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jfoster
05-19-2009, 07:01 AM
I have been looking in vain on the SSS site for some clues as to what went on in the SHF race this weekend . Oh well, there is a thread on Sailing Anarchy that will do for now. http://forums.sailinganarchy.com/index.php?showtopic=90521

John on Blueberry


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> SH Farallones, How was the trip?

SNIP

The first hour or so came down to whether you could set up to drift across the line at the right time on the ebb. Early and you were well and truly screwed (me last year), and if caught too far out before your start you might as well anchor. I was seconds from being OCS again.

After the start I worked out far enough to clear the So. Tower, then the breeze filled in and we headed on out into the washing machine. It was pretty sloppy until across the bar - then it was just about perfect. The last 3-4 times I did a better job of getting North - this year I was lulled into staying in the current too long (8.5k SOG in the light breeze), and then the normal lift into the island was much less pronounced than in past years. So the inevitable tack to the North cost several boats.

One of the tri's skipped by shortly after rounding the island so I put up the 1.5A and took off in pursuit. Lots of 10's and 11's all the way back in, touching 13 a couple of times. Between the ship channel and Mile Rock the wind shut down - in a matter of seconds. Fortunately it was still flooding so everyone was able to keep moving. Then just before Mile Rock a SW breeze filled in nicely and carried us into the bridge.

Once past the demon it was a great reach into the line, planing in the flat water. Had 3-4 round ups then remembered I had reduced the autopilot sensitivity in the slop outside the Gate. Put it back up to normal and all was good. Finished at about 1908. Carried the kite all the way down to the Estuary - great way to end the day.

Then I remembered - I'm drysailing now . . . ughhh.
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Travieso

SNIP


Provisional results are posted at the compete-at site

https://event-manager.compete-at.com/Manager/download?inline=false&fileid=7pQDZ1242668201509

SNIP




Norcalsailing posted a nice report on the race:

http://norcalsailing.com/archives/Entries/2009/5/17_Singlehanded_Farallones.html
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Wylieguy
05-19-2009, 09:35 AM
Here's my story:

I finished about 1854.

At the start I figured there was just enough wind to keep me slowly moving toward the line -- if I sailed directly the opposite direction. Bob Johnston (J-92 "Ragtime") figured the same thing, so we joked about making it a singlehanded T. I. race. At about 45 seconds I turned the boat sideways and crossed the start line right at "X" - which I had to do a little dip to avoid hitting.

I avoided several anchored boats, then began inching out toward the center of the bay. Most the boats that started ahead of me were swept down to Anita Rock, or below it. I think some of them were anchored. There was just enough wind for me to continue inching out toward the center, along with one larger boat that I think had started with the non-spinnaker crowd.

I passed under the GG Bridge at 0920, right at mid-span. There was the current and enough wind coming from behind to keep me going, but I couldn't get up as close to Bonita as I wanted. I like to exit Lands End right at Bonita if possible on these races.

It became lumpy after Bonita, which lasted about halfway out to the Lightbucket (now a regular "hoot, hoot" wave-action buoy - where are the glory days of rounding a real Light Bucket anyway?). I passed the buoy a few hundred yards to the north at 1100.

I continued close reaching - but not actually beating since the wave action was jerky. I tried to keep the speed over the bottom above 6 knots.

About 5 miles from the island I was a little below it, so I took about a mile hitch to the north, then tacked for the rock. I passed a few hundred yards north of it, eased off, and made my "island tack" at 1400. I was probably the 4 or 5th boat to round the island, including 2 large trimarans that passed me earlier. By that time, however, the larger mono-hulled boats were closing the gap from behind

Most of the way out I had 10 - 14 knot apparent wind, but around the island it piped up to 18 or so.

The wind on the way back in was interesting. It was in the 10 -14 apparent range, on a beam reach, but there were not real swells, so I couldn't get the boat's speed up much over 7 or 8 knots most of the time. I sailed back to the light bucket in company with about half a dozen larger boats, some of which gradually pulled away ("Lillith Wylie 39 was one of them), but others, strangely enough, began losing ground? Go figure.

The important thing was that the wind angle prevented them from setting their chutes until well past the light bucket. I passed a mile or so north of the bucket about 1615, moving pretty well. The GPS said "1.5 hours to the GG Bridge." Promises, promises!

There was a steady stream of boats still headed for the island, some so far south that they must have taken hours to tack up to the island. And, of course, there was the CG cutter positioned east of the island as a landmark/symbol????

After the bucket things began to go to hell in a hand basket - wind wise. It pretty much shut down. That 1.5 hours to the bridge became 4, then 5 hours away. From the bucket to about buoys 3/4 I could make 3 or so knots in the generally right direction, depending on the wind gusts. But around buoys 5/6 , it really shut down. The chutes on both sides and behind me drooped, then filled, then drooped. Slat, slat.

I tried heading north, following "Lillith," "Green Buffalo," and "Shaman," but two boats even further north had sagging chutes. I jibed to the south, but the boats down that way and further out were sagging, too. Eventually I gave up on a "direction" and just sort of jibed back and forth just north of the 5/6 & 7/8 channel markers, keeping the boat moving. The flood helped to keep me going in the right direction.

I never really stopped making progress toward the Bridge; I just spent a lot of time wearing out my new carbon sail (sorry Kame!). My left arm is sore because I grabbed the sheet and used my arm as a shock absorber to cut down on the snapping.

I called home at 1740 while I was still outside land's end and told my wife not to call the CG if I was quite a bit later than my float plan said. At the time I was on one of my southerly jibes, about 3 miles from Mile Rock, heading in its general direction. As soon as I hung up, the wind began to fill from the SW and the boat speed picked up.

The wind built from around 4 knots apparent to the low teens the further in I got. The closer I got to Mile Rock, the more I could aim for the Bridge. Finally I was running on a starboard tack, making almost 9 knots (GPS) over the bottom - and aimed right for the South Tower!

But "Lillith" and another large boat also caught it on the north side and began reaching in ahead of me.

As I turned the corner at the S. Tower (no need to jibe!) the apparent wind kicked up to 20 knots. It stayed strong all the way to the finish line. I crossed the line about 1854 and heard the gun go off! Okay, I said, it was worth it.

While I was banging around before the wind picked up, I heard several boats finish a good hour or so ahead of me, but they may have been multi-hulls. "Lillith" finished a few minutes ahead and there were boats ahead of her I couldn't identify, but "Shamrock" (C&C 41 - green hull) finished a few minutes behind me, and I heard several other larger boats finishing as I sailed back to Sausalito in the most wind I'd had all day! I actually put my jacket back on because of the spray.

All in all it was a typical SSS Farallones race. Not much wind, enough wind, not much wind, crazy mixed up finish.

Pat
"NANCY" Wyliecat 30 #28890 :)

BobJ
05-19-2009, 11:16 AM
. . . At the start I figured there was just enough wind to keep me slowly moving toward the line -- if I sailed directly the opposite direction. Bob Johnston (J-92 "Ragtime") figured the same thing, so we joked about making it a singlehanded T. I. race. At about 45 seconds I turned the boat sideways and crossed the start line right at "X" - which I had to do a little dip to avoid hitting . . .

Here we are (photo by Charlie Bergstedt) (http://cbergstedt.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album117&id=my16_016) I won the race to T.I.; Pat won the race to S.E. Farallon.

www
05-19-2009, 11:30 AM
You've heard from the fast boats; here's the view from the slow end of the fleet:

Same start, Pat described it well. "Horizon" drifted over the line about half an hour after her official start time and ghosted along near (and eventually *at*) the back of the fleet, working slowly past the anchored boats and out toward the middle of the bridge. One of the highlights of the day occurred just before passing under the bridge, when a pair of sea lions picked the "Horizon" as ground zero for a catch-me-if-you-can game that went on for at least 10 minutes. They were jumping clear of the water, plunging back in, then jumping out again on the other side. I worried a little that one might actually land on the boat, but it was very cool and uplifting to watch them play.

Outside the Gate, I poled out the jib and sailed (slowly) wing-n-wing out beyond Bonita, then fell onto a starboard tack as the northwest wind filled in.

Kept waiting for that lift we'd been promised in the skippers meeting, but finally gave up on it about 5 miles shy of the island, bit the bullet and tacked north. It was painful to watch the GPS show increasing distance from the island - I lost maybe a tenth of a mile altogether.

Back on starboard tack, I had a few slightly anxious miles wondering if I'd gone far enough north, especially with the current running south. I wanted to give the island plenty of room, and it turned out I did have enough, though I'd have liked even a little more.

Dropped my camera in the cockpit and broke it trying to catch a shot of the big swell on the northwest corner of the island, where the swells hit the shelf and the water lifts up and smashes against the rocks.

Once around, the run back was fantastic -- wind on the port quarter, waves from astern. Easy and fast (by Horizon's standards).

But, as others have reported, the wind faded out closer to shore, and before long I was wing-n-wing again, watching the knot meter and the GPS. Tide was ebbing by then, so my 3 or 4 knots of speed through the water became 1 or 2 knots SOG. I heard several boats call it in then, but I wasn't ready to give up yet. There was still plenty of time on the clock, and there were even still a couple of boats behind me.

Starting at 10:00, the required position reports started coming in. There were only a couple of us left then, I think. I relayed a couple of reports for Blackfeathers, and helped try to raise Sobrante on the radio. Had a slight scare when a large, fast power boat appeared dead astern and heading right at me. Aimed a flashlight at them in case they hadn't seen me, and soon they pulled up alongside: It was the coast guard, out looking for Sobrante. We talked a minute, and then they were off again.

The last few miles were, let's face it, excruciating, with the wind too light and the current against me. The GPS generally reported forward progress (though at least once I caught the little boat icon spinning around and around like a slow-motion top). Twice, I stood up and reached for the key, ready to bail out, but both times a last glance at the GPS gave me (slight) hope again, and I kept going. To come so far, only to give up. There was still plenty of time on the clock, and I was still inching along, so the only reason to stop would have been because I wanted to. OK, there was another possible reason: At the very end, I knew my stubbornness was the only thing keeping the race committee from being able to go home. But that wasn't the case until the very end.

At the bridge, I was thrilled to get a surge of wind, and charged past the south tower and into the Bay. Thought it was over then, and called the committee to ask them to keep an eye out for me, but the wind faded again as I worked up along the shore.

Crossed the line around 1:30 AM, then enjoyed a beautiful motor home to the Estuary. Surprising how busy the Estuary is in the middle of the night, with tugs nudging a ship up to the pier, and the clamshell dredge working away on the other side of the channel. Surprisingly warm and clear, too -- bright stars overhead, "jewel box" city skyline to starboard, a fat yellow crescent moon rising dead ahead. Just beautiful.

I appreciated the cheerful encouragement I got from the race committee in those last couple of hours. I owe you some volunteer time soon!

www

Jonathan Gutoff
05-21-2009, 11:31 PM
We posted the video of Greg's race on http://norcalsailing.com/
I'll do it next year when the boats ready. (How long have I been saying that?)