Raingutter Regatta Hijinx

Lisa couldn't bring herself to write about this event - so you get me (Mark) instead. The annual(?) Cub Scout Raingutter Regatta was tonight. Over the past few days, Will and I worked together to craft his vessel. He particularly enjoyed using the electric sander to smooth out the hull and painting it five or six different colors.

He christened his craft the Pokemon Ship and we were off to the event. As the heats unfolded, it became apparent that we had chosen a somewhat unorthodox (and apparently illegal) design. I was a bit surprised to find this out since I had specifically called the Scoutmaster to find out if there were any rules a few days ago. At that time, he suggested we sort of just go for it and so we did.

Since this was our first crack at the Regatta, I did the obligatory Google search and discovered some very serious (insane?) Regatta enthusiasts out there. Some have devised their own super-secret designs for dual-hulled Raingutter Catamarans and other offered custom regatta kits and plans for sale. Honestly, it was a bit overwhelming.

Ultimately, I fell back on lessons learned during my three-year run of undefeated Pinewood Derby cars from my time in Cub Scouts. Back then, I learned that you wanted as little resistance as possible, so Will worked very hard to sand and shape the boat to glide through the water easily. I also recalled the concept that it was best to have the weight in the back, so we pushed the metal keel as far back as possible. This changed the balance of the boat and kind of made it plane on the water rather than nose dive into the water as many of the other boats did.

The last improvement was what ended up being the most controversial. I figured that the key to winning was stability. So we skipped using the mast and glued the sail directly to the boat causing it to stand up in a semi circle, perpendicular to the hull of the boat. This created a nice little pocket to catch the air and since it wasn't so far up in the air, the boat didn't tip like the others. It was also very firm. So as Will blew, the sail didn't really bend.

So..... the result was that most of Will's heats ended up with a margin of victory about like the one in the photo below.

Fortunately in the end, they really didn't make a big of a deal about who won or lost, and everyone had a great time. Will went home very happy after having won every race he ran.

So now... I am "that guy." The guy who takes it all too seriously, or something. I guess I'd better get working on next year's design. I have a reputation to uphold.