Thames YC - Governor's Regatta 07/01/12

Thames - GR

Crew: Brian, Monica & RW
Winds: SW at 7 kts, Baro 29.82" Temp 84F
Weather: clear,
Current: ebb - 0902 North Hill, ebb all day
Start/Finish:  Vixen Starting Area
Course: s/f–Y–E–V–R–s/f; Distance: 9 nm
Shrouds: +0,+1,+1

We had a reasonable start on starboard then tacked to port at first opportunity towards Pine Island to work out on starboard along Black Ledge. I felt encouraged by our beat to the windward mark when caught and passed a couple of the trailing Ensigns.

On the spinnaker reach down toward Silver Eel we passed another Ensign.  Out ahead I saw the two leading Ensigns (Bonanza & ) had dropped their spinnakers and were beating into the mark. All our competition had already jibed around the mark and escaped  prior to the wind change.

Thames YC - Governor's Regatta

Thames - GR

Link to chart

Second Race of Summer Season results

Sunday, 24 July 2011
Crew: Brian, Seth & RW
Winds: NNE, NE, N avg 5.6 kts, 1-11 kts, gusts 11.5, lulls .7
              DW wind avg 4 kts, 1st half 3 kts,  UW avg 7.3 kts
Weather:  Overcast, Temp 75 F
Current: flood - North Hill 1233
Start time: 1330 ( roughly an hour delay)
Start/Finish: Vixen starting area
Course: s/f–SE-V; Distance: 5.4 nm
Shrouds: +0,+0,+0 DW, & +0,+1,+1 for a portion UW

With the flood an hour old, the start was a downwind in an N to NNE zephyr.   We elected the up-current pin end of the line as did Euphoria and Plain Vanilla, and favored the left or eastern side of the course to Silver Eel.  The smaller reaching spinnaker was a good choice in this extremely light air.  The wind went light as we neared the shore of Fishers, while those that had been swept down-current now had the breeze to fetch the mark.  What little wind we had was on the beam out of the east, making a jibe was a detour too far I thought. 

We converged on Silver Eel with Celebration & Goombay Smash just ahead of us, with the Fishers ferry blasting away to insure passage on the north side.  The three of us doused, hardened up around the mark & tacked to starboard to parallel the ferry in the opposite direction.

The wind appeared stronger on the right and we tacked in towards Fishers.  Looking at the chart, subsequent tacks towards North Hill and N. Dumpling for more wind appear to have been headed (by the current possibly).  Our thought was to get up current in the strong wind rather than later nearer the layline in less wind.    Had we tacked less, we may have stayed closer to Celebration.   Celebration finished 7 minutes, 20 seconds ahead of us.  We would have had to finish 7 minutes, 20 seconds faster to correct over Salud for second place.

Link to chart

3rd Place
Link to results

 

 

Thames YC - Governor's Regatta

Thames - GR

Crew: Seth, Erin, Bob & RW
Winds: SW at 5 to 12 kts
Current: ebb - North Hill 1442
Start time: 1220
Start/Finish: just north of Vixen
Course: s/f-E-I-V-E-s/f, Distance: 13.4 nm
Shrouds: Base +3, +5, +3

It was showery on the drive to Noank, yet by the time we arrived the rain had subsided leaving a low ceiling & some fog. The motor over to Vixen Ledge with a flood in accompaniment was uneventful.

With six classes our class was next to last starting at 1120. In about 8 kts of wind, we got a very good start most windward right at the committee boat. Bandit(J24), directly on our stern was unable to pull up to windward and shortly bailed out on port for clear air, a move we also were forced to do a couple minutes later due to the header from Salud after she pulled out from our alee to directly ahead. Back on starboard and nearing Seaflower, Salud tacked to port for the better part of five minutes, tacking back well to our windward. We had no difficulty weathering Seaflower (yet lost some current lift in its lee), so continued on starboard till closing on fog shrouded North Hill (Fishers Island). As some boats sounded an occasional fog horn, instrument & compass awareness was paramount. Lacking the usual visual cues, I was unaware of the header we sailed into for three minutes or so short of North Hill; a fact I became aware of post-race studying the chart. Had we tacked at 1245, we’d have picked up about two minutes.

Thames Yacht Club Governor’s Regatta - Sunday 08/03/08

Thames - GR

Crew – Seth, Bob & RW
Winds: NW 10 to 12 at start, backing west to SW
Current: ebb – 1243 North Hill
Weather – clear & sunny, beautiful day
Start/Finish: offshore of Vixen - 1230 / 1512
Course: s/f-Sarah’s Rock- Silver Eel – Vixen – Sarah’s Rock- s/f
Distance 12.6 nm
Shrouds: +2, +4, +2

We elected to start at the RC and avoid the mad dash down the line. Both Salud and Euphoria were over early.  Salud doubled back to restart on our lee quarter, while Euphoria rounded the pin then continued shoreward on port the only boat to do so. We got a very good start squeezing to weather of Jeannie with Phoenix to our starboard near the committee boat. Euphoria made out well inshore, passed us on starboard well to windward. Both Pursuit and Salud overtook us near the Mud head “B” mark.

At this point we were well to windward of the layline to Sarah and noticed Jeannie bear off apparently for the mark.  We began to follow suit, but soon realized they and the others were not only headed but sailing into a major hole, so we kept high as possible. Euphoria farther to windward faired the best.  Once clear of Black Ledge, we took a detour north up the river around the wind hole.  This move along with the good start positioned us well for the remainder of the race.

Thames Yacht Club Governors Regatta

Seth Magner Thames - GR

Sunday, July 15, 2007
Crew: Kevin, Bob, Seth & RW
Course: Vixen to Silver Eel & Return Distance: 6.0 nm
Winds: SSW at 12 (gusts 15) Barometer: 29.90, Temp: 73 F Current: ebb 1215 Ram Island
After a near two-hour postponement waiting for wind, things finally got going a bit before 1400 hours. With the standard five-minute spacing, we were the third class starting following Non-spinnaker & the Ensigns. I opted for the pin end thinking once we tacked to port for our westing, we’d have clear air. Instead the pin got mighty busy; yet we came out of it with no great down side and soon tacked to port.