March 2007 Racing Column for the Mainsheet

For awhile it seemed winter would never come, and now it seems like it will never end, but trust me, Spring is on its way! With Spring comes the anticipation of the racing season and our first big race of the year: the Annapolis NOOD. I want to encourage each and everyone of your to consider coming out for the NOOD regatta. Here are 5 reasons why:

1. You will have a fun racing adventure! Guaranteed. All racing comes with a good story to tell all your land-lubber friends over and over again. Some are happy ("We won the third race!"); some are sad ("We were becalmed in a fog and lost our foredeckman to Chessie.")
2. The racing is close by and quick. The NOOD spans three days: Friday, April 27 through Sunday, April 28. We typically race just north of the mouth of the Severn on short courses so that we ideally get in seven races in the three days. Consistency is key to winning the NOOD, so it's not a regatta where one bad race ruins your regatta. If you'd like a spot to dock your boat nearby the NOOD please drop me a line and I'll see what I can work out.
   
3. The parties are first class and a lot of fun. There is a party that includes food, drink and entertainment every night of the NOOD so you and your crew can come in and tell all those Melges 24 sailors what sailing a real boat is like.
4. The NOOD is a world-class event and is the regatta that decides the Alberg 30 Maple Leaf Trophy winner. There are nine NOOD regattas held each year in the U.S. and Canada, organized by a professional PRO (Principal Race Officer) and support staff. Over 2,000 boats participate in the NOODs each year! If you've been to the Alberg 30 annual dinner, then you have seen the half-hull models that are given out to the winner of the Maple Leaf Trophy. Who wouldn't love to win one of those?!
   
5. It's a great way to get a jump start on qualifying for High Point. High Point is the award given by the Chesapeake Bay Racing Association (CBYRA) to the best overall performer in each CBYRA sanctioned class. As a class we have eleven days of racing in 2007. In order to qualify for High Point, you only have to complete five races! If you do the NOOD you're more than half way there; just do two more days of racing during the season and you're in the running.
   

A quick side note about High Point qualification: it's important for our class and association for us to have as many boats qualify as possible. Why? Because when people are looking to purchase a boat, they are interested in getting involved with an active, supportive class. If you read the Alberg 30 e-mail lists, you have surely seen this expressed by many people that purchased Albergs. Racing participation is a directly measurable component of participation, tracked by CBYRA, which is used to assess the strength and health of our association. While support from a maintenance perspective, jovial parties and great cruising opportunities are important, so is racing. It offers another avenue for people to use their boats, create camaraderie and for us to get the word out about this great, beautiful, boat. So coming out to support racing in our association is an important way that owners can do their part to maintain the health of the association.

There are four things I want to ask you to do:

1. Contact me with any challenges you have in getting out for the NOOD (e.g. crew, maintenance, registration, etc.). If you want to get out there, we as a class want to help you make it. I'm in the membership book; contact me!
2. Go to www.sailingworld.com and click on the tab that says, "NOOD Regattas". Check out the results form some of the other NOODs and see if registration is open. If it is, sign up!
3. Join the Alberg 30 racing e-mail list. This is a low-volume list that consists mainly of racing announcements and it's a great way to keep up with what's going on. If you go to www.alberg30.org and click on "mailing lists" (near the bottom of the page) you'll find more information about how to sign up. If you have trouble, contact me!
4. Even if you don't plan to race your own boat, consider teaming up with someone in the association who is going to do so. Racing is a great way to improve your overall sailing ability and it's a great way to be part of a fun team activity.
   

I am looking forward to getting the year of to a great start. I'll see you on the water!

--Tim Williams

Note: As Racing Commodore for the Alberg 30 Association this year, I write a monthly column. I'll be posting it on LinGin's blog throughout the year for those of you that don't receive the Alberg's "Mainsheet" newsletter.

--Tim

As published in the Feburary 2007 Mainsheet.

“Anyone want a peanut butter on a cracker?” Grandpa asked. This would be a normal question on the boat if it weren’t for the conditions.

My grandfather, Bruce Rankin, graduated from the Naval Academy in 1945 and shipped off to World War II to serve in a submarine. He was either building, fixing, on or under a boat pretty much his whole life. My brothers and cousin grew up spending our summers racing all over the Bay on LinGin, his Alberg 30. We all considered him an old salt. Sometimes that saltiness was more apparent than others.

We had prepared for the St. Mary’s Governors Cup Race and had made it out to R2 at the mouth of the Severn when a sudden storm had come upon us. There were a couple hundred boats waiting to start and the sky had gone from foreboding to lightning filled. We were dealing with four foot seas and 35+ kts of breeze.

As the crew put on our foul weather gear and dealt with the horizontal rain, Grandpa announced he was going below to take a nap. He stripped down to his shorts and t-shirt, lay down and went to sleep! Not to mention that if any of us had even gone below for a second we would have been immediately seasick. I struggled to stay away from other boats and to not worry about the lightning strikes that were occurring all around. The rain felt like someone was shooting thousands of B-Bs at you and stung even through the foul weather gear.

After his nap Grandpa asked us about the crackers. Needless to say we declined. The storm settled down soon after that, but I’ll never forget how calm and at home Grandpa was on the water.

I’m excited to serve the Alberg 30 Association through the Racing Commodore position this year. As you can see from the story above, racing Alberg 30s is synonymous with family, adventure, childhood memories, and fun for me.

I want to encourage all of our Alberg owners to get this great boat out there on the starting line for a couple races this year. Every race has its story, its own adventure—why not experience it? Racing Albergs will enrich your life and your relationships. I has for me.

My kids are racing with me on LinGin now. She’ll be 40 years old this year and the kids are the fourth generation of our family to race her. Could your family have a legacy like that? It sure could, and I hope we’ll do it together! Please come say “hello” at the annual dinner this year. I look forward to seeing everyone there.

--Tim Williams

A30 from Maine to Texas

I saw this blog and I had to put up a post about it. These guys live in Texas and bought an Alberg 30 in Maine. They trailered the boat behind a RV! I haven't read the whole thing yet, but you should check it out if you have some time.

--Tim

Alberg 30 Annual Dinner Pictures

Crew,

Here are some pictures that Brian Palmer took at the annual dinner this weekend.

--Tim

A30 Annual Dinner 2007

Mission Accomplished! LinGin Wins High Point

Last night Andréa and I had a really wonderful time at the Alberg 30 Annual Dinner in Solomons, MD. LinGin took honors for the following awards:

• The Hammil Memorial Trophy for our distance race win (Solomons Island)
• The Osius Memorial Trophy for best performance in the around-the-bouy races
• The Jack Martin Memorial Trophy for winning High Point

At the beginning of 2006, we talked about this being our year. We've come a long way in our ability and through a lot of hard work (and great fun!) we had great results.

Everyone who raced with us should feel very proud. High Point takes a great deal of commitment in time and energy and it's a big deal to win it. I also want to sincerely thank all of our families for the many sacrifices they made for us over the years. We couldn't do it without you!!!

Keep your eye out for the annual LinGin off-season dinner party!

Here's to a great 2007 for all of you.

--Tim

Candian Team Races Photo

Here's most of the A30 group that attended the party after the Canadian Friendship Races. Next year I hope more of the LinGin crew (and families!) can make the A30 parties. They are very casual, family friendly and a great time to hang out and get to know some other sailors.

--Tim

Preliminary Results: LinGin Wins High Point

Per our resident High Point calculus expert, Glen Becker, the numbers are showing that team LinGin took first place for the Alberg 30 High Point trophy this year. The official results will be announced at the annual dinner January 13, 2007.

You are planning on being there, aren't you?! You'd better be!

Thanks again everyone for a great season.

--Tim

LinGin Takes Second at Canadian Friendship Regatta

The Canadian Friendship Race has proven to be one of the most frustrating regattas for me. It comes at the end of the season and typically after a couple of weekend races in a row. We usually do very well at Queenstown and Oxford, but the Canadian races seem to confound us.

This year, the Saturday race saw good winds (10-15 kts) and a very sloppy sea. Unfortunately we did not have the participation numbers we had hoped for; only 4 boats made it out including the Canadian entry.

In both of the day's races, LinGin had poor boat speed. The first race we had a good start and felt the wind would go right throughout the day. The fleet went left while we went center of the course, but furthest right of the fleet. What we failed to recognize was a 20 degree shift to the left about half way to the first mark. Had we realized this was a persistent shift, we would have tacked over and maintained a strong lead. We sailed into it and were taken over by 550 and 247.

During the downwind leg, we overtook the Canadian boat (550) while they were having spinnaker trouble. We appeared to maintain our position with 247 during the downwind leg. As a side note, T.C. Williams had C.B. Currier on board and they certainly made a good team. We couldn't make up the difference heading back upwind as 247 smartly covered us.

The second race, we saw 247 line up for a port start and set out to deny it. We did a admirable job of timing the start, coming into the pin on starboard and forcing 247 to duck behind us. I'll admit I enjoyed that. :-)

My joy was short-lived, though. 247 tacked behind and upwind of us and just MOTORED by. We tacked away and they tacked to cover us. We spent the rest of the leg trying anything we could think of to tune the boat in to the conditions, but to no avail. It was very frustrating.

We should have realized, again, that there was a huge shift mid-way up the course again, but I was too frustrated with 247 driving away that I completely missed it. We came around the mark last. Argh.

During the downwind leg we made up on 484 and came close to 550, but in the end took a third.

Day two had much smoother conditions and the boat felt better. We had a great start and made good speed up the upwind leg, but about halfway up we got out of phase with the shifts which put us in third behind 247 and 550. The wind was lightening up as we went downwind, and to mix it up we tried downwind tacking. This is an area that I want to experiment more with. We got smoked on one of the NOOD races by Towney tacking downwind while we took the rhumb line, and I think the angles and windspeed that I would normally start downwind tacking on are perhaps wrong. At present we have to be going less than 2 kts and we use the angle brackets on the masthead fly to determine the angles. I'm going to try higher angles and I'll start downwind tacking under 3 kts. We'll see how it works out.

We rounded the bottom mark behind 550 and went right toward Hackett's Point. 247 went left, and 550 concurred pretty quickly. I liked our speed and the wind seemed to be building on the right side of the course, so to get leverage on the other boats, I went to the lay line. The wind substantially increased and was a huge lift once we tacked. We made out like bandits against 550 and very nearly caught 247.

The race committee was run by Bob Leigh rather than Phil Biegel this year as Phil's house was hit by the tornado that went through Severna Park right before the weekend. Bob's a fantastic guy and very pragmatic. He and the team did a good job, but I was a frustrated by two issues with the Race Committee.

1. Thread the Needle. We had a vote at the skippers meeting/potluck dinner and I was the only one that voted against threading the needle. This is a rule that says as you sail up and down the legs, you MUST go through the start/finish line each time. I really don't like this rule as it significantly limits the leverage you can get on your competition. The reasons given for keeping it were that a) it makes it easy for the RC to shorten the course, b) it allowed for better photos (I didn't see anyone with a camera on the RC boat), and c) it was tradition.
   
   
2. The RC shortened the last race in solid wind. I'll admit that the wind was light during the downwind leg, but that upwind leg things really began to blow. The race was going well and we would have readily made the party afterward. I know the Canadians need to get home, but they made a very long trip to race. Why not give them the full experience?

I really think that if we're going to go to the trouble of putting together a race that the RC should be willing to run the best race possible. I really enjoy the Canadian Friendship Race. It's cool to have just Albergs out there and it's usually a very well attended event. I'm not suggesting making it "cutthroat" or anything like that, I just feel strongly that we need to go the distance and make it a great race.

One last thought on the first day's racing. I spoke with C.B. and T.C. and the rest of our crew. I think perhaps we had things a bit too tight. That while it felt like strong wind, we had things set up a little too strong. If I had it to do again, I'd try a little less jib halyard tension, a little less backstay and a fuller main.

We had a good time overall (anytime out racing is a good time in my book!), and it was nice to finish the season with a second.

I'd really love to organize a 10 hour road trip to Toronto next year to race against the Canadians. They are really, really, nice people and I know we'd have fun. Perhaps we can bring our families. It would be a trip we'd all remember for a long time.

What do you think?

Thanks, Crew, for a great weekend!

--Tim

LinGin Has Solid Lead Heading Into Canadian Races

With the Canadian Races being the last big regatta of the year this coming weekend, LinGin is expecting to maintain her lead in the High Point standings. We've worked very hard this year to earn the number one spot. Let's keep up the great work!

1 - LinGin - .6289
2 - Skybird - .5405
3 - Argo - .5062
4 - Infinity - .4203
5 - Windswept - .3580
6 - Solstice - .3235

Race Back From Queenstown: Tim and Andy Sail Together

Andy and I grew up racing LinGin with our Grandpa. He taught us just about everything we know about sailing. Between living in Virginia, having a lovely wife and young daughter and managing a software development company, it's tough to get Andy out these days. So, the race back from Queenstown was special to me because my brother--who is not only a great sailor, but is a great guy--was along.

I hope we see you onboard again soon, Andy!

--Tim

 

LinGin Takes First to and From Queenstown

LinGin took first going both ways to Queenstown this past weekend. We had a strong (~15kts) breeze out of the south both days. The race starts at Baltimore Light, shoots straight across to the mouth of the Chester River, and hooks up to Queenstown. Due to the wind conditions, we only had to make four tacks the whole weekend! Kind of strange, and to be honest, a bit boring as the racing became more of a foot race than anything else.

We made great time heading over, finishing in 2:22 at 12:30 in the afternoon. Kicking back, we rafted up with Mike Meinhold, John Malizewski (a new Alberg owner as of this summer), and T.C. Williams. Two crabbing boats served as the floating party raft and the winners were announced as we all hung out and enjoyed a beautiful evening on the Bay. We slept on the boat, watching the stars and enjoyed a very pleasant night.

Race Over
Crew: Glen, Greg Elman (friend of Glen's), Tim
The Basics:
Wind: 15 kts out of the South
Seas: 2 ft. since the wind had been blowing all night. They were smaller the further we got up the Chester River.
Setup: We went with a full main and the number two, which seemed to work out pretty well. We did not fly the chute.

Highlights:

• As is too often the case, we were running behind getting to the starting line. We made it by the skin of our teeth, and not having heard any guns, we just jumped on T.C.'s stern as he headed for the line. He bore off a bit as he got close to the line (he was a little early), and just as we were to head off, the gun went off and gave us a great start.
• The number 2 and the full main were plenty power for getting us over. We kept the rail out of the water by dropping the traveller and dumping the sheet in big puffs.
• We kept the backstay very tight to help decrease headstay sag and thereby enable us to point better on the upwind leg.
  
• We basically covered T.C. the whole way as he was our closest High Point competitor in the race.
• The last leg of the course was about 2 miles long and we could have popped a chute. We decided against it as we had a significant lead on the next boat and the risks associated with flying the chute in heavy wind outweighed any potential advantage.

Race to Queenstown Results

Pos	Sail	Boat	Skipper	Rating	Finish Order	Finish Time	Penalty	Pts
1	244	LIN GIN	Williams, Tim		1	12:32:33.0		1.0
2	247	ARGO	Williams, T C		2	12:37:20.0		2.0
3	543	CALYPSO	Dinwiddie, George		3	12:41:50.0		3.0
4	505	GILLELEJE	Lehman, Mike		4	12:42:32.0		4.0
5	501	SOLSTICE	Morris, Larry		5	12:53:35.0		5.0
6	262	TATUS	Malizewski, John		6	13:04:10.0		6.0
7	272	RINN DUIN	Meinhold, Mike		7	13:05:35.0		7.0

Race Back
Crew: Glen, Brian, Christopher (Brian's friend), Andy, Tim
The Basics:
Wind: 15 kts out of the South
Seas: 1- 2 ft.
Setup: We went with a reefed main and the number one.

Highlights:

• Starting in the river, we had a little less wind at the start of the race. We got to the line early and tested our sail selection and felt pretty good about the number 1 and a reef.
• We had a decent start at the pin end on port tack. T.C. was a bit to windward of us (an advantage), and as I recall most of the fleet started in the same place, just a few seconds behind us.
• We did our best to work up on T.C. and were eventually able to tack onto starboard and get above him. We spent some time trying to decide when to play the starboard tack card as we couldn't tack too close (against the rules) and we needed to consider where we would be at the next set of tacks. We waited until we were about 2/3 of the way the course and had worked up a good deal on T.C. and made our move.
• Once we got above T.C. we rounded the mark in the lead and held it from there.
• We flew the chute on the last leg before heading back across the Bay. We rounded up a couple times, but Glen and the crew did a great job of keeping the boat under control, primarily by working with my steering and easing in the puffs. We weren't dead downwind, so death rolls were not an issue.

Race Back From Queenstown Results

Pos	Sail	Boat	Skipper	Rating	Finish Order	Finish Time	Penalty	Pts
1	244	LIN GIN	Williams, Tim		1	11:34:45.0		1.0
2	543	CALYPSO	Dinwiddie, George		2	11:37:21.0		2.0
3	247	ARGO	Williams, T C		3	11:42:54.0		3.0
4	505	GILLELEJE	Lehman, Mike		4	11:44:41.0		4.0
5	501	SOLSTICE	Morris, Larry		5	11:54:54.0		5.0
DNC	262	TATUS	Malizewski, John		DNC	No Time	DNC	7.0

These two races make a great weekend out and there is always a great turn out because the Albergs on the Magothy River do such a great job of supporting it. I look forward to another good time next year!

Thanks for all the hard work, crew. It was a pleasure as always.

--Tim

Hammond Memorial Race Back From Oxford--Only Cats Finish

The race back from Oxford was a disappointment this weekend. With 18.2 miles start to finish and a 6 hour time limit, the crew of the LinGin this Sunday (Mark, Glen and Tim) contend that finishing the course is optimistic under good conditions. Straight line would require an average speed over three knots and throw in one upwind leg and I think you've missed the time limit.

Last year LinGin won with 10 minutes left before the time limit.

This year, we had a good start (spinnaker start!); we were in open air and pretty close to the line with good speed. First around the first mark, we saw the wind take a 10 degree shift, and later a 50+ degree shift. Needless to say it was light and shifty. We watched the speedo show 1-3 knots throughout the race, and we did continual mental calculations to see whether we believed it was physically possible for us to finish.

With an hour left, we decided it was a lost cause and powered home. We were vindicated when the race committee announced on the radio that only the catamaran finished the race. Pretty poor; they should have finished the race at the penultimate mark!

Hopefully the fall will bring more windy days like Saturday.

Who's ready for Queenstown?

--Tim

LinGin Wins Race to Oxford

Wet windy weather greeted Nick, Scott, Glen and me on the way down to Oxford Saturday. Out of the north at 10-15 kts, we set a chute at the start and shot down to the mouth of the Choptank River. Unfortunately, Towney, CB and TC were all unable to make the regatta, so we only had three Albergs in the race: Harry (484), Lanny (562) and LinGin.

The Albergs started first and we actually made it down to the first mark (about 10 miles, I think) before any other boat passed us. Not bad for 39-year-old LinGin! Scott did some great spin work and we had a really nice ride.

The wind was such that it was a straight shot up to the mouth of the Tred Avon River. From there we tacked up the last couple lines to the finish and got the gun. (Apparently the birds in Oxford aren't as sensitive to noise as they are in Annapolis.)

There was a lot of laughing and we only had a real downpour in the last couple miles. We had a nice dinner at the Pier St. Restaurant, and Mr. Whaley didn't upset the waitress the way he did in St. Michaels. (BTW: He's going to start rating Eastern Shore restaurants--"Whaley's Waitress Whales". It will be based on just how poor the service is. There will be a component that factors into your High Point Score, but that part is still in draft. We'll keep you posted here at the LinGin blog.)

Great job crew, and special props to Nick for bringing doughnuts and coffee for breakfast on the way down!

--Tim

p.s. This put us into first for High Point. See the standings link on the right side of this blog.

Going Into Fall, LinGin is Second in High Point Standings

Here are the current Alberg 30 High Point standings (courtesy of Charlie Husar, official CBYRA Cruising One Design scorer)

1 - Skybird - .5405
2 - LinGin - .4783
3 - Argo - .4478
4 - Infinity - .4203
5 - Windswept - .2432

I've added a link from the blog homepage to these results that Glen has graciously offered to keep updated.

Go LinGin!

--Tim

LinGin Captures First in WNR Series III

Congratulations, crew! Although we were unable to race last night due to family and work commitments, the race was canceled due to a lack of win. This kept us in first for the last series of the year. Thanks for all your hard work, and most of all your friendship. Wednesday Night Races are one of my favorite parts of every summer. Here's to a great finish in the High Point Series this fall!

--Tim

Division: Alberg 30 (6 boats)

Pos	Sail	Boat	Skipper	1	2	3	4	Total Points	Pos
1	244	LinGin	Nurco, Virginia	[4/DNC]	1	1	2	4.00	1
2	550	Skybird	Liddick, Roberta	[2]	2	2	1	5.00	2
3	247	Argo	Williams, T.C.	1	[3]	3	3	7.00	3
4	484	Second-2-Nun	Bluntschli, Ralph	3	4	4	[5]	11.00	4
5	79	A30	Binder, Paula	4/DNC	[5/TLE]	5	4	13.00	5
6	567	Andante	Maas, Louis	4/DNC	5/DNC	[6/DNC]	6/DNC	15.00	6

LinGin Teams with SkyBird for Canadian Friendship Team Races

There are two locations where one finds a significant fleet of Alberg 30s: Annapolis, Maryland, and Lake Ontario, Canada. Since 1965 the two groups have held team races. The one on Lake Ontario is early in summer and the one on the Chesapeake Bay is held in the early fall.

LinGin was built in 1967 by Whitby Boat Works in Ajax, Ontario, Canada. It was originally sold to David and Alice Bonney of Salem, Mass. on July 10, 1967 and named Salem Packet. She was subsequently bought by my grandparents, Bruce and Jean Rankin, on December 13, 1972. The name, "LinGin" comes from a combination of names of their two daughters: Linda (my mom) and Virginia.

My grandfather teamed up with Ted Osius in 1975 and won the Canadian Friendship Team Race. He would win it five more times over the next 16 years. After his death in 2001, the award for the Chesapeake Bay team race was renamed the Bruce Rankin Memorial Trophy. I'm sad to say that LinGin has yet to win the trophy named after my grandfather.

Rolph Townshend, "Towney", has been part of the team that has won the Canadian Friendship Team Races every year since 1996 up until last year. That's eight years in a row! (The race was canceled in 2001 due to the 9/11 tragedy.)

Since we are usually competing for High Point neck and neck, I've been hesitant to ask Towney to team with us for the races. LinGin has also done some of her worst racing during that regatta. (I shudder to think about some of the poor racing decisions I've made there!)

This year, however, Towney has not been doing all of the High Point races, and is not planning to do Oxford, the remaining distance race. This makes him less of a direct competitor for High Point. (Although since Solomons Island did not count for High Point, I have a feeling he is right in the mix.) He has decided to loan SkyBird to the Canadians, but is racing another Alberg and put out an e-mail last week looking for a teammate.

I was quick to jump on the e-mail and Towney has graciously accepted us as his teammate this year. I'm looking forward to the races. I plan to do my very best.

Perhaps this is the first time LinGin will be part of the team to win the Bruce Rankin Memorial Trophy. Grandpa would be proud if we did!

WNR - Series III - Race 1 & 2

Competitors: 247, 244, 550, 79, 484
Crew: Glen, Nick, David, Tim

Last week, Race 1, I was stuck in Alabama for work and while Glen went to the dock to go out, he didn't have enough crew show up to make the race. No worries. These things happen.

The Basics
Course: A1. (Shortest.)
Wind: 5-10 kts out of the South
Seas: A little lumpy due to power boats.
Setup: Full

Highlights

• We had a poor start. We tried to have speed coming in on starboard at the boat, but the wall of boats trying to barge just killed our speed. A last minute 10+ degree header didn't help our prospects either. (This header was seen across the line and persisted for about 5-10 minutes after the start--it was funny to see everyone trying to come up at the gun, only to find themselves pinching heavily.)
  
• We followed Towney on starboard up the north side of the course about 1/3 of the way up. 550 and 247 were ahead of us and we were not pointing as well as 550, but we liked the north better than the south.
• Towney tacked and headed south, we stayed until we were in shallow water and then tacked out.
• 247 was coming on starboard and had us. We tacked back to starboard and didn't let them cross us.
• We were bumping the layline, but it paid off big time. We rounded the windward mark well ahead of everyone.
• We had a good chute set, gybe and take down, holding it all the way until the green can at the entrance of the harbor.
• Stayed close to the Chart House coming into the harbor and was able to stay high of all the other boats coming in at the same time.
• Took the gun--I mean wimpy, lame, ridiculous, bird-saving horn.

Lessons Learned

• On the start: The A30 has momentum to its advantage, but it still needs some wind! We should have run the line on starboard, had clean air and speed. (This is what Towney did.)
• Coming into the harbor: Grandpa and Towney saw eye-to-eye on the harbor: in all cases go as far in toward Ego Alley as you can and tack out. I think the idea is that the wind is better due to all the buildings (like the Chart House) on the eastern shore. This week and the last WNR we won, we came around the can at the entrance of the harbor and were able to stay in an arguably different wind by staying very high and close to the eastern shore. I think this may only pay off in certain wind conditions, such as light to medium air, but not in totally dead (then the buildings blanket that part of the course and you're dead). In the light to medium stuff, perhaps the wind bends around the buildings such that there's a lift that sucks you close to the buildings all the way in? Any thoughts?
  

The weather was beautiful, and we had a great time. David even did some singing for us as we came into the harbor.

Good times.

--Tim

Solomons Island Pictures 2006

Brian, LinGin staff photographer, captured much of the race through his skilled lens handling.

See the crew!

Feel the heat!

You'll almost believe you were there, sweating away with us, eating pancakes and floating along at -0.4 kts. VMG.

http://picasaweb.google.com/goosemonkey/SolomonsIslandPictures

Solomons Island Race 2006

Competitors: 244, 247
Crew: Brian, Scott, Glen, Mike, Tim

The Basics
Course: 45 miles from Annapolis to Solomons Island starting at 1940 and finished at 1250 the next day. 17 hours and 11 minutes was the official time. Unofficially, we called it "Long. Very Long."
Wind: Started with 8-10 kts. out of the south but slowly died through the night. Went calm around 0500 and then again at 0900. The last 2 miles of the course took about 3 hours.
Seas: Pretty smooth.
Setup: Light air setup for the most of the race.

Race Highlights

• Unfortunately, everyone other than TC Williams dropped out of the race before it started. TC ran aground and was becalmed for such a long time that he retired from the race, making LinGin the only Alberg 30 to finish.
• Mike Nicolach crewed with us this race. He's usually on Larry Morris' boat, but as Larry bailed at the last minute, Mike came along. He was a great asset, bringing lots of good navigation information. Hope you can come out with us again sometime soon, Mike!
  
• Good start: clear air on the side of the line that we wanted.
  
• We had great speed up to Tolly Point.
• Our basic strategy was rhumb line, but with an eye to the current. I'm never too sure how well we make decisions in the middle of the night. When the sun comes up in the morning, it's easy to blame the wind, the current, Brian's LED illumination efforts, Glen's breath, whatever! I think we did pretty well, though this year, but with only one competitor, it's hard to say.
• We came close to a couple unlit marks during the night. (Suprise!)
• We got as close as I think an Alberg can get to James Island to get out of a rippin' current.
• We dropped an anchor less than 2 miles from the finish and went from beating upwind to setting the chute. We even passed a J35 during those last 2 miles!
• Brian retained his white LinGin chef's hat, by concocting a lovely medley of omelets and pancakes. Little know fact: Brian can make pancakes in the shape of anything. (I'm not kidding, just ask for a demo.)
  

Lessons Learned

• This was the first time I really seriously used the anemometer to steer the boat. I used the feature that tells the angle of the apparent wind. I would find the angle that kept the sails full and us the meter to gauge whether I was on target or not. I think it worked well.
• Glen and I shared the helm throughout the night. With +/-2 hour shifts, we both got some rest and I think it made a difference in the quality of our work.
  

As anyone who's been around me knows, Solomons is the best race of the season. Unfortunately, as anyone who's been on the race knows, it can also be the worst. 17 hours was a long time to be in 90+% humidity and 90+ degree heat without a shower. The camaraderie is great though. If you didn't come along you, missed great late night discussions that included the following quotes:

• "I saw a crab riding on a jellyfish."
• "Look Brian, I made you a jellyfish-shaped pancake."
• "LinGin should be its own brand."
• "LinGin sounds like cheese."
• "There are seahorses in the Bay. I have pictures. I can prove it."
• "I've been looking for those shoes for over a year!"
• "You did not see a crab riding a jellyfish."

If you weren't there, you missed out! But don't worry; there's always next year. Great job, guys. I had a blast!

--Tim

Osius Regatta

Competitors: 244, 247, 550, 57, 484, 562
Crew: Brian, Scott, Christopher, Tim

I'm going to try a new format for these posts to hopefully make them easier to write and to read. I welcome you comments.

The Basics
Course: Dropped marks off Tolly Point. Two races, windward-leward.
Wind: 20+ kts, with gusts close to 30!
Seas: Fairly heavy seas on the northern side of the course, Tolly Point lessened the impact of the wind on the seas to the south.
Setup: Reefed main, #2. Spinnaker when the wind wasn't too gusty.

Race One Highlights

• Good start.
• Overpowered at times on the windward legs.
• Went left while others went right. I felt the seas were less to the left which gave us better speed. This seemed to pay off.
• First downwind leg no spin; we watch TC struggle with it.
• Second downwind leg we gave it a go about half way down, and had we done it right at the mark rounding, we might have caught Towney. As it was we caught up a great deal.

Race Two Highlights

• Very similar to the first race.
• Found ourselves in second behind TC coming upwind the final leg. Towney was close behind.
• Dropped the traveller way down (had the backstay around 6) and saw a dramatic improvement in our ability to carry some wind in the main without being over powered.
• About 1/2 way up split as far left as we could with TC.
• We experienced a huge lift, and TC dealt with a huge header. We crossed ahead of him by about a boatlength right at the finish.

Lessons Learned

• Drop the traveller in heavy air!
• Make sure the foot is tight when reefing to make the main flat and depowered.
• Reduce headstay sag by tightening the backstay in heavy air upwind. This improves pointing.
• When flying the chute in heavy air going dead downwind, there is a tendency to death roll. Ease the pole forward to put the spinnaker behind the main and reduce the wind in it to minimize the rolling.

Christopher is a friend of Brian's, and he was a lifesaver on this race. We enjoyed getting to know him, and look forward to the next race with him. Scott did a great job running ragged on the foredeck. (We're putting it up. No wait. We're not putting it up. No. Yes, we are putting it up, but on the other side; switch it! No, wait, belay that...) Brian kept the tacks smooth, tracked the competition and introduced Christopher to racing. Great job, guys.

Next race: Solomons Island!

--Tim

p.s. The engine belt snapped on the way to this race. We noticed it in time (steam coming from the engine comparment below), and shut the engine down. I changed the oil once we were back to be sure we didn't scorch it. It turned out that the overheating boiled off all the coolant as well. So, if you're ever out on LinGin and the engine overheats, shut it down immediately and sail in!

Pos	Sail	Boat	Skipper	1	2	Total Points	Pos
1	247	ARGO	WILLIAMS, T.C.	1	2	3.00	1
2	244	LINGIN	WILLIAMS, TIM	3	1	4.00	2
3	550	SKYBIRD	TOWNSHEND, ROLPH	2	3	5.00	3
4	57	INFINITY	CURRIER, CB	4	4	8.00	4
5	562	WINDSWEPT	HELMS, LANNY	5	5	10.00	5
6	484	SECOND-2-NUN	GAMBER, HARRY	6	6	12.00	6
7	567	ANDANTE	COLE, ANDREW	8/DNS	8/DNS	16.00	7