Out today on Ben's relatively new-to-him Pearson 26, "Knot Enuf". Heavy breeze and some ongoing hardware issues meant we just tooled around under main alone. The boat performed shockingly well with just the one well-worn sail, and we were able to make it up to the bridge and back. The more time I spend around boats, the more I think an easy little boat like his might be what I'm after.
Joined team Barba Roja today for the SMSA Spring Invitational. A pretty good crew today, and nice moderate conditions out in the Bay off Solomons. RC set up a nice W/L course and we got two races in. The team worked very well together for the most part and we ran pretty clean races all around. We managed a first in class finish. I trimmed main and learned some tricks, and had a great time pushing the boat hard with all the new hardware.
Wednesday nights are back! Still wrapping up projects on Dangerous so Dewey and I rode with Sean on Elysium today. Dewey took the helm, I trimmed main, and Sean & Tommy worked headsails. A brief grounding in the start sequence got us off to a rocky start, but we recovered quickly and set off to L. Made great progress on the upwind leg, and got in a tacking duel with Steve & company on the newly refreshed Barba Roja (He can outpoint us now!). Managed to get an advantageous position on them to round L, and the wind slacked off as soon as we rounded the mark. Did lots of tweaking to find the sweet spot on the downwind leg, finally settling on going wing-on-wing at Sean's recommendation. A spiffy upwind leg to a shortened finish at K, and a second place in the non-spin class. On both upwind legs we fought some strange sail shape problems on the headsail, unclear whether it's just worn out or if there's something else we could've improved on. A beautiful evening and fun to finally get Elysium on her feet and moving a bit.
Test sail on the Barba Roja with all the new goodies. Fresh main & headsails and a new suite of B&G instruments. Blowing in the upper range of the headsail's limits but we decided to try our luck anyway. The boat has picked up about 5 degrees to windward and accelerates like never before. Took a quick tour around the river basin and up into the harbor so a friend could take some pictures. Shame the boat has all the goodies now that I have a new ride for the season...
SMSA Frostbites #4. Neptune's Wager has some ongoing rigging issues that prevent sailing in heavy air conditions so I went out on Elysium, another friend's J/33, today. We sailed the boat with a crew of 4. A slightly late but clean start, and it felt great to be on a boat fast enough to hang with the fleet. A tidy but heavy beating leg up to the bridge, and we had to work to keep the boat on her feet without much weight on the rail. Made up some time on the downwind leg, and managed a nice reach across to the following mark. A beat to the finish and a rights situation with Shamal, but still decent. Solidly in last place for a finish but we all had a great time and I was satisfied with our performance given it being a small crew on a big day on a boat that was new to most of us. Elysium managed 12th out of 15 for the series.
At the helm of Neptune's Wager today for Frostbites #3. Wind was blowing significantly harder than forecasted and we kept busy warming up before the race. A tight start as is always the case for frostbites, so I tried to play it safe by running away from the line at the start of the sequence and heading back to make the start. Misjudged the timing and ended up over about a boat length early and had to turn back, wasting about 5 minutes at the beginning of the race. We made up a great deal of time on the first two legs, gaining back most of the lost time. Lost time running deep on the downwind leg, and had to fight to keep the boat moving as the wind fell off towards the finish. The team worked together really well and is starting to gel nicely as we start to put some races under our belts and really learn the boat.
No luck on racing today. Out on the Wager for SMSA Frostbites #2. A cold but sunny afternoon with winds in the high teens gusting low 20s. We got out early to warm up and put the boat through her paces in the heavy breeze. Unfortunately for us, a 40 year old plastic sheave in the turning block for the jib sheets shredded on a tack and took us out of the race about 15 minutes before the start. We ducked back in the harbor, took down the sails, and got back out to watch the race instead. We had a front row seat to lots of action on the course. We found out when we got back to the dock that there was a spare pair of snatch blocks onboard and we could've raced. We'll know for next time... Disappointed to miss out on a chance to push the boat in a blow but nonetheless a great afternoon out on the water.
The 2023 racing season started today with SMSA Frostbites #1. I raced on Neptune's Wager as Dangerous is still receiving some bottom work. My brother joined us as well for his first yacht race. Cold, cloudy conditions, and light variable winds for the whole race. A decent but somewhat late start and a reach to K, followed by a very long beat out to "A" as we ghosted along in infrequent light puffs. Similar conditions continued to V, and we received notification of time limit expiration on the way back to the finish. Spent a lot of time learning to optimize trim on the boat and work with the limitations presented by a wide, heavy 35 foot cruising boat in light air. We still accomplished the goal I set out to do (beat the Navy yawl), but hoping to post an actual finish time next week.
Came back after a weekend out of town just in time to make an afternoon cruise on Neptune's Wager. It was gorgeous today and we had the idea to sail to Hooper's Island. After getting out in the river in nice breeze it became apparent as we reached the Bay that Hooper's was a bit optimistic for the available wind. We changed plans and sailed up towards Cove Point. We expereinced strange shifts on the way up, and ended up on the same course on the opposite tack after a big wind shift. The wind fell off as we reached the Cove Point lighthouse, and we turned around for a lazy reach back. We sailed near Drum Point, and eventually gave up and motored in near sunset. I'm slowly getting more familiar with the Wager and 'm looking forward to frostbites starting next week.
The crews of the Barba Roja and Neptune's Wager got together this afternoon for a fun race to get ready for frostbites in a couple weeks. I sailed on the Wager to help get a few of their new crew up to speed and to learn more about the boat prior to frostbites as I will be joining them for the series. We set up a course similar to a frostbite race and did our best to push the boat hard. Shifty winds made for an interesting beat to the bridge, and the Barba Roja managed a handy lead over us. Steve circled back several times during the race to offer advice and a little good-spirited ribbing.
We got the course done much quicker than expected, and went for a second round. The second lap was much longer as the wind fell off throughout the afternoon. The races were a great learning opportunity for the crew and I, and everyone waslked away a bit more comfortable with the boat and our prospects for the upcoming racing season.