Century Club: Jonathan Nepini

View Jonathan Nepini's Profile
Wednesday, July 6, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Light Wednesday
  • The crew spinnaker reaching
  • Sailing into the sunset
  • Spinnaker run at the finish

Full crew this week, with 9+ on the boat. Relatively light conditions meant we could've done without some of the crew weight, but we still managed decent performance. We had a slightly late start, followed by a clean upwind leg. We had an hourglass in our spinnaker on the next leg, but we got it resolved and still performed decently. We had some close action on the last leg, but both boats in our fleet beat us in the end. Lots of crew weight and a dirty bottom hurt our performance, but a protest between the other two boats should allow us to net a second place finish.

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield & Chris Staley)

Tuesday, July 5, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
McIntosh Run Social Paddle
  • Today's route

I got the date/time right and participated in the Tuesday social paddle at the Wharf this week. A small crowd (just the event leader, a friend, and I) and an unusually high tide from the afternoon thunderstorms meant we were able to paddle all the way to the winery at the top of McIntosh Run. I saw lots of birds and wildlife, and had a great, relaxing evening.

Sunday, July 3, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Attempted Beach Paddle
  • Today's route

Tried to go for a paddle at the beach with a couple friends, but fairly high winds and decent chop meant that my two inexperienced friends wanted to stop when I otherwise still would've gone out. Not much of a paddle, but I got off the dock so it counts. Afterwards we had a nice afternoon at the beach.

Thursday, June 30, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Casual Thursday RC
  • The fleet at the start of the race
  • A pretty sunset

Helped out with smallboat RC this evening. Ideal conditions and a good number of boats on the line made for great racing to watch. We had to reset the course right before starting due to a big wind shift, but we got 3 races in and made sure everyone had a great time.

Wednesday, June 29, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Wednesday Action
  • The beginning of a long run
  • Having a great time at the helm
  • The crew doing our best on the downwind leg

Some great, action-packed racing this evening. We had a very full boat again, and the wind was blowing pretty well at the start of the race. RC put 8 boats over the line at the same time (combined no spin and PHRF C), making for a pretty tight start. We immediately tacked out of traffic and had a great upwind leg, ending with a mark rounding while 3 fighter jets flew about 100ft overhead. Next up we had a long spinnaker run under the mylar kite. A bit of chaos ensued as we crossed the entire fleet at the Solomons bridge, but we got to clear air and managed another strong beating leg, followed by a deep reach to the finish. We managed a bullet for the first Wednesday in quite a while. Even with a few newbies I feel like the crew is starting to gel well, and we’re able to correct mistakes quickly.  This one was pretty stressful in a couple of places but overall a blast!

Tuesday, June 28, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Anti-social social paddle
  • Today's route

Met up with a friend from the Barba Roja crew to do the first social paddle of the season at the Leonardtown Wharf, but when we got there they had moved the start date to next Tuesday. We went paddling anyway, and had a nice ride up McIntosh Run. It was near low tide so we had to dodge some sticks and shallow water, but otherwise conditions were perfect and we had a great time.

Sunday, June 26, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Another Great Race
  • The crew looking serious
  • The Barba Roja on the course

SMSA Summer Invitational. We had a small crew and decided to go non-spin to create a fleet for the other boat that was wanting to do so. Got a clean start, a nice first beating leg, and a great downwind leg going wing-on-wing. The wind and waves built throughout the race, and we had a tough beating leg through the chop and across the channel in the Bay. Our competition retired (didn't want to push a borrowed boat too hard), and we had a lively reaching leg back to the finish. We crossed the line enjoying a fried chicken lunch, much to the dismay of the race committee. 

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield & Kristen Gyorgy)

Saturday, June 25, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Champagne Sailing
  • The crew for today
  • Spinnaker run into the sunset

SMSA Smith Point Race. A 45nm course down to a mark off Point Lookout and back. A fairly light downwind start quickly shifted & filled in to a great beat all the way to the mark. Conditions slowly built throughout the day culminating in a great spinnaker run back up the Bay and into Solomons. Distance races are always long days on the Barba Roja (this one took about 11 hours) , but we had great food & enjoyable company, and the whole race was some of the best sailing I've done in a while.

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)

Thursday, June 23, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Lazy Thursday Paddle + Ramp Traffic
  • Today's route

Took a little paddle off Clarke's Landing this evening. The weather looked pretty iffy so I stayed pretty close to the pier. Feeling pretty run down after a weird week so I didn't get too far. Had to mill around for a bit before leaving to wait for the small pier to clear so I could pull my board. Nothing super interesting but still another day on the water.

Tuesday, June 21, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Summer Solstice Paddle - Lots of Wildlife
  • Today's route

Evening paddle to celebrate the summer solstice. Took a lap off Clarke's landing and got to see a lot of wildlife. I spotted ducks, a heron, a school of fish, and even a huge turtle! Unfortunately I also spotted a few jellyfish, so they'll probably be here by the 4th of July as always. I'm glad I can get out on the water solo while I'm quarantining but I'm itching to get back sailing.

Pages