JULY 9, 2024 240 TO 90 IN 60

 

JULY 9, 2024

240 TO 90 IN 60

I am always anxious on Tuesdays wondering if we will have enough wind to have a race.  The flags were showing a mild northwesterly through the afternoon, so I was surprised to see the bay full of white caps as we left the harbor at about 5.  With the heavy fog bank offshore, I was confident the wind would hold.  We set the start line square to the 240-degree direction of the wind as boats were coming out of the harbor. With close to 20 knot winds, it was going to be a great night! 

We called for an ambitious course Whiskey 2 and blew the 10 minute horn.  From our perspective, it looked like a clean start for A Fleet as B Fleet set up for their start.  All boats tacked their way to the first mark, Schuyler and the first A Fleet boat to round was Aboriginal, then Sweetheart, Friskey, Sagittarius, Pegasus, Aquavit, Yellow Belly, Double Espresso, Interlude, Watts Moore and Good Timin’.  B Fleet had Gold Rush first to round followed by Perfect 36, Pacific Spirit, Simpatico, Big Mac, Kicks, Nidaros, Pair a Dice, Hamachi and Animal House.

The wind was steady as all boats rounded Mile but, on the way to Blacks the wind started to falter as we saw some A Fleet boats sailing back toward us after rounding Blacks.  As reefs were shaken out and jibs completely deployed, boats drifted aimlessly waiting for a “new wind” to develop.  We noticed some fog down toward Aptos which is usually a precursor for a developing Easterly and sure enough we saw an Easterly wind on the water toward the beach just out of reach.  We used the waves to help sweep us closer to the developing Easterly and to round Blacks.  After the round Blacks, all B Fleet boats sailed downwind in a firm Easterly toward the finish mark.  The leading boats in A Fleet avoided much of this frustration since they finished before the wind died.

The first A Fleet boat to finish was Aboriginal 42:18, then Sweetheart 45:00, Frisky 46:20, Pegasus 47:12, Sagittarius 50:30, Yellow Belly 1:00:15, Aquavit 1:08:17, Double Espresso 1:09:02, Interlude 1:20:41 and Good Timin’ 1:21:25.  B Fleet was led by Pacific Spirit 1:13:55 then Simpatico 1:14:18, Big Mac 1:15:02, Nidaros 1:15:19, Pair A Dice 1:15:22, Perfect 36 1:15:27, Animal House 1:16:12, Hamachi 1:16:15, Kicks 1:16:21, Gold Rush 1:19:26.  All times are elapsed and the course distance was 3.95NM.

It was great to have good wind for at least the first part of the race.  We started with a healthy breeze from 240 degrees which developed into a good Easterly from 90 degrees after an hour of racing.  It was 240 to 90 in 60 minutes.

  

  

PHRF ADJUSTED RESULTS:

PLACE                 BOAT                                   PHRF                   CORRECTED TIME

FLEET A:

1             ABORIGINAL                                   33                          40:10

2             FRISKY                                              81                          41:00

3             PEGASUS                                          78                          42:03

4             SAGITTARIUS                                   120                       42:36

5             SWEETHEART                                 -6                           45:23

6             YELLOW BELLY                              141                       50:58

7             DOUBLE ESPRESSO                       99                          1:02:31

8             AQUAVIT                                          72                          1:08:17

9             INTERLUDE                                     141                       1:11:25

10          GOOD TIMIN’                                   141                       1:12:08

FLEET B:

1             HAMACHI                                         243                       1:00:15

2             BIG MAC                                            222                       1:00:25

3             PACIFIC SPIRIT                                 165                       1:03:03

4             SIMPATICO                                        165                       1:03:26

5             SAILING PAIR A DICE                      180                       1:03:31

6             KICKS                                                  180                       1:04:30

7             WIND GODDESS                               168                       1:04:46

8             PERFECT 36                                       144                       1:05:58

9             NIDAROS                                            118                       1:07:32

10          ANIMAL HOUSE                                 96                         1:09:52

11          GOLD RUSH                                        126                       1:11:08

 

RACE QS:

People are having problems getting the app to work on their newer phones.  They cannot find the app in Google play or the app store.  The solution to this problem is to do a google search on your phone searching for “Race QS”.  This results in multiple results to choose from such as “Download to Android” or “Download to Apple”.  This should allow you to pick which app to load to your phone.  To get the app to work correctly, you should follow these procedures: 1: preset the start for some time before your start like 5:45 or 17:45. 2: mount your phone in a stable position close to centerline of boat face up with top of phone toward the bow.  Additionally, I like to keep the phone plugged in so the battery keeps charged.

The track for this evening can be found at:

https://raceqs.com/tv-beta/tv.htm#userId=1011017&divisionId=100425&updatedAt=2024-07-10T02:45:27Z&dt=2024-07-09T17:46:01-07:00..2024-07-09T19:45:08-07:00&boat=SAILING%20PAIR%20A%20DICE&time=1720573682806&focus=SAILING%20PAIR%20A%20DICE&rival=Hamachi&tab=fleet&view=follow&lat=36.949804&lon=-122.003916&tilt=70&range=3630&heading=241

SAIL TO THE NEW WIND!

The common thought when the wind is dying is to “sail to the new wind”.  This evening we had several boats that rounded Blacks and sailed back out toward the “old wind”.  This made sense because how could 20 knot winds just die?  When the wind dies, there is no guarantee that a new wind will follow.  On this evening, the fog filling in toward Aptos was one indication that an Easterly MAY develop.  The boats that sailed toward shore to take advantage of the new Easterly did better than the ones that sailed back out for the dying Northwesterly.

BBBS:

The big regatta of the year is coming: Big Brothers Big Sisters regatta on August 11.  This is a great event with a reverse PHRF start, meaning the slower boats start first. This is also a benefit for a great organization that provides direction for local young people in the community.  Put it on your calendar and plan to participate!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice