Pushing ahead with Barba Roja & Microburst at the start
Out on Neptune's Wager for the Vice Commodore's Cup. A pretty light crew for a 35 footer in heavy conditions, but we made do just fine. I invited a very experienced sailor from the club, who trimmed main and advised on tactics. We started the race in 20kts of breeze with a reefed main and partially furled headsail, and sailed a wide but clean upwind leg. We had a bit of trouble with T-Bone in the way at the mark, but we drove around and set up for the downwind leg under genoa. We started sailing angles, but switched halfway through to wing-on-wing. We sailed the second two legs similarly, and managed a clean finish.
The second race was a longer distance race up to the bridge and back, with a triangle thrown in for extra measure. The wind had backed off some by the start, so we rolled out the full genoa, nailed the start, and set off on the long beat to the bridge. We got in a tacking duel with Barba Roja, and for a brief period controlled most of the fleet. Barba Roja fumbled the mark rounding, and we got around clean and set a spinnaker for the long downwind run. The breeze picked up as we went, but we managed a nice tidy douse, right up until the end when we had an unanticipated jam with the jib sheets. Despite the jam, we got around and finished the triangle, and ended the race under a fast wing-on-wing run.
A fantastic day on the water, with solid crew work and learning all around. What a great way to spend a Saturday!