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June 3, 2010
If you are looking for a shortcut to improve your sailing on a consistent basis, you will not find them in this blog. Sorry for the teaser title. The best way to improve your sailing is through good ol’ fashion, blue collar work and time in the boat, time in the boat, time in the boat. Having raced on the Melges 32s and 24s for the last 4-5 years, the familiarity with the boats is like a warm blanket when I step on board. After my ineptitude the first few days on the Bella Mente, it was like getting locked out of the warming house of my local hockey rink…cold, lonely and wondering where my mom was.
Despite spending the large majority of my life in scows, and 4 years, 150 days/year racing collegiate 420s at Hobart and William Smith, I should have remembered that the biggest key to success is through spending time in the boat and getting to know what it takes to make it go fast around the track. Thinking that I would not be able to simply hop on the boat and be a contributing member of the team was a big mistake. That would be the hardest part of this experience…seeing the boys working hard up front, but not having the slightest clue of how to help…other than putting my head down and doing some grinding on occasion. The world of big boating is very different; instead of going to pull on the outhaul or vang, there are switches in and hydraulic hoses. Instead of pulling on the backstay and adjusting it 2-3 ft., there is now a 12″ diameter winch with a load sensor with the sweet spot being 10.4 tons. We don’t see this type of gear or loads on an E Scow.
I spent 3 practice days last week wondering if I could hack it in the big boat scene. Watching how talented the rest of the team was and how good they were at their respective positions, our time on the water was a bit daunting from my view in the back of the boat. However, once we found ourselves halfway through the Block Island Race, I began to come out of my shell like a toddler checking out a new babysitter. I paid closer attention to the what the trimmers were doing and it was not very different from what is done on the Melges 32…just more load. I watched adjustments being made to the sails and rig, and while they were indirect through the hydraulics, they were not all that complex. As I looked at the various areas of the boat, although there were different techniques to getting the job done, the universal principles were the same to that of a sportboat or scow.
The progression of me getting comfortable on the Bella Mente correlated to directly to the more time I spent on the boat. Instead of wondering if I could make the cut, I should have focused my energy on the process of learning this new discipline, recognizing early that this is the main reason for any success I have had in the past. I also see this a lot in the sailors I coach. We will spend a few hours doing boathandling and speed drills, and although we won’t directly talk about it, things like footwork, hand passes and body positioning become second nature, when a few weeks earlier, they may have been stumbling around the boat.
Getting out on the water and spending time on the boat with set of goals with or without a coach is the best way to improve your game. Even if you are not consciously learning, or having an “ah hah” moment, your brain and body are learning on how to better sail your boat.
Below is a good video shot by and starring Hobart/WmSmith Alums, Amory Ross and Andy Horton. Andy talks about his training routine for his ongoing Olympic Campaign in the Star Class. The video takes awhile to upload due to the HD, but it is definitely worth it…do a few push-ups/sit-ups while you wait.
Solid Win for Bella Mente! »
May 31, 2010
After 2 sleepless nights spent on the Bella Mente, an early flight back to Minneapolis on Sunday morning, a quick visit with the family and an E boat race on Minnetonka, things have settled down a bit to allow for a late report on the Block Island Race. My head and body are still recovering as my first distance race taught me that offshore sailing is tough…and this one was only 19 hours with champagne sailing conditions!
The 17 person Bella Mente team assembled at the Newport Shipyard for 3 days of training before the start of the Block Island Race. For me personally, the practice sessions would prove to be very valuable as I found out quickly that the world of big boat/offshore sailing is very different than that of the small, one design racing that I am used to. Just moving a sail requires a team of 4-5 people to get it on the boat and properly placed below. I was very impressed with the team on the Bella Mente as all of the guys were very willing to help get me up to speed and dialed in with the nuances of this 70 footer. My main area on the boat was to take care of the runners (backstays) which is a simple, straightforward job, but can cause the rig to fall down if you happen to ball it up. Tomac (Tom McLaughlin), did a great job of staying patient with me and showing me the responsibilities of making sure the mast stayed on the boat.
The Block Island Race is a 185 nautical mile sprint starting in Stamford, CT, leaving Block Island to Starboard and returning back to Stamford. Pretty straightforward on paper, but with ripping current and fickle Long Island Sound breeze, this simple race can get pretty tricky.
The delivery team departed Newport on Thursday evening with the goal of making the 14 hr trip safely and arriving with a little time to spare to get the delivery gear off the boat in time for the race. I was on the 3-5am watch with the boat Captain Pete Henderson and we could not have had much smoother conditions as there was not an ounce of breeze and the full moon made us almost wonder if we needed sunglasses and SPF…moon cream? As morning arrived, the glassed off conditions remained and the team aboard started to get a bit nervous as most of us were preparing to spend the Sunday and Monday of Memorial Day Weekend at home, and light air meant this race would be taking longer than normal.
The Bella Mente draws 17 ft and the harbor at Stamford is very shallow which meant we would have to circle the area for a few hours while we waited for the remainder of the team to be delivered via tender. Once they arrived, delivery gear was offloaded, we began the wait for breeze as the race committee smartly postponed the start of the race. As we circled…I began to feel a bit of a grumbling in my stomach and tried to recall the lesson that Pete had given me about using the head down below. The only thing I could really recall was the story that preceded the instructions he gave me about a guy on the team last year that plugged the head during the race. Not only could the team not use it, but there was a large overflow, and a messy cleanup. Being the new guy, there is no way I was going to even risk the chance of causing the head to malfunction…after all, this was a quick race…I could make it back in time.
Around 4pm, a light SW breeze started to fill and the first few fleets got underway. As we got into our sequence, we loaded up our new code zero in preparation for a tight reach off the start and began jockeying with the other 50, 60 and 90 footers in our fleet. Hap did a great job of positioning us for the start and we were bow out and sails pulling when the gun went.
It did not take long for the big boats to blast through the smaller fleets that started ahead of us, and the boys on Bella Mente were working hard to keep pace with the larger, canted keel, water ballasted 90 footer, Rambler. One thing I enjoyed about being with this new team is there is a total lack of ego, and all of these guys are very, very talented sailors and skilled at what they do. As the race progressed, I had a good view from the back of the boat watching these guys do sail changes and make sure the boat was going as fast as possible with ease. This was also a challenge for me as all I could do was simply watch, and jump on the handles every now and then, but for the most part I felt a bit helpless since the boat getting used to the big gear was a bit foreign to me.
After 4-5 hrs of sailing the boat hard, we managed to stay close to Rambler and get through the “Gut“, which is a small passage between Plum Island and the tip of Long Island. This would prove to be the trickiest part of the race as there was a lot of water moving through a very small area causing 4-5 kts of adverse current. Once we squeezed through with a few sail changes, we settled into our watch system, and enjoyed nice “Champagne Sailing” conditions of sw breeze at 12-15 kts for another few hours. We got around the Island with only one close call with a marker buoy and began our 8hr trek back to the finish hoping the breeze would hang on. My watch headed below around 2 am for an attempt at rest, while bodies from the other watch began to file on deck for their 4 hr shift.
As I laid on a stack of wet sails down below, trying to sleep, but being awoken by moving winches and a groaning hull going through the water, I could hear a big of commotion up on deck as the boat was approaching its second pass through the “gut”. This time we would be going upwind, and since the tide had changed, we would again go against a 4-5 kt current. From what I was told when I got back on deck, the breeze completely shut off and we were fortunate to hold our position as the threat of going backwards, and even getting pushed back into shore were very real. After about 45 mins of moving back and forth like a salmon in a stream through this narrow passage, the boys up on deck did a great job of finding a small amount of pressure and getting us on our way. Once through the gut, we still had to deal with 2-3 kts of adverse current and our Navigator, Dirk Johnson and helmsman/tactician Eric Doyle did a great job of keeping us out of the tide by short tacking up the Long Island Shore. Once our watch came back on deck however, it was assumed that Rambler was long gone over the horizon as our time spent getting through the Gut was long.
With a full moon setting, the sun began to peek up which was a relief. As we made our way upwind, one of the guys noticed a large silhouette on the Connecticut shoreline…could that be Rambler? With the chance of beating our larger rivals boat for boat, our team perked up and had some renewed energy. A pot of coffee brewed below and we stayed focused to push the boat hard. Robert Hopkins, our other Navigator, worked very well on our watch to keeping us out of max current and into favorable conditions. I decided to take a coffee, not only to perk up, but to keep warm for the remainder of the race which worked well for my spirits, but not very well for my digestive track. One by one, the group on our watch began to file down below to make use of the head. The fear of clogging was still very present for me I decided to ignore the mounting pressure in my lower stomach and that I could manage for the last 4-5 hrs we had remaining.
We made our way westward through LIS chugging along at 12-13kts of boatspeed with 13-14 kts of wind, all the while keeping tabs and on Rambler down to leeward who would certainly be forced to tack soon or else would find themselves on the front lawn of a Connecticut resident. They did eventually tack and it was clear that not only would we cross, but we would have a nice lead. It was assumed that the Rambler decided to not go through the “Gut”, maybe out of fear of the strong adverse current, but chose to go through a more northerly passage back into Long Island Sound called, The Race. As it turns out, they must have had a much more difficult time that we did getting back through as we erased a fair amount of distance from their lead, and amassed a nice cushion for ourselves.
The team on deck did a great job of keeping us in the best pressure and out of the glassed off conditions which were frequent near the shorline. As we got closer to Stamford, the breeze began to freshen and began to shift from being favorable for us, and to the heavier, larger boat on our tail. With smooth driving by a few of the guys on our watch, and eventually Hap, we were able to take the final leg into Stamford Harbor with a finish time of 19 hrs, Rambler still in our review mirror finishing 5 mins behind. A quick round of handshakes and our tender came to scoop the team members who would be departing for their respective homes to shore. The race for me however was still going…
Once upon shore, we were treated to a few cold ones and got acclimated to life back on land. I held off on the beers and did sort of a waddle/run/jog to the nearest restroom. For the upcoming 3-4 day race from Newport to Bermuda, I will need to get over my fear as this was the only downside in my first offshore experience.
Up next for the Bella Mente is the New York Yacht Club annual regatta which will draw some of the best big boat teams in the world like Ran, Beau Geste, Rambler, Puma VOR70, Titan and a few others. I am looking forward to using my experience this past week to continue to get more comfortable on the boat and work to be a contributing member of the team.
Stay tuned to 42marine.com for updates from this awesome racing program as the season progresses.
UP NEXT…Bella Mente in Newport »
May 24, 2010
Up Next – This week, 42 Marine departs to Newport, RI to do some training and racing on Hap Fauth’s 69ft Bella Mente in preparation for the New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta, and the Newport/Bermuda Race. Bella Mente is coming off a win in Key West earlier this year and has done well in its past few events so expectations will be high for good performances in a few weeks.
Training will involve three days of sail and rig checks along with going through all of the crew maneuvers. If there are reasonable conditions forecast for the weekend, the boat will be delivered to Stamford, CT and we will partake in the Block Island Race. Hopefully by the end of the week we will have accomplished our training goals and will be ready for the NYYC Annual and the Newport/Bermuda Race.
I am looking forward to the challenges of working with in a big boat team and getting to know the ins and outs of a high profile program like Bella Mente. Boat call is at 9:30 am….time for bed…Standing by in Newport…
32 Europeans Wrap Up »
A valuable lesson learned en route back to Minneapolis is that it is always good to be surrounded by hard working people. With more airline cancellations and delays due to the ash cloud over northern Europe, the Samba team travel agent, Nina Dendrinos did an unbelievable job of getting everyone home on time instead of being stranded at airports. We all spend enough time away from our families just sailing, let alone dealing with travel delays, and it was a great relief to be re-routed and home on time.
Overall, we left feeling good about the 32 Europeans…good, not great. While our goal was to finish with top honors, we were happy with our 4th place finish, knowing that when the breeze was steady and fresh, we had great boatspeed, boathandling and could hang in the front of the fleet. Looking back on the results, coming slow out of the gates on the first day is what really hurt us taking home finishes of 9, 8, 4. Even though our finishes were not great the first day, we still were able to keep our heads high since we displayed good speed, but found ourselves on the wrong side of a few unfortunate shifts.
What left us feeling ok about our performance is we finished the event with a 1, 5, 1, including the last race in nuclear Mistral conditions which is what Samba enjoys the most. One thing that became very clear in our breezy races is that John can drive the boat very well and relishes those type of conditions. The team up on the front of the boat also did a great job of making sure we stayed clean and did not get into any trouble. A large part of success in the Melges 32 class comes from sailing fast and clean and when the breeze was on, we did a great job on both of these key items.
Lastly, we also did a good job of working on items that we felt needed attention from our disappointing finish in Miami. One of the main bullet points was our starting routine, as we often found ourselves in a tough spot when we needed to pull the trigger. For the event in Cagliari, we simplified our communication in the back of the boat, and focused on starting in an area that would let our speed do the work once the gun went. We found ourselves in the front row, bow out with speed of every start this past event…a huge improvement from our previous outing.
Again, our finish at the Europeans was not as we had hoped, but in the overall scheme in preparing for the Worlds in September, this regatta was a success. A huge thanks to Catherine and John Kilroy for making the trip possible and to the Samba team for being great on and off the water.
Up Next in the 32 is Audi Series Event #4 in Lake Garda, Italy, than back to the states to make the final run for the worlds.
Video of M32 ITA-667 in Mistral »
May 19, 2010
Great video of the Brontolo team cruising downwind on the final day of the Europeans in 35 kts of wind. It is a bit dry until the 5 min mark, and gets good around 7:30.
More Photos of Final Day of Europeans »
May 17, 2010
More photos of the breezy final day of the Melges 32 Europeans can be found here. Stay tuned for a final wrap up from Cagliari. Doing my best to escape the havoc that is being caused by the Ash Cloud moving over Europe.
Send It… »
May 16, 2010
The Mistral continued to pump into Cagliari and with the hopes of getting a start in a down swing of the breeze, the Race Committee set an early 9am warning for the 6th race. Our team pushed off the dock at 745 with the breeze already fresh in the 25 kt range, and we couldn’t help but feeling we had a distinct advantage as the Italians did not have all morning to get hopped up on espresso and capuccino. The feeling on the boat was we were simply going out for a formality, but when we got to the starting area, it was clear the RC was set on getting off a race today.
After a clean start with most of the fleet well off the line, we found ourselves leading the fleet on the left side of the course, battling more waves and seas than the right side which was closer to land. Despite the 25-30 kt breeze and building, there were still plenty of gains to be made playing the shifts and we were able to work a decent lead for ourselves at the first mark. We had a small discussion between ourselves at the offset, and it was decided we would go ahead and set regardless of what our competition was doing.
Once the kite reached the top of the mast, we plowed through a few waves, and had to get ready to gybe with the Fantasticaa team on our tails. After a clean gybe, the kite popped and Stu did a great job of calling a good layline which set us up for a windward drop around the left leeward gate. The goal up the last upwind was to sail clean, tack as little as possible, and make sure our gear made it to the end of the race. As we approached the 2nd top mark, we discovered the course was shortened and we would be finishing at the offset. We were able to hang on for the bullet with Fantasticaa and B-Lin close behind.
The fleet headed back to the dock, assuming the regatta was over, however, the RC decided they would keep us a few more hours with the hopes the Mistral would pass. As expected, it only grew in strength and GBR-500 was able to hang on for the first annual Europeans title, and the Samba team took a respectable 4th.
Overall a good event…stay posted for a full wrap up. Above is a pic of the B lin sailing team having a good ride on the final day.
Mistral Arrives… »
May 15, 2010
With an 11 am scheduled start, it did not take long to figure out that the breeze was building all morning and that our biggest challenge for the day would be staving off boredom. In the rare chance that the breeze would let up from the 30+kts, the Race Commitee scheduled a warning signal for 3pm allowed the sailors to relax at their respective hotels for a few hours. When teams began to gather at their boats around 1pm, the breeze has freshened and the RC decided to abandon racing for the day go for an early, 9am warning signal on Sunday. The Mistral is forecast to grow in strength tomorrow, so if any racing is completed, it will have to be completed in a very small window.
Not only does racing look bleak, but the Ash Cloud forecast from Iceland is looking to close down airports in the UK and Europe which would strand several Samba Team members. Between the postponements yesterday, and the cancellation today, we have seen all we can see in Cagliari and are anxious to get home.
One more round of Gelato tonight, than early to bed for what could be a very windy and wet morning. Crossing our fingers for less breeze and Ash Cloud dispersal.
Soggy Day 2 »
May 14, 2010
After a postponement until 4pm local time due to no wind, we finally got underway with race five with a 15 kt Northwest breeze and plenty of rain making all of us call bs on the wonderful postcards we see around town of beautiful Cagliari and Sardegna. With one general recall, we got underway with a start at the pin end and seemed to be set up reasonably well as we were able to hold our lane off the starting line for a good 5-6 mins. With the top mark set fairly close to land, we played the shifts nicely, rounded in the top 3 and blasted off to the leeward mark.
Our leeward mark rounding allowed us to extend left which seemed to have a bit more breeze as once we tacked over, we were well in front of the leaders. A clean weather mark and spinnaker set allowed us to take the gun in a dying breeze.
Race 2 of the day showed breeze of 8-10 kts with increasing rain and a start time of around 6pm, much too late for our team who is used to having a few cold beers by this stage of the day. After a few Z flag starts, we found ourselves battling for a lane to extend to the left side where there was clearly more pressure. It looked bleak for most of the upwind as we were forced to tack away early, however we found ourselves being able to get left of the fleet at the top of the leg, hook into a huge lefty and round in the top 5. Shortly after our set, the breeze presented another face as it shifted 40 degrees to the right, straight out of the North and allowed 1-2 boats who gybed early to lay the marks. We rounded the bottom in 5th, battled up the last upwind on a shortened course and finished in our last rounding position.
Overall, a good day for the Samba Team. We showed great speed and patience in the breeze, and we did a good job of changing gears and staying on our toes on the lighter conditions. Very unofficial results overall –
Red, Highlife, Fantastica, B-lin, Samba.
There are only a few points separating the top 5, and with the Mistral predicted to set in for Saturday and Sunday, the regatta may very well be finished. Off to dinner…than to bed, hopefully with no more bed bug bites from the cot I am sleeping on. Check out Melges32.com for official results and photos.
Better Lucky than Good »
May 13, 2010
Day 1 of the Europeans got underway with a very light 6-8 mph seabreeze and very flat seas. After a very conservative start with a port end favor, we found ourselves in the top 5 closely behind the leaders in Race 1. We quickly reminded ourselves however, that when racing in the Melges 32 Class in both the states and in Europe that the slightest mistakes will cost you big. We had a minor issue during the set with our tack line which resulted in a shrimp and us getting rolled by the boat behind us once we got underway. Not only did we lose one boat, but it also affected our positioning for the leeward mark which was well down the track. We struggled to regain our form and took a 8th place in the first race, dropping a few from our position at the first top mark.
Race 2 started with similar conditions, but would finish with a 40 degree shift to the right as the sw gradient breeze began to take over. After another good start with good speed with the boats around us, we found ourselves poked out with the lead boats on the left. Halfway up the beat however, the boats on the right who we had forced to tack and had in our back pocket, were showing huge lifts and were easily crossing by the time we tacked over. The breeze slowly decreased, with the runs turning into a follow the leader type situation with the Samba team near the back of the pack. Assuming the breeze was going to continue clock right and increase, we legged it out the right on side on the last upwind, hooked into some nice pressure and were able to pick off a few boats, hold on the next downwind and take a 9th place. Not a great finish, but we felt ok knowing we had good speed, but were victims of a tough shift.
The last race the committee managed to set a starting line that was not reachable on starboard tack. Recognizing this early, we set up 3-4 boats from the pin and immediately tacked at the gun, putting us across the rest of the fleet and in good position. After shifty battles in 10-12 kts of wind, we finished in 4th place behind Red, Brontolo and B-Lin.
Overall a frustrating day due to the fact we were going well, but did not have the solid results to show for it. The forecast tomorrow is calling for similar light winds along with a heavy dousing of rain, followed by sunnier weather and a good chance of the Mistral showing up for Saturday and Sunday. At this stage we are going to need all of the races we can get to stay in contention.
Very unofficial, somewhat of a guess on the results from where we were –
1). Red (UK)
2). High Life (UK)
3). B.Linsailing.com (Italy)
4). Brontolo (Italy)
5). Teasing Machine (France)
6). Samba Pa Ti
Check out the official website for official results and photos. We are off to another lengthy dinner, tonight it sounds like plenty of pizza, pasta and even more vino. Standing by in Cagliari getting ready for Day 2.