2004 was an eventful year for the brave little wooden catboat created so long ago in New Bedford. Beetle Inc. got a new owner and new home - in Wareham. And the venerable rambling sheds behind Leo Telesmanick's home on Smith Neck Road emptied out their many years of history and memories for beetle owners and catboat historians.

The Leo convened in Rhode Island this year, hosted by the familiar skipper of Pendragon, Wells Pile, with fabulous cooking and assistance by Bob Bartro. It was a low key Leo, due to a hurricane threat and very placid waters on the upper end of Narragansett Bay. Sailors were reduced to paddling at one point and the first race had to be called because time expired. The banquet was wonderful and sailors from Edgewood received some of the awards, although a phalanx of Fallons still ran off with the top prizes.

Hog Island continued, bringing bright colors and youthful energy into West Falmouth harbor on Sundays throughout the fall. And Fallons resorted to built in paddles on one occasion.

And, for the second year, Yorks and Fallons hosted match racing on the Saturday after Thanksgiving in Squeteague Harbor, a serene and protected space on the south edge of Bourne. John York acted the part of race committee head, scheduling the elimination races down to the tenth of a second while Cape Cod elder statesmen Dick York and Sloat Hodgson enjoyed the events from the shore.