JUNE 28, 2016: STRONG EASTERLY

June 28, 2016

STRONG EASTERLY

I checked the wind predictions in the morning and the call was for light wind into the afternoon.  By the time I got to the harbor, the Easterly was filling in nicely.  A perfect evening for a sail, capped off with a whale slapping his tail on the water multiple times very close to the start mark.  We decided on F2: Start, SC3, Blacks Finish and gave a 5 minute horn at 6PM for a 6:05 start.

We had about 10 boats seriously contending for the start and several more coming in on the fringes for the fun.  On Pair A Dice, we were lucky enough to beat the other boats to the line and were clear ahead with clean wind.  As we hardened up into the wonderful 13 knot winds, there was apparent mayhem occurring at the start line as ten boats converged at once.  A lot of screaming was going on.  We sailed on until we were approaching the kelp line around Pleasure point and tacked over in time to clear Sagittarius.  Once we tacked back over on Starboard again, we even cleared Pacific Spirit on the first pass.  Pacific Spirit sailed further out as we held a line just below the lay line to SC3.  Sagittarius was on our same line just ahead of us.  We were both struggling with two obstacles: the excessive chop that builds in that part of the bay with strong easterly winds and the apparent strong current sweeping against us.  When we crossed Pacific Spirit just before rounding SC3, it was apparent they had chosen the right path (with less current) because they were well ahead of us. At SC3 it was Sagittarius followed by Pacific Spirit and Pair A Dice right on their heels.

On the way to Black buoy, we set the pole and tried different combinations.  At times it looked like we were passing Pacific Spirit but at the mark they had inside overlap and rounded just ahead of us again. At the finish it was Sagitarius, Pacific Spirit, Pair A Dice, Equinimity (Hunter 34), Perfect 36, Kicks, Toad, Aeolian and Sea Quake.

We had a great Barbecue at the club and I have to say, the word is out.  I don’t think I have ever seen so many people at the Catalina Barbecue.  What an awesome time, meeting and greeting with all the people we have been sailing with.

Starting rules and Barging:

All the rules of sailing are in place at and before the start, but keep in mind that rule 18 is involved with rounding marks not starting.  There is no 3 boat length zone when starting!   Normal sailing rules apply, Starboard has ROW (right of way) over port tack, Leeward has ROW over windward (when overlapped) and overtaken boat has ROW over overtaking boat (when no overlap).

As in most racing, boats get in very close quarters while starting, so knowing how the rules play out is critical.  Always remember Rule 14 “Avoid contact!!!”.  When you are setting up for a perfect start and a boat attempts to barge, be certain to warn the barger AHEAD of time. Don’t wait for them to get their bow between you and the mark.  Hails like “Don’t even think about it!” and “NO ROOM, Barging!” are commonly used BEFORE the barging actually occurs.

If you are the leeward boat (with overlap), you may luff the windward boat up until you are head to wind to force them over the line, but you must give the windward boat reasonable time to react and turn up (remember rule 14).

The finer nuances of the windward/leeward dynamic is determined by HOW THE OVERLAP WAS OBTAINED.  If the leeward boat achieves overlap from clear astern, she may luff the windward boat up UNTIL the start signal.  After the start signal, proper course MUST be assumed no more luffing up once the start TIME has passed, regardless of where you are in relation to the start line.  If the leeward overlap is achieved by the windward boat sailing inside, the luffing up by the leeward boat can continue even after the start signal.  All of these situations are covered by section A and B of the rules.

If anyone wants to clarify any of these starting rules, please feel free to leave a comment.

Other Regattas:

Lets have a PARTY in Monterey.  The Monterey and Back regatta will be on July 16 and 17.  I know of at least two Catalinas that will be in this regatta.  The more the merrier!  You will need a PHRF certificate if you don’t have one already, so get your boat ready and let’s have some fun!  You can register on the SCYC web site:  SCYC.org.

Looking forward to next Tuesday!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice