compared to previous years.
In the provincial Laser Masters event, Louis-Pierre Gagnon of Saskatoon took first place. Second went to Lewis Oteruelo and third was Ilia Rudnitskiy of Saskatoon. There were eight sailors in he Provincial Laser Masters event and four of those eight also competed in the Western Laser Masters.
Gagnon again took first place, beating Oteruelo, Ben Pickford and Rudintskiy in the Western Laser Masters.
The final two racers participated in the Optimist event, which features boats and small dinghies operated by athletes seven to 12 years old. The two competitors, Andre Gagnon and Alec Watters, both of Saskatoon, raced each other 21 times. Andre won by just one race to earn the Optimist plaque.
The regetta often leads into the annual Battlefords Sailing Club sailing school and once again five full days of lessons were underway for beginners or returning students. The lessons conclude Friday in Meota.
