September 20, 2016: PERSEVERANCE EVEN IN THE DARK

SEPTEMBER 20, 2016

PERSEVERANCE EVEN IN THE DARK

The first glimpse as I approached the harbor showed that an Easterly was blowing.  After getting skunked with not enough wind last week, I really did not want it to happen again.  As we left the harbor, the Northwester breeze was still blowing and even extended clear  in to the start buoy.  We decided on Whiskey 3: start, Wharf, Blacks and finish.  There were twelve boats out for the fun.  We gave a 5 minute horn and set up for the race.  As is customary for the end of the season, more boats were on the line in close proximity for the start.  It was very interesting trying to start with a dying breeze and being blanketed  by what seemed to be all twelve boats.

We sailed until we could duck and clear the boat to windward of us.  We finally tacked for clear air.  Many of the boats made it outside to where there seemed to be more wind.   With a clean path to outside we tacked back over to get outside to more wind. Once we made it to the Wharf Mark layline, we tacked over for the mark.  We had started the race near the back of the pack and as we sailed toward Wharf mark, we noticed most of the pack parked in the transition zone.  We stayed outside in the westerly breeze and then ducked in through the transition zone to round wharf.  Once we rounded wharf, claiming inside rights over Kicks we sailed toward Blacks as the sun was setting.  The wind was blowing pretty well from the east, but it was getting darker.  Word has it that Odonata finished just ahead of Equanimity, then  Pair A Dice followed quite a bit later then Makani and Kicks crossed the line in the dark.  All other boats headed for the harbor as the sun set.  Kudos to the boats that had the  perseverance to finish in the dark.

Tactics:

Always try to sail where the wind is.  We stayed outside for a long time because that was where the wind was.  

When there are divergent winds blowing as with the northwest wind outside and Easterly wind inside there is always a dead (transition zone) between them.  Getting through these transition zones is very tricky.  If possible, look for an area where the transition zone is narrow (looking at the wind on the water). When entering the transition zone, try to have as much speed as possible to coast to the new wind. Use whatever means possible to propel the boat (waves!!!).  Do not sheet the jib I tight, the last thing you need is a backwinded jib!

PLEASE NOTE, NEXT WEEK IS BARBECUE NIGHT AT THE CLUB. PLEASE BRING YOUR BEST BARBECUE ITEMS FOR THE FUN AND COMRADARIE!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair a Dice

SEPTEMBER13, 2016: CONFUSED SEAS, WIND AND COURSE

SEPTEMBER 13, 2016

CONFUSED SEAS, WINDS AND COURSE

The wind in the bay for the week had been very robust to say the least.  Checking Sailflow in the morning, it looked like the prediction was possibly for more of the same.  When I got to the harbor after 5pm, it looked like the wind was starting to die.  As we left the harbor, it looked like there was enough wind for a race, but it was coming from a very South direction.  This normally would call for a course to Mile and back, but with the dying breeze and confused seas bashing through the waves did not seem appealing.  We finally decided on course Whiskey 5: Start, Wharf Finish.  We gave a 5 minute horn and in the 5 minutes to start the wind seemed to die even more. 

The start was excruciatingly slow.  Many of the boats headed outside on Starboard tack. Was there more wind outside?   On Pair a Dice we rode the waves inside just outside the kelp. All kelp was indicating a current headed toward shore probably from the south wind influence on the water.

It seemed like the excruciating start was only a precursor for what was in store for the rest of the evening.  The confused seas with waves coming from 3 different directions was further compounded by a very light (6 knot) breeze that seemed to shift 30 degrees every two minutes.  Driving in these conditions was interesting as the crew was offering advice like a chorus: “YOU’RE PINCHING, YOU’RE LUFFING, YOU’RE PINCHING…..”  To add to the misery it seemed like we were sailing along in a transition zone that was stalking us like a predator which we could not outrun.  We finally shortened the course as the sun was setting. The finished was accomplished by rounding Wharf mark. There were only 3 boats that ultimately finished: Wildflower, Pacific Spirit and Equinamity.  I never thought I would enjoy the sound of diesel as much as I did that night motoring back to the harbor!

Dealing with Frustrating conditions:

As with any sailing, it is all about paying close attention to conditions and your boat.  Where is the wind? Can you get to it?  Better yet, where will the wind build?  For a while, we felt we were doing well on the wind coming off the beach, but ultimately fell into the quagmire of the inescapable transition zone. In very light wind and waves, you do not want waves directly on your bow.  Pay attention to sail trim and boat heel.  Obviously Pair  A Dice did not get it right this evening since we did not even finish. It was interesting at the Crows Nest  commiserating  with the other sailors over the very strange conditions we experienced.

Other regattas:

Do not forget the mid winters starting the third Saturday of November.  If you can, it would be interesting to sail down to Monterey to observe and cheer for the Santa Cruz competitor for the Veeder cup on the weekend of September 24 and 25.

See you next Tuesday,

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice

SEPTEMBER 6, 2016: CURRENT EVENTS

SEPTEMBER 6, 2016

CURRENT EVENTS

There were small craft advisory warnings for further out in the bay, but predictions for an Easterly close to the harbor.  The Easterly was definitely blowing when I got to the harbor.  We sorted out crew issues.  Last week I had 8 people on board, this night I had 3 crewmembers.  We decided on course B4 again and gave the 5 minute horn at 6pm for a 6:05 start.

In the 5 minute countdown, the wind seemed to be waning just a bit.  Pair A Dice was way too soon at the line and we slowed the boat down to let Pacific Spirit start ahead of us.  Since we were closer to the buoy, if we had kept our speed up, Pacific Spirit would have caught us barging.  Homer on Equinamity also got an excellent start.  Once we got over the line, rather than sail in bad air we tacked over since there was no way to fetch the mark on one tack.  Homer and Pacific Spirit rounded Blacks just ahead of us and Makani was right on our stern as we rounded.  This was going to be a good race!

As we approached the kelp line, it was apparent that there was a strong current flowing west.  With this information we decided to sail closer to the beach to take as much advantage of the current as possible.  The current also helped stream the kelp so it was easy to not pick up any hitch-hiking strands of kelp.  We seemed to gain on the boats that were sailing further outside.  At Gov Equinamity was first to round followed by  Pacific Spirit, Makani  and Pair A Dice.  The three leaders headed outside and Pair A Dice tacked over back inside for cleaner air.  We sailed to the kelp line and tacked over toward the finish mark.  At the finish, it was Equinamity, Pacific Spirit, Makani, Pair A Dice, Kicks, Nadaris II, Sea Quake, Aeolian and Odonata.   All boats seemed to finish within 5 minutes of each other making for a great race.

Reading Currents:

We did well on Pair A Dice until we sailed inside. I thought we were far enough out to avoid the westerly current, but it was strong enough to set us back.  Indications that the current was still in effect where we were was that the kelp was still streaming to the west.  Also, the kelp on the start buoy was indicating a westerly even as far out as the buoy when we were starting.  Lesson: Don’t sail up stream!

Tacking properly:

We were having problems on Pair A Dice with proper tacking.  I was frustrated as I was trying to get the jib in because it was hung up on ‘something’.  The ‘something’ that was keeping it from flowing through properly was the fact that I was standing on the sheets!  While racing, I will pile the sheets up on the bench to prevent this in the future (you’d think I would know by now!)

Watching other boats tacking indicated that several are having problems with this aspect also.  This is a critical time to pay attention and do things right.  After passing through the eye of the wind, the boat has slowed dramatically and you need power (wind in the sails) to get the boat moving again.  While racing it is critical for the crew to get the jib in as quickly as possible.  Note: you do not want to get the jib all the way in until the boat has come back up to speed again on the new tack.

Other Regattas:

Everyone is bringing their game up nicely.  Now is the time to set up for an official race.  The yacht club is putting on the midwinter series.  The first day of racing will be the third Saturday of November.  You will need a PHRF certificate to compete.  Many of us are going to be sailing in this regatta.  Come and join the fun.  The information is available on the website:  SCYC.org.

On September 24 and 25, the Veeder cup competition will be down in Monterey. In the past, it was two Santana 22’s that competed.  This year it will be two Santa Cruz 52’s that will compete, Elixir from Santa Cruz and one from Monterey Yacht club. If you have never sailed to Monterey, this would be a great time to go.  We should have a group of boats go down to cheer our boat on in this race.  It will be a fun event.

I will see you next Tuesday!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A DIce

AUGUST 30, 2016: HEAVY LOAD, LIGHT WIND

August 30, 2016

HEAVY LOAD, LIGHT WIND

As I approached the harbor, it was very apparent the Santa Cruz Eddy was in full force and the Easterly was filling in.  My normal crew had the boat all ready to go and we had more than enough crew with a few visitors topping us out at 8 people on the boat.  As we left the harbor it looked like the Easterly was trying to fade just a bit.  We called for a conservative course of B4, staying inside for the Easterly.  We called for a 6pm start and the 5 minute horn was blown at 5:55.  As we were sailing around before the start, it looked like there may be more wind a little ways off shore.

The buoy end of the line was definitely favored and as the wind seemed to be dying during the 5 minute count down, it took a lot of concentration (and luck) to get a proper start.  Pair a Dice was lucky enough to be one of the first over the line along with Homer on Equinamity (Hunter 34).  As we all sailed to the first mark, it appeared that Homer fell off more toward the beach.  Was he looking for more wind inside?  As we rounded Blacks, it looked like his judgment was correct because he was just ahead of us for the rounding.  After rounding  Blacks, Homer seemed to head more toward the beach again but then turned for the outside.  Was there more wind outside?  We watched closely but thought it was not worth going outside and decided to basically rhum line it to Gov, aside from dodging kelp patches.  The kelp was showing a westerly current was in effect, which made it easy to sail west and we managed to not pick up any hitch-hikers along the way. 

At Gov we squeaked around the mark just ahead of Homer.  Trying to avoid the inside (westerly) current, we sailed outside.  Homer sailed inside for cleaner air, while we sailed further outside.  We were definitely splitting tacks with him.  The game for all of us was to not sail into a light wind area.  When we finally converged again, it was going to be a very close race.  Pair a Dice had to throw one more tack in to clear the mark and, in the lightening breeze could not get our speed up enough.  Homer squeaked ahead of us for the finish.  What a great race!

At the finish it was Equinamity, Pair A Dice, Andiamo, Kicks, Perfect 36, Nadaris II, Aeolian, a Catalina 27 and Odonata(Santana 22).  We had a great barbecue at the club.

Racing Mode:

Recently I competed in the Big Brothers Big Sisters regatta.  When I got home that night, Lisa asked me who I sailed with that day.  When I told her, she pried me with questions: ‘How is so and so? Where are they going for vacation? What about so and so?’  I sheepishly told her I did not know.  She said “How can you spend a whole day with your friends and not find out what they are doing?”  I answered “when we are racing, we are RACING!  Every bit of conversation pertains to tactics, boat speed and how to increase it!” 

It is interesting seeing different attitudes as different personalities come aboard a boat.  Some people get right into “race mode” and do everything possible to improve the boat’s place in the race.  Other people are more fascinated with otters, seals, sunsets, conversation and basically anything but racing.  Obviously there is a happy medium.  We all enjoy the ocean and sailing, but are you and your boat in “race mode” or “casual sailing mode?”  The difference may have a reflection on your standings.

I am Looking forward to next Tuesday.

Barry L.Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice

AUGUST 23, 2016:PLENTY OF WIND, PLENTY OF BOATS

AUGUST 23, 2016

PLENTY OF WIND, PLENTY OF BOATS

The flag on the Crow’s nest was indicating a lot of wind, but once again there were few white caps indicating wind less than 20 knots so we kept the 155 jib.  As we left the harbor, there were many boats out with even more coming out of the harbor.  With about 18 knots of wind and close to 15 boats on the line, conditions for the start got a little more exciting than normal.  We called for course whiskey 3: Start, Wharf Mark, Blacks, Finish. We gave the horn at 6:00 for a 6:05 start.

On Pair A Dice we wanted to start on Starboard tack down the line from the buoy.  Being down the line would allow us to tack over to inside whenever we wanted to, since we would not be trapped by other boats. As it turned out we were a little early and had to stall .  At the start we had several boats to our starboard in close proximity.  It took us awhile, but we were finally able to pull ahead and were able to tack over toward the inside.   We stayed on this tack until we thought we were on the layline for Wharf mark. Once we tacked, it looked like we may have been a little optimistic in our judgement.  We would need a lift in order to clear the mark.  Suddenly there was another concern.  Perfect 36 was crossing us on Port tack.  From my perspective, it was one of the closest crossings I have seen in a long time, but they cleared us without us having to duck.  Congratulations to Steve and the crew on Perfect 36 for precise judgement.

As we got lifted on our approach to wharf Pair A Dice was first to round wharf, followed quickly by Perfect 36 and Homer’s Equinamity (Hunter 34) and the rest of the fleet.  On the long run back to Blacks, we set our pole and started gauging our comparative speed. I have a laser device that indicates the distance to objects.  At first when our crew was hanging out in the cockpit of my boat, Equinamity was slowly gaining on us.  We moved everyone out of the cockpit and got them on the foredeck.  With this ‘minor adjustment’ we started keeping the distance between us the same or even gaining.

We rounded Blacks and pulled up tight for the march back to start mark.  We finally tacked over toward the start mark with Homer breathing down our necks.  At the finish it was Pair A Dice, Equinamity, Perfect 36, Makani, Kicks, Pacific Spirit, Sea Quake, Aeolian, Southern Cross (Tartan 34?), and NadarusII (Santana 30).

What wins races?

The story goes that there was a discussion between parts of the body as to which organ was most critical. The brain claimed superiority since it controlled everything.  The heart because it provided blood throughout the body.  When the anus claimed superiority, the other organs laughed.  The anus quit doing his job and soon all systems came to a grinding halt.  This may be a crude story but the same goes for sailing.  It definitely takes a “TEAM” to win races.  You can drive better than anyone else, but if your crew cannot handle the boat appropriately, it does not win.  It is critical for the skipper to place crew where they are most efficient.  If a crew member cannot grind in a jib sheet quickly and efficiently during a tack, it hurts overall performance. So when your boat wins, it is the team working together.

NEXT WEEK (AUGUST 30) IS BARBECUE NIGHT AT SCYC.  THE CLUB AND BAR WILL BE OPEN.  BRING YOUR BEST BARBECUE FOOD!!

CORRECTION IN LAST WEEKS BLOG:

In last week’s blog I committed a serious error. I forgot to include Perfect 36 in the recap.  Perfect 36 was second only to Sagittarius last week.  My sincere apologies to Perfect 36 and crew.  Great job Perfect 36!

AUGUST 16, 2016: INSIDE, OUTSIDE

AUGUST 16, 2016

INSIDE, OUTSIDE

There was plenty of wind on the water and the flags on the crow’s nest confirmed.  Looking closely at the water, there were few white caps so I guessed the wind to be just about 15 knots from the northwest.  We chose course W2: start, wharf, mile, gov, finish and gave a 5 minute horn at 5:55.

On Pair A Dice we thought there was much more wind outside so we set up for a starboard tack at the start buoy. We were not alone in this assessment, with Pacific Spirit and Sagittarius starting out on the same tack. Sagittarius was one of the first to peel off toward inside on port tack, Pair A Dice sailed a little further out before following and Pacific Spirit went even further out before tacking over.  We noticed when Pacific Spirit was on Port tack they were sailing much lower and faster than we were.  We were amazed to see Sagittarius tack over toward Wharf way ahead of us.  It seems that all of the boats that started off on port tack and sailed inside were ahead of us by quite a bit.  Sagittarius was the first around Wharf followed by Aeolian, Pacific Spirit and Pair A Dice.  Despite or best efforts and sail trim, we were not able to close the gap between us as we sailed toward Mile,

The procession continued around Gov and finished at start/finish with Sagittarius in the lead followed by Aeolian, Pacific Spirit, Pair A Dice, Kicks, Odonata and Sea Quake. Congratulations to the crew of Sagittarius, Aeolian and Pacific Spirit for a great race.

SHOW UP AND PAY ATTENTION!

This was the admonishment that one of the great Santa Cruz sailors always gave.  This means looking at the sailing instructions, getting out on the course early enough to gauge the conditions.  What are the flags doing? (crows nest flag, flags on the wharf), are they all flying the same direction?  What are the anchored boats doing, are they all faced the same way or are there subtle differences?  How are the floating birds sitting? Birds characteristically float in the water facing the wind. Is the kelp all streaming in the same direction indicating a current?  As you are sailing, are there headers and lifts to take advantage of or is the wind consistent in direction?

As you are sailing pay close attention to other boats and what they are doing.  This is for the crew to do for the skipper, since the skipper is focusing on steering the boat.  The crew can call out: “X boat at our 9 oclock is 300 yards away and sailing lower and faster than we are”.  The crew can also apprise how boats are doing on different tacks, trying to apprise whether you are sailing at right angles to each other and if this is consistent.  These angles may change as either boat gets headed or lifted.

As is usually the case in Santa Cruz, sailing inside on port tack is a preferred strategy.  This works because of the lift you get sailing inside of the point to make it around wharf.  Not following this strategy has its perils and there should be a compelling reason for not going inside. 

On this particular evening, there may have been a good westerly current inside, the water was probably a little flatter and wind was adequate to help getting ahead.  I wish I had paid more attention to the inside boats as we were sailing out.  I have a feeling they were also getting lifted toward the wharf mark as they were sailing toward the pier.

I am looking forward to next Tuesday.

See you then.

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice

AUGUST 9, 2016: LIGHT WIND FROM THE SOUTH

AUGUST 9, 2016

LIGHT WIND FROM THE SOUTH

It looked like a light breeze. Was it from the northwest or from the South?  It was not until we left the harbor that it became apparent that the wind was almost directly from the South.  It was time to look at the “south wind” part of the course chart.  We called for course M1: start, Mile finish at Gov.  We gave a 5 minute horn and everyone started jockeying for position.

On Pair A Dice, we wanted to start at the buoy on starboard tack.  We were way too early and went through several stalling maneuvers and finally ended up at the mark on pretty good time.  Steve Niemann on perfect 36 was too soon over the line.  Kudos to him and his crew for doing the right thing by rounding the buoy to start again.  Mistress Quickly (SC27 Evan Diola and crew) did a great job leading the way.  Pacific Spirit was also in good position.  We had our 155 jib on and it was working very well, helping us in leading the pack.  Once we rounded Mile it was a long slog to Gov for the finish.  As the wind lightened inside many boats seemed to compress on us.  Pacific Spirit was breathing down our neck, but we ultimately inched over the line ahead of Pacific spirit but sufficiently behind Mistress Quickly.  It seems like lighter boats move faster in light wind.  The excitement was not over. After we crossed and Pacific Spirit crossed, Sea Quake and Perfect 36 were in a dead heat for the finish.  From our perspective on the line, it looked like Sea Quake inched over just ahead of Perfect 36. We had Nidaros II (Santana 30) out for the first time who came in next then Aeolian and Kicks.

PHRF and other races:

We just had the Big Brothers Big sisters regatta this past Sunday.  This is a reverse PHRF pursuit race where slower boats start first.  In these situations if all boats were sailed perfectly, all boats would finish at exactly the same time. Pair A Dice was doing pretty well and was the third boat around the second mark (SC3) after 4 miles of sailing. Then we had the first misshap of the race. As we rounded the mark and tried to harden up on the wind, the lazy jib sheet snagged on the port side bow cleat.  For an excruciating 30 seconds we were not able to achieve a proper course.  Pacific Spirit rounded perfectly and climbed ahead of us.  Of the Catalina’s Pacific Spirit was one of the first over the line.  Compliments to Pacific Spirit and crew for an excellent race.  Not bad for the first time they have been in this regatta.

Using kelp to your advantage:

I have talked before about using kelp to see which way the current is flowing.  On this night we used kelp to our advantage in another way.  You can actually use a heavy bed of kelp to scrub the bottom of your boat.  Mind you, this will do nothing for heavy growth.  I had my bottom scrubbed for the BBBS regatta and knew that I had very light, one week old growth.  This is the kind of growth that even the light brush of kelp against the hull will clean away.  If you try this maneuver, be sure to back down to clear the Keel and rudder of any strands of kelp before racing.

See you next Tuesday,

Barry Keeler

Sailling Pair A Dice