June Club Sail

Departure: 1:00pm
Return: 4:30pm
Weather conditions: Partly Cloudy and strong wind
Tide: flood
Boat: Red Club Boat
Crew: 3 (Woody, Paul & Greg)

I thought for kicks, I'd use a different format. It might make you feel like you're getting something new in this post. Let's face it; these club sails are all generally the same. I'm sure I've said it before; you can only sail so far in a 4 hour block of time. Thus, the accounts of the club sails will rarely cover anything different. And thus, cheap tricks like centered text to stimulate the mind.

And yet.... This time was so awesome! You can see from the picture how blue the skies were, and how white the clouds. The wind was warm and brisk, and with the tide flood just reaching it's ebb, we were masters of the sea. We could go where we wanted, when we wanted. Add to that the fact that both club boats were out - that's right both boats - and you have a nice outting.

We had six members show up for the sail which is why Dave let us take both boats out. I went with Paul and his guest Greg in the red boat while Tom, Carol and a new member, whose name I can't recall, went in the blue boat. We agreed before we left that we'd have a race or two. Because our main was slightly larger than theirs, we chose our smaller jib in order to be fair.

These races were much more exciting than my previous races. Now we had two equally matched boats with two equally matched crews. This was going to be a contest of skill and wit, and I was ready. We chose our marks and set our start times. It's important to understand how critical the start of a sailboat race is (something I don't think my crew appreciated). If the skills and boats are closely matched, the start can make or break the race. The trick is to be crossing the line as fast as possible right when the horn blows without crossing too soon. If you cross too soon, you are penalized.

We had a good start, but they were first. It wasn't long, however, before passed them eventually beating them by a good margin. They made a tactical error on the upward leg, and we were the superior sailors of the hour. We had a second race as well. The crew wanted to give them a head start to be nice so we did. They ended up beating us, but I think it would have been very close if we'd started the race properly. Still, one win each left everyone feeling happy so we agreed to "race" out of the harbor.


What can I say? Again, we dominated. We kept the lead until the very mouth of the harbor when the wind completely died on us. The other boat lost patience after just a short while and cranked up the motor; but, it was their loss. As soon as they motored past, the wind came back and we sailed out of the harbor about as fast as they motored out. Once outside the harbor we gave chase for a while. I have to admit it was thrilling to overtake them. We caught up enough to offer them donuts, but they declined and we went our separate ways.

I have to say a bit about heeling. The boat heels when it tips because of the wind working on the sails. When the boat is sailing close to the wind, it heels the most. The point of sail closest to the wind also tends to feel the most exhilerating and fast. This is because 1) the boat is heeling so there's a sense of alarm 2) the boat is cutting into the waves causing spray and splash 3) the apparent wind is felt directly on the fast. The apparent wind is the combination of the natural wind and the movement of the sailboat through the wind. This is great fun, but it leads to a point of confusion. Inexperienced sailors can often mistake the heeling for sailing action i.e. "if we're heeling more, we must be sailing faster or sailing closer to the wind". This is not the case. The truth is, a poorly trimmed boat can heel just as well as a properly trimmed boat. It is inefficient and even dangerous to heel the boat excessively just to heel the boat.

The reason for my rant? I like to trim the sails for maximum speed and not for heel and sometimes I get annoyed when I sail with others who differ. Enough said.

All in all, it was a great sail.

3rd Times a charm or 3 Strikes You're Out

Departure: 1:00pm 6/2/2007
Return: 5:00pm
Weather conditions: Blue and Breezy
Tide: Flood
Boat: Wee Blow
Crew: 2 (Woody, Rob & Aubrey-Anne)

Hmmmm. For some reason, this has been a really hard post to get out. I'm not sure what the problem is. It's now been 3 weeks since the event and, well, here I am; still writing.

From the title you can probably guess that I participated in my 3rd (and final ever) dinghy race. I used my homemade boat, the Wee Blow, again, and I lost miserably, again. I've accepted the fact that my boat is not fast enough to compete in these races which is why it was the last race. I'm satisfied though. I had a goal to compete with my boat in the Maritime race and I did.

The Maritime Regatta (confusing term for sailboat race) is one of the events in the Gig Harbor Maritime festival; a great festival full of activities, food and a spirited small-town parade. I watched the parade with my children and their friends in the morning. At noon I handed the kids off to Monica and set out for my racing adventure.

My friend Rob raced with me. The boat is easier to manage with two people as it is rigged now. I was also hoping we could trim the boat a bit more evenly with a better distribution of weight. Rob was excited because he'd never participated in a sailing race before. Depending on how you look at it, you could say he still hasn't :).

The weather for the race and the festival could not have been better. The temperature was in the 80's with a pleasant warm breeze. Comfortable enough for the landlubbers yet windy enough for the sailors. The skies were blue with the occasional puffy white cloud, and the air was festive.

We registered for the race and practiced without incident. I was really glad I'd participated in the other two races. I felt much more relaxed and we made a good start when the horn blew. That was about all we had to feel good about though. The other boats quickly left us behind as we tacked toward the first buoy. In fact, two smaller boats (8 feet) started the race late and still passed us to finish much sooner. Yet we pressed on.

We couldn't tack as close to the wind, nor as fast, but we made progress. It was fun to pass the festival, which is on the waters front. People milled about, and we could hear the band playing, and smell the foods cooking on the grills. I felt like we were in the middle of it all even though most of the landlubbers aren't even aware that there's a race going on.

We continued past the festival and started to find our groove. We even started gaining a little on the second to last boat. We were doing pretty good until we were just short of the first buoy. And then... I can't explain what happened next. All of a sudden we couldn't control the boat. It was tacking when we didn't want to tack, and the helm wasn't responding. It was very frustrating to have gotten so close and then flounder such as we were. We eventually straightened out and rounded the buoy, but we'd lost any ground we'd gained earlier. We were the undisputed losers.

I think it was at this point that Rob was realizing what a time commitment a sailboat race can be. He tactfully wondered if we could be dropped off early. I was determined to finish the race, and a stop would only make our loss more acute. A lesser man may have enjoyed tormenting him by dragging out the race, but, being a better man, I didn't see the point. I suggested I drop him off at the city dock which we would be passing anyway; the dock is dock is right on the park where the festival was as well.


The dock rode low in the water, and not quite level, from all the people standing on it. We headed for the loading/unloading zone at the end which is always clear of boats. This is the moment of the day which amazes me the most because there is no way Monica and I could ever have planned a meeting like this. As we pulled up to the dock there was Rob's family waiting for him and there was my family waiting for me. You would think it was all well planned, but it was all complete coincidence. I traded Rob for Aubrey-Anne, said hello to everyone and then took off to finish the race.

The beautiful schooner under full sail caught our eye and tempted us to give chase (ha), but we stuck with it. We'd have time to deal with the Amazing Grace later; and we did. We finished the race just as everyone else was getting ready to start the second race. The judge boat gave us a cheer which I appreciated. I don't think it was in mockery; they knew who we were from the previous races and had been very encouraging.

With the race finished, we left our shame behind with all speed, and went in search of the Grace. She isn't hard to find in our little harbor, and we had a couple of nice passes with her before we parted ways. I enjoyed having Aubrey-Anne on board; she acted as figurehead and photographer and generally kept me company.

The rest of the day was just as nice as the first. We stowed the boat and walked over to the festival where we met family and friends, had some snacks and headed home.

All in all it was a great day. Enjoy Aubrey's pictures.