The light and variable easterly breeze that we had for Fall Series #3 certainly made for some challenging sailing, but PRO John VanVoorhis and his crew did a great job to get us as many races as we could before the breeze died and we headed back to shore for some beer and brats.
Although the forecast looked grim and the conditions were light as we arrived at the marina PRO Mike Darrah and his crew took full advantage of the wind that we did have, getting us 3 fun races to start the fall series.
The conditions were a bit all of the place on Sunday, with an easterly breeze that swung as far south as due south and as far north as due north, with times in between when it would shut off altogether. Depending upon the shifts, you could enter a mark rounding first and come out last (or vice-versa), or pick up (or lose) the whole fleet on one shift. Nonetheless, PRO Farley Will and his RC crew did a good job getting us four races in some sunny conditions before we all headed back to shore to enjoy beverages and a BBQ. It could have been far worse for a late fall afternoon of racing! Scores are posted below, and you can see some great photos from Lindsay Bach here.
We had a cool, crisp morning for Fall Series #6 but the day ended up being fantastic — one of our best for sailing this year — as the sun came out and the breeze came in. PRO Jim Antonovich and his RC crew got us a series of great O2 and O3 races, some of which involved some exciting reach legs with good breeze and some of the interesting shifts that happen with a westerly breeze. Great fun was had by all and we enjoyed a nice sunny cookout to wrap up the day.
We’ve managed to get two racing days so far this fall, which nearly equals our total for all spring! Fall Series 2 was a drizzly, grey day but the wind was good and the racers enjoyed some quality racing. Fall Series 4 was one of the most beautiful days we’ve had all day with breeze, sunny skies, warm temps, and a good turnout. Scores are as follows (also available on the results page):
We are just a few weeks away from the start of the PRSA Spring Series! Make sure that you have reviewed the NOR and SIs for our Spring Series. Now is also the time to sign up for Race Committee for the season. Please make sure to read the details below, and then sign up on our PRSA RC Duty Signup Sheet. Here are the details and requirements for the 2108 Spring/Fall racing season:
Sign up now so that you know you have your dates reserved, and so that we don’t have to scramble week-to-week to find RC. As always, please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have any questions.
The combination of low tide, hydrilla, and light air made it difficult to get to the course. Once there, is was easier but the light air and winds that came in from the east, the west, the north, and often privately provided to a small group of sailors made it particularly challenging. Here is the writeup on PRSA Fall Series #3 from John Van Voorhis in the Lightning Fleet. Scores and more info are posted below. Kudos to John and David for taking 1st on the day in the Lightnings with three well-earned 2nd place finishes!
Last Sunday, 10/1, started out a little chilly, but by the time we were done sailing we had a gorgeous fall day. The Race Committee tried starting us early due to the wind forecast, but the wind didn’t cooperate. It really didn’t cooperate all day, but the RC did a great job getting off three races for the Lightnings. The wind was shifting from back and from from the NNE enough that the favored end of the starting line would switch back and forth through the starting sequence. For races one and two, the wind tended toward the east, then in race three it was going all the way around the clock as small convection cells moved across the race course.
David and I managed to get three seconds on the day, so we felt pretty good. In the first race we had a not so great start, but managed to catch the right shift correctly and get to the first mark first. With the way the shifts came in it seems as if being rightmost boat, but near the middle of the course worked best for us in the first race. Think it was Nabeel who passed us on the second weather leg and we couldn’t pass him down wind.
In the second race, we got exactly the start we wanted at the favored end by the committee boat, and were able to hold on near the front through the whole race. I don’t remember who passed us, but again there was a lot of shifting wind and middle right with clear air worked for us. In those conditions we let the jib tell us when to tack and eased out the main a lot when we couldn’t see the wind. We blew it on the last down wind leg by setting the spinnaker, when we shouldn’t have. Don’t forget to check if you can lay the mark!
In the last race we had an ok start, but that first leg took forever as the wind was coming straight down. Again we stayed calm as we passed and were passed by other boats.
Thankfully the wind filled in enough for all of us to get back to the marina under sail.
Thanks to Jim Graham for stepping up yet again to do RC along with Barney Harris, John Hart, and Steve Young.
Thanks to Tom Hutton for doing our scores every week.
Results:
2017-Fall-3-Albacore
2017-Fall-3-I-20
2017-Fall-3-Lightning
2017-Fall-3-Multi-Hull
We had over 50 people attend the 2016 PRSA Annual General Meeting and Awards Ceremony, making it one of the best attended in recent years! I want to extend a very special thank you to Melissa Morgan and Heather Howard for all of their work in planning the AGM, organizing the food and drink, decorating the room, and generally ensuring good cheer such that a great time was had by all.
The PRSA Executive Committee was pleased to highlight our growth over the year, including a 5th consecutive year of membership growth and the highest total membership level (118 members) that we have seen since 2005! We were also pleased to recognize Aaron Boesenecker, Frank Gallagher, and Will Phillippe with PRSA perpetual awards awards. You can keep reading for additional details and links to the relevant documents, including the AGM Agenda, the list of PRSA Spring and Fall Series winners, details on the perpetual award winners, and your 2017 PRSA Executive Committee.
At the AGM each officer from the PRSA Executive Committee provided an update on the state of the association. The membership approved the creation of a committee to review the PRSA Constitution and bring a revised Constitution to the membership for approval at the 2017 AGM. We also celebrated the PRSA Spring Series and Fall Series winners in each class and awarded the PRSA Perpetual Awards to members who have contributed outstanding Service over the year. Finally, we approved a new PRSA Executive Committee for 2016.
PRSA Perpetual Award Winners
2017 PRSA Executive Committee
Finally a big thank you to our officers who served PRSA in 2016. Here’s looking forward to an excellent 2017!
It was a pleasantly warm day on the Potomac with a good bit of breeze. SailFlow shows winds in the high teens for most of our racing period with a few gusts in the high 20s. It turned out 
to be very nice with some good wind for planing and surfing. 3 races were held and the RC also organized a fun race back to the dock for beer!
