An annual two-day sailing event of the Friday Harbor Sailing Club, the Rhumb Regatta got its name, according to legend, for obvious reasons.

Today, it is somewhat toned down. In fact, last weekend it came almost to a standstill — sailing-wise.

Wind blew up and down Haro Strait at force 0-2 on the Beaufort Scale (0-6 knots), which caused Fleet Captain Paul Barger and crew Mary-Brooke to constantly delay starts and change course marks. Paul artfully created six short races to keep the 13-boat fleet from drifting with the current to Victoria.

Saturday evening, club members gathered for a great steak barbecue hosted by Mary and Howard Lewis and catered by Karen Palmer.

After an absence of four or five years, the Orcas Island Yacht Club had two entries this year, which really heightened the competition. Chris White in Crazy Ivan took first place and Betsy Wareham in Red Eye Express finished third.

FHSC’s Robert Ahbel in Remedy got second and Lynn Atkins in Tinette finished fourth.

— Fred Hoeppner is a competitive sailor and retired Navy captain. He lives on San Juan Island