A quick paddle off Clarke's landing to the Solomons Bridge and back. The weather was a little hot but there was still a nice breeze. Following seas on the way back from the bridge made for an interesting exercise in balance. A good start to the week.
Century Club: Jonathan Nepini
Sunday, June 12, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Helming the RC boat
Helped out with RC today for the SMSA Broken Rudder Regatta/Dinghy Distance Race. Rain and thunder in the morning led to an afternoon start, with 5 boats on the line. The weather steadily improved throughout the afternoon and we eventually had a beautiful day. In an interesting twist one boat actually broke their rudder, and we went on a rescue mission to pick them up and towed their boat with us for the rest of the afternoon. A bunch of dolphins joined the fleet for a bit which made for a nice show. All in all a great day on the water!
Friday, June 10, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
A nice view
Today's route
As a counterpoint to my hectic evening on the water yesterday, today I took a relaxing paddle off the beach at Snow Hill Park. I went south and got to check out some interesting cliffs up close. A relaxing end to yet another hectic week.
Thursday, June 9, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Powered up...
...maybe a little too powered up
Crewed for Tommy on Hydra Beast this evening. The wind was up, meaning he & I (about 200lbs combined) were having a very hard time holding the boat down and pointing. Another member of the Barba Roja crew was a good sport and joined us. On our last race we managed to capsize the boat doing a penalty turn, but thankfully didn't have much drama getting it back upright and going again. It was a tough day for the fleet, as we were the 3rd boat to get turned over. Definitely a challenging day on the water.
Wednesday, June 8, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
A tidy upwind leg
SMSA Zanheiser's Wednesday Night Series Z-1. I was back on the helm for this one, and we worked together to pull of our best start of the year. Spent the upwind leg focusing on keeping the boat "in the slot" and powered up, and we beat Elan to the mark. We stayed pretty high on course during the reaching leg and some lighter winds in near the Navy base caused us to lose time. Had a strong reaching leg to the finish, but didn't manage to get a kite up. RC shortened course to get us out of the impending thunderstorm, and we got the boat put away fast and managed to make it to the club before the rain started. The skipper from Elan graciously remarked about our improving performance at the club.
(Photo courtesy of Sean Brady)
Monday, June 6, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
A breezy paddle at Leonardtown Wharf this evening. I started downwind and went up into McIntosh Run a ways, followed by a long beat into the wind all the way across the top of Breton Bay. Somewhat challenging paddle conditions but the breeze made for a great workout!
Sunday, June 5, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
The paddling route
Threw the crew out for shark bait (lol)
Sunset over the Solomons bridge
I really took full advantage of my time on the water today. I started the afternoon with an easy paddle around Back Creek with several sailing friends, and then we all went out with Steve on the Barba Roja later in the day. We sailed up to Myrtle Point and then back down into the Bay a good ways. Great steady wind and nice temperatures made for a perfect cruise.
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield
Saturday, June 4, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
Went paddling with a couple sailing friends. Introduced one of them to SUP, took a swim at a little beach in Back Creek, and then went big and paddled to Drum Point and back. Ideal weather for being on the water, and I had a great time.
Friday, June 3, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
Took a nice relaxing 4 mi paddle off Clarke's landing. Enjoyed some great mild weather, but found a lot of marsh grass up the creeks, which made it a little difficult to get around. A great start to my weekend.
Wednesday, June 1, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Balanced so well we didn't need any helm for a while
Enjoying the shade during the beating leg
SMSA Fleet Building Wednesday Night. Ironically a pretty small fleet this evening due to the high temps and light wind. Steve drove for this race and I trimmed headsails. A rights dispute at the line resulted in an imperfect start, but we managed a tidy spinnaker set and a nice, if slow, run to the first mark. A hectic rounding followed, but afterwards the wind filled in and we got a nice beat to a shortened finish.
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)