This years Chicago to Mackinac Race was very difficult for Pied Piper. Our performance through 90% of the race was terrific. We executed our strategy from the start. Starting at the weather end of the line in 30 knots of breeze with a full main and #3 headsail was amazing. With most of the GL 70 fleet in control either safely behind or to leeward we extended our lead through the sail changes going from the #3 to #2 and eventually the #1 as the breeze softened. Evolution and Mirage were the boats closest to our general area so we focused on controlling them through the night. The breeze went more on the nose and we sailed upwind through the night eventually tacking to port and heading towards the Michigan shore. Eventually we tacked back to starboard as the wind continued to shift to the right through Sunday. Evolution stayed with us through the night and was now to leeward and behind. Mirage had fallen off the pace a bit. As we approached the Manitou's we had our largest lead but it wasn't going to last. Sunday evening brought the slowest wind speeds and the least progress.  A restart was in order as we saw more boats sail up behind us, including Nitemare which had barely been in sight during the day. Evolution remained our closet competitor and as day broke she was able to leverage splitting into a lead which she maintained through the finish. We finished a little over nine minutes behind evolution. We were the fourth boat to Mackinac Island. We missed saving our time allowance by 20 seconds. Nitemare finished roughly 40 minutes behind us and was able to save thier time on both us and Evolution.

Unfortunately for us our race was not the story of the weekend. Our team was protested by the race committee for having the wrong brand of coast guard approved handheld flares onboard. After racing for 44 hours I was brought in front of a Mackinac Race Jury where I retired Pied Piper from the race instead of taking a three place penalty. We were one of over 25 boats to be protested by the Chicago Yacht Club Race committee. I don't believe this behavior adds to the safety of the race or improves future participation in the race.

Tom Ervin our onboard author summed it up best with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt:
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."