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The Third race on Saturday was blowing pretty well. We, Eileen and I were on the left side of the line to get a clean start. The problem with this is that we all should be going to the right. We had to wait a bit to tack to port. Steve Myrter was on the right side first and led around the weather mark. There were three other boats including us, Jeff Petron, sailing with Tom Bedford, and Steve Leo. Leo did mention that he was really excited about getting Jeff Fortuna back on his boat and now we see why. I asked Eileen to give the information about when she would be ready to jibe. We were almost on our ear after the maneuver but were able to get out of there before anyone else and we were hoping just to cover the fleet from there on…wishful thinking. It was a long three laps and we were always trying to figure if there was a boat going faster/deeper downwind or outpointing us upwind. Keith Christensen with his brother Curt met us at the leeward mark and Jeff Petron was right with them. I think that Keith had to give Jeff room to round. Keith tacked off then came back to sail in clean air. He sails higher than we do and we just have to get the boat moving fast. We were able to keep the positions in almost that order to the end, Us, Keith then Jeff. At this point I have to mention that Steve Leo was not willing to go down as he came in with a four.
The fourth and last race of Saturday was still a blow. Eileen and I were still just looking to get off the line without too much trouble so we again picked the leeward side of the line. We were being challenged this time from Scott Miller and Dennis Key, sailing with Stephano Guiliani, from Italy. By the time we could tack port we were out in the middle…did I mention that the right was paying? Steve Myrter again was the first boat right. We were looking at coming onto the starboard line and having to deal with Myrter, and about three other boats. I cannot even remember who they were or maybe I never knew. We knew that Myrter had a problem with his start, OCS, but he did not. We were glad they decided that time to call a number as we were also close. Dave Sparkuhl thought he was it, until after jibing he heard the number (345). Myrter later flipped and retired from the race anyway. Eileen, tired as she was, really comes alive in the wind. We were sailing really well as were Keith and Curt. The last time to the weather mark Keith tacked off behind us and we were trying to decide our move. The fleet was well back so it would be hard for them to catch the two of us. He tacked off about half way up the port leg. It was really windy and we were thinking that he may be trying to get in a tacking duel with us. I thought that if we tacked to cover he would come back to the favored side and that would make us have to come back. I wanted to save Eileen in case we were going to have another race so we just went to the right all the way. It paid and we were able to get another ten boat lengths on Keith to make it a nice ride downwind to the finish line. Steve Leo was in third.
At the end of the day it looked as though there were two sailors out in front, us and Steve Leo, but that did not tell the story as there was no throwout in consideration. Take a race out and the top five were about five to six points apart. Not enough to relax.
There was a burger bash at the club Saturday night, looking out over the bay with a gentle breeze and a warm evening. Very pleasant. After the food Mike Montague put on a chalk talk for the Hobie 16 sailors. This was a combination regatta/guest expert seminar for them.
On Sunday morning the race committee mentioned to me that they thought it would be more wind than it was on Saturday as is was a bit cooler on the water.
The first race on Sunday was almost exactly the same as it was on Saturday but there was no freighter on the edge of the course that the race committee had to deal with. That meant that we could move the course out a bit more also getting away from the kite boarders.
Eileen and I got around the weather mark in about third with Dave Sparkuhl, remember the light wind lessons from him, in first and Sandra Tartaglino, sailing with Peter Ney in second. We followed Dave and Sandra to the beach while most of the others went outside. Dave came back in the middle and we followed. Sandra cleared the island and went in hard. The outside boats caught up to Dave and devoured us. When we were all at the leeward mark Sandra was way ahead. She was able to keep that position and Dave was back to sailing his light wind race by taking second. Keith was able to finally put a light wind race together by taking the third.
The second race was starting to get windy and Eileen mentioned that we needed to do what we did yesterday and shine in these conditions. We decided that since our luck was good on the left side of the start line we would continue to keep it there. Usual suspects were there, Scott and Dennis, but Paul Perizeau sailing with Roger Jenkins decided to join us there. Again we had to wait for a bit to get to the right side of the course. Paul was a little high of us and we decided to tack and take his stern. I was waiting for him to tack on us but he did not. We had a bit more pressure than the early tackers and were able to get to the weather mark in first. We were followed by Sparkuhl. Both teams went to the beach early. We did not want to overstand the leeward mark in these conditions and jibed early. Dave went a bit further and was able to be in the same wind with flatter water. He caught up to us near the mark. We jibed for the mark and were about to duck him. There was miscommunication as he thought that we would make it above him he said “Go!” I did not hear that over Eileen saying “Take his stern!” It was very close as we just made it behind with our hull way out of the water from being overpowered. Dave was very nice as we were rounding very closely. We were discussing what happened, when Steve Leo came into the party. Three of us rounding so close we could whisper to each other. I think that Steve tacked off and Dave and I went to the starboard layline. Eileen and I were the front boat around the last weather mark and were able to keep that position to the finish. Dave went a bit too far, but Steve Leo having a good time really overstood the finish. I think he took his chute down before the end and that is how Jeff Petron got him.
The third race and the last race of the regatta was blowing maybe the hardest. Dave came by me before the race and, referring to an earlier conversation, asked “Is this when you depower using rotation?” We kept with the same start that was working for us. Steve Myrter was still fighting hard for the weather mark, and winning, so he could get to the right. Coming up the starboard layline we were looking for the starboard threats seeing that Steve Myrter was going to be one, yet again. Unfortunately for him, he broke the head out of his sail about the time he tacked for the mark. The boats very near as we rounded were Paul and Keith. Rounding three abreast, Paul inside Keith outside, and us and the middle of that sandwich. Clean rounding, set, and we are off! Eileen and I are feeling very comfortable in these conditions and just sailed without trying anything too radical. We also knew that our nearest competitors were Steve Leo and Dave Sparkuhl. We just kept our eyes on the boats that were the nearest threat. When we got on the second lap we were just sailing for fun and really not pushing it. We had a good lead and did not want to take the plunge that so many were willing to take. Dave had to go in because his forstay came loose. We had Paul and Keith pretty close to us but we were not too worried even if they decided to press harder. Neither was in the overall picture threatening us. We were able to get the win on that one as well. Paul took the two and Keith in third.
We were thankful when the race committee said “That was the last race. Go home.” Eileen was worked. I have to mention what a great time it is to sail with someone who can compete at that level. She is a trooper.
The real battle turned out to be for third through fifth. There was only two point difference between all of them (23,24,25) after seven races.
I also want to mention that Kirk Wells was there sailing with Debbie Brown.
Results are at:
http://www.abyc.org/2005REGATTAS/MULTIHULL/results2005MultiHull.htm
Thank you for listening,
Dan DeLave
Articles: Formula 18 West Coast Championships
By Dan DeLave
I wanted to talk about the weekends regatta but first I would like to point out that there seems to be an increasing understanding that since the yacht clubs are running more regattas these days for multihulls there are more yacht club members in our ranks. For example 8 of the 11 entries in the Formula 18 event are members of yacht clubs. There are also sailing associations that are worth looking into if there is a monetary concern. Pick one that is a member of the Southern California Yachting Association. This will open up even more events to multihulls.
This weekends regatta started off with a threat of a high pressure system hanging over or near the Long Beach event. That would not be good for the typically good conditions that most people come to the event for. That high pressure system either did not fully materialize or went away somewhere.
The noon start saw about 5 MPH of breeze and most of the boats made it to the starting line on time. Dave Sparkuhl, sailing with Karen Christensen, was giving lessons to the Formula 18 group on how to sail in that light breeze. He took the lead and kept finding ways to increase boat lengths to finish in a comfortable first. Followed by Steve Leo then Jeff Petron.
The second race was a bit more breeze but still on the light side. This time Steve Leo, sailing with Jeff Fortuna, got the best of Steve Myrter, sailing with Shauna Kinney, who were leading most of the race. Eileen and I were in third with little hope, early on, of catching them. We were only hoping that Scott Miller with his daughter, Allisa did not put it all together before the end of the race.I wanted to talk about the weekends regatta but first I would like to point out that there seems to be an increasing understanding that since the yacht clubs are running more regattas these days for multihulls there are more yacht club members in our ranks. For example 8 of the 11 entries in the Formula 18 event are members of yacht clubs. There are also sailing associations that are worth looking into if there is a monetary concern. Pick one that is a member of the Southern California Yachting Association. This will open up even more events to multihulls.
This weekends regatta started off with a threat of a high pressure system hanging over or near the Long Beach event. That would not be good for the typically good conditions that most people come to the event for. That high pressure system either did not fully materialize or went away somewhere.
The noon start saw about 5 MPH of breeze and most of the boats made it to the starting line on time. Dave Sparkuhl, sailing with Karen Christensen, was giving lessons to the Formula 18 group on how to sail in that light breeze. He took the lead and kept finding ways to increase boat lengths to finish in a comfortable first. Followed by Steve Leo then Jeff Petron.
The Third race on Saturday was blowing pretty well. We, Eileen and I were on the left side of the line to get a clean start. The problem with this is that we all should be going to the right. We had to wait a bit to tack to port. Steve Myrter was on the right side first and led around the weather mark. There were three other boats including us, Jeff Petron, sailing with Tom Bedford, and Steve Leo. Leo did mention that he was really excited about getting Jeff Fortuna back on his boat and now we see why. I asked Eileen to give the information about when she would be ready to jibe. We were almost on our ear after the maneuver but were able to get out of there before anyone else and we were hoping just to cover the fleet from there on…wishful thinking. It was a long three laps and we were always trying to figure if there was a boat going faster/deeper downwind or outpointing us upwind. Keith Christensen with his brother Curt met us at the leeward mark and Jeff Petron was right with them. I think that Keith had to give Jeff room to round. Keith tacked off then came back to sail in clean air. He sails higher than we do and we just have to get the boat moving fast. We were able to keep the positions in almost that order to the end, Us, Keith then Jeff. At this point I have to mention that Steve Leo was not willing to go down as he came in with a four.
The fourth and last race of Saturday was still a blow. Eileen and I were still just looking to get off the line without too much trouble so we again picked the leeward side of the line. We were being challenged this time from Scott Miller and Dennis Key, sailing with Stephano Guiliani, from Italy. By the time we could tack port we were out in the middle…did I mention that the right was paying? Steve Myrter again was the first boat right. We were looking at coming onto the starboard line and having to deal with Myrter, and about three other boats. I cannot even remember who they were or maybe I never knew. We knew that Myrter had a problem with his start, OCS, but he did not. We were glad they decided that time to call a number as we were also close. Dave Sparkuhl thought he was it, until after jibing he heard the number (345). Myrter later flipped and retired from the race anyway. Eileen, tired as she was, really comes alive in the wind. We were sailing really well as were Keith and Curt. The last time to the weather mark Keith tacked off behind us and we were trying to decide our move. The fleet was well back so it would be hard for them to catch the two of us. He tacked off about half way up the port leg. It was really windy and we were thinking that he may be trying to get in a tacking duel with us. I thought that if we tacked to cover he would come back to the favored side and that would make us have to come back. I wanted to save Eileen in case we were going to have another race so we just went to the right all the way. It paid and we were able to get another ten boat lengths on Keith to make it a nice ride downwind to the finish line. Steve Leo was in third.
At the end of the day it looked as though there were two sailors out in front, us and Steve Leo, but that did not tell the story as there was no throwout in consideration. Take a race out and the top five were about five to six points apart. Not enough to relax.
There was a burger bash at the club Saturday night, looking out over the bay with a gentle breeze and a warm evening. Very pleasant. After the food Mike Montague put on a chalk talk for the Hobie 16 sailors. This was a combination regatta/guest expert seminar for them.
On Sunday morning the race committee mentioned to me that they thought it would be more wind than it was on Saturday as is was a bit cooler on the water.
The first race on Sunday was almost exactly the same as it was on Saturday but there was no freighter on the edge of the course that the race committee had to deal with. That meant that we could move the course out a bit more also getting away from the kite boarders.
Eileen and I got around the weather mark in about third with Dave Sparkuhl, remember the light wind lessons from him, in first and Sandra Tartaglino, sailing with Peter Ney in second. We followed Dave and Sandra to the beach while most of the others went outside. Dave came back in the middle and we followed. Sandra cleared the island and went in hard. The outside boats caught up to Dave and devoured us. When we were all at the leeward mark Sandra was way ahead. She was able to keep that position and Dave was back to sailing his light wind race by taking second. Keith was able to finally put a light wind race together by taking the third.
The second race was starting to get windy and Eileen mentioned that we needed to do what we did yesterday and shine in these conditions. We decided that since our luck was good on the left side of the start line we would continue to keep it there. Usual suspects were there, Scott and Dennis, but Paul Perizeau sailing with Roger Jenkins decided to join us there. Again we had to wait for a bit to get to the right side of the course. Paul was a little high of us and we decided to tack and take his stern. I was waiting for him to tack on us but he did not. We had a bit more pressure than the early tackers and were able to get to the weather mark in first. We were followed by Sparkuhl. Both teams went to the beach early. We did not want to overstand the leeward mark in these conditions and jibed early. Dave went a bit further and was able to be in the same wind with flatter water. He caught up to us near the mark. We jibed for the mark and were about to duck him. There was miscommunication as he thought that we would make it above him he said “Go!” I did not hear that over Eileen saying “Take his stern!” It was very close as we just made it behind with our hull way out of the water from being overpowered. Dave was very nice as we were rounding very closely. We were discussing what happened, when Steve Leo came into the party. Three of us rounding so close we could whisper to each other. I think that Steve tacked off and Dave and I went to the starboard layline. Eileen and I were the front boat around the last weather mark and were able to keep that position to the finish. Dave went a bit too far, but Steve Leo having a good time really overstood the finish. I think he took his chute down before the end and that is how Jeff Petron got him.
The third race and the last race of the regatta was blowing maybe the hardest. Dave came by me before the race and, referring to an earlier conversation, asked “Is this when you depower using rotation?” We kept with the same start that was working for us. Steve Myrter was still fighting hard for the weather mark, and winning, so he could get to the right. Coming up the starboard layline we were looking for the starboard threats seeing that Steve Myrter was going to be one, yet again. Unfortunately for him, he broke the head out of his sail about the time he tacked for the mark. The boats very near as we rounded were Paul and Keith. Rounding three abreast, Paul inside Keith outside, and us and the middle of that sandwich. Clean rounding, set, and we are off! Eileen and I are feeling very comfortable in these conditions and just sailed without trying anything too radical. We also knew that our nearest competitors were Steve Leo and Dave Sparkuhl. We just kept our eyes on the boats that were the nearest threat. When we got on the second lap we were just sailing for fun and really not pushing it. We had a good lead and did not want to take the plunge that so many were willing to take. Dave had to go in because his forstay came loose. We had Paul and Keith pretty close to us but we were not too worried even if they decided to press harder. Neither was in the overall picture threatening us. We were able to get the win on that one as well. Paul took the two and Keith in third.
We were thankful when the race committee said “That was the last race. Go home.” Eileen was worked. I have to mention what a great time it is to sail with someone who can compete at that level. She is a trooper.
The real battle turned out to be for third through fifth. There was only two point difference between all of them (23,24,25) after seven races.
I also want to mention that Kirk Wells was there sailing with Debbie Brown.
Results are at:
http://www.abyc.org/2005REGATTAS/MULTIHULL/results2005MultiHull.htm
Thank you for listening,
Dan DeLave
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