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Lake Minnetonka, MN (September 12, 2008) Tim Healy had won the J/24 North Americans before, and was poised to do it again. All that stood in between him and the prize was the one race – the final race – scheduled for Friday. He was guaranteed second, and only a bullet by John Mollicone’s team could change his happy ending. There had been good breeze all regatta, not quite windy enough for jib conditions, but plenty of upper genoa range. The event venue, Lake Minnetonka, had been playing fair too, with both sides of the course working, and lots of shifts for the astute tactician to work his or her way to the front of the fleet. For just one race on Friday, he liked his team’s chances.

The only problem was that for the final day of the event, the wind was zero with puffs to 6 knots. Not exactly the kind of conditions where it was easy to control the only boat you had to beat. Healy’s team could have focused only on Mollicone, match raced him at the start, and forced him into one of the numerous bays along the 140 miles of lake shoreline. However, that’s not his style, and instead allowed Mollicone to start near the pin while Healy would set up more toward the center of the line and protect the favored right side. Of course, when the wind glassed off around Healy, all bets were off and the scramble began.

As had occurred all regatta, both teams found themselves in the top ten at the first windward mark, but when Bob Harden’s team on Mr. Happy worked out into a distant lead over both of them, ultimately winning with a leg lead, Healy knew that the threat was over, and went on to enjoy the most pleasant 18th place finish he ever recorded during his ten year career in the class. — Results: http://www.j24northamericans.com/pages/J24Results.html

We were caught off guard, didn’t get the spinnaker set before we had to reach to the leeward gate under genoa. That is sort of our night. Many highs and lows, wrapped spinnakers, a torn leach cord, a crash gybe that nearly dumped the crew.

On the high side we were dialed into the puffs and made nice work of the beats. It makes it a bit more painful to see the spinnaker in a un-recoverable figure eight when you actually have a fighting chance in a race. But the breeze was up and mistakes get magnified. A character and experience building exercise for sure.

One lesson was learned on the downwind start. When we made it to the windward mark all boats were leaving it to starboard, which we have never done before. Here is the relevant section of the Lake Washington GSIs:

9.3   Start between the starting buoy and the orange flag on the race committee boat. Pass each rounding mark in the order displayed and on the same side as the starting mark. Finish between the finishing buoy and the orange flag on the race committee boat. When a number, such as “2″ or “3″, follows the course letters, it signals a multiple-lap course. Sail the course as many times as is indicated by that number, crossing the finishing line at the completion of each lap.

Since we started downwind with the pin to starboard, all other marks must now be left to starboard. The leeward mark was a gate so this rule didn’t change anything there. Lesson learned.

When we got back to the dock we did some practicing with the spinnaker pole to sort out some of the issues we are having with douses. I wish we had more time for practicing, I know it would make all of the difference. But it’s hard enough to field a crew one night a week as it is. This is really the biggest challenge for us right now.

All in all, it was a great night on the lake, our crew is getting deeper, and everybody lived to sail another day. 

First of all, here was the situation:

Our strategy was to avoid the crowd at the pin. Unfortunately, with Tundra Rose (TR) to leeward of us and the starboard tackers in front of us, we felt boxed in. As we approached the pin layline, TR “helpfully” suggested that we should “make our turn.” We went for it. We tacked under Hot Pursuit and then began the luffing game. As we drifted there the jib backwinded and we tacked.

I sent the email to Joy for 2 reason: I wanted to explain to Hot Pursuit why we were there in the first place, and I wasn’t sure why we tacked and was hoping for some insight.

Here is the response from Bates McKee who was skippering Hot Pursuit:

This was an unfortunate and clearly unintended incident, so not a problem.  The collisions were very low speed because we were at that point stalled on the starting line, nearly head to wind.  We were lined up and ready to sheet in and bear off for the pin-end start, but once Juju tacked to leeward we headed up with an obligation to keep clear up to head to wind.  I believe Juju intended to hang and wait (although from that position were not going to make the pin with enough momentum to round, so an eventual bear off and jibe or circles from hitting the pin seemed inevitable, and an earlier recognition of that inevitability would have avoided the incident).

Having said that, Juju could have remained at or near head to wind if the jib sheet had been entirely released.  The reason the boat tacked was because the jib remained sheeted, and began to back at perhaps 10 degrees off the wind (still on starboard).  A rapid complete jib release would have maintained forward momentum and steerage, avoiding the tack – this is  communication between helmsman and trimmer, and is similar to ‘shooting’ to round a mark when just below layline at the last moment. Ideally at a start this is done with speed and forward momentum already established, (a very late shot when within one boatlength to leeward of a mark to be fetched, helmsman heads up gradually all the way up to near head to wind, simultaneous jib complete release, then once the midpoint of boat is beyond mark hard helm to weather or even skulling to bear off, and stern swings to weather clear).  Once the jib backs (still far from head to wind) the helmsman completely loses steerage and the eventual result is inevitable.  This ‘shooting the mark’ is a good maneuver to practice for all of us.

Regarding the global situation, when approaching on Port and overlapped with Tundra to leeward Juju may have had the right for room to pass astern of the ‘obstruction’ (the starboard tack boats), although limitations apply at a starting mark surrounded by navigable water wherein the correct maneuver is to tack and bear away rather than getting room to pass astern).  See the rule below – this is the basic situation on open water when there is a need to pass astern starboard tack boats – the leeward boat must give room for the windward boat to
pass.  An early hail is prudent, but in any case the obligation is clear, and if Juju was not within two lengths of the starting mark then Tundra needed to give her room if they were overlapped – may have been close to this zone in this case.

It never occured to me to ask for room. Looking back I’m not sure if we were entitled to room under rule 18 since I can’t be sure we were “about to round” the staboard tackers (and how that factors in), nor whether we were within two boat lengths of the pin, but I should have been thinking about that possibility. And I also understand know what it looks like so see a boat setting up perfectly for the pin (HP), and what it’s like to foul that boat. Something I don’t want to repeat any time soon!

But the biggest lesson for me was that we should be looking for the jib to back well before going head to wind and to have it fully released if and when it does. 

I’m very thankful to Joy and Bates for taking the time to answer my questions. The willingness of the better teams to help out the novices is outstanding. Hopefully it will help us get off the back of the fleet and shorten the races so that Hot Pursuit can get more races in!

To the extent that a Section C rule conflicts with a rule in Section A
or B, the Section C rule takes precedence.

18 ROUNDING AND PASSING MARKS AND OBSTRUCTIONS
In rule 18, room is room for an inside boat to round or pass between an outside boat and a mark or obstruction, including room to tack or gybe when either is a normal part of the manoeuvre.

18.1 When This Rule Applies
Rule 18 applies when boats are about to round or pass a mark they are required to leave on the same side, or an obstruction on the same side, until they have passed it. However, it does not apply (a) at a starting mark surrounded by navigable water or at its anchor line from the time the boats are approaching them to start until they have passed them

The original idea when we started this blog was to be able to review and post our experiences racing in the Tuesday night club races on Lake Washington. It’s been a while since anyone has posted so it’s time to get back to it.

Much of the early part of the season was missed either struggling to find crew due to heavy work schedules and family responsibilities, or from having the boat in pieces while we upgraded the rig.  Now that we are deep into the second half of the season we seem to finally be putting the pieces together.

For the first time since buying the boat with my partners Brian and Bill we know the boat can be competitive. We’ve put a ton of work into the deck layout and rig, some money into patching and finishing the bottom, and we finally have some decent sails. About a month ago we had a guest skipper who was able to take an 8th place out of a fleet of about 25 boats that includes some really amazing teams. We would be ecstatic to finish 8th on a regular basis, so we can lay to rest our debate over whether our end-of-fleet finishes are due to the boat or due to us. They are due to us!

So now to last week. Due to last minute commitments to work and family, neither Bill nor Brian could make it! Luckily we’ve been developing some depth in our crew rotation so I was able to go out with Nate trimming, Weston on bow, and Bob at the mast. If I’m not mistaken, it was Nate’s first time trimming at this level of racing, and Weston’s 2nd or 3rd time on bow, but all 3 guys have been out regularly and have a good understanding of how things work, and most importantly are dedicated and motivated racers.

The racing conditions were perfect. Sunny, breezy, stunning views of Mt Rainier, and enough daylight for 4 races. We had as our strategy to be smooth around the course and conservative in our tactics. We succeeded in that for the most part. We were smooth, but a bit slow. We did however beat one boat in the thrid race! So not much changed there.

Our worse finish was well behind the last boat in the fleet, mainly due to penalty turns and an ill-advised attempt at a gybe set. The penalty turns were for an auto-tack during the start where we tapped a windward-now-leeward boat as we came across the wind, and continued into a small pileup. We were able to escape on port, but the turns put us in last.

I’m still not sure exactly what happened, but at least there was no damage. We wouldn’t have been in the mix at the pin at all except we got pinned by a leeward boat on port heading towards the fleet on starboard and felt we had little choice but to tack for the pin, since they weren’t going to let us get below them and around the bulk of the fleet. Fighting for the pin was definitely a deviation from our conservative strategy.

Our best finish was second to last. We beat a good boat but with a replacement driver, and we did it even though our motor mount was dragging in the water! It is a motor mount that can be lowered and raised, and it was jammed in the bottom position. A good thump and it popped back up. Not that it made us any faster!

The great news is that everyone got a lot of experience and will be ready to step in the next time. And the night out on the lake couldn’t have been any more spectacular. Next week there is no racing due to Whidbey Race week, so we will go out and do some training, probably mostly drinking.

So there it is. I’m a little rusty but it feels good to get back into posting on the “trials and tribulations of a fledgling J24 campaign, racing every Tuesday from April to September on Lake Washington, Seattle.”

From the UK Nationals:

The five crew of J/24 Juvenile Deliquent were rescued just seconds before their upturned boat sank stern-first into the waters of Weymouth Bay on Sunday. The incident happened in the first race of the British National Championships in winds of 25-29 knots and big seas.

More here.

Triumphant return for Reloaded, a watery end for Delinquent

Mark Jardin reports on the first (and only) race so far:

[Source: Yachts and Yachting]

After racing was cancelled due to high winds on the first day, the fleet was chomping at the bit to get out on the water on day two of the 30th Anniversary J/24 nationals in Weymouth. Just after midday PRO Frank Newton judged the wind had dropped enough for racing to begin.

While the sun may have started shining, the wind certainly hadn’t gone away. An over-eager fleet led to an almost inevitable general recall on the first attempt to start the race. This lead promptly to the black flag being hoisted and a more orderly second start.

From the off, Mark Penfold’s ‘Reloaded’, back on the water after a couple of years collecting moss, took a commanding lead. Conditions were fierce with the wind a constant 25 knots and gusts much higher. The left hand side of the beat paid off with ‘Reloaded’ rounding the windward mark first, Thijs Knapper’s ‘Phoenix’ second and Jon Powell’s ‘Peggy’ third.

The run saw the real drama begin. High speed surfing was had by all on the run leading to a few broaches and the odd capsize. Half way down the run Adam Bowers’ ‘Juvenile Delinquent’ had a huge wipe out filling the boat with water. It was clear to the crew that the boat was going down so they abandoned ship to the safety of a nearby rib.

Conditions continued to get more difficult with the wind going from strength to strength. ‘Reloaded’ just held it together on the final beat, despite a last-minute broach on the final run to take the win. ‘Peggy’ came through into second just ahead of ‘Phoenix’.

The postponement to another day combination of flags were wisely hoisted by the race team at the finish line sending the slightly reduced fleet back in to lick their wounds and repair the damage. Tonight sees a barbeque for the fleet at Weymouth Sailing Club.

Adam Bowers said after the sinking of his boat:
“You can look on a situation like that one of two ways; either it was bad luck that we lost the boat or it was good luck that all five of the crew are safe and well. I’m definitely looking on the positive side of the situation.”

Mark Penfold commented on the winning return for ‘Reloaded’:
“It was great to have her back on the water and performing in such big conditions, I’m over the moon. We’ve a totally international crew on board with British, Swedish, Danish and Cornish sailors – a triumph for us all.”

Links:

• Yachts and Yachting
• Practical Boat Owner
• Foilborne

The View – J 24 Canadians

So the stars aligned and we found ourselves on top. Nobody was more thrilled and surprised than me. Paul Elvstrom said that a regatta is won on the beach, before you set out on the first day. So being a bit of a student of the game (read obsessive) the following was key to our success:

1. Team – I had the good fortune of being joined by some great friends, who each could have helmed, called tactics, or crewed better than myself. We are each former or active dinghy sailors. The multiple one design big fleet experiences brought a comfort about the chaos. At least, we had been there and knew what we were trying to achieve! So get to know some dinghy sailors, cultivate some juniors, or buy a Laser.
2. Sails – I have been a long customer of Brett Willett’s Sobstad loft. I have coddled a suit he built for the 2002 Worlds and added a new genoa this year. Flyer has NEVER had such jets. We were higher and faster than some exceptional sailors flying some much newer sails. Brett is local, priced right, knows the boat, has the experience in the class and the sails are finished superbly. Flyer is set-up verbatim from his website and advice. Seems like a no brainer to me.
3. Boat - After 15 years of upgrading, rebuilding, rearranging, and fairing, Flyer is now optimized. Clint Currie’s artistry and guidance over the years has been invaluable. I spent some time over the winter tweaking and this spring re-sanded and polished the hull and foils.
4. Rig - The spar is tuned to the Sobstad data. The entire weekend we had our rig set at our base setting. We got caught on Friday when it got up to 12 knots with 4 people but were able to tough it out upwind with back stay on. I am happy to share the numbers.
5. Starts & Tactics - We all participated in gathering of data before each race. Although the tide was ripping and the beach was favoured at times, (really?) we went out of our way to start with no one on our leeward bow and avoided the high-risk ends. I am more comfortable in speed mode and some skippers are pinchers. We got great speed quickly and were able to leg out (see 1,2 & 3). Funny- speed equals point! We were able to get to the clear air and rolling. We aggressively changed gears for every wave set, puff, lull or rounding.
6. Shut up & Drive - Knowing that everyone on board was a great sailor and they all were doing their job better than I could, (have you seen my foredeck work?), it was pretty easy to bear down on the wooden stick. I was able to relax and get in the groove.

So, there is no rocket science from me. I am happy to have any one ask about the gear, settings or our routine. Thanks to all for the well wishes after the event. It means a lot to me to compete at a high level against some excellent competitors.

To win was just a bonus.

Bruce

Crew – Reto Corfu, Rob Cullen, Sean Staniforth, Ed Tchoi, Brett Willetts

Chris McLaughlin with Immarsat Hedgehog Reports

Canadian Rossi Milev takes over the lead as Hillman moves up

Day two of the J24 World Championship in Cannigione, Sardinia saw two more races and new faces moving up the board. The day belonged to American sailor, Mark Hillman and crew, sailing Wip, and scoring two firsts with Rossi Milev of Canada, steering for Bob Turner and his British boat, Serco Headcase, scoring two seconds. Milev has been very consistent and holds the overall lead.

Race 3 was sailed in winds around 10 mph and an opening beat of 1.6 miles. Leaders pushed both sides of the course, but it was Hillman who got to the left first and managed to take the lead by the weather mark, followed by Milev, Massimo Fillipo of Italy, and Ian Southworth.

The run continued its previous days challenges, with those who pressed to either shoreline being rewarded with additional puffs of breeze, while boats in the middle got less initial pressure. In a trend for the day, puffs would pass crews by, or disappear a matter of feet on either side of them.

One left handed gust brought five boats, led by Stefan Karsunke of Germany, sailing Max Bahr and Mike Ingham of USA back into fourth and fifth places, whilst Southworth fell to fourteenth place. At the leeward mark the Race Officer shortened the next beat, with places remaining unchanged until the run. Once again local puffs were the dominant factor with the fleet as Hillman and Milev extended their lead. The pack closed up and places changed again. Southworth found breeze this time and moved through to overtake boats, including Andrea Casale of Italy and finish just feet behind Santa Cruz of Brazil to record an eight place. The first ten were Hillman, Milev, Fillipo, Karsunke, Ingham, Santa Cruz, Southworth, Peer Kock of Germany and Andrea Casale.

Race Four had an increasing breeze, at times to around 15 mph, with the weather mark moved five degrees further right and a 1.6 mile beat. Hillman won the start and .pushed forward in a repeat of the morning to the left side of the course. Second into the left shore were local sailors, Aurelio Bini in Sardares and Di Fraia, in Slam, followed by Paul Toms of Ireland in Joya and Ian Southworth on Inmarsat Hedgehog. Lucy McGregor, and her team are getting to grips with the boat and rounded just behind, along with Milev in.

With limited place changing on the run, the race officer moved the weather mark another five degrees to the right. Hillman, Bini and Southworth took the left – hand leeward mark and pushed right, while Di Fraia, Toms, McGregor and Milev headed left. Crossing to the left, Hillman and Bini held a comfortable margin and Southworth passed Di Fraia and Toms. But once again, Milev showed his teams grasp of the local conditions to work the left and slip passed Southworth and at the finish line to take second from Bini.

The top ten were: Hillman, Milev, Bini, Southworth,Di Fraia,Toms, Santa Cruz, Fabio Nocera of Italy, Casale and Wilcox ofGermany.

The series leader is Canadian Milev, helming for World Class Chairman, Bob Turner of Great Britain. Their boat, Headcase, is the only J24 to have won two World Championships, with Ken Read at the helm. Perhap this will be a third?

A discard comes into play after Race five of the ten race series and another light airs day is anticipated for Day three.

Tonight – D&S party. Usual tactic – try and get everyone ahead of us pissed (will need a lot of rum!!!).

 

Post by Tom Quinn :

Down the run – what an amazing sight – 72 boats behind with chutes set. Great downwind leg – and well set up to go right as planned – plenty of clear air, and covered the fleet this time – another good run – a couple of boats snuck by to a finish of 7th.