Island Cup Series: Ram Island Regatta: Aug 30, 2009. 3rd. Another lite air day with one design sails better class selection including the other two area J105s with PHRF sails, course 15nm circumnavigation Fisher’s Island, NY. Downwind start off Groton Long Point mid way through ebb. Just a tad late but in good position, two jibes before the turning mark to better flush out the race then light air beat toward Lord’s Passage. Effectively used current to increase apparent wind to keep moving. J105s finished 2nd (Pflash), 3rd (us), 4th She’s the Boss out of 9 starters in our class. RC shortened course at Lord’s MoA roughly 11nm into 15nm course just as sun came out for first time in 4 or five days. After finishing we hoisted chute and informally raced the Boss and a J109 to back to entrance toMystic River. Had great fun heating up across the sound riding long rollers from TS Danny. Cut inside behind Gates island and with asym up in lite wind came so close to wind it was to our advantage to unroll jib 1/3 to serve as staysail – first time we ever did that – add that to our bag of tricks!

Island Cup Series: Fisher's Island Regatta: Sep 5, 2009. TLE, long race only 15nm circum nav of Fisher's Island NY but very lite breeze 4-5kts and strong currents of course when winds were lightest. We heard 87 boats entered but only 10 finished! We're doing fine with with respect to competition when dying breeze and strong currents at Lord's Passge caused a huge pilup at the cans and many boats retired. We pressed only finally getting away from the dangerous part, and finally caught some breeze. Heard many boats retire and though we were ok but only 100 meters from finish and moving a couple kts SOG, RC came on radio and said 6hr time limit expired for our class! And by the time we got to the party which started 3 hrs earlier all the rum and food were gone. Bummer! But at least we didn't retire like our competition did! Good news this weeknd is that best friend and crew boss Eric doublehanding in Vineyard race aboard a J109 "Strider" finished 3rd in same conditions but our 6 hrs of torture pales in comparison to their 36hrs of very lite wind sailing and dealing with LIS currents.

Off Soundings Fall Series, 11-12 Sep, Fri-Sun. Heavy weather for New London to Greenport. RC moved start inside Gardiners Bay about 14nm but we still had to get there. Big seas in the race and almost had MOB during headsail change. We hit 14.7 knots under jib alone in 12' seas and by the time time we and the rest of the fleet got to Gardiners Bay RC had abandoned racing for the day. Sat much lighter breeze and long windward-leewards shortened after 3 legs. Did great entire  race until last 20min trying to cross finish in dying breeze and current after getting fouled by another boat. Ended up 5th out of 9 given ECSA penalty,4 out 9 ECSA points. Here's a video from Friday: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Q34u5t72Wo

Watch Hill YC Thurber Race, 19-20 Sep, 2nd place. 40th running of this race, but haven't done it before as if it was for a last minute ECSA plea for boats we probably would have gone to Newport Boat show but as weather was supposed to be nice and as Block Island a favorite destination decided to race instead of looking at new boats. Great format: race to Block, party on Block, race back on Sunday. Completely rookie crew so play ed in conservative with sails and tactic. Good start but late hoisting then a figure 8, still not used to the sock. Lite air and finished 2nd out of 3 spinnaker the boats the other being a well sailed J105. Mudslide and pan seared tuna @ the Oar then WHYC put on a nice little party at the National in a backroom/porch area with open bar. Breakfast @ Narragnasett then race back in even lighter air. The other J105 had PHRF sails and we couldn't hang, the other boat in our class retired to due currents @ 1BI and lite air. Took us over 7 hours to get to CT as we were in the thick of the ebb at Watch Hill passage but finished before time limit.

 Rock2Rock, 26 Sept, 2nd place. 60nm distance shortened from the usual 160nm course), 5 boats, 3 boats double handed. Leszek and I doublehanded, beautiful autumn day, downwind start, passed Lindy who tried unsuccessfully with blooper to catch up. Got to Faulkner's a couple boats lengths behind Dragaon (class 40 with -12 PHRF, we're are 93) but on close reach back they pulled away for line honors but finished last corrected. Meanwhile the slower PHRF boats had much more favorable current and more pressure behind us and one corrected ahead by less than 3 minutes over a 10 hour race. We all beat the heavy rain and we were awarded the something trophy for best doublehanded. Nice lunch awards at SHYC with all the skippers and RC. Nice job

One design events :

Block Island Race Week: June 21-26, 2009

Summary: Good news is that we were not DFL. Stiff competition in largest class at STC BIRW XXIII. Had no illusions on winning simply wanted the experience and got it in spades. Excellent week of racing and partying. Learned a tremendous amount, especially about how unprepared we are for this level of competition and got a better glimpse (didn’t get that glimpse at AYC fall btw) of that next level to aspire to. Some of the East Coast’s top J105s loaded with the best crews made for really intensive great competition, contrary to what you may read on SA. At times, usually early in the race we were in the thick of things and it’s really amazing being surrounded by the top boats like Savasana, Powerplay and having most the fleet behind. But the simplest error, say dropping speed through a tack or gybe costs boat lengths and inevitably we were trailing the pack battling not to be DFL in our third regatta with this level of competition. Our starts were surprisingly good with the exception of 2 (out of 8 races), boat handling improved as week went on and overall we finished 19th out of 20 boats, but we met our goal of not being DFL like the prior two one design J105 contests! Overall a great week with lots of learnings and awesome parties with lots of friends.

Rather than a blow by blow account of each race, this report is focused on documenting what we learned in order to improve the overall program. Following that, I included a small section on logistics mistakes and another recounting some of the interesting stories during the week and of course some pictures.

Learnings: Hands down top learning is that we have a long way to go in order to compete well at this level, in others words we suck. While we will have made tremendous progress and have won and placed well at many local events, we still are rank amateurs compared to the talent and skills of the winning boats, and for the matter most of the J105 class at this level of competition. No worries, we’re motivated and we will continue to improve.

Practice as a team: Incredibly important to sail together and practice. 2 of the 6 crew were brand new but extremely (compared to us) experienced. Logistically we couldn’t practice together before the event and on Sunday the practice day it was blowing so hard few if any boats risked going on and breaking something/someone before the first race day. So our first race was the first time we raced together, plus it was 20-25+kts breeze in big waves, lots of noise and consequently issues with communications. It was the Round Island Race and first beat to 1BI we rounded in 6th or 7th place and we’re feeling really good until chute went up without a sheet. Rest of race went downhill from there, getting passed by 5-7 boats until kite sorted out, then more boats on reach and final beat due to tactical mistakes, poor driving and communications issues for which I take full responsibility. At least we survived intact or so we thought. But that’s a little story for the section below.

Driving: thought I was at least ok and knew I wasn’t the best going into this event, but the “pro’s from Dover” made me realize early on I still have a lot to learn. I was overcompensating (though on the sail back the following Sat, Nick said boat has to much play in the helm). But I was clearly not always cutting the straightest path through the water and keeping jib powered up ALL the time. Plus Monday’s waves (and maybe rig) made driving even more difficult. I had no inclination such precise helm movement are constantly required, and definitely improved as week went on. One technique that helped was to use my leg to dampen the wheel to minimize over controlling that worked (probably could’ve use the wheel brake too come to think of it). Another facet of driving needing improvement is just simple boat handling, tacking, jibing and mark roundings. In the evening some of the crew were watching the Kattack replays and said we’re were loosing too much speed through tacks and gybes. Again we got better as week progressed but the top boats already these skills nailed years ago and were operating at a much higher plane of existence. Thinking that all the golfers @ work take lessons from a pro I should do the same!

Boat prep: We were clearly less well prepared in this area. Thought Dark ‘n Stormy was race ready but compared to the other J105s @ Payne’s we are too casual about prep, especially rig tune. Good choice though staying @ Paynes as I heard there would be a lot of J105s there. All of them had dehumidifier running every night to dry out boat. In addition to reducing mildew etc it keeps help boat dry and light. I have one in the basement of my house I rarely use so it’ll be on the boat on Wed.

Despite our best efforts, we definitely have too much gear on board compared to other boats. If it’s not needed for racing then it shouldn’t be on board. Many of the top boats have support vehicles on the island with enclosed trailers. This allows storage of gear not essential for racing. Need to start looking for a used trailer. It would be good to haul bikes and other gear needed for week long regatta plus we would’ve loved to have a car on the island. Some boats only take the water and beer they will drink pre-chilled so not to have weight of ice. Some prohibit beer to eliminate its weight altogether. We practically have a full bar and enough food for long weekend onboard.

Traveller control line, really annoyed at APS. I talked to their rigger and told him needed the best traveller line money could buy for J105 – and they turned out to be too short. Lucky we discovered this before Monday’s race and devised a workaround. APS will get an earful from me!

It’s really good to have other J105 sailors aboard. One had particularly good advice about the backstay adjuster – securing a piece of sail tie on the handle made for quicker and easier pumping especially when heeled. Another suggestion was to swap position of main and fine control controls. Having the fine tune aft helps the main trimmer control sail from the rail. Would’ve made the swap but it would require 2-3 hours and perhaps some hardware to effect the change. Another suggestion was to install a pair of Harken auto rachets at the base of the stanchions forward of the fixed Harken block to serve as twings for spinnaker sheet. Need to research this one. Also our tack line is about 20 feet too long – no need for the extra weight.

Rig tune is another area for improvement. We discovered after 3 days of racing that mast had a bow. Brought it back straight Thurs am but then after racing it was determined the halyard length from stanchion to stanchion was off ¾”. Earlier in the week the most experienced crew had trouble getting good shape out of practically new jib, which could have also impacted driving (everything one big analog system!). This led to investigation of the rig. Kieran from Shakedown helped us greatly Friday am including finishing tensioning after harbor start to check out DnS under sail then transferring back to his boat to ensure we were good to go. Jib then had much better shape, the boys from NY were happy. However for Friday’s race the turns were set rig for medium heavy air: first race was light heavy, second race light and subsequently abandoned). He supplied us with a spreadsheet of the settings they use. He disagreed there was a difference from scrimp and pre-scrimp and based on that conversation I concluded that top boats develop and refine setting based on performance over time. Something we don’t do with much precision or method. I plan to start a log of shroud tension, wind speed and boat speed.

Need to re-assess content of first aid kit, definitely need to add butterfly sutures to first aid kit. See story below.

Physical fitness: A week of racing is tough work. Most of crew was in good shape but everyone wound up with sore muscles, bruises and scrapes. Good thing Mudslies make for great muscle relaxers. All the top teams seemed ripped and in excellent physical condition. Need to place a higher premium on a fit crew – this ain’t cruising!

Race time learnings: Biggest learning on Friday was the racing begins the moment you check in, assuming you do that immediately when getting to your circle. Sure we set sails to get dialed in but then we’d just hang out beam reaching away from the line occasionally watching other classes start – from behind which is clearly inadequate compared to this method: For earlier class position the boat 100-200 meters upwind of the line just beyond the starboard layline to avoid messing with the classes starting. This allows you to have a much better perspective of the start and line bias. As you work the boat upwind and downwind just outside the layline you can do frequent wind direction checks and as you come back you can sight along the line and determine if the boat or pin end is favored. Plus being up the course gets you closer to the action and provide higher resolution of which tacks, from the classes that started even earlier are lifted or not. A line bias of even a couple degree is huge and we rarely if ever considered it.

Logistics: Don’t wait until last minute to do a major regatta like BIRW. Work demands forced us down this path and thanks to the economy we got a great deal on an awesome house, but everything else was rushed which detracted form boat prep and practice. Couldn’t get a car on the island as ferry was booked. Could’ve prefer another marina but that was booked too but on the other hand got lots of practice maneuvering and rafting up in tight spaces. Should’ve have a house mom or like Snowbird two house moms to cook and clean and take care of not racing stuff like buying paper towels etc. Renting bikes sucked 2 or 3 of us had bikes “stolen” as, I would estimate, half the key fit half the locks. So I just found a bike whose lock fit my key and off I went. Next time bring your own bikes! It was fun riding bikes though – I need to bike more.

Sailing: Conditions varied widely, big anomalous low pressure hung out over Nantucket most of the week. Lots of overcast, fog drizzle, sometime showers, always humid, occasionally sun would poke out 

Sunday was a practice day but very few went out as it was blowing 30+ abeam of where we were rafted.

Monday was big wind and waves for the round island race. Had a great start and after hard beat up to 1BI we were in 5 or 5th place. But kite went up with a twist and we were placed by a lot of boats until we got it sorted out. Lost a few places on the reach and more on the beat back. Disappointing we survived unscathed (or so we thought –keep reading) except for small stress point on the jib due to a late skirt. One boat was dismasted (it was deck stepped), another hit a whale (but later we heard it was a great white) and She’s the Boss retired with broken block on sprit and broken halyard and a Melges broke its rudder. We almost collided with a starboard tacker in breeze. We cleared him without damage but skipper (from another class) yelled protest. Checked protest board by it was never filed. Actually found a witness at the tent party later who said he saw the whole thing and that that skipper never moved his tiller. Thought we had it all on video but Ryan’s camera was inop. GOogle Earth track is here

Tues am met my sailmaker early to reinforce jib area where it meets a stanchion, should’ve been done originally looks great, three races with excellent starts one at line early then early dip down then came up with clear air, another with clear air at pin, third slightly late but tacked to clear air at committee boat, big waves tough steering still, lots of over earlies Z flag up for 3rd race, no crew issues better communications cuz it was easier to hear than on Monday,  3rd race better with the pack final downwind leg rather than being far out of contention.

Wed seas calmed down and got it one race but nailed by a twist again, second race was never started as wind died so we were at the bar early. After race noticed slight bow in the mast which was corrected the next day or so we thought.

 Thursday had a good start first race and tactical decision caused us to drop some place yet it was our best finish so far this week. Started well in second race, less wind and wave, but twist issue led many to passing us leaving a 1.2nm match racing gybing duel with She’s the Boss on last leg but they never got past us. After race we noticed halyard length side-to-side was off. Not good to have rig issues all week.

Friday, got assistance from Shakedown on rig. Much better jib shape. Tim substituted for Eric. Many of the learning above were from him. Great start in pressure, but lost boat lengths here and there including another damn twist. Finished 15th of 20 again. Second race blew the start but recovered quickly and we were actually doing ok when wind totally died and RC abandoned. Official results here: http://www.yachtscoring.com/event_results_cumulative.cfm?eID=230

Saturday, cast off in fog, light headwind motored and then fog cleared into bright sun – best sun all week, noticed patches of breeze and cumulus forming over RI. Three other guys were exhausted so bit my tongue until 8kts indicated and said just be an autohelm and pretend I was single handing and did all the work. Breeze built to 10 and we had a glorious sail back with the flood. Cleaned up boat and a couple hours later race week was history

Stories fit to print:
So we arrive on Sat and head to weigh in and found ourselves overweight by 16 pounds. Major bummer as one guy totally missed target weight. So we invoked Smith’s beer dehydration protocol, drink beer and eat nothing until your’re peeing every 5 minutes, then totally stop all intake, goto sleep and back to weigh-in. All six of all followed this routine (we’re really good at the beer drinking part) and together we lost 27 pounds in 18hrs. Then off to big breakfast and rehydration!

After Monday’s heavy weather race we had just the smallest hole in the jib. But Eric who is very safety conscious had placed out jacklines and tethers below in easy reach in case they were needed. Cleaning up boat after the race he pulled on a tether but its large stainless steel clasp grabbed on something for a millisec before springing back into his forehead, lots of blood, good thing bow girl is a nurse. Found boat first aid lacking so went to USCGA boat figuring they had a good kit and scored some butterfly sutures. Just enough blood seeped out in the bandage so Eric looked really tough at the party.

Tent boys. A bunch of future sailing rockstars, 21-22 years old (or younger?), poor college kids and sons’ of Mudheads took out a J24 to BIRW. A couple of week earlier when I asked them where they would gonna stay they said they intended to pitch a tent on the beach. I said they could use the lawn behind our rental home if they just stayed outside. They borrowed supposedly good sails which turned out to be worse than the ones they had, and on Monday took a bullet in the round island race blowing out a chute and having wild broaches along the way some of which we captured on film.

Go to SA http://www.sailinganarchy.com/archives.htm and search on ‘what goes up’. These guys were certainly the story of the week and finished 2nd in a tiebreaker. When I asked Patrick what they do if they won a Rolex he said they would pawn it and split the proceeds. Great kids and they even had a Volvo wagon which helped tremendously