The Albacore Fleet is holding its National Championship this weekend and PRSA is hosting. Therefore, there will be no Fall Series racing on Sunday. We come back the following week, 10/16/2011.
Tag Archives: PRSA
Fall Series #3 Results – 10/02/2011
It was cool, cloudy, and breezy this past Sunday. Winds were NW in the teens as we sailed up to the race course, but slowly faded as the day progressed. Jim Graham and the Albacores did a great job setting up a nice long Windward-Leeward course for us. They got three races off in good fashion before the rain came in and spoiled things for us. In all, Six Albacores, 2 Buccaneers, and 8 Lightnings came out to play. Correction, one Hobie also made the trip up, but capsized before starting a race and went home. We also had one intrepid Laser who came out and raced solo. The racing was exciting on the Lightning course with lots of lead changes and close finishes. All in all a fun day. Here are the scores:
President’s/Leukemia Cup Photos!
Follow this link for some excellent photos of the racing taken by Carl Schaefer during the 77th Annual President’s/Leukemia Cup. Many thanks to Carl for volunteering his time, as well as to Whit Overstreet from Potomac Riverkeeper for the use of their boat as a photograph platform during the regatta.
If you wish to use these pix for marketing, for posting online, or for any other commercial purpose other than for private viewing, please contact Carl (cgschaefer@gmail.com). At a minimum, picture credit should be attributed to Carl G. Schaefer, Jr, Copyright 2011.
Fall Series #2 Results – 09-25-11
I can’t add too much to what Aaron says below. I’ll just say it was one painful day…
Here are the scores:
Fall Series #2 Wrap-Up
Greetings PRSA Sailors! As many of you know, I’ve been writing reports from our spring/fall series racing for the Lightning fleet over the past year. We’re going to start posting these write-ups here as well, in the hopes of starting a conversation among all the fleets and sailors out for our regular races. I’ll do my best to capture what I see on the racecourse each Sunday, but here is where we need your help: if you are sailing in one of the other fleets, go ahead and post a comment with your own experiences from the racing (just click the little “no comment” link above the post to add a comment). We definitely want to hear from you, and we hope to start a pattern of weekly postings and emails (via our listservs) that recount the day’s racing and generate some enthusiasm for the next event. So read on to hear about Fall Series #2, but more importantly, feel free to chime in with your own voice!
The PRSA Fall Series #2 was another day of tricky river sailing. Light and variable NE winds combined with a strong current and stiff tidal flow made for challenging strategic and tactical decisions. If you went south to get a patch of breeze, you then had to fight your way back north against the current to get to a mark. If you sailed to far into the NE corner under Hains Point you found yourself being pushed down the river with no breeze to power you across the way to the leeward mark. As with any given Sunday, there was an element of chance involved…but in talking to folks afterwards, it became clear that the boats that did well also made good decisions–most notably, in “connecting the dots” between patches of breeze. Overall, we were thrilled to see Chris Kozel and his team (Palmer Phillips and Chris Lewton) win their first race in Lightning Fleet 50 on Sunday–congratulations Chris! It was also great to see a few new faces out on various boats, and to welcome back some folks that we hadn’t seen in a bit. Keep reading for a detailed wrap-up of the day’s racing and post-race fun, and be sure to post your own comments and stories from the weekend here!
Fall Series #2
As we conducted the Skipper’s Meeting there was no noticable wind on the river, so we discussed the merits of delaying on shore or towing boats out to the race course. Ultimately, the Lightnings decided to take a tow and the Hobies and Albacores otped to wait for the wind to fill in. As we arrived at the upper race course, the wind filled in right on schedule. The race committee quickly set a course and sent the Lightnings around the course as the wind fluctuated between 2 and 5 knots. As the Lightnings sailed around the race course, the Hobies and Albacores worked their way out the race course. As soon as they arrived, the RC started them. The light winds hung around long enough to get two races off and then everyone went back to shore for some well deserved beverages and grilling.
Fall Series #1 Results – 09-18-2011
The skies were grey with a threat of rain so I think a lot of people decided to stay home. What a shame, it turned out to be an excellent day of sailing. The breeze was out of the NE for the most part with some huge right shifts throughout the day. It came in at about 12kts while we were standing around on the docks for the skippers meeting and slowly faded as the day progressed. The RC, ably headed up by Nathan Marsh and the Albacore fleet, set up a nice Windward-Leeward course running diagonally across the river. Four Albacores, Four Hobies, and Seven Lightnings came out to play in the shifting breezes. With the big right shifts, Jibe Sets were the order of the day for the Lightning fleet which made good crew work a premium. We got four races in before the dying breeze gave up for the day. A good day was had by all. Here are the scores:
Spring Series #8, 06/05/11
Well the Spring Series is now a wrap. We had great turnout on the last day of the series with Albacores, Buccaneers, Hobies, and Lightnings all coming out to play. The weather was… Well it was… what? A bit cloudy, hot, the breezes were light to non existent, and generally east except for the thermals coming off the airport. The current was a major factor. The RC, headed by Nathan Marsh did a good job in some trying conditions. The first race was almost time limited, but most boats managed to finish. The next two races were better, but all in all it was a painful day for everyone. Still a rough day on the water is better than a day spent doing anything else. Here are the scores:
Spring Series #6, 05/22/11
Another great day of racing this past Sunday. It started off light, but then it kicked in and we got a perfect 8-10 kt southerly. Eric Hakanson was our intrepid PRO for the day, ably assisted by members of the Lightning Fleet. In spite of the fact that the Lightnings lost 2 boats to RC duty, we put 10 boats on the line. 3 Albacores came out to play even though most of the fleet was away at a regatta. We had 4 Hobies and 2 Buccaneers to round out the competitors. Eric set up a nice Windward-Leeward course for us and smartly got off 4 races in the building breezes. What a day. Check out the scores here:
This Saturday and Sunday is our annual Spring Regatta, so don’t miss it!! Then the following Sunday we close out the Spring Series with a bang.
Annual Spring Regatta Next weekend!!
Next weekend is our annual Spring Regatta. Information including the schedule, NOR and pre-registration is located on our Web site here:
http://potomacriversailing.org/SpringRegatta/
Sailing Instructions:
Upper course: 2011 PRSA Spring Regatta Upper Course SIs
Course board: Courses – simplified no graphs
Lower course: 2011 PRSA Spring Lower Course SIs
As always we will be having both an upper and lower course. Lower course will be racing Saturday only. After racing Saturday there will be a BBQ. If you are planning on sailing, please take a moment to pre-register. You can Pay online through PayPal or bring cash or a check Saturday. Hope you can make it.
Saturday:3 (or 4) races are planned
Registration: 9:00 to 10:00 near the cranes
The skipper’s meeting is at 10:00 a.m. near the cranes.
The first warning signal is at 11:30 a.m.
No warning signal after 4:00.
If sailing conditions are good on Saturday, the RC may run a 4th race, especially if the forecast for Sunday is poor.
Sunday:3 (or 4) races are planned
The first warning signal is at 11:30 a.m.
No races will be started after 3:00.
Four races will be attempted if 2 or fewer races were completed on Saturday or if sailing conditions are particularly good.
Awards as soon as possible after the last race.