Today proved a little harder. The race committee was able to get off 2 races today. Temps were in the 80s with very fluky light breeze. Scores are posted to the Results page as well as below.
2014 Spring Regatta – Albacores
2014 Spring Regatta – Buccaneers
What a crazy day! The river was absolutely ripping after several days of rain. Although there was not much debris in the water, the ferocious river flow made things challenging for the competitors and the RC alike. I was on RC duty this weekend, and I thought I’d have the chance to get some nice observations of the racing. Instead, we were kept on our toes, first towing boats up to the course against the river flow as we waited for the breeze to fill, and then dashing around the course to reset marks as they were repeatedly breaking free in the combination of river flow and WNW breeze that filled in over the afternoon. The breeze was extraordinarily spotty and shifty, moving from due north to nearly due west and back in various phases. That, combined with the fact that the pressure would simply die off at points and then pipe back up, made for some very tricky sailing as the competitors fought against the river flow. We did manage to get 4 races off for the Albacores and 2 for the Lightnings and Cats.
Even with all of the action on the RC we still managed to capture some video on the GoPro that we had on the 16′ skiff: a leeward mark rounding for the Albacores, a start and upwind leg for the Lightnings, and a few finish line shots from the first Lightning race as boats struggled to make it up to and across the line. Scores are posted below, and you can find the video links here: http://lightningfleet50.org/?page_id=2047
2014 Spring Series 6 – Albacores
2014 Spring Series 6 – Catamarans
2014 Spring Series 6 – Lightnings
2014 Spring Series – Albacores – Cumulative Through May 18
2014 Spring Series – Buccaneers – Cumulative Through May 18
Spring Series #5 brought us a tricky day on the river, but PRO Jeff Neurater and his crew still managed to get us 4 races in a spotty, shifty, WNW breeze. The day looked very promising at the outset. We had a nice northerly breeze of about 10 knots blowing as nine Lightnings, six Albacores, and a Hobie Cat headed out of the cove and up to the race course.
The RC started the first sequence right on time, only to have the wind cut out altogether with about 2 minutes to go in the sequence. The river was high and the tide was flowing out, so most boats drifted away from the starting line even as they tried to sail upwind. Another breeze line was visible up at the windward mark, though, and soon enough it filled in and we were off racing. The boats that were close to the line got the breeze first, go a big jump, and ended up with a huge lead for the entirety of the Olympic course.
That same pattern pretty much repeated over the next three races — another Olympic course, and then two shorter Triangle courses. Finding breeze was of the utmost importance, and this meant looking up towards the bridge to see where the next line was forming even as you were hunting for the patches of breeze that had made it to the racecourse. In general, the breeze would fill from the left side of the course…but that wasn’t a guarantee, and there were times when boats that went out to the right going upwind came out ahead, despite battling the current in the channel.
It was great to get out on the water, even if the conditions were tricky. After the racing we all gathered in the grill area to enjoy some great food, beverages, and the last bit of a fine sunny afternoon.
2014 Spring Series 5 – Albacores
2014 Spring Series 5 – Lightnings
We’re just two weeks away from the PRSA Spring Regatta. Mark your calendars, organize your crew, and visit the regatta webpage to sign up on the “Who’s Coming?” list and view the NOR!
PRSA will be hosting a Racing Rules Seminar on Thursday, May 15, beginning at 7:00 pm. The seminar will be conducted by Mike Brownlee, a U.S. Sailing certified judge. Mike has extensive sailing experience, including several years as a volunteer offshore racing coach with the U.S. Naval Academy.
The seminar will be held in the Charleston Room at Indigo Landing Restaurant at the Washington Sailing Marina. Sailors are encourage to come a little early, grab a drink and appetizer at the bar and socialize with other sailors.
We hope to see you there!
Spring Series #2 is coming up this weekend, but we still need RC volunteers in order to run races. Mike Heinsdorf is your PRO. Sign up on the RC Duty sheet and let Mike know if you are available.
We’re just one week away from the start of our spring racing season! Join us on April 6 for the start of our spring series and for a chili-fest provided by PRSA after the racing. We’ll kick off the season on April 6 with our regular racing program: 10:00 am skipper’s meeting by the cranes and 11:25 first warning signal on the upper course. The Sailing Instructions for our Sunday Series racing can be found on the PRSA Website at http://potomacriversailing.org/nors-sis/
Make sure to stick around for the post-race festivities on April 6 as well. PRSA will provide chili (both meat and vegetarian variants), side dishes, and beverages. No need to bring anything for this first week–just come hungry and enjoy some food, drink, and good cheer after the racing!
As you get organized for the start of racing, please remember to pay your PRSA dues and sign up for Race Committee duty if you haven’t already done so. Timely dues payments are essential for the maintenance of our equipment, and we all need to take our turn on RC so that we all can also have fun racing on the water. You can find all the relevant forms and links on our PRSA Dues & RC Duty webpage: http://potomacriversailing.org/dues-rc-duty/
Finally, we have organized a series of training events for the spring season. Please mark the following dates on your calendar. We will send additional information along as each training event approaches.
I look forward to seeing everybody out on the water soon!
We might still be in the grip of winter, but it is not too soon to think about our upcoming sailing season! The 2014 PRSA racing calendar has been posted, and now is the perfect time to take care of your PRSA dues and sign up for RC duty for the year so you are all set to go once the season starts. You can sign up for RC duty and renew your PRSA skipper and associate memberships on the right on the Dues & RC Duty page. Skippers who have not signed up for RC duty by March 15 will be contacted by their respective fleet captains to help fill first our remaining PRO slots, and then the other slots on the RC schedule. Skippers, please remember to remind your crews to pay associate dues as well…or, better yet, gift them an associate membership for the year at only $25 as an advance “thank you” for all of the hard work they’ll do on your boat this year! Pay your dues now and you’re set for the season!
Also, don’t forget to “like” PRSA’s group page if you are on facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/345661598808307/). We’ll be using that facebook group to post announcements and photos throughout the year along with the PRSA webpage and Yahoo! listserv. Stay tuned for more information on the upcoming season!
We enjoyed a fantastic pasta dinner at the 2013 PRSA Annual General Meeting (thanks Michelle and Lee) as we handed out awards for the 2013 racing season and discussed several business items. I’ve provided a summary of the award winners and key discussion points below. Congratulations to the 2013 award winners and to our new slate of officers!
PRSA Spring Series Awards
Albacores
Buccaneers
Catamarans
Lightnings
PRSA Fall Series Awards
Albacores
Buccaneers
Catamarans
Lightnings
Founders Award: Aaron Boesenecker
Fleet Captain’s Award: Keith Barron, Steve Parsons, Bruce Heida
Key Business Items
2014 PRSA Executive Board
It started out very breezy Sunday, out of the north at 15-18 knots as reported by our RC Yates. The breeze slowly slacked off to 12 or so by the end of the day. Participation was light, however, probably because it was just a bit chilly out there. It was a good time for the brave few who showed up though. Here are the scores:
Only one more week to go!