42 Marine

UP NEXT: Audi Melges 20 Bacardi Cup – Miami #3 »

March 8, 2011

MSP/ATL/MIA, sail, sleep, sail, sleep, sail, sleep, sail, sleep, sail, advil, MIA-MSP/11pm. Home 24 hrs, laundry, change diapers, family time, sleep, 530am, pack, coffee, MSP/MIA, sail…

Throughout the yearly sailing calendar, there are always events that butt up with each other when sailing in multiple classes.  And while I do not have it as frantic as others, the first two weeks of March is busy time of the year when the US Sailing scene begins to come out of the deep freeze and gets steadily active into the summer months.  Fresh off the Melges 32 Miami Championship, I flew home for a quick 36 hours to get some face time with the family, and a much needed quick recharge.  While the pain of taxis, airports, and general travel is hard, getting home for the shortest amount of time is always worth it.

Up next is the Audi Melges 20 Bacardi Cup and the Miami Winter Series Event #3.  Back on M and M Racing, we are looking for a solid effort and a complete regatta as we have had moments of brilliance in our first two events, but have been inconsistent when it comes to our execution.  With over 27 boats registered, this will be the biggest Melges 20 US event to date and securing a top 5 finish will not be an easy task, but with a strict focus on the process of doing well, hopefully at the end of the event we can have our team name announced at the prize giving.

One of the more enjoyable aspects of racing the Melges 20 this winter has been the training program we developed with Paul Reilly’s team on Red Sky, and Kent Haegar’s team Mach Schnell.  While it is sometimes hard to explain to a couple of C Scow sailors like Paul and Kent about what a spinnaker actually does on a sailboat, we have managed to carve out 1.5 days of training before each event with debriefs and very fun team dinners each night of the event. Sure the racing is fun, but the process and the journey of getting there is more often the enjoyable part.  Not to mention, the training allows us to really hammer some of the basics like boathandling, leeward marks and speed that we would normally not have the time to do in a strictly racing atmosphere.  The extra effort to get to the events early and organized has paid off; in the last event our 3 teams posted results of 1, 3, and 8. Not bad for a group made up of mainly of sailors who race scows with only 1 sail!

The final event in the Winter Series will also crown the overall Series Champion. As it stand, reigning National Champ Michael Kiss and his Team on Baccio, lead Paul Reilly’s Red Sky team by 1 point.  It should be some good racing this weekend, and it may all come down to the last beat of the last race to determine the series winner.  Stay tune to 42marine.com for full results and photos throughout the weekend. Bacardi Cup info here.

Always Be Closing »

March 6, 2011

It is always amazing how bad a finish can feel when you move the wrong way in the standings, regardless of what the overall result was.  Although our 3rd place finish at the Melges 32 Miami Championship was not as far of a fall as we experienced at the Gold Cup late last year, we once again found ourselves feeling disappointed with a very well sailed regatta.  Unlike the Gold Cup where we struggled the entire last 3 races, we started off the final day in Miami reasonably with a 5th place, and we even managed to add more points between us and the team who was chasing our 2nd place on Argo.  In the final race however, Argo showed that if they could execute a clean start, they had the wheels and the boathandling to take a few bullets throughout the weekend which meant we would need our “A” game to maintain our position.

As forecasted, the breeze did drop off slightly (15-18 kts) from the previous two days, and it was more of a SE direction which left a very confused sea-state on the course from the previous five days of strong easterly winds.  On starboard tack, the main mission was to keep the boat rumbling through the waves without giving up too much height, and on port tack, we were able to trim a bit harder and sail the boat more in a flat water setting with the waves almost coming at the boat in a perpendicular direction.  The fleet was stacked as tight as it had been all weekend, and there was a premium at the top mark of setting, establishing yourself in the high lane and ripping downwind.

Heading into the 2nd race of the day, Samba had sealed the regatta win and we had a 7 pt lead on Argo, which meant if they won the race, we had to finish 7th or better.  We knew Argo could put up a bullet since they won the last two races of Day 2, but we felt confident if that happened, we could manage a 7th or better. Shortly after the gun, we flopped onto port near the boat end of the line with the majority of the fleet joining us.  We quickly established ourselves with the front group, including Argo who was punched in the middle of the course.  Once to the right corner, we got the heading we needed to tack onto starboard, and it was simply a matter of maintaining our position, regardless if Argo won.

Argo did round in first, and only a few boatlengths back we were hot on their tails in 5th place.  As we set and got smoking downwind, the team on Heartbreaker wiped out front of us, forcing us to take the low road below them to stay clear.  This was a good feeling at first as we quickly gained a boat closer to Argo, but once we cleared Heartbreaker and came back to our proper course, the train of boats who set behind us were able to maintain the high lane and carry massive speed on top of us.  It wasn’t long before the first boat rolled us, and for those who have gotten stuck under a train of Melges 32s on full plane, there is basically a vacuum of breeze and the only option is to gybe out which we promptly did once the fight for the high lane was over.  We carried nice speed to the bottom of the course, but once we gybed back to the gates, we had lost 3-4 boats who were able to extend to the corner and we were now in an uphill battle to hang onto our second place finish with Argo still leading the race.

Not much changed on the ensuing upwind and we did our best to stay close with the boats in front of us knowing we just had to pick off 1 or 2 of them.  Making sure not to lose the high lane around the 2nd top mark we delayed our set to ensure we could extend to the corner.  All was good as we ripped to the corner of the course and with a few of the boats in front of us wiping out, things were starting to look up.  After a clean gybe,  3 boats stacked up inside of us and it was a drag race to the finish.  We did our best to try and stay even, but with the pressure filling to the boats on top of us first, it was once again a losing battle to get in front.  We worked our tails off throughout the entire last race, crossed the finish in 9th place, 2 pts more than what we need to keep Argo in 3rd place.

There was plenty of good things to take away from a truly awesome weekend of Melges 32 racing.  Our team on the Volpe did not have a lot of big breeze experience, and we proved we can hang in the front of the fleet when conditions get a bit gnarly.  Our boathandling was very good all weekend, and we can feel confident about our speed in the upper range.  There is some room for improvement on our overall performance in traffic and when things get tight around marks and boat-on boat-battles. Once the dust settles and we start to forget about the details in a few months time, we can feel very good about our 3rd place in a tough fleet.  Or the other option would be that we could take the hard-nosed approach and heed the advice of Ricky Bobby from Talladega Nights who said, “If your not first, your last,” which makes dropping a place just a touch more palatable knowing us, Argo and the rest of the 32 fleet were all behind a very well sailed Samba Team.

Thanks the the DeVos family for a great weekend in Miami, and to the team on Volpe for some great fun on and off the water.  Overall results.

More Breeze on Day 2 of Miami Championship »

March 5, 2011

The forecast for slightly lighter breeze never really developed as the velocity was the same, if not stronger than on day 1.  The course had a little less right hand favor, and there was a bit more emphasis on playing the shifts, but as always, boatspeed was king, and there were a few boats who were able to separate themselves on Day 2.

The boats who did well upwind today were often the ones who could keep their mains full and not washing out in the big puffs.   Out main trimmer on Volpe, Scot Nixon did a great job of always keeping plenty of camber in both the main and the jib, and once the main started to luff, a slight burp on the jib was made, and the main would reset which was huge for speed.  Keeping a constant angle of heel both upwind and downwind was also key. Upwind, a lot of boats would tend to pinch and get flat going into waves which resulted in a much slower, chopping wood type of mode.  It was much more important to keep 3-5 degrees angle of heel, get the boat rumbling, and allow to power over the waves instead of slamming into them.

Downwind, the Melges 32 really likes to stay roped up on a plane, and with 6-8 ft seas, it was very easy to be tempted to try and surf every wave on the course.  Trying to surf every wave however often results getting stuck in too low of a mode, instead of just keeping the boat “hot” with 3-5 degrees angle of heel, forgetting about the waves and just keeping the boat moving fast.  Sure, if there was an obvious wave to take, it is fine, but trying to get on every single one did not pay off.

We did a good job on the Volpe of staying in a good mode both up and downwind, and with clean starts and solid tactics, we were able to settle with a nice score line of 2, 5, 4.  The boat of the day was Samba Pa Ti who put up a 1, 2, 2 to pretty much secure the regatta win with 2 races remaining.  We felt we were going pretty well today, but the Samba had some wheels that no one else could touch.

After two days of 18-25, the breeze is expected to finally back off and provide some relief to battered Melges 32 teams.  Stay tuned for the final report from the Melges 32 Miami Champs.

Results. Photos.

Rippin Day 1 in Miami »

March 4, 2011

On the walk from the hotel to the boat Friday morning, the palm trees had more bend than usual, and there was a little uncertainty amongst the competitors gathered at the Miami Beach Marina basin as to how the day would go.  With the forecast for breeze out of the East at 22-30 kts with 6-8ft seas, “survival”, “keep it upright”, and “where are the lifejackets?” were just a few of the phrases heard on the dock before we pushed off.

Sailing out to the racecourse a few miles South of Miami Beach, we acclimated ourselves to the conditions by jib reaching at 14-16kts with waves giving the team on Volpe a repeated dousing.  The RC promptly started at 11am and a theme that would stick around for the remainder of the day quickly revealed itself; get right.  There were plenty of shifts throughout the day, but the boats that could make it to the right corner first usually got across the fleet.  This was even true for the boats who had terrible starts, tacked out behind the fleet but could lead to the right side.

After hanging with the top group in the first race, it was clear we would need to be a little more aggressive on our sets and douses as our conservative boathandling was good for sailing clean, but not enough for going from 5th to 1st.  As the day wore on, we got more confident with our sets and douses and our helmsman Ryan DeVos did a great job of keeping the boat exiting low on sets and out of gybes to ensure we did not wipe out. With full weight in the back on the boat, and huge waves to surf down, the sails were getting plenty of action off the wind, and the trimmers had their hands full.

Our speed was generally very good all day, and with the exception of a tough first beat of the second race when we miscalculated the location of the windward mark, we sailed very well and got better throughout the day. Race 1 we battled in the top group most of the race, had a shot at 2nd going into the finish, but a brief collapse of the kite would cost us 3 places with the boats around us who were able to stay roped up and moving fast.  The last race of the day, we put it all together as we started at the boat end of the line, led to the right corner, tacked over on a max right shift of the day and were able to pull of two clean gybe sets and leeward douses while keeping some very good competitors behind us. It is always a great feeling to be the first boat back into the harbor…and the first boat to cold beer!

We currently sit tied for 3rd place with our brethren on the other DeVos boat (Delta) who put together a very good day.  In typical fashion, the team on Samba showed good form in the breeze and have a nice lead headed into day 2 which is forecast for similar conditions as today, but slightly lighter. While there were plenty of wipe-outs, ripped sails and general disarray for some boats in the fleet, the overall carnage was very minimal and as the fleet gathered for beers at Monty’s, it was all smiles and salt-caked faces after a great day of 32 racing.

Stay tuned for reports from Day 2…Results.  Photos.

UP NEXT – Melges 32 Miami Championship »

March 2, 2011

When Premiere-Racing canned its version of Miami Race Week in late December of 2010, the Melges 32 class took matters into its own hands and formed its own Miami event strictly for the 32 class.  With over 20 boats signed up, this not only will be another hard fought event, but the 32 class continues to post impressive numbers following what most thought would be a dropoff after a successful worlds in September.  The Miami Championship will also serve as the final stop in the Melges 32 Winter Series, and with several boats close in the standings, the series title is still up for grabs.

The crew list once again boasts a line-up of some of the top Melges 32 teams, as well as premiere sailing talent.  Many of the class heavyweights like Ramrod,  Samba Pa Ti and Full Throttle will be in attendance and continuing their preparations for the 2011 Worlds in September, while the 2013 America’s Cup Challenger of Record, Mascalzone Latino will be revamping their Melges 32 program and using this as a training platform for their Cup campaign.  Of course, there are a handful of “snakes in the grass” that can steal a race, or regatta win at anytime.

Our team on Volpe returns from a 3 month hiatus after our 3rd place finish at the Gold Cup in hopes of closing the deal in Miami.  With most of the team intact, we will have to make the most of a short practice session and be ready to race come Friday morning.  We were able to weigh in on Weds which is always a nice thing to get out of the way, especially wining and dining in South Beach.  The forecast is for ripping breeze all weekend, and with the light air we have seen at the previous two winter events, I’m guessing there will be plenty of keel bulbs poking out of the water downwind.

Stay tuned to 42marine.com for reports from the Melges 32 race track in Miami.

Audi Melges 20 Winter Event #2 – Recap »

February 14, 2011

There were no daily reports from the latest Audi Melges 20 Winter Series event, but it wasn’t because of a lack of great racing on Biscayne Bay.  It mainly had to with…well, as I have been told, there is no difference between an excuse and a reason, so the bottom line is I just didn’t get them done, and I will have to be better about sticking to a routine when it comes to reporting from events.

Saturday arrived with a bottom edge of a cold front sweeping over South Florida, leaving rain showers, and temps in the 50s.  With solid breeze in the 12-16 range, the RC was planning on 4 races which would test the competitors as to who could remain mentally tough towards the end of a long, cold, wet day.  En route to the starting line from Coconut Grove Yacht Club, on M and M racing we talked about our plan for the day;  start conservatively and get off the line clean, find clear areas to let our speed do the work, minimize boathandling mistakes, and make sure to stay warm, hydrated and fed (my favorite part of the day) in between races. With a nice NW breeze, there would be plenty of shifts, lead changes, and tacticians wondering if sailing is still the sport of choice after being left clueless a few times.

We got off cleanly at a crowded pin end at the start of race 1, and stepped into a few left shifts that helped us to round the top mark in 1st.  A challenge when racing boats with asym sails downwind is quickly identifying where the best pressure is headed, your current angle to the mark, and deciding to extend on starboard, or gybe onto port.  Shortly after we set and did a quick analysis, it appeared we were well lifted and with nice breeze filling behind us, the call was made to gybe.  This would turn out to be a theme throughout the weekend; following your checklist, and relying on several reliable factors is not always the best answer.

Things looked ok for us on the left side of the course going downwind as we were able to get across the boats in the middle, but a few boats who rounded 5th and 6th extended on starboard all the way to the corner of the course and made huge gains.  Once we got near the leeward gate,  we managed to just sneak ahead of the boats flying in from the right side to maintain a very slim lead.  One problem that often presents itself in sailing is when things get tight, is it better to push boathandling to the extreme to stay ahead of a boat, or do you take your foot off the gas, give up some distance to the boats around you in order to get around the mark cleanly?  In this instance, we decided to push it to the 3 boat length circle on full plane, call “no room” on a boat only a few feet behind us.  We tried to pull off a late whether spinnaker drop, ended up wiping out, had a less than stellar rounding, and with the kite looking like a total yard-sale on our rig, when it did finally get down, it got stuffed on the wrong side of the jib sheets, and as a result, every time we did a tack on the next upwind, the whether sheet would not ease which would take 10-15 seconds to clear.  We rounded the leeward mark in first, but lost 6 boats on the next upwind after having our heads in the boat and having poor tacks up the beat.  When serving as tactician, I need to be better about realizing the limits of our boathandling, and be more aware of putting our boat in tight spots…and putting the kite on the correct side of the jib sheets!  We won the battle of getting to the mark in first place, but lost sight of the big picture.

After a frustrating first race, we did our best to regroup but the cold wind and rain made it difficult to see the silver lining.  Getting a 7th was not a bad result to start the event, but it is always hard when you are winning, and end up 7th resulting from unforced errors. The rest of the day was filled with tight racing, and a few boats would establish themselves in the front of the fleet.  Our tuning partners on Paul Reilly’s Red Sky (Andy Burdick, Mike Kutschner) would steal the show with a 1, 2, 1, 2. Another boat that sailed impressively on the first day was Melges 32 owner Jason Carroll who chartered a 20 for his first event.  With Cameron Appleton and Anthony Kotoun, there was no shortage of sailing intelligence and it was amazing to see these guys turn their downwind legs into gold by extending to the right corner almost every time, and make huge gains.  It is hard to write about something you don’t understand, and I have a few theories as to why this worked…maybe I can get Jason, Anthony or Cameron to do a guest blog and explain their thinking.

2 races were scheduled for the final day and while the morning temps hovered in the 50s, the sun was shining which at least gave the impression of warmth.  The breeze was a little less than day 1, and our team on M and M did a good job of regrouping from a mediocre first 4 races to jump out of the gates and lead around the first mark in race 5.  Just like race 1, we gybed out early, looked good, then as we squinted across the course, a spinnaker with a horizontal grey stripe was seen making gains on the opposite side of the course…not again…here came Jason and his team…unreal. We managed to gybe just in front of them at the bottom mark, and after imploring them to reveal what was so special about their “honey-hole”, we rounded separate gates and made our way upwind.  The breeze had been slowly clocking right and it was a battle as to who could get to the right of each other.  As we swapped tacks with only boat lengths of separation, Mark Hollerbach and his team on FU (Mike Buckley, Nathan Hollerbach) joined the mix and we now had a 3 boat race for first.

It didn’t take long to figure out that we were sparring with 2 very qualified match racers in Cameron Appleton and Mike Buckley.  There is no bigger feeling of insecurity than when you have to defend against sailors with match race experience;  everything you do, you get the feeling they are setting you up for the kill.  “Why are they letting us go this way?”  “Are they leading us over here for a reason?”, “Did we just lose the race?”, “What is happening???!” Despite the sharks circling, we focused on playing the shifts, taking the smallest left shift to get back to the right side of the course, and sailing the boat fast. We stayed ahead of Jason and his team, but Hollerbach got around both of us and we all rounded the last weather mark, gybed over and made our way downwind.  With Mary Anne driving well, and her husband Bill staying on the trim of the kite, we found a nice vein of pressure and snuck back into the lead.  Once at the bottom half of the course, the action would start as both boats crossed behind us, 5-6 gybes ensued with us forcing one of the boats, and they in turn forcing the other one.  We seemed to be making small gains with a little more pressure on the left side, and with a few hundred yards left to the finish, we gybed onto starboard, crossed both boats, and headed to the committee boat layline.  As we continued on starboard, our pressure that got us into the lead began to drop, and on our final approach to the finish, both boats that had just crossed behind, gybed back across our bow and carried new pressure into the finish. This was one the of the hardest fought 3rd places I can remember, but we were left with the realization that if we had dug left one more time, we would have likely held them off.  Overall, this was one of the best races we have sailed as a team on M and M, and one of the most fun races I have been a part of.

The final race of the day was a tight battle with the entire fleet and whoever could work right would make gains as the breeze continued to clock all day, 50 degrees total.  The Red Sky team would shake off their 9th place in the first race of the day, and take another race win to seal the regatta.  Our other tuning partner, Kent Haeger (Jim Gluek, Mike Greeson) sailed their best regatta to date and took a hard fought 3rd place overall.  Our team on M and M took an 8th place, and were once again left with the feeling of sailing well, but needing to execute in all facets to reach our goal of getting into the top 3.  We know we can sail with the best, but we just need to be sharp and hungry to improve our consistency.

The Melges 20 fleet gets back together in just over a month for the Winter Series finale, and the 3 day Bacardi Cup.  With the overall series champ only separated by a few pts with several boats, the final event will be seriously fun to be a part of.

Full results here.

Key West Wrap-Up »

January 24, 2011

My goal was to provide updates everyday from Key West Race Week, but after our team on Intac put together a solid Day 4 with finishes of 5, 1 and won the day, I got a bit off track when we ended up celebrating with a few too many refreshments at Turtle Kralls which was adjacent to our slip.  Sure, winning one day out of a five day series does not mean that much in the big picture, but for our first event together as a team and after battling inconsistency, big mistakes, and just plain bad luck, winning a race and Day 4 with a stacked fleet of 32 teams was a huge moment and a nice reward for the hard work that that our young team from the Virgin Islands had put in throughout the week.  Heading into Key West 2011, I was not sure what to expect as I prepared to race with a rookie Melges 32 team in a fleet that is notorious for exposing mistakes.  Luckily for me, I would be the one learning valuable lessons about team-work, effort and that while good results are certainly enjoyable, the process of working hard, having fun and enjoying the people you are with is what makes for a great event.

In the first race on Day 4, we snuck into the top group at the first windward mark and battled with veteran 32 teams Samba, Red, and Leenabarca.  After a few splits, position changes and some boat on boat action, we finished just behind Samba in 5th place, and edged out Leenabarca and Red.  In the 2nd race of the day, we battled through a tough start, managed a very tight cross on port tack shortly after the gun  and found a clean lane headed to the right side.  With eventual regatta winner Goombay Smash to leeward and ahead, and top 5 overall finisher, Yasha Samurai on our hip, I quietly thought to myself it would only be a matter of time before our lane shut off, forcing us back into traffic on the left side.  After a few minutes however, Anthony (mainsheet) and Mark (helm) did a great job of fighting hard to keep the boat moving, and it was not long before we forced Yasha to tack, and crept forward and away from Goombay.  Once at the top of the course, tactician Peter Holmberg called a nice starboard tack layline, and we rounded with a nice lead.  There are some races that you win when you bang a corner and take a bullet, but during this race, we fought hard for our position, built a nice lead and extended as the race went on.   With a taxing breeze in the 5-8 range, temps in the low 80s with 100% humidity, and a team grinning from ear to ear when we reached the dock, it took several mudslides to keep us refreshed.

With our solid day 4, not only did we prove to ourselves that we could hang with the best in the fleet, but we had now snuck into the top 10 overall which was our goal headed into the week.  On the final day of racing, we did our best to shake off a bit of dust before we left the dock, and en route to the race course, the RC came over the radio and announced there would be 3 races.  There was a bit of excitement on our boat as we were still feeling confident from the previous day and felt we could move up a few more places, but also were aware of that there can also be a lapse in effort and mental focus after good day.

With similar light-air conditions to the previous 4 days, our fast settings were in place, and it was just a matter of getting off the line cleanly and sailing smart.  After a clean start by what I would assess was not more than 6 inches from not being over early, we got clear air and headed to the right side of the track.  With a few storm systems heading north of KW, the breeze was a bit unstable and was anyones guess as to which side of the course it would fill from.  We would soon find out that the left side would come storming in to the top mark with pressure and we were left to battle in the middle of the pack and fought hard to take an 11th.  In the next two races, we would have our work cut out of for us as we were over early in both starts, and would have to sail perfect races to get anywhere near single digit finishes.  Apparently the dust from the previous night was a bit thicker than we originally thought.

In the last run of the regatta, a big right shift descended on the course which meant pulling off a quick gybe set at the offset mark was a neccessity if you wanted to hold your position. Once completed on our boat, our kite filled and we made our way to the finish.  We took a quick look under the boom and saw that 2 boats in front of us could not pull off the move cleanly and we were able to grab a few points, sneak into 11th place in the final race, and win a tiebreaker for 9th place overall.  Our last day was nothing spectacular, but we managed to fight hard and do just enough to secure our goal of finishing in the top ten.  As for the regatta, in typical Melges 32 fashion, the regatta came down to the last race with Goombay Smash stealing a regatta win from Warpath who found themselves OCS in the second to last race.

Overall, a very good event for a rookie Melges 32 team.  The best feeling from the event was how the team gelled and improved throughout the week.  We had a bow team of young, talented sailors that were willing to work hard, took on their jobs with some serious aggression, were not afraid to get after it, and went from having no experience on a 32 at the beginning of the week, to being one of the top foredeck teams out there.  Nice work to William Bailey, Topher Kingston-Williams, Leslie Baehr, and Mark Stephenson.  Owner Mark Plaxton from the Virgin Islands made sure that we followed the #1 goal all weekend; to have fun and learn.  It is always amazing what happens when you focus on the process of having fun, instead of focusing on the results themselves.  Thanks to the team on INTAC for a great week of sailing and reaffirming to me some valuable lessons.  Race reports and pictures here.

Earning Our Stripes on Day 3… »

January 19, 2011

It has been funny to read the race reports each morning from the previous days racing that have titles like, “Stunning Day of Racing in Key West!”, or “Picture Perfect Conditions for the Melges 32 Fleet!”  Don’t get me wrong, the crystal light blue waters of off KW are amazing, the warm temps beat being in Minnesota in January, and the racing has been tight and exciting.  But having downwinds where you barely touch 8kts of boatspeed, and upwinds where you have to battle 2-3 ft chop while avoiding massive weed patches and trying to make the most of a 10 kt puff, all makes for a much different impression of KW for the sailors, than for the media.

The forecast for Day 3 was looking like we would be spending the day taking the Conch Tour and learning about the vast history of KW, but when the 830 am update came, the RC was planning to start on time in a barely visible 4-5 mph SE breeze.  The good news was that the left over lump and waves had subsided for the most part, and the weed patches we no longer visible, making our new weedstick that Anthony designed obsolete.  The bad news was that our team on INTAC is learning the painful lesson that doing well in the 32 class is not just about sailing fast and smart, it is about earning your stripes and paying your dues.

On day 1 shortly after the first start, we introduced ourselves to the fleet by getting into a solid collision with a Japanese boat which resulted in damage and a few bruised egos. On Day 2, during one of our better races, we hooked one of the few lobster pots on the course, and if not for our stealthy bowman taking a leap to free us, we would have lost more than the 3 boats that got around us while we stood still.  In between races on day 2, we discovered one of our stanchions had broken off at its base and would require a jury rig to continue sailing.  And finally, on Day 3, we found ourselves over early with a 8 to 9 other boats, and then made the mistake of not clearing ourselves until we had sailed for a minute upwind, putting us well behind the fleet on a short race track and having to suffer with a 19th place in the only race of the day.  Sure, some of this is self induced, but we are certainly doing a good job of checking everything off the list of things that could have gone wrong.

On a positive note, when we start cleanly, we are very fast with the boats around us, and the team up front has done a great job of taking their jobs on with great energy and proving each leeward mark they are a force to be reckon with.  Having only 1 race today meant there would be plenty of thirsty sailors descending on KW, and Dougie Douglass and his Goombay Smash team hosted a great afternoon party on his motor yacht serving plenty of…Goombay Smashes.

The forecast for the remainder of the week does not look like we will get above 10 kts if we are lucky, so we are going to put on our hard hats and do our best to work hard, string 2 good days together and finish with a good result.  Big breeze requires a lot of strength and stamina in these boats, but light air is very mentally challenging and keeping your boat moving at top speed is a fragile thing.  Full results here.

More Weeds, Better Results on Day 2 of KWRW »

January 18, 2011

Quick post tonight…conditions were similar to day 1 of Melges 32 Key West Race Week, but with a little less wind and just the same amount of seaweed on the racecourse, teams were mentally exhausted at the end of the day from trying to keep their boats moving at full speed, and doing their best to get off the starting line which would prove to be a huge portion of the race.

On INTAC, we managed to get 2 clean starts and it is always amazing how the rich get richer in light to medium conditions.  Once you are able to set, get clear air, and extend at the top mark, you establish yourself in the front group, and it is pretty hard to mess it up.  We found this out first hand when we were duking it out for 4th place in race 3, when on at the top of the 2nd beat we snagged a lobster pot.  Luckily, we have young bowman from the St Thomas, William Bailey, who did not hesitate to jump over the bow, free the pot off the keel, catch the mainsheet off the back of the boat and get back on to keep us from losing more than 2 boats to take a 9th, keeping us well in front of the middle of the fleet.

The second race of the day, we again started clean at the boat, used great boatspeed and established ourselves in the front 3-4 boats.  Once clear and ahead, the gains come from having clear air 100% of the time and not having to deal with traffic around marks.  We duked it out with Warpath, Leenabarca and Yasha Samurai, and were able to settle for a 3rd place.  After a full day of racing in hot, light, lumpy and weedy conditions, we were more than happy to retire for the day with some mudslides and painkillers once we reached the dock.

The forecast for Day 3 is looking more like we will be doing some fishing instead of sailing as a high pressure system is moving over the region.  Stay tuned…results @ melges32.com.

Salad, Dressing on the Side Please…. »

January 17, 2011

With a strong front that moved through in the wee hours of the first day of racing in Key West, sailors on all 3 divisions were left to deal with left over swell and lump, and a SE Breeze in the 9-12 range that made for some very challenging conditions.  On top of the confused seas and light to medium wind, there was a massive amount of seaweed and seagrass on the racecourse, and once it latched onto your rudder or keel fin, you went from bow out and ahead to well behind in a flash.  At times there were patches 30 ft in diameter requiring a tack or gybe to avoid them.  Despite the less than ideal racing conditions, the veteran, experienced teams still prevailed on day 1 of Key West Race Week and proved that being mentally tough is a huge component to sailing fast.

As for our team on INTAC, we had moments of brilliance, and other times we learned some valuable lessons about what racing is like as a new team in the Melges 32 class.  One thing that always stands out is how you can go from fighting for position in the front, to being relegated to the back of the fleet with one bad leebow or mark rounding.  We were holding our own in both of the races today, but a costly mistake in each would send us from nipping at the heals of the leaders, to playing tiddly winks with the bottom group.

Day 2 is forecast to be much lighter, and hopefully the seagrass and seaweed will have cleared out by the morning to make for some easier racing. And hopefully we will have some better conditions to allow for more exciting posts from KW!  Standing by for day 2…