Century Club: Tim Ford

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Tuesday, August 26, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Aug 26 - BCYA Series 4 Race 1

One of those nights when nothing seemed to go right. 

There's a back-story to the evening. The week before, there was an episode whereby commercial shipping felt burdened by BCYA racers. Probably rightfully so. And, BCYA apparently got a polite note from the USCG saying they'd better get their stuff together and let racers know this kind of thing can't continue.  Then BCYA sent out a note to racers saying: stay away from big heavy metal vessels. Fair enough.

So then why, last night, did they send us up to Mark "L" a few hundred yards from a RORO departing the Shoreline facility? TWICE! 

Thankfully, the huge Gimaldi Line ro-ro that was supposed to depart at 1900 hrs didn't leave until 1955 hrs. So we were able to round and finish away from the facility and its close proximity to the Ferry Bar Channel.  

There's plenty of room (and water) for BCYA to set a course that doesn't interfere with merchant vessels on the NE side of the Fort McHenry Channel. BCYA's insistence on only running strictly W/L races (laudable in roomier venues) will continue to put racers in close proximity to ships in a busy commercial harbor. 

Saturday, August 23, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Aug 23 - no sail just food

Plan was to get a couple things done on the boat and then go for a short, evening sail. But out on the river, it was gusting 25 kn and frankly, I just didn't have the heart for it. 

So we had a picnic on the mooring with plenty of refreshing breeze and the shade of the bimini. 

A few spiders.  OK, a lot of spiders.  Here's my queston: where the hell do these things come from?  I know they were not on the boat earlier this year.  Do they come in on the breeze?  Maybe egg cases get blown from the trees and they get hatched on the boat?  

Also: two people and a lot of stuff loaded into the dinghy make for an interesting ride in 15-20 kn headwinds.  But no real issues.  

Tuesday, August 19, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
BCYA - Series 3 Race 6
  • Good to see an old reminder of NPSA racing in the 80's
  • Guess the shipping channel is reopened
  • Yep...it's open

Boy what a weird night. 

First there was the thing about the shipping lanes being closed upstream of the Key Bridge ruins, due to an explosion the previous day on a coal carrier.  Could we race, and if so, would there be ZERO shipping traffic? (always a bonus at BCYA)

Well, the shipping lanes reopened and there was a ship...

Wind was all over the place and then we got hosed by the "ship leaving Seagirt phenomenum" where we did the right thing and fell off to take a departing bulk oar carrier's stern, while most of the fleet either didn't see the need to or just plain old didn't want to.

The master of the carrier was pretty vocal with the horns.  There were many 5 Blast soundings and that used to be grounds for a DSQ at BCYA.  In any case, we had a lot of boats pass us while we were sailing a quarter mile longer course over there on the north shore.  Such is life.

Then there was the surplus of helicopters next door all evening. That's OK, they do good work.

At least it didn't rain...

 

 

Friday, August 15, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Aug 15 - Therapy Sesh

Oh man, I turn into a real ogre if denied sailing for more than a week in Summer.  It was time to say, "that's it, I'm getting on a boat."  

So I did.

Well, actually it was two boats.  Three if you count the dinghy.  NO!  WAIT! Four if you count a quick tour of a PSA member's new ride!

Last ride of the night was on Inc. for a YCCSC Friday night race.  A very laid back vibe that stresses fun not drama. Reminds me of NPSA back in the late 80s and 90s!

 

Tuesday, August 5, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
August 5 - BCYA Series 3 Race 4
  • Fort Mac flag just hanging limply
  • slightly smokey sky
  • glassy at Lazaretto

Things looked grim, wind-wise as we headed out.  Someone on board specualted the odds were 70-30% that racing would be canceled due to lack of breeze.  It was hovering around SSE 3-5, with holes of 2 or less. 

Then: a miracle.  The breeze built to 6-7, then 7-9, then 10+.  With the big jib plugged in, we were overpowered and almost had an embarassing upwind wipe-out in a puff to maybe 12.  Had to flog the main for a minute or two.

In all I think we finished 3rd.  We had the race in the bag until the beeze built to 9+.  But overall it was a nice night...maybe could have done with a little less wildfire smoke though. 

Monday, August 4, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
August 4th - Bad Idea

I wanted to swap the 3.5 HP outboard with the 6 HP so I rowed out and removed the 3.5, brought it in, put it in the car and loaded the 6 HP into the dinghy and rowed back out. 

Bad idea.  What I should have done is bring the boat in to the dock, and made the O/B transfer on something solid.  But nooooo....

I was about 1.5 seconds from getting on the boat when a sudden weight shift (still not sure where) sunk the dinghy's bow and almost instantly swamped the whole g.d. thing and capsized it, sending the O/B down to the bottom and leaving about six inches of the nose of the dinghy above water.  I remember standing on the transom of RAINBOW thinking, "OK, that could have gone a lot better."

I never EVER move an outboard without a security rope belaying it, so I just had to grunt the thing back on board...what a mess.  Then I had to right the dinghy, and that was a beast.  FInally got it floating, sort of, but needed about 15 minutes to bail it out with a two-gallon bucket.

Lesson learned:  if you think you're doing something stupid, you probably are.  Don't take shortcuts.

 

Sunday, July 27, 2025 to Wednesday, July 30, 2025
Number of days:
4 days
July 26-31 - Board Meeting
  • wave of the day...not mine
  • the wait
  • lovely, fierce storm that evening
  • geezer bails on a ratty leftover

A week on the  Jersey Shore.  Lots of boards, surf, body and what have you.  Not much in the way of waves though.  A persistent on-shore breeze had things pretty flat.  Of course, this following week, with a tropical depression off the coast, it'll be amazing.  Should have been here next week!

 

 

Friday, July 25, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
July 25 - still steamin'
  • brave buzzard

One good thing about this heat wave is: it's actually a pleasure to swim around the boat and knock barnies off.  What's not good is how the warm water is promoting marine growth.  It had only been two weeks and the bottom and keel were very foul with new growth.  

I rowed out to the rocks and beach.  While there, this buzzard walked out of the grass about 20 feet from me.  It looked at me and then started eating something behind a big piece of driffwood.  I've never seen one voluntarily get that close. I guess I looked harmless enough. 

Nice day...I guess...

Tuesday, July 22, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
July 22 - Series 3 Race 2

A little more breeze than we'd expected (and hoped for), but despite an awful first leg, plagued by vexing shifts and holes as we approached the top mark, we pulled off a 3rd.  Just shows to go ya, working hard and making better decisions can get you back in a race, even if you were among the last to round the first mark.

The top mark was in the lee of a massive ship snuggled up against the DMT dock, which was worst-case scenario with the NE breeze. We should have recognized that an approach from directly downwind of the ship was a losing proposition.  Next time around, we stayed farther offshore, which paid off massively.

Beautiful night and very fun to reel in a boat or two on the last leg to, at least, eek out a moral victory.

 

 

Friday, July 18, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
July 18 - cruze 2 no wear

All dressed up.  Autopilot CHECK. Bimini for shade CHECK.  Water.  Food?  nah.

Just a dress rehersal for some day in the future.  It was hot and dank.  There was no breeze.  Sat in the next cove over and even took a ride halfway across the river, looking for wind. 

There wern't none.  So I went home. 

Nice day, for sumpthin....

 

 

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