Road
To The Cup – Week 1
5/27/24
What You Need To Know
- Twilight Opening Day – Thursday May 30th The first Twilight will be Thursday evening May 30th. First gun is 7PM. Keep an eye on the
CYC web site for the SIs. - MRA Series 1 Day 3 – Saturday June 1st
This race day will be our first short course day of the season, held on Brimble’s Line. - East Coasts – Saturday & Sunday June 15-16 Register
here. - First Party – Saturday Night June 15th Our first party will be part of the East Coast Championships and open to all registered skippers, crew and their guests.
Last Week’s Racing
There was no twilight racing last week.
Out on the MRA line, we kicked things off with a pair of light air days with temps in the mid-60s. It wasn’t as nice as last year’s spectacular weekend but was still pretty good. Of course, it doesn’t always go that way. To illustrate,
here is a shot of opening weekend in 2021 when both days were cancelled.
Anyway, the weekend featured the rollout of some of MRA’s changes. For starters, the racecourse (South Line) was rightly moved in closer, because frankly, there was no reason to take us further out, which made for a shorter commute. First
gun was at 1pm, at least on Saturday, as Sunday featured a postponement. The RC used the new course nomenclature, signaling W4 on Saturday and M3 on Sunday. The M3 course (starting line in the middle, one lap) was awesome, though a bit of an adventure with
multiple fleets. We watched the Etchells sail their downwind leg through the IOD’s start, and we finished our second Sunday race during the last minute of an IOD start, which required threading the needle between starboard tack boats more than twice our size.
I think a little tinkering with leg length should solve that going forward, or perhaps an SI amendment making the line closed.
And if that wasn’t enough, the EYC rolled out their new MarkSetBots, which they deployed flawlessly. An application of these marks I hadn’t considered was the ability to adjust the starting line length for the number of boats, which takes
just seconds. PRO Susie Schneider used that, shortening our line to an appropriate length after the IOD’s start. All and all, a successful first weekend, so tip of the cap to Susie and the EYC RC.
Nine teams made it out for the weekend, including newcomers
Doug Morgan and son Jack Morgan who graced our line for the first time sailing 1210. It seems
Team Frisch / Hourihan has taken a sabbatical for the season to sail an Etchells. We wish them well, of course, and are appreciative of their working to keep their boat on the line, but we will miss them and look forward to their speedy return. To
paraphrase a proverb, “If you love someone, set them free. If they don’t come back, hunt them down and kill them.” Kidding!! Anyway, huge welcome to
Doug & Jack Morgan, and we’re glad to have them join the family.
Saturday MRA Racing
Just seven boats made it out for opening day, a modest turnout for sure, but slightly better than the six IODs, four Etchells and three vipers, though kudos to all the sailors who came out. Attendees included the debut of
Team Morgan, as well as Team Gabriel who was out to begin their first full season. One other notable was
Timmy D., who sailed single-handed.
The Saturday forecast was for SE 5-10, with some models suggesting it could build into the teens later in the day. We got the 5-10, but instead of building, it petered out, leaving light air with residual lump that put a premium on keeping
the boat moving. Strong current on the outgoing tide also was a factor, especially as the breeze softened. The RC set up ¼ mile beyond Marblehead Rock, which was a thoughtful (and appreciated) attempt to shorten the commute, and got in two W-4s with 0.7
legs. With the light conditions, 0.7 proved a bit long as both races took over an hour, even after finishing our 2nd race at the top mark on the second lap.
So taking first on the day was Team Pandapas with a 1-1 for 2 points. Finishing 2nd was
Team Gabriel, who rolled a 2-2 for four points, and taking 3rd was
Team Rubin with a 4-4 for 8 points. Honorable mentions top Team Martini
in 4th with a 7-3 for 10 points, and Team Morgan in 5th with a 3-DNS for 11 points. Congrats to all.
Sunday MRA Racing
Seven teams showed up, but Team Martini was forced in before racing due to an equipment issue, leaving six. Those included
Steve Uhl, sailing with Yati Harsono, as well as Team Fava / Nash, who made their first opening weekend debut in memory.
Conditions were generally a repeat of Saturday, though with less pressure and seas. In fact, the RC was forced to postpone for an hour while waiting for something to fill in. It finally did, and we got off two races, both M3s, which was
fun and a welcome change from the usual W4s. As mentioned, fleets converged around the starting line, but to my knowledge, there were no incidents.
So, finishing 1st with a pair of bullets was Team Pandapas. Taking 2nd on the day was
Team Uhl with 2-2 for 4 points, and finishing 3rd was Team Gabriel, who rolled a 4-3 for 7 points. Honorable mentions to
Team Fava / Nash in 4th on a tiebreaker with a 3-DNS for 9 points, and
Team Rubin in 5th with a 5-4, also for 9 points.
So, in Cup competition, Team P. jumps out to an early lead, with
Team Gabriel just 7 points back. The top 10 are listed below.
Week 2 racing will include Twilight 1-1 on Thursday night 5/30, first gun at 7PM, and MRA 3-1 on Saturday 6/1, first gun at 1PM. This will be a short course format day on Brimbles Line.
Other News, Notices & Miscellaneous Scuttlebutt
Time To Register – If you haven’t registered yet, what are you waiting for? Registrations are open for the fleet, class and MRA. You can register for the fleet & class
here and for MRA
here.
East Coast Registrations – The East Coasts will be here in Marblehead on June 15 & 16. You can register and download the NOR
here. If you have any questions, please contact
Mike Lane at lanmik@gmail.com.
East Coasts Charters Needed – Folks from out of town are looking for boats for the East Coasts. If you’re not planning to sail, you might consider making your boat available for charter. Contact
Mike Lane at lanmik@gmail.com.
Race Week Registration – The Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta, will be Thursday through Sunday, July 25-28. Your MRA fee covers the entry fee, so you don’t have to pay an additional fee, but you do have to register, which
you can do here.
Nationals Registration – As you know, Nationals will be held this August 22-25 in Hingham Bay, sponsored by Fleet 46 and the Hingham and Hull Yacht Clubs. Register and pick up the NOR
here.
Rhodes Getting a Start at the Ted – This year’s Ted Hood Regatta will provide starts for Etchells, IODs and Rhodes 19s, subject to a minimum of five boats. The regatta will be held Friday through Sunday, August 16-18, though
the Rhodes and other one designs are expected to race just Saturday and Sunday. What a fantastic opportunity to get your mojo going for Nationals the following week. The NOR should be released shortly and available
here. The event organizers are working to gauge interest, so if you are considering sailing this event, please let me know at
kpandapas@comcast.net.
If You Spin, Send It In (aka Road to the Pie) – We heard of no incidents on the MRA line so we’re all knotted at zero.
Long May He Reign
– Here is another take on
Jonathan Yeo’s portrait of King Charles, created by Seamus Hourihan’s bride and artist extraordinaire
Amy Colbert Hourihan, who quipped, “I had to see how Seamus would look in red.”
Boat Wanted – Chris Murry, who sails out of New Bedford, is looking for a boat to buy. Contact Chris at
cmurray@hey.com.
Boat For Sale – 968 vintage Rhodes 19 located in Marblehead is for sale (see photo below). The boat was completely stripped, repainted, keel bolts and ribs replaced in 2022. It comes with main, jib, spinnakers. unused Doyle
main jib, trailer and competition rudder. $12,000 or BO (willing to negotiate). Email
Steve Feeney at stevef21090@gmail.com, or call 351-666-0496.
Old Sails Wanted – New owner Chris Brady in New Hampshire is looking for old sails to buy, and potentially other gear. Reach him at
ghullfen@gmail.com.
Old Sails Wanted – Carlos Rivero is looking for old sails. Contact him at
carlosrivero52@yahoo.com.
Mail Bag
In response to last week’s brief history of the Nick Nichols
trophy (aka the Cup), John Casler wrote in with the photo below. “Here is the gent for the trophy is named (center, with
Dan Duggan).”
We got a couple of notes on our response to Tom Dailey’s email about the 2021 Nationals photo. First was from Tom himself, who initially assumed it was the 2022 Nationals. He wrote,
“Right – it was 2021 and the Taylors were over early. Joe Berkeley hit the right corner on the first beat and won the race.”
The other was from Jim Taylor, for whom the pain of not winning that regatta remains just as acute as it was three years ago.
“I can’t remember what I had for breakfast either, but I remember the Sunday race of the 2021 Nationals all too well. Nat and I were tied for the series lead with
Matt Hooks going into Sunday after we DIDN’T race on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon after an AM squall (and with a sick PRO). Then we DID race on a barely sailable Sunday, and both boats were ruled OCS. I don’t know if we actually were, but I do know
that the RC didn’t call us until we were about 2 minutes into the drift-a-thon (race over for us), and they never called Matt’s number at all. I guess some memories stick with you more than others when you’re a sore loser 😉 On the brighter side, I also
remember being really happy for Steve Clancy eking out the win, as he sailed really well in an ‘away game’. So many races, so many memories…”
Complaints Department
Got Gripes?Don’t be shy. Unload at
kpandapas@comcast.net. The buck stops here.
-kp