OCTOBER 31, 2023
SEASON FINALE
I kept an eye on the flags through the afternoon and was not
encouraged. The flags were mostly limp
and Predict Wind was calling for decreasing wind after 5pm. We were surprised when we left the harbor just
after four o’clock to see a healthy 8-9 knot northwesterly blowing across the
bay. It was a warm afternoon on the bay with healthy thermals displaying all
the way around the bay from Aptos clear down to Monterey. Thermals make it look like a high rise
building has been built on the seafront.
It was barbecue night at the club and, despite the earlier
start, we called for a shorter course to allow all boats to finish. We set a
line square to the wind and called for a course rounding Mile to port and finish
at the S/F ball to port. This being
Halloween night, we suspected that not many boats would be racing. We were surprised
to see close to twenty boats out, though some were not registered and did not
run Race QS tracks. We blew the ten minute horn at 4:51, one minute late.
Fleet A rounded Mile with Aboriginal in the lead followed by
Sweetheart, Yellow Belly, Aquavit, Double Espresso, Watts Moore and Rosie. Avatar led B Fleet followed by Perfect 36,
Pair A Dice, Kicks, TOAD, and the Pacific Spirit crew sailing on New
Perspective.
At the finish, Aboriginal led A fleet 23:32 followed by
Sweetheart 25:51, Double Espresso 28:20, Yellow Belly 28:21, Aquavit 28:33,
Watts Moore 29:18 and Rosie 31:34. Avatar
led B Fleet 28:47 followed by Perfect 36 29:39, Pair A Dice 31:44, Kicks 35:34,
TOAD 35:36 and Pacific Spirit (New Perspective) 37:54. All times elapsed and
the course distance was 2.10 NM.
It was a beautiful afternoon on the by with a spectacular
sunset. Though the holiday had a minimal effect on our participation, it was an
awesome sail for our season finale. This
was the last evening sail for the season but we will continue to sail on
Tuesday afternoons through the winter.
PHRF ADJUSTED RESULTS:
PLACE BOAT PHRF ADJUSTED TIME
FLEET A:
1 ABORIGINAL 33 22:22
2 YELLOW
BELLY 141 23:24
3 WATTS
MOORE 150 24:03
4 DOUBLE
ESPRESSO 99 24:04
5 ROSIE 162 25:53
6 AQUAVIT 72 26:01
7 SWEETHEART -6 26:03
8 WIND II 213 30:23
FLEET B:
1 AVATAR 132 24:09
2 PERFECT
36 144 24:36
3 PAIR A DICE 180 26:51
4 KICKS 180 29:16
5 TOAD 150 30:21
6 PACIFIC SPIRIT 165 32:07
Race QS:
The track for this evening can be viewed at:
TUESDAY AFTERNOON SAILING:
Daylight Saving time changes on November 6, so we are shifting
to Tuesday afternoon sailing next Tuesday. The process is the same, just
starting at 3 PM rather than 5pm. The “10 minute horn” will be blown at 2:50
with the normal two-fleet start.
Keep in mind that winter sailing is not as consistent as
summer sailing. We have shoaling, storms
and rain that may cause cancellation. I
will send an email by noon on Tuesdays if the race will be cancelled. I have a separate e-mail list for Tuesday afternoon
sailing. If you do not receive an
e-mail notification about a new blog posting by Friday next week, you are not
on the Tuesday afternoon list. If you want to be included in Tuesday Afternoon
emails, let me know.
WINTER SAILING:
A common misconception is that winter sailing in Santa Cruz
is cold. Summer sailing is frequently
foggy and overcast. Winter sailing is
often sunny and warm with lighter winds frequently in the 10-15 knot
range. If you can make it for the
afternoon sails, awesome!
Another option is
the mid-winter series of races put on by the yacht club. These are on the 3
Saturday of each month and there is a Jib and Main division which is perfect
for our group.
Barry Keeler
Sailing Pair A Dice
No comments:
Post a Comment