Michaela Byers is not only a lobster fisherman, but the 18-year-old is also a fourth-generation lobster boat racer in Winter Harbor, Maine.
Her great-grandfather, Ralph Byers Sr., started the Winter Harbor Lobster Boat Races in 1964, and they have become a generational event.
Last Saturday Michaela took second place in her first solo race in the Class C Diesel as the races were run for the 52nd time.
“Trying to battle between all of the wakes and paying attention to your own boat and pay attention to everyone else’s boat was kind of scary,” Byers says. “But it’s a lot of fun, and I understand why people do it every year.”
The Winter Harbor races were the eighth event of the 2016 Maine Lobster Boat Races. The Pemaquid races were held on Sunday, and the Long Island (Aug. 20) and Portland (Aug. 21) races will conclude the schedule this weekend.
Points are counted at the sanctioned races. Classes of competition are divided by length, horsepower and fuel type. At the end of the season the points are tallied, awards are issued and the plotting for next year’s victories begins.
