Road
To The Cup – Week 2
6/2/24
What You Need To Know
- MRA Series 1 Day 4 – Saturday June 8th
This race day will be regular long-course racing on North Line with the J70s and Vipers. - 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, which caused some consternation. PRO
David Graham sent out an all-systems-go email about mid-day Thursday, despite rain and northeast winds in the high teens. That was based on the forecast of clearing skies and moderating pressure by late afternoon. David arrived at the CYC at 4pm to
find conditions mildly improved but still relatively unpleasant, so he made the decision to pull the plug. Of course, the wind later moderated, which as you’d expect, left a few Twilighters frustrated about losing the day (see mailbag below). To address
that, we’re going to invite Dave to join the Fleet 5 WhatsApp chat so that going forward, there will be a more direct link between PRO and racer. For what it’s worth, here are a couple shots of conditions at about 7:45 that evening.
Out on the MRA line, we had our first short course day, and it was a blast. An unmitigated success. This note from
Elise Nash captures the general sentiment. “For the record – LOVED the short course racing. So fun. More please. And props to the RC for pivoting so well.”
We got an update message from MRA in the morning changing the line from Brimbles to Archers, so our sail out to the racecourse took all of 5 minutes. (How awesome is that?) The Saturday forecast was for sunny and beautiful with a SE sea
in the 5-10 range, and so I assume the switch to Archers was as simple as, with a SE breeze, there was no reason to go farther. The BYC RC couldn’t have done a better job – communicating, setting good courses and keeping the three fleets (J70s and Vipers)
separated and keeping things moving. They set a few hundred yards off the harbor and dropped the weather marks up near Marblehead Rock. They started on time at 1pm, got in 5 races for each fleet and we were sailing in by 4 pm. The average duration of a
race was about 30 minutes. Ten teams made it out, which was more than the other two fleets combined, but still a relatively modest turnout for such a beautiful day.
So, taking first on the day was Team Lane / Heffernan, who made their debut in midseason form, sailing very much like reigning national champs putting up a line of 2-1-2-1-5 for 11 points. Well done! Taking 2nd was
Team Fava / Nash, who rolled a 1-3-4-2-4 for 14 points, and finishing 3rd was
Team Uhl / Lane with a 4-5-1-4-3 for 17 points. Honorable mentions to
Team Shoreman / Reynolds in 4th with a 3-2-7-5-1 for 18 points, and
Team Pandapas in 5th with a 7-8-3-3-2 for 23 points. Congrats to all.
So, in Cup competition, it’s still early. The top 10 are listed below.
Week 3 racing will include Twilight 1-2 on Thursday night 6/6, first gun at 7PM, and MRA 3-4 on Saturday 6/8, first gun at 1PM. This will be regular long course racing on North Line with the J70s and Vipers.
Other News, Notices & Miscellaneous Scuttlebutt
MRA Amendment – In response to the fleet interactions around the starting line on the M3 course last week, MRA has written this amendment.
“Based on our experience last week, MRA has decided to move the Finish line to the starboard side of the Signal boat for the ‘M’ courses to reduce congestion. Please see the revised
Addendum B under DOCUMENTS in ClubSpot.”
Time To Register –Registrations are open for the fleet & class
here and for MRA
here.
East Coast Registrations – The ECs are in two weeks. 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.
Need Charter for East Coasts – Gary Fretz is looking for a boat to sail in EC. If yours is available, contact
Mike Lane lanmik@gmail.com
or Timmy D. timmyd616@gmail.com” target=”_blank”>
timmyd616@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 –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.
If You Spin, Send It In (aka Road to the Pie) – We heard of no infractions this week, but from
Mark Rubin wrote in about a hit mark back in week 1. Thanks to Team Rubin for their sportsmanship.
Attention Ladies – EYC Women’s IOD Invitational – The Eastern Yacht Club and the Marblehead
IOD Fleet are holding a 2-day women’s regatta this September: The 2024 EYC Women’s IOD Invitational. Open to all-female teams, this regatta is not limited to IOD Sailors. They expect entries from Manhattan, Newport, Annapolis, and other one-design sailing
communities. For more info, contact Greg Mancusi-Ungaro gregmu@gmail.com.
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 – 1968 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
ghyllfen@gmail.com.
Old Sails Wanted – Carlos Rivero is looking for old sails. Contact him at
carlosrivero52@yahoo.com.
Mail Bag
We got reaction to the Twilight cancellation through email, text and WhatsApp. Here is a smattering.
Let’s start with Walter Colsman. “Flat water, 10 knots, blue sky on horizon, here from the dining room… pretty much as forecast. I’d say if a call is made at noon to go ahead, then stick with it unless things really are different,
and then make the call closer to game time, like an hour before?”
Marine Regnault posted, “An hour before is late. If you work in Boston, you need to leave Boston no later than 3pm to be able to make it.”
Even Forbes Barber weighed in. “Seems like 4pm should be early enough to call Twilights.”
Joe Fava made this observation, “Seems like what’s app is the new complaint hotline,” adding, “Why didn’t they just go sailing?”
And finally, perhaps the most sensible and circumspect comment came from
Tim McCaffrey, who wrote, “N over A is flying off the CYC Yardarm – Oh well, I guess I will work on the minimum.”
Complaints Department
Got Gripes?Don’t be shy. Unload at
kpandapas@comcast.net. The buck stops here.
-kp