AUGUST 28, 2018: STEADY BREEZE

August 28, 2018

STEADY BREEZE

Checking Predict Wind in the morning, I was not encouraged since it predicted very light winds from about 7pm into the evening.  When I got to the harbor just after 5, the northwesterly was still blowing steadily.  We left the harbor and there were over 12 boats out, we set the line and called for course W3.  We gave a 5 minute horn for a 6pm start in the steady 10 knot breeze.

On Pair A Dice, we set up for a starboard tack start, anywhere on the line that would give us free air.  We accomplished this, but had about 5 boats following us a little to windward.  We slowly pinched up and eventually forced all boats to tack over.  We all know that it is best to tack over to port tack earlier, but on this night the waves were not impeding our progress and since the wind was a little more south (220 degrees) than normal, we did not think the boats inside would get as much lift as usual. 

We finally tacked over toward Wharf mark and found we were a little above the layline for the mark.  At the wharf mark rounding it was Avatar, followed by Patricia J, Perfect 36 with Pair a Dice right on 36’s stern.  On the long run to Blacks, Pair A Dice pulled to windward of Perfect 36 and closed a little of the gap that Avatar and Patricia J had created ahead of us.

 

At the finish, Avatar was first with Patricia J following.  Perfect 36 (49:05), Pair A Dice (50:10), Kicks (52:50), Aeolian (55:18) and Pacific Spirit (56:21).  All times are elapsed and the course was 3.23 miles.  For some reason the track for Avatar and Patricia J stopped so I could not record the time.  It should also be noted that Pacific Spirit went out of their way to help a Hobie sailor that had capsized. I need to emphasize that you must have Race QS operating to be counted.  If phone batteries run low, you can get an adapter to keep your phone charged through your cigarette lighter plug.

IMPEDING A FOLLOWING BOAT:

There is a trick that all match racers and team racers know.  When a boat is following close behind, either to windward or leeward with the possibility of passing you, you can pretty much stop them by travelling up on the main.  While this will slow your boat down a little, the disturbed wind you give the other boat will slow them dramatically and they will have to tack rather than pass you.

ASSISTING OTHER BOATERS:

Kudos to Pacific Spirit for helping the Hobie that had flipped.  In my many years of Hobie catting I have been flipped many time.  Righting a Hobie 16 single handed is not difficult with enough wind.  This Hobie was an 18, which is a little larger making it very difficult to right especially with wind lightening.  Thanks to Pacific Spirit for helping him out.

ASSISTING A PERSON IN THE WATER:

We had a person fall into the water while docking their boat on Q dock.  This presents a problem.  What is the best way to get a person out of the water and onto a dock or an inflatable?   We were fortunate to have Mike Gross show us the way.  I had always heard that you should have the person cross their arms or the rescuer cross their arms so that with the “swimmer” facing the dock, as you pull them out, their body rotates and they end up sitting on the dock.  This may work for a child in the water, but when you consider that any adult is going to weigh in excess of 200 pound when drenched, most of us would not be able to pull them onto the dock.  The proper technique is to give the person in the water something to hold onto with their hands to keep their head above water and to assist in lifting their weight, then reach down and grab them by the belt or knee to get the rest of their body on deck.  Once you get them high enough, you can roll them onto the dock.

Looking forward to next Tuesday!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice

AUGUST 21, 2018 COLD AUGUST NIGHT

August 21, 2018

COLD AUGUST NIGHT

I was at the harbor all day working on my boat and as the afternoon progressed, the wind seemed to be increasing.  I was really thinking that we would have to change the jib from 155 to 135 with this much wind.  As 5pm arrived, the wind seemed to dissipate and we opted to stay with the 155.  As we left the harbor, there seemed to be 10-12 knot winds steadily from the Northwest.   There were already 6-7 boats out and 3 other boats following us.  We set the mark relatively square to the wind, called course W2 and gave a 5 minute horn.

After calling such a long, ambitious course, my heart sank as the 5 minute countdown started and the wind seemed to dissipate from 10 knots down to 7.5 knots.  Pair a Dice set up for a starboard tack start at the red buoy end of the line and was a little late for the start.  One by one, each boat found they were not making much headway against the waves which were right on our bow.  With these waves we just weren’t able to build up speed.  We all tacked over to take the waves on the beam rather than the bow.  Avatar, Patricia J and Pacific Spirit were the first around Wharf, then off to Mile.  On the way to Mile Pair A Dice closed much of the gap between Pacific Spirit and Patricia J.  Pair A Dice camped right on the stern corner of Pacific Spirit on the way to Gov and the run to the finish mark.

 

At the finish, it was Avatar (55:20), Patricia J (56:25), Pacific Spirit (57:42, Pair A Dice (58:00), Perfect 36 (59:44), Kicks (1:01:29), Aeolian (1:02:20) and Rosie (1:04:11). All times are elapsed and course length was 3.93 miles.

ROUNDING MARKS:

In the last several weeks, some of us have had trouble rounding some marks.  The problems can involve such issues as claiming inside overlap, taking advantage of it, getting headed at the last moment and not being able to round the mark.  We have all been in these predicaments.  Getting into a predicament is one thing, knowing how to efficiently get out of it is another thing completely. 

Always keep in mind that you MUST be on your layline to the mark.  If you must pinch to make the mark, this will be compounded by other boats rounding ahead of you.  There may be headers and even currents working against your efforts to round the mark.  If in claiming inside overlap, you must pinch to make the mark, keep in mind if your jib gets back-winded, it will not only slow you even more but may make it impossible to control your boat.  Once your boat goes through the eye of the wind and your jib is back-winded, you no longer have inside overlap rights and must yield to other boats.  In order to avoid losing control when sailing in close quarters in situations like this, your crew must loosen the jib the moment you pass through the eye of the wind to prevent sideways movement.

What about that nasty header that stops you dead in your tracks with the mark right on your bow?  This is very frustrating and we have all been there!  The problem often is caused by trying to estimate the layline from too far away and hoping, praying and willing a lift to get you around the mark. The collective willing of everyone on the boat will not allow you to sail directly into the wind!  To compound this issue, there are often boats close at hand to prevent you from doing what you want to do: tack, jibe or anything to get out of your predicament.  In these situations, quick, decisive action can frequently help your situation.  It is no time for analysis paralysis.

One thing that I like to do is always tack over on the lay-line just outside the 3 boat length zone.  This allows a close approximation of the lay-line.   Keep in mind if you enter the zone and must tack within the zone, you must yield to other boats (you have given up your rights claimed by being the first in the zone with inside overlap).  In these situations, Starboard versus tack rules prevail for right of way.  Tacking outside of the 3 boat zone prevents this predicament.

OTHER REGATTAS:

The first of the fall score series is this Sunday.  These are always fun regattas with several days to compete and improve your sailing and racing skills even more.

NEXT TUESDAY IS THE LAST TUESDAY OF THE MONTH AND BARBECUE AT SCYC.  ALWAYS A FUN EVENT.  PLEASE BRING YOUR FAVORITE GRILLING FOOD.  THE BAR WILL BE OPEN!

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice  

AUGUST 14, 2018: TORTURED BY LIGHT WIND

August 14, 2108

TORTURED BY LIGHT WIND

As usual I checked Predict wind in the morning and the forecast was for light northwesterly winds in the evening.  I was surprised to see the Crow’s Nest flag showing an Easterly when I came to the harbor.  It was not until we were leaving the harbor that the northwest wind was apparent on the outside.  We set the red mark on the outside of the start mark to keep everyone in the northwest wind.  We called for W5: Start, Wharf, Start and gave a 5minute horn.

In the 5 minute countdown, I was horrified to see the northwest wind die as all of the boats did their best to cross the line with light wind and waves on the bow.  On Pair A Dice, I doggedly thought the Northwest wind was the place to be until well into the race.   Finally, it dawned on us that the boats that were doing well were sailing inside using the building Easterly.  We inched the boat around and used the waves to the best of our ability to get inside where the wind was.  Finally we got to the wind and sailed up toward Wharf.  It seemed too good to be true.  We went from last to first place in one slick move, but the race was not over BY A LONG SHOT!  Just as we approached wharf mark, the wind died and all of the other boats rounded ahead of us.  Ah the vagaries of fickle, inconsistent wind!

All of the boats that rounded ahead of us made a rhumb line run straight back to Start mark.  We thought there was more wind outside and sailed deeper into the wind before tacking over toward the start mark.  We passed several boats on our way, but at the finish it was KICKS! (1:40:46), Pacific Spirit (1:44:55), Avatar (1:45:25) Pair A Dice (1:46;22) and Rosie (1:49:45).  All times were elapsed and  the length of the course was 2.68 miles.  Congratulations to KICKS for another excellent night of sailing!

VIEW FROM THE WINNER KICKS! THANKS DAN  FOR THE PIC!

It was a night that we were tortured by light winds, but it was a beautiful night on the water.  Would you rather be bobbing on the water or sitting at home watching TV?

USING SAILS TO STEER THE BOAT:

This night was a real test of seamanship with the light variable winds.  Often we did not have enough movement to steer the boat, so we had to use the sails to steer the boat.  Think of the mast as a fulcrum.  On one side you have the main sail and the other side of the fulcrum you have the Jib.

 With light wind blowing from the port side of the boat, if you want to turn the boat to starboard, tighten up the jib and release the main and the boat will turn that way.  If you want to turn the boat to port, tighten the mainsheet and loosen the jib.  I have a 155 jib on my boat so in light winds if I needed to turn to port (in this situation), I need to furl the headsail at least partially to accomplish this.  

LEARNING IN ADVERSE CONDITIONS:

Imagine that every time you go sailing, there was perfect 10-15 knot breeze from a consistent direction with no shifts in wind. It sounds like sailing heaven!  If conditions were always perfect, what would you learn?  Probably not much!  Kudos to all of the boats that stuck it out to the end.  These challenging nights are the most educational and will invariably improve your sailing skills.

See you next Tuesday.

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A DIce

AUGUST 7, 2018: SHOW UP AND PAY ATTENTION

August 7, 2018

SHOW UP AND PAY ATTENTION

The prediction for the evening from Predict Wind was that the wind would decrease through the evening.   It seems Predict Wind does not know about the Santa Cruz Eddie that generates our Easterly breezes.  When I got to the harbor, the wind was from the East; but would it hold?  As we left the harbor, there were almost a dozen boats out with more following us out.  It seemed that the wind was from the East with more wind outside so I called for Bravo 3: Start, Blacks, Mile, finish.  We set a line that was square with the wind to the start mark.

On Pair A Dice, we decided to start at the Start mark for an easy rounding of Blacks.  With the light breeze that was blowing, making this decision early and sticking with it seemed to be the thing to do.  We had a fairly good start right at the pin right behind Perfect 36.  We did not notice all of the boats spread out along the start line with some starting right at the red buoy end of the line.  As all 16 boats marched toward Blacks, we could see that some boats had quite a lead on us rounding the mark.

We all rounded Blacks and started reaching toward Mile.  We were all taking the swell on the nose which slowed all of us down.  Sailing through light and heavier areas of wind seemed to compress the fleet as we approached mile. Once we all rounded Mile it was another reach back to the start mark, this time with all boats trying to surf the meager swell to our advantage.

NICE SHOT OF PAD AND PERFECT 36 (THANK YOU TODD)

At the finish, Patricia J (32:40), Nidaros II (35:55), Pacific Spirit (36:31), Kicks (36:45), Pair a Dice (37:53), Perfect 36 (37:56), Avatar (39:15) and Aeolian (39:42).  The distance of the course was 2.72 miles.

THE TUESDAY NIGHT CREW AT THE CROWS NEST

PAYING ATTENTION TO CONDITIONS:

It did not occur to me till after the race, that boats that payed attention to changing conditions garnered a significant advantage. After the 5 minute horn was blown, the wind actually shifted 30 degrees giving the red ball end of the line a significant advantage.  When you are astute enough to recognize changes in conditions that you can take advantage of, by all means take it!

To determine which end of the line is the favored end, turn your boat head to wind on the line.  At this point, the end of the line your boat is pointing toward is the favored end.  The degree that your boat is pointed away from square to the line in this test indicates how much advantage you will have at the end of the line your boat is pointing.  With a 30 degree shift from square to the line, and a lengthy line, starting at the favored end is like starting with a huge, yet fair head start.

WAVES:

Tonight was a big lesson also on how to take waves on both the bow (on the way to Mile) and on the stern (on the way to start/finish).  Waves on the bow can be fresh, wind chop waves which can stop the boat repeatedly or gentle ocean swells like tonight.  I find that it is best to experiment with different tactics to see which works best in current conditions.  Whether taking the swells straight on the bow or cracking off to taking them at a slight angle are options.  Also, you should never come off the top of a wave and crash straight down the back of a wave.  I find hitting the trough off the back of the wave can also slow your boat down.  It is best to come off the top and take the back of the wave at an angle to prevent slamming into the trough.  Find what works best for your boat and follow that tactic. 

With waves on the stern, every boat has different polars.  This means every boat has a different optimal wind angle when sailing down wind.  If you can find the right angle of wind to catch more waves, it can yield a significant advantage.

When thinking of waves, keep in mind how many you are dealing with.  I am sure that in the distance between Blacks and Mile there were probably over 1000 waves we all went through.  Learning how to lessen their impedance or accentuating their assistance, depending on direction traveled can yield huge advantages.  When you mix the different wave types and different wind speeds and angles, the combined variability is as diverse as different snowflakes.  No two days or conditions are ever the same!

BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTER:

My favorite regatta of the whole year is coming up this Sunday August 12.  This is a very fun event that benefits this worthwhile cause.  It is a reverse PHRF start, meaning the slow boats start first.  Every boat has their own start so there is no crowded line to deal with.  After the short race, there is a party with trophies, meal and a band playing.  The band is Island Breeze and they are AWESOME.  There is also a silent auction and raffle ticket prizes awarded.  It is not too late to sign up for this fun event.

If I don’t see you at the regatta, I will see you next Tuesday!

Barry L Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice

JULY 31, 2018; THE BEGINNING OF THE END?

JULY 31, 2018

THE BEGINNING OF THE END?

Predict wind was indicating the wind was going to die as the evening progressed.  There was a fine Easterly breeze blowing as we left the harbor. As usual for a barbecue night, we had close to 20 boats out for the fun.   We quickly set the mark for the line and called course B4.  Thanks to Doug on Avatar for pointing out that there was a Coastguard cutter hanging on Gov.  We took his suggestion and called the course as B4 but substituting Wharf for Gov.  We blew the 5 minute horn and set up for the start.

On Pair A Dice, we decided to try to start at the start buoy on starboard.  A risky move considering that it would be a popular start.  As was expected, many boats had the same idea and we got off to a bad start in second row with several boats in front feeding us bad air.  As the season progresses it is amazing, as everyone’s abilities improve, how all boats seem to merge at marks at the same time.  This night was a good example as we had 4 boats rounding Blacks at the same time.  It seems everyone was screaming “ROOM AT THE MARK!”.

After rounding Blacks, we had a long slog to Wharf mark. Would the wind hold or die on us?  I observed all of the SC27s sail way inside with their Spinnakers and wondered how they would fair at the Wharf rounding.  It did not take long as, once again, we all seemed to be rounding Wharf at the same time with many calls for “ROOM AT THE MARK”.

The wind held through the long beat back to start.  Fred was the helmsman on Pair A Dice and he did an excellent job calling the headers and lifts as we passed several boats on the way to the start mark.

At the finish the first over the line was Tusitala (56:45), Avatar (59:30), Patricia J (1:00:57), Pair A Dice (1:05:39) Pacific Spirit (1:06:25), Perfect 36 (1:08:30) and Makani (1:16:00).  All times are elapsed. The course length was 3.20 miles.

THE BEGINNING OF THE END?

I have always tried to do all I can to improve everyone’s sailing ability.  If I learn something, I will always share it through this blog.  If everyone becomes a better sailor, I must improve also to win races.

I was talking to an experienced sailor once and told him how our fleet has grown.  He stated: “it never fails, when you try to improve everyone’s abilities, you build fleets and participation.  EXCESSIVE COMPETITIVE SPIRIT KILLS FLEETS!”.  What is excessive competitive spirit? Certainly bragging about a win is one example of excessive competitive spirit.  We all enjoy winning but winning graciously is a trait we all should try to employ.

  Another example of excessive competitive spirit is not abiding by the rules of sailing.  We have many novice sailors in our group that are trying to learn (and follow) the rules of sailing for our races.    As our abilities improve and more boats round marks at the same time, we MUST follow the rules.  If a boat has inside overlap at the 3 boat zone, give them ROOM.  If multiple boats are overlapped, you may need to give a LOT of room for all of the overlapped boats to get around the mark.  In order to prevent miss-haps, it is good for the boat that is achieving inside overlap to announce (loudly) at the 3 boat zone that you have overlap and will need mark room.

  

We have many in our group that play by the rules, taking turns if they bump a mark and giving appropriate room at the mark.  Can we all please play by the rules for our Tuesday night “fun sails”?  Nothing discourages participation more than the sound and feel of crunching fiberglass.  Many of us are having a blast and learning more about sailing, THIS is the intent of Tuesday Night sailing.  My greatest fear is that excessive competitive spirit in our group will crush our fleet.  By some of our actions, are we actually causing the beginning of the end?

Please use race QS in order to be counted for the race.  If you are not running this app, you are not being counted.

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice

JULY 24, 2018 VICARIOUS SAILING

JULY 24, 2018

VICARIOUS SAILING

Hi Barry,

Enough crew showed for us to go out. Don and Mike were on board and we picked up a hitchhiker at Aldo’s. Gunter waved us over and jumped on board. There was a big South swell and Tusitalia was parked at the harbor mouth but decided to turn back. We waited until the set passed and motored out without problem. Nidaros 2, Avatar and Kicks joined us. A 27 came out to play as well. We had a little trouble setting the mark. As Don was streaming it, he caught a huge kelp patty and had to let go. There were kelp patties all over the place torn up by the swells. We called a delay and came back to pick it up. Of course the kelp fouled our prop and we had to back down to free it. Finally got the mark set for a good East breeze. We called Bravo 2; Start, SC3, Black’s, finish. We had the Start buoy end and the other boats were spread out down the line toward the pin. Avatar and Nidaros tacked ahead of us, Mike thought we had better wind inside and we actually went a little way into the kelp before tacking out. The current kept us from picking any kelp up. When we tacked out, we tacked back as soon as we could clear the kelp field. The wind was better inside as predicted for an Easterly, but the combined South swell, left over NW wind waves and a building Easterly chop slowed us down. It was like being in a jeweler’s cleaning tank. We twisted the sails off a bit and “powered up.” When we tacked near the lay line, Avatar passed clear ahead and we almost had to duck Nidaros. After rounding, Mike took us in just a little way. Again, it was to get better breeze. We set the pole and soon passed Nidaros. Mike asked if we could see the mark. I took a look and we were dead on it! Avatar got there first and we hardened up and headed straight for the Finish. With the wind at about 120 all the usual angles were changed. The course was much easier. Avatar was ahead of us. Have to see the RaceQ track to find out if we got them on corrected. We were lucky and got in between sets without having to wait. I put the boat in bow first again as there was a lot of surge. It was a beautiful evening. Gunter said he had a lot of fun. We did, however, have to explain what a winch was and how to use it. Thanks for the opportunity to sail your boat.

Stefan

Thanks Stefan for the excellent report and for taking care of my boat.

Race QS shows Avatar finishing at 46:05, Pair a Dice 47.52, Nidaros II 49:22 and Kicks 56:33.  All times are elapsed time and the length of the course was 3.04 miles.

WAVES:

With the harbor office issuing warnings about large swells at the harbor entrance, I think it is good to discuss waves.  After years of surfing, I have had a lot of experience in dealing with waves. 

Most waves we deal with are storm generated.  The size of the swell is determined by the strength of the wind and the amount of area the storm covers.  During our summer months, a lot of our waves are generated by storms in the Southern ocean since it is winter in the south.  What is so important for us in the Santa Cruz Harbor is that our harbor faces due south so all of the swell energy is directed straight up the harbor.

The storm generated swells travel away from the storm and as they travel over a large distance, will organize their energy into sets.  If the storm is a long distance away, like New Zealand the characteristics of the sets will be well defined.  Characteristics to watch for are time between sets and which waves are the biggest in the set. A swell coming from New Zealand often will have 20-30 minutes between sets, allowing easy exit from the harbor and easy entry into the harbor. I compare it to crossing a street: you don’t step off the curb with cars speeding toward you and it is better to not transit the harbor entrance with big waves breaking. Always wait for “traffic” to clear. The trained eye can definitely see sets approaching from off shore.   Winter waves are a lot different, with sets a lot closer together with the surfers dream: corduroy to the horizon!

One other consideration is what causes a wave to break.  Obviously, it is the shallower water near shore. As waves travel toward shore, the bottom part of the wave slows down due to friction with the bottom and the upper part of the wave continues at a faster pace causing the top of the wave to cascade down the face and “break”. Waves will break in 1.3 times their wave height.  This is a convenient way to see how deep it is where waves are breaking.  Granted a 3 foot wave breaking in 4 feet of water will just crumble down the face in what surfers would call a “mushburger” without much energy. 

When you get a wave with a lot of energy, travelling over long distances in very deep water that suddenly meets a very shallow bottom, you get a very powerful wave where the crest pitches out and forms a tube.  Surfers describe these waves as breaking “Top to Bottom”.  The top of the wave pitches over clear to the bottom of the wave in a “totally tubular” way. These waves are very powerful and are the types of waves that accomplished surfers crave.

To summarize:

·    >   RESPECT THE SURF, NEVER LEAVE OR ENTER THE HARBOR WITHOUT PAYING ATTENTION. SURFERS SAY "NEVER TURN YOUR BACK ON THE OCEAN".

·       > CHECK THE HARBOR WEBSITE FOR THE LATEST SOUNDING MAP OF THE HARBOR

·         >THOUGH THE WATER MAY BE DEEP ENOUGH FOR YOUR KEEL, YOU DO NOT WANT TO SLAM DOWN THE FACE OR OVER THE BACK OF A WAVE AND BOUNCE OFF THE BOTTOM

·         >IF CATCHING A WAVE IN THE HARBOR, STEER STRAIGHT DOWN THE FACE OF THE WAVE IF POSSIBLE (SET UP FOR THIS IN ADVANCE).

·         >TIME THE SETS FOR SAFE EXIT AND RETURN TO THE HARBOR.
>     >ALWAYS CONSIDER THE STATE OF THE TIDE.  A SWELL CAN BREAK WITH LITTLE POWER ON A HIGH TIDE AND TURN INTO A GRINDING FREIGHT TRAIN AT LOW TIDE.

·        >MY PERSONAL RULE: IF THERE IS A 5% CHANCE OF CRASHING IN THE HARBOR ENTRANCE (EVEN WITH TIMING THE SETS PROPERLY) WAIT FOR A BETTER DAY. THERE HAVE BEEN TIMES I HAVE CHOSEN TO NOT GO OUT.

I will see you next Tuesday.

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair a Dice

JULY 17, 2018: SEPARATION

JULY 17, 2018

SEPARATION

It was blowing like stink all day, but as evening set in the wind seemed to be dissipating a bit.  When I arrived at the harbor after 5pm the flag on the Crow’s nest was still showing a northwest wind.  As we were leaving the harbor the northwest wind was blowing all the way to the start mark.  We set the pin end of the mark and gave a five minute horn, though it was a feeble sounding horn! With predictions for the wind to die, we called a medium course W3: start, Wharf, Blacks, Finish.

Everyone started on starboard tack heading out for more wind.  Pair A Dice was suffering from a dirty starboard bottom that was really slowing us down on port tack.  One by one many of the boats rolled us on the way to Wharf. The Pacific Spirit crew was out on “Scapa Flow” since their boat is still being worked on.  Avatar and Scapa Flow were the first boats around wharf and everyone set off for Blacks.

THE FLEET ON THEIR WAY TO WHARF

Since the wind was quite a bit more on the outside, we sailed high of the mark staying in the better wind as long as we could then Jibed toward the mark.  We were all struggling to keep speed up through the transition and the building Easterly, as all of the boats compressed together approaching Blacks.  It was interesting as all of the boats seemed to be rounding Blacks at the same time.  Since we were on the outside with two boats enjoying an inside overlap, we decided to do a “Jenny Craig” coming in fat to the mark and coming out skinny.  That was our plan except when we came around Blacks there was a train of 5 boats in front of us.  I decided to sail a bit further inside to increase distance between us and the “train”.  It seems we lucked out and got into better wind that was also clearer and allowed us to sneak ahead.  I know separation can often be a painful ordeal, but for Pair a Dice on this night, the secret for us was separation from the fleet.

AEOLIAN LOOKING GOOD

PETER AND SEAQUAKE CREW

At the finish, Avatar crossed the finish at 54:25, Pair a Dice 56:25, Scapa Flow 56:40, Kicks 56:53,  Aeolian 57:13, Perfect 36 57:15.  The time difference between Aeolian and Perfect 36 was too close to call!  All times are elapsed and the course was 3.23 miles.

We had a great time at the Crow’s Nest discussing the sailing over dinner.

SEPARATION:

We all know that clear air is best for sailing and racing.  How often do you see boats messing with each other sailing in close quarters.  Whenever I see boats engaging in these tactics, I enjoy the moment because they are almost always sailing slower.   I strive for clear air (SEPARATION) every chance I can get it.

IMPORTANCE OF A CLEAN BOTTOM:

Since my boat had not been out for 2 weeks and we did not have time to clean the starboard side, I had quite a growth on the starboard side.  With the great northwest wind we had, on port tack I could not get the boat over 5 knots. With a clean port side, I was sailing close to 6 knots on starboard tack.  This shows me that a clean bottom can increase boat speed by a whole knot.  This is huge in a sport where many boats strive for a quarter knot difference in speed.

 

PENALTY TURNS:

Kudos to Perfect 36 for taking their penalty turn.  Little known to many of us out there, they barely touched wharf mark while rounding and immediately sailed clear of other boats and took a 360 spin to exonerate.  This is the true spirit of sailing: when you commit a foul, exonerate yourself.

OTHER REGATTAS:

This weekend is the Monterey and Back regatta.  It starts in Santa Cruz on Saturday and sails to Monterey.  There is another race on Sunday back to Santa Cruz from Monterey.  This is a very fun regatta and a great party down at the Monterey Yacht Club.  Since I will be out of town, I am disappointed that I will miss this one this year.

Barry Keeler

Sailing Pair A Dice