Century Club: Jonathan Nepini

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Saturday, May 21, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Frost-Goode Race - A Floater
  • Close racing at the start
  • Making on a much faster boat just before the wind shut off

Couldn’t even call this race a drifter as I sat still or went backwards for a good amount of it. We got to try another light reaching spinnaker we inherited from a friend's J/33, and it turned out to be a great fit for the boat. The wind died right at the start and we managed to stitch a small line of wind up above the Solomons bridge, and then proceeded to float for 45 minutes making no progress. Had a very slow downwind leg to the windward mark, and a nice beat back. About 100 yards from the finish the wind shut off completely, I lost all my momentum & helm, and we floated for 10 mins until the wind filled back in. Only one boat in our class (A Melges 32) finished on time. A hot but nice day on the water, though a little long & frustrating at times.

(Photos & new reaching kite courtesy of Sean Brady)

Thursday, May 19, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Solo Thursday Paddle
  • Today's route

Took a nice 5mi lap off Clarke’s Landing. Lots of breeze out of the creek meant I had a nice workout going out, and got to explore some coves I hadn’t been to in a while. Did a little boat watching as always and spotted a tired but cool little IOR racer and a very original Catalina 30 in need of significant repair. I found lots of underwater grasses close to shore and the  water was much cleaner than usual, so I’m hoping that’s a sign the Patuxent is getting healthier.

Wednesday, May 18, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Action Packed Wednesday
  • The crew studying the spinnaker launch
  • First racing miles on the new-to-us mylar kite

SMSA Wednesday Night Series A-6. An interesting course and lots of action, including a late start, a close crossing and a marginal staysail leg. Our esteemed foredeck finally got back from his extended work trip to the desert so we gave him something to do by putting up both of our running kites for 2 different legs. Still working on getting some new crew up to speed. Took second & hoping for a strong finish next week to round out the series. A friend brought his J/33 out racing for the first time this season and managed a solid showing in non-spin class.

Sunday, May 15, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Boat Watching Paddle

Today's weather was a huge improvement over yesterday's rain and fog, so I decided to take advantage by going for a paddle at the Wharf. Paddled a nice 5-mile loop around Breton Bay, and spotted some beautiful boats and waterfront houses. Saw a pair of swans on my way back in. A great, relaxing afternoon!

Saturday, May 14, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
No Wind, All Fog
  • On the way out, a picture from a friend on shore

Planned on skippering the Barba Roja today for the SMSA Vice Commodore's Cup. Got out in the river and found thick fog, with visibility less than 20 yards, and no wind whatsoever. After picking around in the fog for 20 minutes, the crew and I decided to head back in. Our only potential competitor did the same and invited us to a christening ceremony for their new boat. I'm disappointed I didn't get to run the course but I also don't regret coming in. 

(Photo courtesy of Benjamin Green)

Thursday, May 12, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
3 Races, 2 boats
  • Full crew
  • Jumping boats

Another week of SMSA Thursday night races. I crewed with Tommy on Hydra Beast and he brought along another kid as a passenger. 3 in that boat is a crowd, and we had to do our best to work around each other. For the third race, I was told to jump on another compeitior's Buccaneer to crew, and did my best to quickly get up to speed on that boat's controls.

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)

Wednesday, May 11, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Party Boat

SMSA Wednesday Night Series A-5. A very full crew on the boat. Another downwind start, with decent breeze for the first couple legs of the race. The wind started to die on the last leg, and we didn't quite make the finish how I wanted to. Still a fun race! Pictures coming later.

Saturday, May 7, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Express Delivery
  • The delivery crew braving the weather
  • Taking a turn at the helm

Woke up early planning on participating in the CRCA Herrington Harbor to Cambridge race, but the event was cancelled in the middle of the night due to the forecasted heavy weather. Steve had already delivered the Barba Roja to HH for the race, so most of the race crew went up and helped deliver the boat back to Solomons. We ran under full main and a #3, and rocketed down the Bay on a broad reach with following seas. The trip usually takes about 6 hours and we got it done in 4. I took a turn at the helm and surfed the boat down a wave to 12.3kts, an all-time speed record. I got to practice driving in heavy air and larger swells (by Bay standards) and was able to test out some new foul weather gear. It was a cold, damp, and blustery trip, but I had a great time anyway.

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)

Thursday, May 5, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Thursday Night Drifter
  • All smiles at the finish
  • Pre-race chip overboard rescue (look close for the floating Doritos!)

It seems that I'm becoming semi-regular crew for Tommy Birchfield on his Mutineer. Tonight was a real drifter, but we were still able to get two races in. One of Tommy's high school teammates joined us and we worked on optimizing the boat in light air with a third crew member. A couple friends from the Barba Roja crew raced against us on one of the club's 420s and we had some nice friendly competition. Hoping they both continue to race on Thursdays.

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)

Wednesday, May 4, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Fluky Wind
  • Making the most of the light wind
  • A tidy spinnaker run

SMSA Wednesday Night Series A-4. A great fleet of 16 boats, and both of our usual rivals were out, making for interesting racing. The wind shut off just before a crowded first mark rounding, costing us first place, but we had a great spinnaker run and the wind built nicely for a beating leg to the finish. We managed a solid second place finish. Overall a fun race!

(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)

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