DECEMBER 7, 2021
AWESOME WINTER
SAILING
Monday was overcast, cold and dreary (for Santa Cruz). I was hoping that Tuesday would be
better. Predict Wind was calling for 10
knots from the northwest through the afternoon.
After resolving a few crew issues, Pair A Dice was late getting to the
start area, setting the start line and calling the course. We called for course M2: start, Mile,
finish. This seemed to be a little
conservative but you never know if winter winds will sustain through the
afternoon. We blew a 5 minute horn for a
3:17 start.
Pair A Dice was a little early to the start area and did a
360 to slow down. As it turned out PAD
and Pacific Spirit had perfect starts right on the line right on time. Several boats tacked over early which was the
right thing to do since they were getting bad wind from boats upwind of
them. On PAD we sailed the “longest
tack” first, sailing all the way to the lay line for Mile before we tacked over
on port. As we approached the lay line
to round Mile, Nidaros crossed easily in front of us. At Mile, Nidaros was the first to round
followed by PAD, Perfect 36, Pacific Spirit and Kicks.
On the run back to the finish line, we tried to set a
whisker pole, but the wind was not in the right direction for using a pole so
we took it down. The wind was so
favorable, I was thinking of lengthening the course to round Gov, but then the
wind seemed to wain a little upsetting that plan. I was encouraged to see boats going downwind
with crew on the bow rather than the cockpit:
BUTTS ON THE BOW!
At the finish it was Nidaros first 33:19 followed by Pair A
Dice 33:34, Perfect 36, Pacific Spirit 35:49 and Kicks 41:09. To be fair to Kicks and crew, they were late
getting to the start area. All times are elapsed and the course distance is
2.07NM.
PHRF adjusted times for this evening:
|
ADJ SEC |
ADJ PLACE |
|
|
1641.4 |
1 |
PAIR
A DICE |
|
1763.02 |
2 |
NIDAROS |
|
1770.92 |
3 |
PERFECT
36 |
|
1813.66 |
4 |
PACIFIC
SPIRIT |
|
2096.4 |
5 |
KICKS |
We had an awesome time at the club over drinks discussing
and reminiscing World War II stories as relayed to us by relatives that had
participated in that war. It was the
least we could do to honor this day in history: the 80th anniversary
of the Pearl Harbor attack.
RACE QS:
We had 6 boats out for the fun, only five of the boats ran
their Race QS tracks. You can view the replay at: https://raceqs.com/tv-beta/tv.htm#userId=1011017&updatedAt=2021-12-08T00:35:21Z&dt=2021-12-07T14:45:25-08:00..2021-12-07T16:35:13-08:00&boat=Pairadice&time=1638921490564&focus=Pairadice&rival=Nidaros%20II&tab=setup&view=manual&lat=36.950576&lon=-121.997384&tilt=8&range=1120&heading=211
These are two
strategies that racers use. The longest
tack first is great if you can get clear air.
Eliminating tacks helps, especially if you notice that you are getting
lifted almost the whole time as PAD experienced on this night. As it turned out we ended up “sailing to the
corner” but the “corner” was very close to the mark (Mile). This could also be attributed to Mile not
being directly upwind. Never sailing to the corners is employed when the mark
is directly upwind and you are dealing with other boat’s disturbed wind. Never sailing to the corners also allows you
to take advantage of headers and lifts.
If you can tack at the right time on a header, you are lifted which can
be a huge advantage.
HOLIDAY
SEASON SAILING:
If conditions
permit, we will be sailing the next two Tuesdays (December 14 and 21).
The last Tuesday of the month (12/28) the club is closed for the week
and I will be out of town so we will not have a sail or barbecue on this last
Tuesday of the month. We will be back
sailing on Tuesday January 4. I hope all
of you have a joyous holiday season and a happy new year! STAY SAFE!
Barry Keeler
Sailing Pair
A Dice
No comments:
Post a Comment