SEPTEMBER 24, 2019: SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO WAIT

SEPTEMBER 24, 2019

SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO WAIT

I got to the harbor at about 4 and there was no wind showing on the flag at the Crow’s Nest.  The predictions showed a moderate Easterly, but where was it?  As we left the harbor, it still looked dismal with no Easterly blowing inside, but there was a good northwesterly blowing out by Mile buoy so we called for course F2 and postponed long enough for all twelve boats to get out to the start area.  We blew the 5 minute horn and started prepping for our start.  It seems you can never count on the wind to continue and just to prove this point, at about a minute to the start the wind suddenly died.

We were all locked in one big parking lot on the ocean.  I heard so many hails from skippers: “I HAVE NO STEERAGE!” I thought we were in an echo chamber.  Darn, I hate it when we get skunked with no wind and it sure looked like this was going to be the night.  It was 5 to 10 minutes of agony and just when I was getting ready to abandon the race, there was a mild Easterly just starting to blow.  As usual it filled from land and was spreading out to mile so the boats that happened to be closest to Mile buoy had a great head start.  The boats that had ventured further out had to endure more bobbing until the Easterly spread further out.

By the time the first boat reached Wharf mark, there was a good 10-12 knot breeze.  The first boat around Wharf was Patricia J followed by Avatar, Perfect 36, Pacifica Spirit, Nidaros and Toad. It was a wonderful sail back to the finish line.

At the finish it was Patricia J 26:09, Perfect 36 27:18, Pacific Spirit 27:36, Avatar 27:46, Nidaros 29:00, Makani 29:26, Toad 29:28, Tusitala 30:48, Pair a Dice 30:58, Dusk to Dawn 31:14.  The length of the course was 1.5 miles.  Kicks was out and finished just in front of Pair A Dice, but did not run their Race Qs.  Yes, we had to endure the “Dan dance” one more time.

 

So what started out as an excruciating bob-fest turned out to be a beautiful evening for sailing.  Sometimes you Just have to wait!

We had a great gathering at the yacht club with a veritable buffet of great food from the grill.

Race Qs:

Just about everyone is uploading tracks, but there are still some missing.  The track for tonight can be seen at:  https://raceqs.com/tv-beta/tv.htm#userId=1017739&divisionId=62182&updatedAt=2019-09-25T01:41:29Z&dt=2019-09-24T17:50:02-07:00..2019-09-24T18:41:13-07:00&boat=The%20Perfect%20Thirty-six&time=1569375450032&focus=The%20Perfect%20Thirty-six&rival=Pair%20a%20dice&tab=match&view=follow&lat=36.944582&lon=-122.007050&tilt=1&range=3618&heading=47

STARTS:

This evening was one more evening that emphasized the concept: “ do not venture far from the start line before the start.”  It seems you can never count on the wind to continue, so if the wind dies (as it did tonight) and you are far from the start line you are at a distinct disadvantage.

TUESDAY NIGHTS CONTINUE:

I have mentioned in this blog the possibility of having meetings to play Race Qs tracks and explain how to use them to improve your sailing.  I brought it up at the barbecue and the vote was unanimous.  After our Tuesday night sails stop with the time change, we will continue on Tuesday nights.  Rather than racing, we will have meetings down below at the Yacht club on Tuesday nights.  I think we should start around 6 pm just like our racing.  Our discussions will range from Race QS to topics such as rules and tactics and any other subject about sailing that people want to discuss.  SCYC is blessed with many talented members that could render advice on multiple topics. Keep Tuesday nights on your calendar after sailing stops after the time change.

We will see you next Tuesday.

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice