Top-10 as of 7/17/16
We lost yet another Twilight this week. This from our man on the scene, John Casler. “The forecast was for serious thunderstorms, but for later in the evening, and it looked toSteve Uhl, Walter Colsman and me that there was a window to get a race in in blustery but otherwise nice conditions. About 6:40 though, the sky over EYC rapidly began to look ominous. Just for a few minutes it began to rain, to blow up even more, and to look like it was really going to be bad. Unfortunately those few minutes were immediately prior to the starting sequence, and the RC made what looked like the unavoidable decision to cancel. It was all over in five minutes, and back to pretty nice conditions, but cancellation had already been signaled.” Thanks John. What a drag! Next week I guess.
Out on the MRA line, alert racers couldn’t help but notice that the RC didn’t use cannons Saturday for sequences and finishes. In case you missed it, that was because this weekend was the annual Wounded Warriors fishing event held out of BYC that started Friday night with a dinner and then fishing on Saturday. Out of respect for the veterans, many of whom suffer from PTSD, the clubs decided not to shoot cannons on Friday night and Saturday morning as part of colors, or to use cannons for signals during MRA racing. A thoughtful and respectful gesture.
Conditions couldn’t have been wackier. Essentially we had a dying, though still potent southwesterly fighting a feeble, somewhat stillborn sea breeze. When the southwesterly mixed down, we’d get 13-15 from 220ish. And when it receded, the pressure would die to 7-8 and swing 30-40 degrees back to the southeast. But sometimes, it didn’t. As my brother Jim Raisides pointed out, we watched the J70s fetch the weather mark on starboard while waiting to start our second race, and then just a few minutes later in our first leg fetched the very same mark on port – in pressure. Augmenting the fun was an outgoing tide that flowed to the south on the left and east on the right. I would not have wanted to be PRO Rick Hamill, who did a great job under the circumstances, though clearly picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue. He had his hands full. There is no post-duty drink stiff enough!
I guess all of that made everybody a little crazy. Ok, a lot crazy. In fact, I don’t remember the last time so many people lost their minds. Maybe it was the moon or possibly sunspots – not sure. Boats were fouling other boats, rounding the wrong marks, dropping out and waiting for the next one (or not), radioing the RC committee during races and effectively saying, “Really??” One of our top starters Charlie Pendleton was OCS four times (counting the two general recalls). He has to be leading the fleet in that category. As my old friend TO Sterret used to say, “Lordy Lou!” Okay, hopefully we’ve all drained the poison, exorcised our demons and will be back to thinking straight next week. All I want to know is why wasn’t Dave Nelson here and what did he know?
In a situation similar to Week 6, we have only preliminary results pending the outcome of a protest (that I don’t know for sure was even filed), but if so, the outcome impacts 1stfor the day. The protest is against two boats who rounded a different mark than the rest of us on the second beat of Race 2. There were multiple banded marks up there, which admittedly was confusing, but most boats rounded the one most upwind (after the course change). This mark confusion on top of the fetch in the first beat probably should result in the race being thrown out as unfair, but that’s above my pay grade. Anyway, preliminarily, taking 1st on the day was Team Fava/Nash, who put up a 3-1-6 for 10 points (the bullet being contested). All that aside, they sailed beautifully all day and apparently have their boat moving well. Taking 2nd (or 1st depending) was Larry Ehrhardt, who put up a 1-10-1 for 12 points. Larry was practically untouchable in races that involved actual beats. He had just a spectacular day. And taking 3rd with a 2-9-2 for 13 points wasTeam Pandapas. Honorable mentions go to Team Frisch/Hourihan who took 4th with an 8-3-3 for 14 points, and Mike Lane/Renee Heffernan in 5th on a tiebreaker with a 4-5-8 for 17 points. Congratulations to all.
So, in Cup competition, the biggest mover is Larry Ehrhardt, who continues his climb up the rankings and is now sitting in 3rd. The top-10 are listed below.
| 1st | 982 | Team Pandapas | 93.00 | |
| 2nd | 1210 | Frisch / Hourihan | 94.50 | |
| 3rd | 2435 | Larry Ehrhardt | 120.00 | |
| 4th | 1217 | Pendleton / Raisides | 130.00 | |
| 5th | 2623 | Mike Lane | 131.00 | |
| 6th | 3172 | Dave Nelson | 142.00 | |
| 7th | 2585 | Steve Uhl | 163.20 | |
| 8th | 1316 | Team Fava / Nash | 167.00 | |
| 9th | 1790 | Team Cormier / Dalton | 170.00 | |
| 10th | 1299 | Team Felton | 172.00 |
Week 9 racing will include the 1st race of Twilight of Series 2 on Thursday night and the 2-3 races of MRA Series 2, Day 4 on Saturday out on Tinkers Line.
Notices
NOOD Registration is open. As of last count, our Laser friends had 43 registrants compared to our 30. People, people, people, where is your pride? Register now by clickinghere.
Race Week Party, Thursday evening July 28th – Don’t forget that this year’s annual Race Week party will again be generously hosted by Jennifer & Steve Uhl at their Harbor front home at 160 Front Street. Circle the date.
Last Chance to Provide MRA Feedback – MRA will hold a Fleet Reps meeting on July 18th to collect fleet feedback on the season thus far as well as any suggestions we might have for improving things. If you have gripes or suggestions, now is the time. Please share your thoughts with MRA Reps Jim Taylor (jtyd@shore.net) or Kim Pandapas(kpandapas@comcast.net).
For Sale — #2446, “Tigger” Includes trailer. In Marblehead. In spring 2014 fiberglass ribs were installed; the keel faired, re-bedded and encased in fiberglass; and the bottom refinished. The interior is freshly painted, the hull is in good shape, and original floorboards are in excellent condition. Two sets of sails included. $8,000. Call Bruce & Karen Brock at (781) 631-7595.
Mail Bag
Not a lot of mail this week. We got a couple of Thursday night observations from a CYC RC officer who wishes to remain anonymous. First, with respect to the July 7 Twilights canceled due to fog, “This past week, we would have had at least 10 boats had Jim Taylor and the Martinis come out. It was also Tim McCaffrey’s first day on Action 1925.” Right you are about Tim, thanks. Welcome Tim.
The other accounts an incident of good sportsmanship, which as you know, is core to Fleet 5’s culture. “The week before Walter Colsman was OCS but the RC could not see the pin. He went back and cleared himself anyway – another gentlemanly act in the class.” Thanks Walter for reminding us that we have an obligation to start properly, whether the RC calls us or not.
Peter Sorlien weighed in on stem fittings and the possible options suggesting, “I’d be reluctant to recommend re-welding it, which would further crystallize the metal. Bristol Bronze expressed interest in making a solid casting of that fitting in silicon bronze (what I have on #41), if that’s of interest to you.” Definitely worth looking into. If I do it, I’ll make a few so let me know if you want one.
–kp (kpandapas@comcast.net)