Sailboat race ends in tragedy

Cape St. Claire skipper was known for work on Hubble

By HEATHER RAWLYK and BILL WAGNER Staff Writers

Published 05/22/08

A Cape St. Claire scientist died last night after falling overboard during a sailboat race in the Magothy River.

Ralph E. Reitan, 59, and three other sailors were aboard a 33-foot sailboat near Ulmstead Point in Arnold about 7 p.m. when a storm quickly moved in and changed conditions in the water, said Sgt. Ken Turner, a Maryland Department of Natural Resources Police spokesman.

Mr. Reitan, a computer scientist who worked on the Hubble Space Telescope project, had lived in Cape St. Claire with his wife since 1986.

He had been sailing for 25 years and also was an active diver. His wife, Margaret, was concerned about the weather...

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Loss a competitor - May 23, 2008

Ralph was not only a great sailor, but also a great sport and very worthy competitor. I have to admit that I saw the transom of "Wabbit" far more often than I saw the bow when racing against him .. but we were still very excited to see him out for the first time this season last night. I didn't know Ralph personally off of the race course, but I do know that Ralph was one of the handful in our fleet that would take the time to send me a quick email or pat me on the back when he saw me and tell me, "Good job." It's not a lot, but it meant a lot to me. Last evening, the squall came up very unexpectedly. We were about 30 min's into the race, finishing the first windward leg. The conditions went from a beat in 15 kts of wind to "holly molly" - knock-down in seconds. Several very experienced sailors and crew were had their hands full last night; a few were pushed a-ground (me included), some lost sails and another lost their entire mast & rig. Dr. Colin Mackenzie and the crew of "Beagle" should be commended for their quick action in executing a MOB procedure in really tough conditions. They did all they could to help out a fellow sailor and friend in need. We can all only hope that in the same situation that we could have done half as well. Our hearts go out to his friends, family and his wife Margaret. He will be sorely missed. Sincerely, Angelo Guarino, 'Bella Donna' Magothy River Racer

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