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Frostbite, Hangover Regatta, Lasers, Lasers, Results

2023 Hangover Regatta

Sunday was a refreshing day after such a chilly Christmas weekend The sun was shining, the temperatures were hovering on either side of 60 degrees, and the A-team was running races. The only problem was the wind never freshened beyond 4 or 5 mph.Nonetheless, we had four fun races.

Thinking about the race course a couple of variables came to mind. First, the wind was oscillating about 15 degrees either side of 180( 30 degrees total).Second, the flood was hard, so that meant that the middle and right had far less current.Third, the course seemed port biased. Finally, the line varied between pin favored to extremely pin favored. When weighing these variables I felt that a pin vicinity start( not necessarily winning the pin) was critical. Every race there seemed to be a left hand shift reasonably soon after the start. This allowed a quick tack to port with an easy long tack to the top of the course. I pretty much dismissed the stronger current given the combination of pin end bias and weather mark bias. Downwind, I felt that looking for wind lines was paramount. For the most part I stayed to the right( looking downwind) of the rhumbline given the current as long as wind was present. I made my mark-room moves only at the bottom of the course. The second weather leg offered a bit more to think about. In race one for instance there was an extreme left hand phase until we passed the airport landing pier. At that point Alex and I traded tacks along the jet blasts all the way to the weather mark. In races two through four the breeze seemed best in the middle of the course on that leg.On those legs I just attempted to stay in phase with the shift pattern noted above.
Boat speed, boat handling, set up, etc: There are countless pieces written on this website, SSA Fleet 10s’ Cedar Point’s, Newport’s and many others, some even written by me. Therefore I won’t bore you with detail. Here are some observations of some mistakes I saw: 1.Boats were too heeled. Heeling the boat creates rudder drag.  2. If your vang was loose upwind you were slow. The draft needs to be between 1/3-1/2 way back. The vang achieves this. 3. If you trimmed your cunningham one time Sunday, you lost boats. The leech is too loose and the sail entry too fine with a tight cunningham in a drifter. 4. Outhauls were almost all too tight.
In sum, I thought the key on Sunday was to prioritize the variables based upon each one’s risk and reward and to make sure that the boat had as much power as possible to keep moving in the light conditions. We all owe huge thanks to Len, Barbara, Tom, and Kevin, the RC team, who sacrificed their sailing day to make the racing possible. I also want to thank Alex and Jake for driving from NYCC to spice things up, and for Mike for coming from SSA.
Happy New Year!
James Jacob
Additionally: Thanks to everyone that brought delicious food to potluck.  Particularly the sailor’s wives that cooked while we were out sailing!
Frostbite, Lasers, Fleets, Lasers, Results

2022-2023 Laser Frostbite #6

I have the honor to be writing as your third place finisher, a result of nothing but fortitude.  Seriously.  So, here’s my take on the race.  First, a thank you to Laura and Jim for setting a perfect course.  It had a windward mark, a reaching mark and a downwind mark.  Right distance and geometry.  It started windy, out of the West, and continued to build, which favored those who stayed upright and made fewer mistakes.  For example, I dropped multiple places by capsizing, hitting a starboard boat, undershooting the windward mark, and almost rear-ending Farley going close to 30 knots.  I sailed the last race with Farley, netting both a second place and a DFL.  Overall, great wind and weather and nice to be on the water, although we missed one of the great World Cup Finals of all time.

2022 Frostbite Series #6

Frostbite, Lasers, Lasers, Results

2022-2023 Laser Frostbite #4

After 3  weeks of no sailing for various weather states, we finally got a nice Sunday to sail.  It was sunny with temps in the mid 40s.  And the weather brought a great showing of sailors with 21 boats coming to sail.

Sadly the wind did not get the memo for the day.  It was very challenging for both Race Committee and the racers.  Nabeel and Kevin did an excellent job trying to keep up with the wind.  We were able to get 5 races in.  We had 2 races with shortened courses and 3 course adjustments.  The wind was quite shifty with a lot of velocity changes.  We had a few points where there was full hiking conditions and several where we were drifting.  But all in all it was nice to be out on the water.

As far as sailing, I think we all need to ask Laura for the tips as she was the post consistent sailor out there.  But I found that moving forward of the cockpit in the light wind and then moving back as it came back up I moved back to a normal position.  With all the velocity shifts, I found that I was playing the cunningham more than usual to try and keep the sail looking full and not overly tight at the luff.  Other than that it was mostly just the usual things, get a good start, find clear air on the downwinds, and stay patient in the lulls.

It was great to see the turnout and I look forward to seeing everyone out next weekend!

2022 Frostbite Series #4 Results

Frostbite, Lasers, Fleets, Lasers

2022 Laser Frostbite First Weeks Update

Well Sailors, after 3 weekends in a row of cancelling, we hope to finally get out and race this coming weekend.

Frostbite Series 1 (Nov 13) was too windy.  Two souls made it to the race course with several capsizing on the way and others waiting on shore.

Frostbite Series 2 (Nov 20) was also windy.  And the high of 38 gave us January Frostbiting weather in November.  And with a lot of wind for the weekend and low tide, there was not much water in the river. Three brave souls showed up to try and race but ultimately pulled the plug.

Frostbite Series 3 (Nov 27) was rainy and a strange forecast of 9 gusting to 33 with a small craft advisory.  6 sailors showed up but only two were gung ho to go out and ultimately we decided that it was not worth punishing the race committee for two of us to go sailing.

Next weekend is a new day and hopefully we will get out and finally do a few races!

Frostbite, Lasers, 2020-2021 Frostbite, Results

2020-2021 LASER FROSTBITE SERIES #17

It’s Groundhog Day with another 3rd place write-up from me. Surely no frostbites today – sunburns were more likely. It was like a high school dance in winter with few participants appropriately dressed for the temperature, the venue not quite fit for purpose, yet everyone seemingly having a good time. We’re used to shifting winds on the Potomac, but today took it to a new level. It reminded me of Rumsfeld when he confidently said the WMDs were, “east, west, south and north somewhat.” Dan and Mike energetically boated around trying to have the marks in the right direction only to find that between the warning sound and the start not only might it change which end of the starting line was favorable, but which was the more logical windward mark. Big thanks to Dan and Mike for adding another great sailing day, and to Farley for delivering the attached results.

So, how does one do well on a day like today? Probably three key things: find the wind, tack on the shifts, and get a good start.  Finding the wind is about keeping your head up and looking on the water and other boats.  I did a lot of tacking today, and mastering the tacking is really important in these light winds. That is probably the biggest thing I’ll practice now that the series is over – efficient roll tacks. When starting in light wind, free wind matters. Starting close to too many other boats can be risky, and I tended to do better when I just found a fairly open spot on the line where I could start with some boat speed and no one stealing my wind.
This is it for the Frostbite series – it has been great fun! Restarting sailing this past fall has really been a bright spot for me during covid.  I’ll miss the regatta next weekend but look forward to many more fun races, practices, and dock chats in the spring.
Frostbite, Lasers, 2020-2021 Frostbite, Results

2020-2021 Laser Frostbite Series #15

Sunday was sunny, warmish, and probably the windiest frostbite day so far.  John and Greg laid out an Olympic triangle course, which provided for planing when the gusts coincided with the reach legs. Greg and John heroically tried to adjust the course to the changing winds and were, on average, successful. Big thanks to John and Greg for RCing and to Farley for the attached results.

The starts were exciting – it was often possible to sail the length of the line in less than 20 seconds, so it quickly got crowded.  I preferred shuttling between the pin and the boat and coming on port to find a good spot behind the RC boat about 35 seconds before the start.  That way I avoided getting stuck in a crowd … it worked sometimes. Having, for once, the current largely in the same direction as the wind also made the typical strategy of lingering on the line viable.

On the upwind leg, gusts often came along with 30-40 degree wind shifts. That meant we had to be on our toes … or more literally ready to quickly adjust the sheet, rudder, and body position. The first victim I witnessed was Jim G., who had to tack as Farley came on starboard right at the time of a big gust and wind shift, which landed Jim with a taste of the Potomac.

Downwind was fun as there was just enough wind for a bit of waves to form. That allowed for practicing both following the waves and using body movement and sheeting to control the boat with minimal rudder. Supposedly s-turns on the downwind leg are more efficient, but I still haven’t figured them out. During stronger gusts, the jibing could also get exciting.  At one point I was chasing Len for the first place he capsized right by the mark. I then managed to not only also capsize, but as I tried to climb around to the daggerboard I somehow tripped in a way that had me drop backward in the water hitting daggerboard on the way down before having my first taste of the Potomac. A far cry from the salty sea water I grew up with, but not as bad as feared. Glorious as my fail felt, had we had a weekly epic performance award, it would have probably gone to Tyler, who artfully lodged 8603 almost completely atop Celeste’s laser. Surely I missed many other exciting incidents – all in all, another beautiful Sunday on the Potomac.

Now, this is my 3rd 3rd place write-up, so I’d suggest we adjust to formula next season to include more authors.  Not just because I’m lazy, but also for literary diversity and because I’m curious about others’ experiences and ideas.

Finally, happy International Women’s Day – it is truly a joy to have you dedicated, fearless, fun, and lovely women both on the water and on the dock – you represent the best of what IWD stands for!

2020-2021 Laser Frostbit Series #15

Frostbite, Lasers, 2020-2021 Frostbite, Results

2020-2021 Laser Frostbite Series #14

Hi everybody,
Here’s my 3rd place writeup, starting with an overview of our skiff-maintenance lesson:
 
Skiff Stuff. Before we launched, Stew Harris gave a great lesson on proper skiff maintenance (Thanks, Stew!). For those of you unable to attend, here are some highlights:
  • Fuel. Keep the fuel tank above 1/2 full and ideally above 2/3 full. This prevents condensation, which prevents water in the fuel, which prevents the motor not working as what happened last week. There is no way to visually see water in the fuel; you know that watery fuel is likely the problem when the skiff won’t start. Thus, if it is your day and the fuel level is below 2/3 full (ish), go to the Shell station and fill up. There are gas tanks in the locker by the boat.
  • Cover. Be sure the cover is on tight so that water does not pool and does not end up in the boat.
  • Drain Plugs. There are three at the back of the boat. Make sure they are all in before launching.
  • Motor up! There is a switch on the throttle that raises and lowers the engine; the engine MUST be up during trailering because it might hit something, especially the parking bumper in the trailer spot.
  • Battery Switch. There is a switch in the big box at the back of the skiff that turns the battery on/off. This must be off at the end of the day.
Think that covers the main points, but if I forgot something, feel free to reply to this email so everyone knows.
Racing. HUGE kudos to Celeste and Jolie for being race committee and getting off five races on a cold and wet afternoon! Scores attached via Farley (Thanks, Farley!)
In terms of conditions, it was rather rainy with a light easterly breeze and a decent southern-flowing current. If you want to know what really worked well on Sunday, ask Steen – he won four of the five races!  Here are a few observations:
  • Head out of the boat (another reminder) – Sunday was one of those days when my position at any given point felt more tenuous than usual – if I was ahead, it could change easily, and if I was behind, especially at the first leeward rounding, there were often opportunities for catching up. Thus, it was a day that seemed to require a more than usual amount of paying attention to everything – other boats, how they were headed, the wind (which was patchy and not always easily visible on the water), and with the current, the location of the marks, especially the leeward mark. I didn’t do quite enough of this.
  • Starts. The day started with a boat-favored line, which made things a bit crowded at the starboard end. To make things even more challenging, the current kept the committee boat facing upriver and perpendicular to the direction of the wind which meant that it was easier than usual to snag the anchor line due to both the orientation of the committee boat and the direction and magnitude of the current. One race I got snagged on the anchor line (note to self!). In the later races, I had decent luck starting further down the generous line and catching what seemed to be more wind/more favorable shifts on the left side of the course.
  • Leeward Leg. Downwind legs tended to be very slow. Going high(ish) generally helped, but I had luck going a bit lower during some of the earlier races. Sometimes it was a regular downwind and sometimes it was more of a reach, even on the same leg! At one point I, like many others, had to approach close-hauled just to get to the leeward mark due to the wind mostly dying and having to battle the current. Fun times.

Additional comment. Thank you to those of you who were really good about yelling starboard and/or communicating about whether I could keep going or not. Let’s keep that communication up! Not just on windward legs, but noting overlaps (or not) at mark roundings too. It really helps.

Hope everyone has a good rest of their week! This Sunday is looking sunny, thankfully!  
Laura
Frostbite, Lasers, 2020-2021 Frostbite, Results

2020-2021 Laser Frostbite Series #9

So we had a forecast on sunday of 5-10 from the NW shifting to SW sometime after noon.  What with the lay of the land and the obnoxiousness of the front, we pretty much had both at the same time.  It never filled in fully from the SW, but we had consistent oscillations to the west all day, and that was also where the pressure was better. So staying west generally paid off.

For most of the starts the line was square at some point in the sequence, but we got a lot of last minute westerly shifts which favored the port end.  So I managed to get a couple really nice port tack starts.  The current was around, but it never seemed to be a big deal this weekend.

At the start and on the first beat, when I had clear air I did well, and when I did not, it was awful.  In the light conditions I found that disturbed air from boats to weather extend 6 or 8 boat lengths downwind.  I think I paid more attention to clear air than even to the shifts.  On the other hand, the shifts were big enough, and the course short enough, that tacking right away on the 10+ degree shifts made a big difference.

Finally, this was my best performance of the season, and I still placed third!  I am still figuring out the leeward legs and the last mark rounding clearly has it in for me.

2020-2021 Laser Frostbite Series #9

Frostbite, Lasers, 2020-2021 Frostbite, Results

2020-2021 Laser Frostbite Series #7

1 Comment

Dear fellow frostbiters!

After a couple of rainy race days with temperatures in the low thirties and after disturbing events on Capitol, finishing the week on a sunny Potomac with a pleasant breeze and 24 other lasers was a nice change!  We welcomed two more talented SSA exiles, Dave and Scott – it is great to have you, and we hope you stay with us!  Laura and Tyler laid out a slightly longer up-down course than usual and a more spacious start line.  That proved helpful as the rising tide tended to push us early over the starting line. In spite of shifting wind force and direction and an additional incident I’ll come back to, they aptly pulled off 6 great races – big thanks to Tyler and Laura!
The winning strategy of the day seemed to be making good bets and relying on good luck. The current was strong and probably stronger to the east, but the defining bets seemed to be who found the wind gusts and predicted the shifts.  Predicting the wind shift directions was hard – except it tended to revert more or less to where it started – in spite of many wild changes, the course really didn’t need modification. Anticipating where the gusts would come was marginally less random – looking at the water upwind gave us good clues. With 6 races, there were many bets to be made.
Starting strategy was influenced by the incoming tide and shifting winds. It just doesn’t work hanging out on the starting line on starboard with the sail flapping when the current carries you over the line.  With the more generous starting line than usual, moving around and looking for a good spot to start worked better for me. Even starting on port tack worked for me once, but it is risky!
A broken mast just after the 2nd start added some drama to my own experience. The upper mast has a weak point where the rivets hold the sleeve in place. It also demonstrated the sportsmanship and comradery as many of you checked in on me, and Len (I think it was you, Len, I was a bit distracted) offered to lend me an upper mast. Tyler and Laura swiftly picked me up, carefully pulled me back to the marina, they made it back in time to clock in everyone else, and I just barely made it back for race 3.  I then noticed that my gooseneck was starting to crack on both sides, and I sailed the remaining races slightly terrified that I would need a second rescue, but one side stayed attached, and it proved another bet worth taking.  Many thanks to Laura, Tyler, and Len for their help!!
The day was perfectly capped by Aaron Boesenecker cooking up delicious Glühwein!  Other than having a boat that doesn’t fall apart, I couldn’t ask for a better way to spend my Sunday.
As usual, with many thanks to Farley, the results are attached!
Sunday!
Steen