Crew: Brian, Seth, Bob & RW
Winds: SW avg 5 kt avg, (S to NW 8.5 to 0 kts)
Weather: clear, Baro: 30.08, 62 F
Current: flood NH 1353, ebb 1928
Start/Finish: GLP Starting Area
Course: s/f–N–s/f*2; Distance: 6.75 nm
Shrouds: +3.5, +6, +3
We had a pretty good night yesterday...
Our strategy on the first lap was a path through the Dumpling, to best benefit from the dying flood.
Three or four minutes after the start, trailing Breakin’ Wind (and sensing a bit of a header), and about to be rolled by Jolly Mon, we took a short port tack to a clear lane. Two or three minutes later, Sans Souci, Jolly Mon & Cosmic, all tacked to port to cross close ahead one by one. I’m curious as to why? I did not perceive a header validating a tack. Cosmic eventually came back to lead us through the islands, yet Jolly Mon, Sans Souci and Breakin’ Wind, all went up the west side of the Dumplings.
On the long tack through the Dumpling we averaged a current push of 0.3 kts. Had we delayed our tack a bit later for mid-channel we may have benefited more. Cosmic was the first to round the buoy, followed by Jolly Mon & Breakin’ Wind. I tacked too soon, thinking we had sufficient lift from the current but it had died (maybe starting to ebb at North Hill). The extra tacks to round allowed Jolly Mon & Breakin’ Wind to pull away, as Ursa Minor rounded inside of us.
We had a good run back down to the leeward mark staying with the J24’s. Jolly Mon did not fly her chute (maybe shorthanded). We came in on starboard with a good douse, jibed and rounded right behind Plummet (J22).
Hardening up on port (& appearing to be lifted), I momentarily considered continuing to the right, then decided it was not favored as much as I briefly thought so tacked to follow a track similar to our first lap. As couple minutes into the beat, Seth noticed the port spinnaker sheet wrapped up in the cross-sheeting block, which took the better part of five minutes to remedy. This time our tack through the island was mid-channel, benefiting from what little flood that remained (an avg of 0.1 knot) and flatter water with the wind down to 10 from 12 kts.
Approaching the layline we witnessed a number of boats barely making the mark. The larger boats’ momentum allowed them to luff up and around. I remember BW having problems with the cleanup following the leeward mark rounding as we passed them to our lee, yet they beat us to North Hill and would have rounded ahead had they not underestimated the ebb at the buoy. So they must have made good time coming up the west side.
Our final run was very similar to the first, finishing with a port jibe near the finish.
Link to chart
Seventh Race of Summer Season results
Fleet overall results w/o penalties
Our finish 3rd in the fleet overall would possibly have been 2nd w/o the sp. sheet problem and first w/o the screw up at the first NH layline.