Sailors ‘go the distance for mental health’ at Donna Ross Regatta

The Donna Ross Memorial Regatta, benefitting the Mental Health Association of Greater Dallas, was held May 18, 2013, on Lake Ray Hubbard.Twenty-five keelboats joined regatta organizer, Rick Lucarelli, to “Go the Distance for Mental Health,” in memoriam of Lucarelli’s mother, Donna Ross, who died unexpectedly in 2011.

While not the cause of Donna’s death, Lucarelli acknowledges that the secrecy of suffering from depression was a major challenge for his mother throughout her life.  Although Lucarelli is now starting his medical residency in Emergency Medicine at Harvard University, he returned to Texas to continue his efforts to create awareness of mental health issues in the hope that individuals will seek treatment earlier and to foster an environment of support for those afflicted.

The long-distance race, with wind gusts to 29 mph, featured an Australian pursuit course in which each boat starts according to handicapped times.  The race started at the Chandlers Landing Marina breakwater.  Each boat sailed southwest to port-round a mark near the Sunnyvale end of the Lake Ray Hubbard dam, reached across to a mark on the eastern end of the dam, then returned for a starboard rounding at a different Sunnyvale mark, before heading downwind to finish at the Chandlers Landing Marina breakwater.

Speedster, skippered by Dari Esfahani, won the “A” fleet, followed by David Carter, aboard Geronimo in 2^nd place, and Reflection, skippered by Tom Bieger in 3^rd place.

Dan Malak, on Orion, was the “B” fleet and overall winner.  Finishing 2^nd was Mike Jones on Wings, with Robert Cummings placing in 3^rd on a J22.

The “C” fleet was well-represented with David Lawson winning 1st place on Respite.   No Filter placed 2nd with skipper David Christensen, and Bob Barnes finished in 3rd place with Clair de Lune.Complete results and more information about next year’s annual charity event can be found at donnaross.org.

Submitted by Dawn Nelson.

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