MARCH 27, 2018: A DYING EASTERLY

                                                             A DYING EASTERLY

 After not being able to sail for the first two Tuesdays of the season because of rain, it was fantastic to see clear skies and the wind blowing steadily out of the East. As the boats filed out of the harbor, the obvious choice for the course was Bravo 2 omitting the absent Blacks. The course was a simple beat to SC3 and back to the finish mark.

 Pair a Dice served as the Sheriff boat to sight the line, as all dozen or so boats charged off the line. Everyone started on starboard tack going toward the beach and one by one everyone tacked back over toward the outside. On Pair a Dice, we thought there was more wind closer to the beach and sailed clear to the kelp line before tacking. By the time we tacked over toward SC3 we were on the layline. The boats that tacked over earlier seemed to be caught in little wind as we charged toward SC3. The newest boat to participate in Tuesday Night Sailing (John Nugent’s 40 foot boat with blue hull) was the first around the SC3 with Pair A Dice following. The whole fleet seemed to be sailing together as a group. A

After rounding SC3 we set the pole and started slogging into the waves back toward the start mark in what was becoming a dying easterly. I thought the water seemed to be flatter closer to shore and headed in that way. This allowed us to take the waves at more of an angle so they wouldn’t stop the boat. Homer followed us and passed us. Ultimately the 40 foot boat finished way ahead of the fleet and Equinimity and Pacific Spirit finished ahead of Pair a Dice. There may have been a couple of other boats ahead, but by this time everyone was spread out and I couldn’t tell which boats had finished. We witnessed a close finish between Perfect 36 and Sea Quake. From our angle, we could not tell who was first, but was Perfect 36 a foot ahead of Sea Quake?

 We had a great barbecue at the club. It was fantastic to finally be sailing Tuesdays again.

 THE ROLE OF SHERIFF:
  Each week, we will have a sheriff boat that will sail outside the line sighting the line for boats that are over early. Rather than going through the line like other boats, the sheriff boat will start outside the line. This can be an advantage for the sheriff boat, but all boats that want to be sheriff will get their turn. It has been proposed that the sheriff boat will blow a horn at the start to let everyone know the start time. Since being sheriff is easy sailing and not fighting for position on the line, a horn at the start would be a nice touch.

 PHRF IS A FOUR LETTER…
 In our Tuesday night sailing, we have never adjusted results for PHRF ratings. We have always tried to call the finishers in order. On the course card, the distance for each course is noted so we can always take a finishing time and note the PHRF difference to approximate how you would do in a real race. My thought has always been to use Tuesday nights as a learning experience. It does not matter if you are the first over the line or the last, there are always close competitors to compare your performance and improve. As long as we are all learning, we are all winning! For people that want to be more competitive and be able to apply the PHRF rating, it may be good for everyone to run Race QS and upload. If we all did this, we can all ascertain what time each boat finished. As faster boats join our fleet, do not get discouraged, just keep learning and improving your sailing.

 OTHER REGATTAS:
 On April 14, SCYC will be having a one day regatta: the Commodores Regatta. PHRF certificates will not be necessary for this race. A lot of you are really picking up your game and it would be great to see a good turnout for this regatta. It will be a reverse PHRF (pursuit race) where slowest boats start first followed by faster boats. If everyone sailed a perfect race, we would all finish at the same time! It is nice because these races often have an empty start line unless there are other boats in your class. I am looking forward to next Tuesday!

 Barry Keeler 

Sailing Pair A Dice

BLACK SAILS / COURSE CARDS FOR 2018

BLACK SAILS

Black Sails is a popular series on one of the cable channels presenting the adventures of the pirates of the Caribbean many years ago.  I watched several episodes of these adventures.  We all also love the appearance of black sails made from advanced material on the larger race boats.  On my boat, I hate the appearance of black sails because, if my sails are black, it is because I have been caught in rain while sailing and mildew has set in.  I don’t think any of us like to fight the battle with mildewed sails, so I have cancelled the last two Tuesday night sails off because of rain.

I am copying the course card onto the blog so anyone that does not have a course card for their boat can print this out and refer to it.  The courses and instructions are listed at the end of this blog.

Remember this coming Tuesday evening is:

BARBECUE NIGHT AT THE YACHT CLUB AFTER THE RACE! BRING YOUR FAVORITE GRILLING FOOD AND MEET ALL OF YOUR COMPETITORS.  THE BAR WILL BE OPEN.

YOU DO NOT NEED TO BE A CLUB MEMBER TO PARTICIPATE

OTHER REGATTAS:

We are all learning how to race and compete on our boats.  One April 14, the yacht club is putting on a commodore’s cup regatta.  Usually, in order to race in one of these regattas, you need a PHRF certificate.  This year, they are relaxing the rules so PHRF certificates are not needed for THIS regatta.  It is necessary to register early, especially if you do not have a PHRF certificate.  This is a Pursuit race, meaning slower boats start first.  I have participated in many of these races and it is a real blast.  It would be great to get a bunch of the Tuesday Night Sailing boats entered into this regatta.

2018 TUESDAY NIGHT SAILING COURSES

                    Whiskey, NW WIND (start line SM & S 330M)                                                          Miles

 

       W 1  Start, Wharf, Mile, Blacks, Finish (stb)                                                      4.04

       W 2  Start, Wharf, Mile , Gov(stb),  finish                                                          3.93

       W 3  Start, Wharf, Blacks, Finish(stb)                                                                 3.23

       W 4  Start, Wharf(stb), Gov(stb), Finish                                                             3.07

       W 5  Start, Wharf, Finish                                                                                       2.68

       W 6  Start, Finish at Gov (stb) (line = Gov & Wharf end)                                 1.31

                   Mike, S wind  (Start line SM  & JLH 310M)

      M 1  Start, Mile(stb), Gov(stb) (line= Gov & Wharf end)                                  2.24

      M 2  Start, Mile, Finish                                                                                            2.17

      M 3  Start, Finish at Mile(stb) (Finish line= Mile & Wharf mark)                     1.06

                   Bravo, E wind (Start line SM& BP 352M)

      B 1  Start(stb), Blacks(stb), Mile(stb), Gov(stb), Finish                                      4.03

      B 2  Start(stb), SC3, Blacks, Finish(stb)                                                                 3.04

      B 3  Start(stb), Blacks(stb), Mile(stb), Finish                                                        2.72

      B 4  Start(stb), Blacks, Gov, Finish                                                                         2.43

      B 5  Start(stb), Blacks, Start, Blacks, Finish(stb)                                                  1.12

      B 6  Start(stb), Blacks, Finish(stb)                                                                          0.55

        GOLF, North wind  (start line SM & BM 079M)

      G 1  Start, Gov, Mile, Blacks, Finish(stb)                                                              4.03

      G 2  Start, Gov, Blacks, Finish(stb)                                                                        2.45

      G 3  Start, Gov, Finish                                                                                             1.98

      G 4  Start, Finish mark= Gov (line = Gov & Wharf end)                                    1.31

                                         

        Oscar, Other

      F 1  Start at mile(stb) (start line =Mile & JLH), Wharf(stb),                              1.48               

             Finish mark=Gov(stb) (finish line = Gov & end of Wharf)                                                             

      F 2  Start at Mile (start line=mile and end of Wharf),                                       1.50

             Wharf, Mile (Finish line= Mile and end of wharf)                                      

      F3 To be determined.                              

                                     

2018 TUESDAY NIGHT SAILING p2

1.     All marks are left to port unless designated (stb) which shall be rounded to starboard. 

2.   The start line shall be a line containing Start mark and designated landmark or temporary                   

     mark placed for other end of line if conditions permit.

         3. When starting, start mark shall be passed with 10 boat lengths unless temporary mark is

  placed. When finishing, finish mark shall be passed within 5 boat lengths per course                                   description. For finish at SM, line is extension (or line formed) by start mark and Jetty light house.

4. Any foul shall be exonerated by one tack and one jibe in the same direction, as soon as clear               from other boats (270 degree turn).    

5. Monitor VHF channel 69 at start time. A boat may sight line to call “over early boats”.  If

     Called over early, you must restart properly to be given a finish.                  

LANDMARKS:

  BP=Blacks point,  S=White house at Schwan Lagoon JLH=Jetty lighthouse, SC Wharf=end of pier

MARKS:

Blacks (BM)                          Yellow Ball                                       36 57.22’N     121 59.29’W

Gov                                        White Ball                                        36 57.47’N     122 00.72’W

Mile                                       Whistling Buoy                                36 56.35’N     122 00.56’W

SC3                                         Yellow Can                                       36 56.49’N     121 58.00’W

Start/Finish(SM)                  Yellow Ball                                       36 57.09’N      121 59.62’W

Wharf                                    Yellow Ball                                       36 56.87’N      122 01.24’W

The Basic Racing Rules at: https://www.latitude38.com/YRASchedule/rules.html

                        Follow: Sailingpairadice.blogspot.com for results and commentary

THE BEGINNING OF A NEW SEASON 2018

                                                   2018 BEGINNING OF A NEW SEASON

The sailing season is quickly approaching.  I have been working with Fred Molnar, Chris Hoffman and Don Radcliffe on the new course charts and we are excited about the changes we have instituted.  The charts are printed and I am handing them out and may be putting them on your boat, so don’t be surprised if you find one in your boat cabin.

While many of the courses from last year are on the chart this year, I have tried to make some of the courses less ambiguous.  We also decided to change the name of our event.  Catalina Tuesdays started as only Catalina boats racing on Tuesday evenings.  In the past few years, there have been many different makes of boats that have been enjoying their time with us.  In order to be more inclusive of all cruising boats, we are changing the name to “Tuesday Night Sailing”.

For past participants, you know what Tuesday Night Sailing is all about.  For non-participants that may be interested, these nights are all about improving your sailing (and racing) ability.  The quickest way to improve your sailing is to race against similar boats.  All cruising boats are heavier and beamier and usually slower than the lighter racing boats.

 I write a blog about each race.  In this blog I point out tactics used and some racing rules.  Do not worry, if you break a rule I may write about it but your boat will NOT be mentioned.  It is all about education, not shaming or embarrassing.  We usually meet at Crow’s Nest after the race (upstairs) for dinner and discussion. On the last Tuesday of every month, we have a barbecue at the yacht club and get to know each other a little more.

In sail boat racing, it does not matter if you are competing for first place, the middle of the pack or just trying to not be dead last you are competing and improving your sailing skills.  With this in mind, it is important to follow all rules and round all marks.  If you decide to not round a mark or not take a turn to exonerate for a penalty, just announce on channel 69 that you are retiring. It is no big deal! Racing is racing and pleasure sailing is pleasure sailing.

One difference this year is that we will try to consistently place a buoy for the line so we have a proper start line, this mark may be removed after the start.  When the buoy is removed, and the finish is at SM we will define the finish line as an extension of JLH and the start mark. If the course indicates finishing with SM to one side or the other, the finish line may be the LINE FORMED by JLH and start mark.   We are also planning on having a boat sight the line for every race so that we have proper starts with no one starting too soon.

One last word about the blog.  I consider myself a novice sailor who is willing to share little nuggets I learn about sailing on the blog.  I definitely to not know everything there is to know.  There are many in our group that are accomplished sailors.  I encourage active participation and comments in the blog.  If I am wrong on a rule, tactic or results of the race, please comment on the blog.

I will see you out there on “Tuesday Night Sailing”.

Barry Keeler
Sailing Pair A Dice