[Public-List] Second race of the year

Thu Jun 1 05:02:25 PDT 2017

Thanks, Gord - reading your missives is better than watching the America's
cup races!

On Wed, May 31, 2017 at 8:42 PM, Gordon Laco via Public-List <
public-list at lists.alberg30.org> wrote:

> So,
>
>
>
> Just back in the house after SURPRISE’s second race of the year, which was
> the club’s third.  What a rompin’ thrash… just the thing for the middle of
> a busy business week.
>
>
>
> While getting set up to head out, scattered showers kept blowing through,
> driven by a solid 15-18 knots of cool north west wind.  It was just like an
> invigorating day in October.   Clint and Steve showed up on time… we
> sparked up the iron mill, and headed out to the course.  I noted with great
> satisfaction that SURPRISE’s knotmeter is still suffering from its mental
> collapse and was reading a solid 9 knots as we motored out of the club.
> Satisfaction?  Well I’ve ordered myself a new one and I’d have been
> stricken if the thing had recovered its senses AFTER I’d committed to the
> expense.
>
>
>
> We hoisted the main and popped the genny out of the furler… grateful in
> the case of the later because tonight there was enough wind for our
> smallish headsail.
>
>
>
> To and fro we foamed with the fleet, swinging back and forth as the
> minutes counted down to the start.  there was about twenty boats out so the
> mob was dense… and because there were more Sharks than ever, tension was
> high as those vermin shouted and jostled each other and whoever was
> nearby.  At the other end of the scale from the humble Shark, was a 50 foot
> IMS open racer named ‘TO LIFE’ sailed by our good friend John.  His speed
> was easily twice that of the other boats… she was flying through the mob
> like a wolf through a flock of chickens.
>
>
>
> Finally the start sequence began and we ascertained that tonight a port
> tack start was the thing to do.  Our arch rival, MAID MARION, also had the
> same idea so we both stooged about beyond the pin end while the rest the
> herd were fighting and squabbling on the committee end.  We got to one
> minute horn and both MM and we gybed furiously and began close reaching for
> the pin.
>
>
>
> To our horror, we sailed into an unaccountable hole and nearly stopped.  A
> mass of furious Sharks all overlapping each other were charging toward us
> running the line trying to force eachother over early…  then we got some
> air again, heeled over with the rail in the water and SURPRISE picked up
> her skirts and got moving again.  We let two Sharks by then ducked the
> stern of the third and crossed going like a train on port.
>
>
>
> Half way up the first beat we were knocked and flipped over onto
> starboard… and oh what tension as we stared at MAID MARION, now on port
> coming in from her side of the leg… who would cross who?  Damn… they got us
> by about thirty yards.
>
>
>
> We trudged on, playing the main to keep the rail out of the water, our
> insane knotmeter joyously proclaiming 11 knots (probably 6-ish) as we
> climbed to windward.  Seeing the main crowd of the fleet flipping onto
> starboard tack away off to the right, we flipped ourselves onto port and
> made our climb toward the lay line, intending on tacking onto starboard
> again about 200 meters from the pin.   We ducked a Shark, crossing his
> stern with inches to spare, and finally reached the lay line.  I’d intended
> to go a bit further to make sure we could lay the mark, but there was a
> Shark howling STARBOARD… so we tacked so as not to foul them.
>
>
>
> Saints be praised, MAID MARION had overstood and was comfortably to
> windward and behind us, and we comfortably laid the mark, rounding with
> four Sharks in very close company.
>
>
>
> Away we went on the reaching leg, bow wave foaming, knotmeter alternating
> indications between 9 and 12 knots (probably really high sixes…) MAID
> MARION was coming on strong and we were in danger of being blanketed by a
> trio of Sharks all out for each other’s blood.  I eased the main, let them
> get ahead, then hardened up, sheets hauling in smartly, and cut close cross
> their sterns letting them get into our lee bow.  What startled looks they
> shot us as we climbled over them.   MAID MARION was now dealing with them
> as we hauled away hand over fist finally approaching the gybe mark.
>
>
>
> Round we went at high speed in very heavy traffic and onto the run with
> MAID MARION’s boom almost overlapping us.   I employed a technique I
> learned in Albacores which a friend called ‘using your elbows to get
> room’…. I pushed up under MAID MARION, forcing him to go up to avoid us,
> then as soon as he was going up, we went down.  MM naturally came down on
> us again, trying to blanket us… so when he got close (but not so close as
> he was) up we went again, and so three times till he was far enough away
> due to our gaining a few meters each time for us to be safely ahead of his
> wind shadow.
>
>
>
> Round the bottom mark and away we went frantically hauling sheets so as to
> transfigure from running to beating (we didn’t pop the ‘chute because the
> run was so short)
>
>
>
> Suddenly we heard a scream behind us… and there was SKYBIRD, our friend
> Jane’s Shark, with TO LIFE, the IMS Open 50 about to run over them, doing
> more than twice the little Shark’s speed.
>
>
>
> There was no collision.
>
>
>
> We battled it out with MAID MARION all the way up the beat, rounded with
> them right on our transom, then ran for the finish.  We considered the
> ‘chute, but decided that because the boats ahead were reaching, we only
> wung out the genny and in due course gybed it and away we went reaching
> too.  We crossed the finish first in our class… and with only one of the A
> fleet boats who started five minutes behind us having overtaken us, and
> that one being TO LIFE, which is really in a different solar system.
>
>
>
> What a race!
>
>
>
> Gord #426 Surprise
>
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