My daughter just turned 6, and my beautiful wife and I got her some sailing lessons for her birthday.
Some background on this...
First understand that the wee one first met our club's head instructor (Emily) when she was 4 years old. That spring and summer I took her out in an Albacore for the first time, and even went on a couple of race nights with her. My daughter instantly fell in love with Emily, who would play games and entertain her while I rigged up the boat. Seeing Emily was probably more exciting for her than sailing!
When she turned 5 that summer, I let her take out an Optimist. We first sailed together (two people crammed into the bathtub) and then was going to let her sail by herself with me in a second Opti. That was pretty funny, and she sure goes faster than I do...
This year, Emily is back and now has an assistant, Heidi. Now my daughter has two best friends at the club. She turned 6, and I figured it's time to get her some proper lessons. I contacted Emily and we scheduled some. My daughter learned safety, how to tack, how to gybe, picked up some really good habits, and had a blast.
This week's race night, I get an e-mail from Emily asking if the wee one was coming. Emily and Heidi together took my daughter out in an Optimist to the race course, and they were running their own races. My wee one, of course, came in first every race (I'm so proud!).
After racing, we did a couple capsize drills in the Opti. All in all, a great day!
Wednesday 26 August 2015
Tuesday 25 August 2015
Log - Aug 24, 2015 - Race night and sailing with boom past 90
It's been a while since I took out a Laser, mostly because I've been catarmaraning (is that a word?) the past month or so. Then the commodore of the club sent me a picture he had taken earlier this year of me in the old trusty single-hander... and all I could see were mistakes I was making
So, I decided to work on those.
Forecast: Light to Moderate winds, anywhere between 6 and 12 knots from SW
Observed: Very Light to Light winds, from WSW
Focus: I wanted to focus on getting the controls set correctly. This would help me keep the boat flat, and reduce weather helm. Everything else flows from there.
Pre-Race:
It was single-hander night at KSC, apparently. Carla was in a Byte CII, Mike R and Ken E (and myself) in Lasers. Before the race, I was trying to get a hang on roll-tacks in the very light winds. I actually dry-dunked in about 4 knots trying to see how far I could heel the thing, but fortunately nobody saw it (or were too polite to say anything...)
Tony and Annie were in a H16, but the winds were light enough that they were not a factor. Mike T was running RC with a nice short course (about 20 minutes per race with 6 legs- I pity the cat). Also on the course, Hannah, Emily and Heidi in Optis! Another post on that later...
Before the race I had resolved to crank on the vang much more, and keep just enough curve in the outhaul to shape the sail. I figured too tight (especially for the vang) was better than too loose, even though I do prefer a bit looser controls in very light air to keep the power up. I also knew that tight controls would let me get the most out of any roll tacks I could pull off cleanly.
First Race:
I had a good start, with Mike and Carla to my port side (and behind!), and Ken to starboard. I didn't have a good view of the mark prior to starting, so I didn't realize how much boat end was favoured. Ken an I approached the mark on opposite tacks, and I had to bear off to duck him, as he had right of way. I tacked right behind him, and Carla tacked within a couple inches of me. I was able to put some distance between Carla and myself before rounding in second a few boat length behind Ken.
Ken was ridiculously good at defending and keeping his boat flat. There was no passing him on either of the reaching legs, and he caught a couple of good gusts. He was still a good two boat lengths ahead at the leeward mark. Upwind, I was able to use roll tacks to play the shifts a bit better, and made up some distance. We were both coming onto the windward mark on port, and I had to make a move. I thought a header might be coming so I tacked early just as the shift hit and I was on the layline. Ken waited a few more seconds before tacking, and was too far "up" the coarse. This let me get inside him at the mark, and I was able to round first. Downwind was nothing to write home about in the very light air (Ken was lighter, but I was able to heel more, reduce my wetted area and get more of the sail in the air, so we were about the same speed). I blew the gybe and rounding the leeward mark, but had enough of a lead that Ken wasn't able to capitalize on it. Me 1st, Ken 2nd, Carla 3rd, Mike 4th, Tony and Annie 5th.
Second Race: Everyone seemed to have a bad start. It seemed everyone was tacking back and forth looking for air, and that was okay with me (I was starting to get the hang of the roll tacks). Again, it came down to Ken and I in the lead. This time I was able to get inside him at the 1st windward mark, and rounded 1st. From there, it was a matter of defending. I put about about a half of a boat between Ken and I for each of the reaching legs and again upwind. Downwind, I got lucky, and caught a gust that no one else did. The wind was really dying at this point, and I had a trick up my sleeve.
This is something else I've read about but have not been able to do successfully. It's used when there is not enough wind to hold the boom out. I let (or push) the sail out past 90 degrees (not as much as the diagram, but that's just an exaggeration), and heel the boat. Because the boom is up in the air, it wants to fall down, but because the boom is in front of the mast the mainsheet holds it in place. This keeps the boom on the correct side of the boat, keeps the sail area high up in the air, and moves the centre-of-effort on the sail closer to the centreline of the boat (meaning less rudder has to be used.) You can steer pretty effectively just be heeling more or less (more heel = bear off, less = head up).
The bad thing about this technique is that any lateral forces on the sail either hit the front of the sail, slowing you down, or add to the heeling force, possibly putting you in the water. If the wind picks up, or the direction becomes shifty, you're better to sheet in lest you get into a death-roll situation.
The technique seemed to work, at least last night. I was able to put several boat lengths between Ken (who was sailing his boat flat) and I, and rounded the leeward mark with tons of time to spare. Another bullet! Actually, placement for everyone was the same.
Forecast: Light to Moderate winds, anywhere between 6 and 12 knots from SW
Observed: Very Light to Light winds, from WSW
Focus: I wanted to focus on getting the controls set correctly. This would help me keep the boat flat, and reduce weather helm. Everything else flows from there.
Pre-Race:
It was single-hander night at KSC, apparently. Carla was in a Byte CII, Mike R and Ken E (and myself) in Lasers. Before the race, I was trying to get a hang on roll-tacks in the very light winds. I actually dry-dunked in about 4 knots trying to see how far I could heel the thing, but fortunately nobody saw it (or were too polite to say anything...)
Tony and Annie were in a H16, but the winds were light enough that they were not a factor. Mike T was running RC with a nice short course (about 20 minutes per race with 6 legs- I pity the cat). Also on the course, Hannah, Emily and Heidi in Optis! Another post on that later...
Before the race I had resolved to crank on the vang much more, and keep just enough curve in the outhaul to shape the sail. I figured too tight (especially for the vang) was better than too loose, even though I do prefer a bit looser controls in very light air to keep the power up. I also knew that tight controls would let me get the most out of any roll tacks I could pull off cleanly.
First Race:
I had a good start, with Mike and Carla to my port side (and behind!), and Ken to starboard. I didn't have a good view of the mark prior to starting, so I didn't realize how much boat end was favoured. Ken an I approached the mark on opposite tacks, and I had to bear off to duck him, as he had right of way. I tacked right behind him, and Carla tacked within a couple inches of me. I was able to put some distance between Carla and myself before rounding in second a few boat length behind Ken.
Ken was ridiculously good at defending and keeping his boat flat. There was no passing him on either of the reaching legs, and he caught a couple of good gusts. He was still a good two boat lengths ahead at the leeward mark. Upwind, I was able to use roll tacks to play the shifts a bit better, and made up some distance. We were both coming onto the windward mark on port, and I had to make a move. I thought a header might be coming so I tacked early just as the shift hit and I was on the layline. Ken waited a few more seconds before tacking, and was too far "up" the coarse. This let me get inside him at the mark, and I was able to round first. Downwind was nothing to write home about in the very light air (Ken was lighter, but I was able to heel more, reduce my wetted area and get more of the sail in the air, so we were about the same speed). I blew the gybe and rounding the leeward mark, but had enough of a lead that Ken wasn't able to capitalize on it. Me 1st, Ken 2nd, Carla 3rd, Mike 4th, Tony and Annie 5th.
Second Race: Everyone seemed to have a bad start. It seemed everyone was tacking back and forth looking for air, and that was okay with me (I was starting to get the hang of the roll tacks). Again, it came down to Ken and I in the lead. This time I was able to get inside him at the 1st windward mark, and rounded 1st. From there, it was a matter of defending. I put about about a half of a boat between Ken and I for each of the reaching legs and again upwind. Downwind, I got lucky, and caught a gust that no one else did. The wind was really dying at this point, and I had a trick up my sleeve.
The bad thing about this technique is that any lateral forces on the sail either hit the front of the sail, slowing you down, or add to the heeling force, possibly putting you in the water. If the wind picks up, or the direction becomes shifty, you're better to sheet in lest you get into a death-roll situation.
The technique seemed to work, at least last night. I was able to put several boat lengths between Ken (who was sailing his boat flat) and I, and rounded the leeward mark with tons of time to spare. Another bullet! Actually, placement for everyone was the same.
Tuesday 18 August 2015
Log - Race Night Hobie 16 - June 18, 2015
So following up last week's not-a-race-night, I decided to take H16 number 84 out again. I was fortunate enough to sail with Ken E who has a lot more experience in these things than I, and a lot more experience in general tactical situations.
Light winds (<5 knots) with the occasional gust of up to 8-10 and no waves. Racing was Tony and Rob (H16 01), Ken S (Laser) and Steve/Carla (Tasar) with Mario running RC in a longer-than-normal course.
Set up
Last week, I had the jib tack attached to the bottom hole of the stay adjuster. The idea was to have the jib as far away from the mast as possible to reduce the chance of the batons getting caught on the wire halyard. Now that I found the clip I figured I could get the jib closer to the mast, and this might help some of my jib trimming issues. The jib got caught on the mast a couple of times during tacks, but letting the jib out when bringing it across mitigated that, and it would probably not be an issue in higher winds -- it's just a matter of paying attention. Airflow did seem better across jib.
Set up notes for next time -- second bottom hole seems right for light winds. Will have to look up whether to go "up" or "down" for heavier air.
As per last week's notes, we were better at moving the jib blocks along the tracks, which definitely made a difference.
Race 1:
I was skippering with Ken E on crew. Good start, just behind and to port of the monohulls. The start was in a gust, so even though Ken S could point better than us, we were able to cross him before we had to keep clear. S&C just took off, and the Tasar was going as fast as we were (and pointing better!) The cat's lack of pointing ability combined with a couple of unlucky headers and generally slowing wind speed meant we rounded in third, behind the monohulls but ahead of Tony.
We elected to point higher than normal on the reaching leg, trying to keep speed up. This also allowed us to defend against Tony and Rob. As we approached the leeward mark, we elected to head up and continue on port rather than tack. We accidentally discovered a patch of really good air to the right of the course. Contrary to what the landscape would suggest, this patch of air was both fast and was a bit of a lift. We were able to pull farther ahead of Tony/Rob, and eventually came in 3rd.
Race 2:
Ken E skippered this one. Steve and Carla took off for a sail, so this one was a three boat race. Start was decent, although Ken S won it. Pointing issues again took their tole in the low winds, and no one could touch Ken S. The reaching leg worked out a bit different this time. In even lower winds, we again pointed high to keep boat speed up. Tony pointed right at the mark, and the boats were exactly in line when we passed the gybe mark. I guess in these conditions, we were going about the same speed regardless of point of sail, so the shorter distance paid off for Tony.
The second reach was a good tactical move by Ken E. We were initially in Tony's wind shadow. As Tony pulled ahead, Ken headed up, and covered Tony. He then headed down and defended. We rounded leeward ahead of Tony, and again went to our "good air here" spot. A shortened course meant we finished at the windward mark, well ahead of Tony.
Lessons learned:
- The cat has a big sail, and can cover like anyone's business -- use it, especially in light air.
- In extremely light airs, if boat speed does not change with point then just point it at the mark
Light winds (<5 knots) with the occasional gust of up to 8-10 and no waves. Racing was Tony and Rob (H16 01), Ken S (Laser) and Steve/Carla (Tasar) with Mario running RC in a longer-than-normal course.
Set up
Last week, I had the jib tack attached to the bottom hole of the stay adjuster. The idea was to have the jib as far away from the mast as possible to reduce the chance of the batons getting caught on the wire halyard. Now that I found the clip I figured I could get the jib closer to the mast, and this might help some of my jib trimming issues. The jib got caught on the mast a couple of times during tacks, but letting the jib out when bringing it across mitigated that, and it would probably not be an issue in higher winds -- it's just a matter of paying attention. Airflow did seem better across jib.Set up notes for next time -- second bottom hole seems right for light winds. Will have to look up whether to go "up" or "down" for heavier air.
As per last week's notes, we were better at moving the jib blocks along the tracks, which definitely made a difference.
Race 1:
We elected to point higher than normal on the reaching leg, trying to keep speed up. This also allowed us to defend against Tony and Rob. As we approached the leeward mark, we elected to head up and continue on port rather than tack. We accidentally discovered a patch of really good air to the right of the course. Contrary to what the landscape would suggest, this patch of air was both fast and was a bit of a lift. We were able to pull farther ahead of Tony/Rob, and eventually came in 3rd.
Race 2:
Ken E skippered this one. Steve and Carla took off for a sail, so this one was a three boat race. Start was decent, although Ken S won it. Pointing issues again took their tole in the low winds, and no one could touch Ken S. The reaching leg worked out a bit different this time. In even lower winds, we again pointed high to keep boat speed up. Tony pointed right at the mark, and the boats were exactly in line when we passed the gybe mark. I guess in these conditions, we were going about the same speed regardless of point of sail, so the shorter distance paid off for Tony.
The second reach was a good tactical move by Ken E. We were initially in Tony's wind shadow. As Tony pulled ahead, Ken headed up, and covered Tony. He then headed down and defended. We rounded leeward ahead of Tony, and again went to our "good air here" spot. A shortened course meant we finished at the windward mark, well ahead of Tony.
Lessons learned:
- The cat has a big sail, and can cover like anyone's business -- use it, especially in light air.
- In extremely light airs, if boat speed does not change with point then just point it at the mark
Tuesday 11 August 2015
Log - Race night in Hobie 16 - Aug 10, 2015
Very light winds. Took 6-year-old (this week...) Hannah on Hobie 16 number 84. Race cancelled due to low winds, but went out anyway. Tony and Ron were out in Hobie 16 number 01 while Carla took a Laser.
As soon as we left shore (and RC went home) the wind picked up nicely. Hannah on jib, learning how the cleats and continuous line worked. While on the water, had my typical H16 tacking issue -- jib batons getting caught on the jib halyard. I noticed there was a clip on the port side of the mast, a few feet under the forestay attachment. It looks like it's meant to hold the halyards (jib and main) back from the front of the mast. I went into irons, gave the jib halyards a good pull and was able to clip it in place. AWESOME! No more issue tacking this thing.
Wind continued to increase. Spent most of the evening on beam reaching going back and forth to Quebec and back a few times. Hulls were humming and I was able to get out on the wire (we weren't flying a hull, but were still blasting along. The main looked good all night long, but the jib always seemed under trimmed. Will try playing with the position of the jib cars next time out to improve this.
A couple of times one of the rudders popped up, leading to massive weather helm. Apparently, some maintenance on the rudder assembly can mitigate this, especially adjusting spring tension. It seems involved though . May do this on upcoming duty day.
Lessons Learned
- clip halyards to prevent batons getting stuck
- see what we can do to improve jib trim
- perform maintenance on rudder assembly(?)
As soon as we left shore (and RC went home) the wind picked up nicely. Hannah on jib, learning how the cleats and continuous line worked. While on the water, had my typical H16 tacking issue -- jib batons getting caught on the jib halyard. I noticed there was a clip on the port side of the mast, a few feet under the forestay attachment. It looks like it's meant to hold the halyards (jib and main) back from the front of the mast. I went into irons, gave the jib halyards a good pull and was able to clip it in place. AWESOME! No more issue tacking this thing.
A couple of times one of the rudders popped up, leading to massive weather helm. Apparently, some maintenance on the rudder assembly can mitigate this, especially adjusting spring tension. It seems involved though . May do this on upcoming duty day.
Lessons Learned
- clip halyards to prevent batons getting stuck
- see what we can do to improve jib trim
- perform maintenance on rudder assembly(?)
Monday 10 August 2015
Log - Crewing Viper 640 at NCR, Aug 8-9, 2015
KSC's commodore (Mike) owns a share in a Viper 640 based at nearby NSC. He asked me (and KSC's head instructor, Emily) to crew for him in the National Capital Regatta at BYC this year. Oh, hell yes!
About the boat
The Viper 640 is a sportboat, 21 feet long plus a retractable spinnaker pole. It's 750lbs, including the 250lb bulb at the bottom of the retractable keel. It is typically raced with three people. I've never sailed this thing before, and I think that Emily had limited experience on it too, so it was going to be interesting to race.
Pre race and learning to sail this thing
Forecast called for very light airs.
Launching took about 20 minutes, and we decided to carry a motor (2.3HP) to get to the race course on time. Once reaching the race course, it was apparent that the RC wasn't going to start races any time soon, so we spent the time beating and getting familiar with each other and the boat (especially downwind). The thing was nicely rounded from the deck to the gunwale, making it much more comfortable than an Albacore, and more like a Tasar.
Upwind, Mike helmed and took the main sheet. If conditions called for Emily and I to be on opposite sides of the boat (VERY light air), we'd take turns handling the jib. Otherwise, I'd handle the jib, and Emily would call tactics. To compensate for the 50lb motor on the back, crew was typically as forward as was practical, trying to ensure that the chine was in the water.
Downwind, Emily took the tiller. The boat is set up to both launch and retrieve the spinnaker when on port tack, but apparently can be done on starboard as well (we never tried it...). The port-side favouritism allowed us to start the hoist as we were rounding the mark, rather than wait until we're past it. Mike raised the kite while I was ready to launch the pole (pull the line hard when he says "pole") and handle the spinnaker once it was up. My eyes were fixed on the leading edge while Mike took on tactics and managed the jib during gybes. Light airs made it tricky to keep the sail full, but it wasn't too bad.
Gybing the kite took a few tries to nail cleanly. Skipper would call for gybe, and crew would have to grab the opposite sheet, run across the boat and sheet in hand over hand as fast as humanly possible. Mike would uncleat and handle the jib as I had my hands full. Dousing was where I was glad I wore gloves. I'd uncleat the halyard, and Mike doused, while I guided the halyard through the block so it didn't get cleated accidentally. Burning leather smell as the line runs through my gloves! Once he calls "pole" I uncleat the pole extension line, and get on the jib.
First Race
We had a bad start, and ended up in slow, dirty air, with (what we later discovered later) were non-optimal sail controls. Particularly frustrating was the downwind -- the other boats could point a lot farther down than we could while keeping the kite full. Hmm. Based on a shortened course, we weren't sure where the finish line was, and had to pull a 360 and sail though an incoming Y-Flyer fleet to finish 4/4.
This was the one race we had on the Saturday, so back to BYC for BBQ steak and beer. Steve (Viper 211) pointed out that the spreaders looked swept too far back, and suggested using more blocks to rake the mast more.
Second Race
A bit more wind today (not much, but some...). First race we had a much better start, although the other boats still seemed to have more speed upwind. Mainsail ticklers were flowing backwards at top of sail -- some tuning definitely required (not enough twist, perhaps? Maybe less gnav and a looser leech would allow flow to attach better?) We noticed that the other boats were dropping their jib on the downwind, probably to help the kite fill better. We still were going slow on the downwind, but dropping the jib did seem to help pointing a bit. Again, confusion as to finish line location was frustrating, but didn't affect our final placement - 4/4
Third Race
Apparently we didn't sail the 3rd race. I'm 99% sure we ran 1 race Saturday and 3 Sunday, but the RC logs show 5 races total ran. I guess we missed this one? http://www.byc.ca/racing/results/NCR%202015/alpha.htm
Forth Race
After the 2nd race, Steve pointed out that we had a mainsail baton backwards on the previous downwind leg, and that our controls (especially outhaul) was way too tight. Keeping this in mind, we left the jib up (just focusing on pointing and watching the wind, and better controls). Those controls made a difference. Again, finished 4/4, but kept up with the other boats better, and at least we knew where the finish line was.
Forth Race
We started well, and we keeping up with the fleet on the first upwind. Eventually, we noticed that the other boats were footing as the wind slowed, trying to maintain boat speed. We copied this technique and it proved quite effective. On the downwind, we were now able to set the spinnaker efficiently with little communication and the timing was getting much tighter. We were now officially "in the pack" as the boat in front of us gybed to avoid our wind shadow. We were keeping up with the fleet a lot better, pointing much better and even gaining a bit now and then (before falling back). We lost some time on a sloppy douse at the leeward mark, but seemed to be doing excellent on the upwind leg (for an upwind finish on the shortened course). Placed 4/4, but it was the race of the day.
Downwind sail back to NSC was the most fun -- air picked up more and there was actually real pressure in the kite. The thing got going a real good clip. Would definitely sail again, ideally in about 10-12 knots.
Lessons learned
About the boat
The Viper 640 is a sportboat, 21 feet long plus a retractable spinnaker pole. It's 750lbs, including the 250lb bulb at the bottom of the retractable keel. It is typically raced with three people. I've never sailed this thing before, and I think that Emily had limited experience on it too, so it was going to be interesting to race.
Pre race and learning to sail this thing
Forecast called for very light airs.
Launching took about 20 minutes, and we decided to carry a motor (2.3HP) to get to the race course on time. Once reaching the race course, it was apparent that the RC wasn't going to start races any time soon, so we spent the time beating and getting familiar with each other and the boat (especially downwind). The thing was nicely rounded from the deck to the gunwale, making it much more comfortable than an Albacore, and more like a Tasar.
Upwind, Mike helmed and took the main sheet. If conditions called for Emily and I to be on opposite sides of the boat (VERY light air), we'd take turns handling the jib. Otherwise, I'd handle the jib, and Emily would call tactics. To compensate for the 50lb motor on the back, crew was typically as forward as was practical, trying to ensure that the chine was in the water.
Downwind, Emily took the tiller. The boat is set up to both launch and retrieve the spinnaker when on port tack, but apparently can be done on starboard as well (we never tried it...). The port-side favouritism allowed us to start the hoist as we were rounding the mark, rather than wait until we're past it. Mike raised the kite while I was ready to launch the pole (pull the line hard when he says "pole") and handle the spinnaker once it was up. My eyes were fixed on the leading edge while Mike took on tactics and managed the jib during gybes. Light airs made it tricky to keep the sail full, but it wasn't too bad.
Gybing the kite took a few tries to nail cleanly. Skipper would call for gybe, and crew would have to grab the opposite sheet, run across the boat and sheet in hand over hand as fast as humanly possible. Mike would uncleat and handle the jib as I had my hands full. Dousing was where I was glad I wore gloves. I'd uncleat the halyard, and Mike doused, while I guided the halyard through the block so it didn't get cleated accidentally. Burning leather smell as the line runs through my gloves! Once he calls "pole" I uncleat the pole extension line, and get on the jib.
First Race
We had a bad start, and ended up in slow, dirty air, with (what we later discovered later) were non-optimal sail controls. Particularly frustrating was the downwind -- the other boats could point a lot farther down than we could while keeping the kite full. Hmm. Based on a shortened course, we weren't sure where the finish line was, and had to pull a 360 and sail though an incoming Y-Flyer fleet to finish 4/4.
This was the one race we had on the Saturday, so back to BYC for BBQ steak and beer. Steve (Viper 211) pointed out that the spreaders looked swept too far back, and suggested using more blocks to rake the mast more.
Second Race
A bit more wind today (not much, but some...). First race we had a much better start, although the other boats still seemed to have more speed upwind. Mainsail ticklers were flowing backwards at top of sail -- some tuning definitely required (not enough twist, perhaps? Maybe less gnav and a looser leech would allow flow to attach better?) We noticed that the other boats were dropping their jib on the downwind, probably to help the kite fill better. We still were going slow on the downwind, but dropping the jib did seem to help pointing a bit. Again, confusion as to finish line location was frustrating, but didn't affect our final placement - 4/4
Third Race
Apparently we didn't sail the 3rd race. I'm 99% sure we ran 1 race Saturday and 3 Sunday, but the RC logs show 5 races total ran. I guess we missed this one? http://www.byc.ca/racing/results/NCR%202015/alpha.htm
Forth Race
After the 2nd race, Steve pointed out that we had a mainsail baton backwards on the previous downwind leg, and that our controls (especially outhaul) was way too tight. Keeping this in mind, we left the jib up (just focusing on pointing and watching the wind, and better controls). Those controls made a difference. Again, finished 4/4, but kept up with the other boats better, and at least we knew where the finish line was.
Forth Race
We started well, and we keeping up with the fleet on the first upwind. Eventually, we noticed that the other boats were footing as the wind slowed, trying to maintain boat speed. We copied this technique and it proved quite effective. On the downwind, we were now able to set the spinnaker efficiently with little communication and the timing was getting much tighter. We were now officially "in the pack" as the boat in front of us gybed to avoid our wind shadow. We were keeping up with the fleet a lot better, pointing much better and even gaining a bit now and then (before falling back). We lost some time on a sloppy douse at the leeward mark, but seemed to be doing excellent on the upwind leg (for an upwind finish on the shortened course). Placed 4/4, but it was the race of the day.
Downwind sail back to NSC was the most fun -- air picked up more and there was actually real pressure in the kite. The thing got going a real good clip. Would definitely sail again, ideally in about 10-12 knots.
Lessons learned
- BRING GLOVES!
- Watch the main sail batons, make sure they pop in light air
- Dropping the jib may help downwind a bit in light air, but proper control settings and spinnaker setting more important. Maybe practice jib lowering once the rest can be done without thinking too much. Unknown if dropping jib would help in medium or higher air.
- Controls - outhaul is huge. Especially on the downwinds. Cunninham didn't have as much an effect, and we didn't play with the gnav much. Some experimenting is definitely required, especially if the mast rake is altered as per Steve's recommendations.
- Boat seemed to accelerate better with a bit of leeward heel, but held the speed better when flat. Not knowing sportboats/keelboats, I'm under the impression that this is normal, but I may be mis-interpretting the data.
Tuesday 4 August 2015
Log - Race Night - Aug 3, 2015
Forecast: Winds from W, ~11 gusting to 17
Observed: Quite strong initially (steady 12-15) although not particularity gusty. As the night went on, base wind slowed, but gusts continued to the mid-high teens
One of the bigger turnouts so far this year. Mike T, Ken S and I in Lasers, Ken E and Corrine (and Leopold) in an Albacore, Tony and Annie in a H16. Emily and her boyfriend Kyle were gogint to take a Tasar to do a rabbit start, but ended up doing RC instead. Course was set a bit askew, and starboard tack was favoured.
First race: Won the start convincingly, with Mike behind me and to lee, and with Ken E behind to windward in the Albacore. The Albacore unfortunately had me trapped a bit, as he was a bit faster upwind, and could point higher, meaning I couldn't tack onto port, as I'd smack into him. Eventually, he tacked, and I tacked immediately, leaving Mike and Ken S to continue along on starboard.
Rounded 1st, with the Kens behind. Was able to defend quite well while they went high on the reach, I was able to point a bit lower. Was passed by the H16 absolutely flying on the second reaching leg but it got stuck in irons as it rounded leeward mark.
Upwind went fine, although Ken S caught some lifts and caught up. I was able to ride a good gust near the leeward mark which pushed me ahead of Ken, but then the badness happened.
The traveller got stuck on the gybe. I was able to round the mark but got caught with no way to turn the boat. I fouled Ken S as he came around and we both capsized. We got up, and I sailed away a bit to do my turns. Got stuck again after the 1st tack and fouled him a second time (although he didn't capsize at that point, I did). Apparently Ken E fell out of his boat, and Mike T fouled the mark watching and laughing at us. I finished 4th behind Ken S, Mike T and Ken E (I'm not sure what order) but beat the cat.
Second race: Good start, clear of the Albacore this time. Mike T was on my tail for a bit, but I tacked and he didn't. Later on he apparently had to retire to fix his boat (he kept getting caught in the sheet as the fairlead was broken). Ken S capsized on the 1st reaching leg, and I was able to keep distance between myself and Ken E on all legs, for the win.
Third race: Bad start. I thought Mike T had it, but apparently he was OCS. Ken S, Ken E and I all started poorly, with Ken S doing the best. I was behind Ken S all through the race, when (on the downwind leg) the race was called on account of lightning. Would likely have finished 2nd behind him.
Lessons learned: Gybes were the tough part today. Work on those, especially getting traveller unstuck. I taped up the traveller a bit after I got on shore, so hopefully that works better now. Also, I could have done a better job playing the shifts.
Observed: Quite strong initially (steady 12-15) although not particularity gusty. As the night went on, base wind slowed, but gusts continued to the mid-high teens
One of the bigger turnouts so far this year. Mike T, Ken S and I in Lasers, Ken E and Corrine (and Leopold) in an Albacore, Tony and Annie in a H16. Emily and her boyfriend Kyle were gogint to take a Tasar to do a rabbit start, but ended up doing RC instead. Course was set a bit askew, and starboard tack was favoured.
First race: Won the start convincingly, with Mike behind me and to lee, and with Ken E behind to windward in the Albacore. The Albacore unfortunately had me trapped a bit, as he was a bit faster upwind, and could point higher, meaning I couldn't tack onto port, as I'd smack into him. Eventually, he tacked, and I tacked immediately, leaving Mike and Ken S to continue along on starboard.
Rounded 1st, with the Kens behind. Was able to defend quite well while they went high on the reach, I was able to point a bit lower. Was passed by the H16 absolutely flying on the second reaching leg but it got stuck in irons as it rounded leeward mark.
Upwind went fine, although Ken S caught some lifts and caught up. I was able to ride a good gust near the leeward mark which pushed me ahead of Ken, but then the badness happened.
The traveller got stuck on the gybe. I was able to round the mark but got caught with no way to turn the boat. I fouled Ken S as he came around and we both capsized. We got up, and I sailed away a bit to do my turns. Got stuck again after the 1st tack and fouled him a second time (although he didn't capsize at that point, I did). Apparently Ken E fell out of his boat, and Mike T fouled the mark watching and laughing at us. I finished 4th behind Ken S, Mike T and Ken E (I'm not sure what order) but beat the cat.
Second race: Good start, clear of the Albacore this time. Mike T was on my tail for a bit, but I tacked and he didn't. Later on he apparently had to retire to fix his boat (he kept getting caught in the sheet as the fairlead was broken). Ken S capsized on the 1st reaching leg, and I was able to keep distance between myself and Ken E on all legs, for the win.
Third race: Bad start. I thought Mike T had it, but apparently he was OCS. Ken S, Ken E and I all started poorly, with Ken S doing the best. I was behind Ken S all through the race, when (on the downwind leg) the race was called on account of lightning. Would likely have finished 2nd behind him.
Lessons learned: Gybes were the tough part today. Work on those, especially getting traveller unstuck. I taped up the traveller a bit after I got on shore, so hopefully that works better now. Also, I could have done a better job playing the shifts.
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