It was a beautiful fall day that greeted us as we got boats ready for racing on Sunday. Sunny with puffy clouds that brought puffy winds. The breeze was mostly out of the Northwest 4-11kts with some gusts, but the shifts were big. From the Committee boat we noted that the big puffs came down from the north in a right shift, and the lulls sometimes came from due west. It looked like, for the most part, it paid to protect the right side for the puffs (Although sometimes that would prove to be a mistake). We set up a long WL course and got started on time. My course was maybe a bit too long since the race took just a little over an hour to finish. For the second race we shortened up, and maybe got it too short since that race was finished in about 35 minutes. So we adjusted once again splitting the difference and this time got it right, and got two more races at about 45 minutes each. We finished the last race down wind at the leeward mark to give the racers a head start for home. In all ten Lightnings (Add three more who were on RC for a season record thirteen Lightnings on the water), Four Albacores, Four Cats, and two Buccaneers came out to play on what might be the most beautiful day of the Fall Series. We also had two Lasers show up for the last race (177053 & 173175), which was won by 177053. The rest of the scores after the break:
Tag Archives: Albacore Class
Fall Series #1 Results
The forecast was grim: 0-3 from everywhere… Most of the boats had to be towed up to the course… It wasn’t looking good at all… Then all of a sudden a breeze came up and we sailed. The mostly Lightning RC (Thanks for joining us Wilda), headed up by Frank Gallagher, quickly set up a nice Olympic course for us and got 3 races in before calling it a day. The breeze slowly built to 5-10 knots and came generally out of the NW with some big left and right shifts through the afternoon. In fact one such shift occurred during the start sequence in the first race forcing the entire Lightning fleet to start on port tack. On the course you were in big trouble if you got caught on the wrong end of one of those shifts. In all 9 Lightnings, 4 Albacores, 4 Buccaneers, 2 Cats, and 1 lone Laser came out to play on what turned out to be a terrific day. Scores after the break:
2012 President’s/Leukemia Cup: What A Blast!
Saturday saw breezes of 15-20 kts with gusts to 30. Rigs came down, boats were upside down, and crews were swimming. Thankfully everybody made it through safe and sound and we were all on shore when the storm front (with 50+ kt winds!) hit. Unfortunately, that storm meant that the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society had to shut down the party before fundraising and racing awards were handed out and before the raffle and silent auction winners were announced. We’ll pass along updated information from the LLS as soon as we receive it, including any information concerning prizes or awards you may have won if you were fundraising for LLS.
Sunday ended up being a gorgeous day with a 10-12 kt NW breeze, wonderful sunshine, and great racing. The RC did a great job in getting us four races and we all enjoyed a nice BBQ after the racing. Make sure to post your own comments and recollections from the weekend below!
Spring Series #8 Results
It was a crazy day on the river last Sunday. Don’t like the wind direction? Just wait a minute, it will change. Don’t like the velocity? That too will change! Sheesh! Len Guenther and the Lasers did a nice job with what they had and got 4 races off for the 8 Lightnings, 4 Albacores, 3 Cats, and 2 Buccaneers that came out for the punishment I mean fun. Here are the scores:
Spring Series #7 Results
Another week and another wild and wacky day on the Potomac. The forecast this week was NE 5-10 and partly cloudy skies. Anyone who was down at the marina on Saturday would have been more likely to expect variable 0 – 3, which were the conditions that day. What did we get Sunday? ENE – NE – E 10-15 with gusts later in the day in the low 20’s. At least they got the partly cloudy right! In fact, on the way up to the race course, my crew and I noted that half the sky was absolutely clear, and the other half was totally cloudy. That makes partly cloudy I guess… Anyway, if you were out there on Sunday you were sure to have a good time. The RC made up in brains what they lacked in man power, which was a good thing since only three people showed up to run races. WHAT IS UP WITH THAT?!? Jim Graham did a great job for us racers, setting up a WL course in the mouth of the Annacostia, and getting off four good races before sending everyone home. Eight Lightnings, two Albacores, and four Cats came out to play on this great day. Here are the scores:
Spring Series #4 Results
Well it was a nice day at least… Sunday came with sunny skies and a forecast of 5-10 from the Northwest. Sounds perfect doesn’t it? Would have been if the breeze (and I use that term loosely) had ever once come from the NW. Instead we got 0-4 from almost every other direction on the compass. The pain factor was very high. Eight Lightnings, five Cats, two Bucc’s, and a lone Albacore came out for the fun and games. The Race Committee, headed by Mike Heinsdorf did the best they could under the circumstances – hats off for a valiant effort – and got two races in before showing mercy to the drifting masses and sending them home. Here are the scores:
Spring Series #1 & #2 Scores
I was out of town for the first Spring Series day, so I am a little behind in posting these scores. This past weekend was great, and if you missed it, well you missed it. Temps were in the low 80’s and the winds were south 10-15. Conditions don’t get better than that on our river. The Race Committee for week 2 was ably headed up by Bob Astrove and a mostly Lightning crew of assistants. It was nice to see Bill Buck out there lending a hand as well. 6 Lightnings, 5 Albacores, 4 Hobies, and 4 Buccaneers came out to play and were all glad they did. Scores after the break:
Fall Series #8 Results
Wow, what a way to end the season. 8 Lightnings, 5 Albacores, and 2 Bucc’s came out to play on our last day of the Fall Series, and what a day it turned out to be. Winds were SW 14-21 with a few gusts over 30. Most of the afternoon the wind stayed up in the 20 range so it was exciting out there. We got 4 races in before crying uncle and the Race Committee, headed up by yours truly, was kept busy with multiple capsizes and a couple of broken boats. Pat McGee broke his rudder in the third race, and one of the Albacores (Can’t remember who) broke his Jib Halyard(?). We anchored the 2 of them while we got 1 more race in for the die hards. We then towed the wounded sailors back to the docks and put the boats away for the last time this season. Here are the scores:
And here are some pictures taken by James Vavricek while on RC at the windward mark:
https://picasaweb.google.com/111908965227869597659/DropBox?authkey=Gv1sRgCM6GxIb3tN7migE#5674913539383060162
Fall Series #7: Another spectacular day of racing!
Fall Series #7 was another great day on the river, with 4 races and a good turnout all around. It was predominantly a Lightning affair, with 10 boats showing up to race. A couple of Bucs and Albacors also came out to play, and with all fleets starting together we had a lively starting line and good racing all day long. I’ve included my observations from the Lightning perspective below. Keep reading for all of the details and, as always, be sure to contribute your own comments and recollections!
Continue reading Fall Series #7: Another spectacular day of racing!
Fall Series #6 & #7 Results
I was out of reach last week, so I have scores for both weeks here. This past Sunday was a nice day for racing. Breeze from the NW when we got out there, but after a 40 minute lull a really nice southerly came up. Here are some comments from Yates, our PRO:
Fall Series No. 7 was a pleasant day on the water this late in the year with lots of sun and with moderate winds in the 5-8 range most of the day. For the first race, the wind was generally from the East but it died, so we shortened course. Then new wind came in from the southwest and during the day gradually moved to a more southerly direction. With the tide coming in all day, there was plenty of water for the later races.
At the Skippers’ Meeting, the consensus was to start all classes together which we did. So there was a long start line with Lightnings, Albacores and Bucaneers all jockeying for positions but being conservative, so the only over early boats all day were several in the final race, the fourth race.
Early on, we noted that the classes spread out a lot, so for the last two races, we favored somewhat shorter courses to help lessen the lag between the first finisher and the last finishers and therefore the wait time until the next race start, also mindful that we wanted to get everyone heading home a bit early because of the loss of an hour of daylight.
Here are the results:
Week #6 Results:
Week #7 Results: