From the Secretary/Treasurer
By Kathleen Lewis, C42, Wind Raven

There are presently 40 member boats.  The Ship’s Store items are still available if anyone wants anything.  Burgees are also still available for $20.

From the log of Wind Raven

Plans for an extended journey were modified and our first cruise was to the PYC outstation with our 3 and 6 year old grandchildren.  After a few days there we went downriver to Cathlamet and were there when the Six Pac boats arrived from Astoria.  We did a lot of walking ( 2 dogs and 2 grandchildren)—actually we called it exploring.

After Cathlamet, we returned upriver staying at the Rainier docks.  Just happened that the St. Helens sailing club had Rainier as their first stop on their downriver cruise.  We let two Catalinas raft to us that night.  Berkley and Carol Smith (C36, Hot Spur) and Ron and Mari Howell.  Doug and Karen Knight (C320, Voyager) were their cruise leaders.

Smiths are present CRACA members and the Howells and Knights have been members before.

It’s a “small world” on the river and CRACA has given us the opportunity to meet and get to know so many really neat people.

Our next cruise was to Beacon Rock.  Upon arriving we were told that they had sighted a mother bear (with a broken leg) and a cub around the park.  The park personnel are very friendly and seem to keep tabs on things going on.  Just before we left we heard that a bear had been sighted by some of the park visitors.  Fortunately, he was walking with two people and was on leash.  Needless to say, our Boat Bear became known to many.

We enjoyed the camaraderie of the crews of Kira Lynn, Celtic Myst, Fat Cat, and Sea Flower.  Thanks to Laura Mack for supplying a canopy that made the very sunny dock tolerable. There was hiking, kayaking, sharing of appetizers, and just a relaxing time.  The crew of Fat Cat had some boating experiences that they should share with all of us.

By land Dave and Helen Peoples, Jim Elieff and Shirley, and Walt and Marilyn Wittke  also were a part of our cruise.

If At First You Don't Succeed...
The Adventure of adding a Dodger to our Catalina 30
By Bennie Harrison, C30, Spirit II

Our Family's Downriver Cruise
The pleasures of island time and great sailing
By Gary Jaeckel, C30, Mistress II

My thanks to Dale Mack for the picture of Mistress II.  It is the only picture we have of her under sail.  We had just spent three days in Astoria when we crossed paths with Dale who was heading to Astoria as part of the Six Pac.

A note about the West Mooring Basin.  We entered on a minus tide and found only 6.8' when we went in.  At least one other sailboat came in after us and grounded as they attempted to enter a slip.  They were about six slips in from the end.

We departed the marina while the ebb was still on so we would have plenty of water under our keel.  I wanted an early start and did not want to wait for the flood.  This may have been a miscalculation because we spent about 30 minutes watching the same buoy off of our port.  We had a nice sail all the way into Cathlamet after we passed Dale just east of the Astoria-Megler Bridge.

We left Cathlamet for Walker Island the next day with hopes of another great sail but it was just hot and breathless all day.

Leaving Walker Island on Wednesday we motorsailed until we reached Rainier where the wind built and we made 5+ knots under our 135 Genoa.  As the day went on we also encountered the high wind Dale encountered during Wednesday's race.  With the 135 reefed to about 50% we were surfing down some swells at over 7 knots .  We don't have a GPS aboard Mistress II so this was measured from our old Standard knot-log meter but we were moving along at a good clip.  A good measure of our speed is indicated by my death grip on the back stay in the attached photo.

It was a great sled ride all the way into Saint Helens.  We were going to stay at Sand Island but it was rolling and breaking so much between the island and the gas dock we decided to sail up Multnomah Channel to Coon Island.  Even in the channel with our 135 rolled all the way out we were making over 5 knots.  We went back to Sand Island the next morning after it calmed down and spent the next four days there on "Island Time".  Sand Island is a favorite spot for our 10 year old Tanner.

Gary, Jeanine and Tanner crew of Mistress II

Cruising Notes from the s/v Imagine
By Gail O'Neill, C30, Imagine

July 26, 2005
Ganges, Salt Spring Island, BC

We've been living on the boat since June 10, over 6 weeks so far, except for five days over July 4th weekend.  We returned then to Portland via Amtrak to attend the RCYC 4th of July celebration and take care of business at home.  Unfortunately, my seventeen year old cat Ebony's renal disease had deteriorated and I had to make the difficult decision to have her put to sleep.  It was tough saying goodbye to my little friend, but tougher still to see her suffering.  Bob and I were both relieved to get back to the boat in Anacortes to continue cruising.

Our summer cruise began June 10 waving goodbye to Friday night beer can racers and motoring down river to St.  Helen's and Astoria.  We motor-sailed the 32 hour leg of the voyage up the Washington coast to Neah Bay with Judi Davis (OWSA Commodore) and Tom Steenson as crew.  We had a fun time with them but they had to jump ship at Neah Bay and we continued motorsailing in very light wind, down the Strait of Juan de Fuca enjoying sunny and warm weather to Port Angeles and Port Townsend.  We spent several days recovering Bob's tweaked back and my allergies, doing boat maintenance, cleaning, reprovisioning and general R&R in beautiful Port Townsend.  We met the Tall Ship SUVA in lovely Port Ludlow, before arriving early in Seattle for the Catalina 30 National Regatta at Shilshole Bay the weekend of June 25-26.

We were joined by our crew Dale Mack, Terry Annis, and OWSA member Carrie Peterson who drove up from Portland.  On Saturday we sailed in light wind and sunshine around Shilshole bay with twenty or more other Catalina's waiting for a race start.  After four hours the CYC race committee raised the 'abandon race' flag because, in their opinion, the wind wasn't strong enough to carry a race.  We were all disappointed, but who can complain about time spent with friends on a great boat (Imagine) sailing or drifting along on such a gorgeous day.  That evening the Regatta dinner and raffle at the CYC clubhouse gave us all a chance to win some prizes and meet other Puget Sound sailors.

On Sunday we woke up to moderate wind increasing to 14 knots with gusts to 16-18.  It was a superlative day of sailboat racing with consistent Puget Sound wind in the wide open bay, unlike what we experience on the narrow Columbia River.  I had the time of my life as helmsperson for all three races.

Dale managed the foredeck with Bob and Terry rotating on sheets, main, and traveler and Carrie backing them up.  With such an outstanding crew my job was easy with opportunity to learn new skills and strategies.  And incidentally, our boat was well-commodored with CRACA Commodore Bob, CRACA Rear Commodore Dale, SYSCO Vice Commodore Terry, and me, OWSA Vice Commodore!

We didn't win any races that day but we did receive a 3RD PLACE trophy for our handicap cruising class at the awards dinner that night.  It mattered not to us that there were just four boats in our class.  We're thrilled to have the trophy and to have had such a fantastic day of sailing plus making some new friends with other Catalina owners.  The race sponsors, Catalina Association of Puget Sound were quite hospitable honoring us with a second trophy for "SAILING THE LONGEST DISTANCE" to participate.

The C30 races were definitely the high point so far, for this summers cruise though sailing with the complete J pod of Orca whales in Haro Strait is a close second.  We saw the largest J pod male, J1 aka Ruffles again, as in years past.  Ruffles dorsal fin has a ruffle at the tip, hence his name given by the Friday Harbor Whale Museum scientists who have been observing the whales for over 20 years.  The whales whereabouts are monitored daily on VHF Ch.  80 by local whale watch boats.

We've had boat guests from Portland on and off for a few days at a time.

We've explored some new ports and had excellent sailing across the Strait of Georgia from White Rock to South Pender Island.  We were in Ganges last week when I ran into Edie Felix and Karen Anderson and crew on MIRA.  Had I known they would be cruising in the Gulf Islands I would have given them a heads up about the Salt Spring Harbor government docks which are half the price of Ganges Marina, though power is not available.  But, hey, sailboaters don't need power.

We're back in Ganges this week, one of our favorite Canadian ports, enjoying the sunny warm weather and just relaxing, watching the resident eagle pair and the sea-float planes coming in and taking off and contemplating our next cruise destination.  If you come to Ganges, come mid-week to avoid the crowds, tie-up at the government docks and enjoy this beautiful little seaside town teeming with artists and galleries, where you can hear live music every night at the quaint Treehouse Cafe, surrounded by gorgeous Gulf Island scenery.

Cheers from Gail and Bob on S/V Imagine

A Lumpy Yacht Delivery
Bringing Imagine Home
By Gary Bruner, C25, Encore!

In late July I received an call from Bob Gales (C30 Imagine) whose boat was in Port Angeles, Washington at the time.  He was looking for delivery crew who could help bring the boat back to Astoria the first week in August.  Imagine has radar...all the goodies, and coming down the coast is the right direction since the wind should be aft and the current always helps, so it was a great opportunity.  By August 2nd I was off to Neah Bay to help sail Imagine down the coast and over the bar with Bob Gales (I kept wishing Bob had a different last name!).  Gail O'Neill would be driving my car from Neah Bay to Astoria where we'd meet up with her.

The Delivery

We motored for five hours from Neah Bay in lumpy stuff, then put up the rags when the wind came up at about 11 am.  We sailed FAST down the coast.  We used just the reefed main at night, but still were making 5-6 knots much of the time.  It slowed a bit about dawn, but we were ahead of schedule so it was okay.  It was really hard work though, keeping on a compass course so as not to jibe in those seas.

We hand-steered during the nineteen hours we were under sail. Too much wave action for the autopilot to keep up I think, although we never really tried it under sail.  The waves were fairly large at times.  The radio would say 5'-6', but some were MUCH larger.  I thought I'd cracked a few ribs after being thrown into the opposite seat while trying to sleep in the cockpit. Ouch! 

We were on the fifty fathom line most of the time, to avoid the crab pots.  I don't know how far out that was exactly, but I suspect it was 8-10 miles much of the time.  Not much coastline to see from that distance.  From my previous trips I liked staying in when I skippered down, but at night I would choose to go out to miss the crab pots. I hate the thought of getting fouled in one, especially if the prop got involved!

We tried for two hours on and two hours off watches at night, but I may have done a bit more at night. By Friday morning after light, Bob did all the steering over the bar and in; I was really hurting from my spill that happened late Thursday afternoon.

We took about twenty-five hours to reach the bar from Neah Bay, nineteen hours of it under sail.  We fired up the diesel at 6:30 am.  We were at  green buoy "3" at around 7:30 am (the 25 hour mark) when we realized we couldn't/shouldn't go on in.  It was a ROUGH BAR (closed for a time) so we went way out and came in over a smoother bar on the flood.  We crossed the bar around 12 pm, I think, finally, making it about thirty hours all total into Astoria.  Not too bad, except for the fog, but Imagine has radar.  Bob did a GREAT job of navigating and decision making on the bar.

Good experience, but overall it was draining.  I only got about maybe two hours sleep total, although I think I catnapped a bit in the cockpit.  I did not want to go into the cabin because my foulies were wet and I hurt too much to take them off to get into a bunk.  I laid on the cockpit floor and tried to sleep a bit while Bob drove.  I got FREEZING COLD out there in the morning fog.  The sun didn't really break out until we were inside the jetty.  By the way, I saw two humpback whales just a hundred yards away on the trip though....that was cool.

About those Ribs

I hurt so bad I eventually went to the ER when I got home.  The X-rays were negative for broken ribs but the doctor said I smashed a lot of cartilage around a number of ribs on my right side, both low and high.  The estimate was 6-8 weeks to recover, just as if I had broken bones.  I DID break some ribs on Tartan delivery coming down the coast about 10 years ago...nasty jibe and the mainsheet threw me down.  It was worse than this, but not by much.

Beacon Rock in Two Stages
By Dale Mack, C30, Celtic Myst

August 18 - 21.  Our annual cruise to Beacon Rock State Park, Washington, in the Columbia River gorge was blessed with great weather.  Typically a six and a half hour motor thirty nautical miles upstream from Portland, this year’s journey to the destination was spread over two days.

The first night we spent in Washougal, WA after a three hour motor.  Laura and I enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Puffin Café, a floating restaurant at the marina while Sean choose to hangout on the boat with his burger and fries.

Early the next morning Sean and I completed the remaining three and a half hours trip to Beacon Rock (Laura had Mary Kay appointments so she rejoined us on Saturday).

While I've done enough motoring now in the San Juan Islands and on the Columbia River to no longer consider six and a half hours undoable, I will say that the stop in Washougal really broke up the trip both mentally and physically.  The Puffin Café features cuisine with a Caribbean influence served either indoors or outside.

The cliffs near Cape Horn in the Columbia River Gorge.

The 'secret' creek that runs east from the base of Beacon Rock.  The flow of the water is east to west, but its almost undetectable.

Kayaks were popular this year as was hiking to the top of Beacon Rock.  Michael Lewis and I traveled east along the creek until the water was no longer deep enough to allow shallow draft kayaks to pass.  The creek is very pretty and I highly recommend it.

My niece Emma Hopson during her first kayak ride.

Boats making the trip this year included: C30 Celtic Myst C30 Fat Cat C30 Sea Flower C42 Wind Raven C42 Kira Lynn

Three of the boats tied up to the dock in the unusually fashion of having their sterns to the current that runs pass the docks flowing north to south (Beacon Rock out to the river).  For Celtic Myst we flipped her once at the dock.  Docking a boat with the current run from your stern to your bow can be very challenging.  One advantage with the transoms pointing at Beacon Rock was that you were shielded from the sun.

The late afternoon brings shade to the docks as the tall trees ashore begin to filter and then block the direct sunlight.

We enjoyed a ritual of potluck appetizers on the docks every afternoon.  Laura's 10x10 foot shade canopy, that she insisted I bring on the cruise, turned out to be a hit during the day.  The power now available on the docks was very popular.  It cost $6/day on top of moorage which was $.50/ft per day.

Left to Right: Michael Lewis Dave Peoples Jess Schefstrom Mary Schefstrom Chris Sinner

Left to Right: Jim Turner Rhonda Turner Walt Wittke Marilyn Wittke

Left to Right: Chris Sinner David Sinner Rhonda Turner Walt Wittke Marilyn Wittke

Beacon Rock Sunday morning shortly after sunrise.

Upriver trips like Beacon Rock can be slow going with the river’s current running from two to three knots in places, but the return home is always rewarding because of the current assist combined with typically favorable winds.

The Macks continued our nearly unbroken record of having high winds on the day of our departure for home.  We motor out into the current and find ourselves in 24 knot winds on the nose with gusts to 28.  The wind has been blowing for some time judging by the size of the swells in the river.  Despite going with the current, the GPS shows that our speed over the ground (SOG) drops to 3 knots from time to time.  Celtic Myst is catching the crest of each swell about six inches below the deck at the bow.  Its like riding a hobby horse.  Suddenly our bow strikes a swell below the crest and we have a foot of water rolling over the deck, diminished to six inches now flowing over the cabin top, until it expends its energy on the dodger.  The conditions remain challenging for the first hour, and then they ease to 18 knots.  By the time we get to Parker's Landing the wind is down to 12 knots and we are doing eight knots SOG.

Sean manned the helm for the heavy air portion of the trip.  We motored straight back averaging about 7.5 knots over the ground as indicated by my handheld GPS.  As always, dodging the anchored fishing boats and staying out of the way of the barges required an alert helmsman when their attention wasn’t being diverted by the breath taking beauty in the Columbia River gorge.

2005 Cruising Schedule

Crewing Aboard the Catalina 25 Lematike
The SYSCO One-Design Regatta
By Dale Mack, C30, Celtic Myst

When I'm not racing Crocus, my C22, or cruising Celtic Myst, my C30, I occasionally get the opportunity to crew aboard Terry & Kathie Annis' Catalina 25, Lematike.  In 2004, Terry, C22 skipper Mike McGrath, Terry's son from Spokane, and I  campaigned Terry's C25 in preparation for the 2004 Catalina 25/250 National Regatta on the Columbia River host by local Catalina 25/250 Fleet 94.  Although I had been racing regularly since 1998, 2004 was the first time I sailed with a group that was interested enough in improving our skills that we'd actually go out and practice on non-race days.

For those that don't race locally, let me put the typically race season in context.  If someone tells you they race, they probably compete in the SYSCO Spring Series (five evening races), the SYSCO Summer Series (five evening races), and one weekend regatta (fives races over two days).  That's fifteen races covering twelve days.  In comparison, Terry, Mike, and I raced and practiced aboard Lematike fifty times before the first race of the 2004 C25/250 Nationals.

Long before you can worry about racing strategy (your plan) and racing tactics (how you adjust to the situation) you have to have solid boat handling skills.  While we had years of experience racing with and against each other in Catalina 22's, that experience was limited to non-spinnaker racing where the downwind legs are sailed wing-and-wing.  The C25's would be racing with spinnakers so much of our "fifty" practices was spent teaching ourselves from scratch how to race with a symmetrical spinnaker and its pole.  Racing with a spinnaker is very different from sailing with one.  When I sail with a spinnaker I choose not to raise or lower it in a crowd of boats.  I choose not to round marks where I'm having to transition between the genoa and the spinnaker.  Racing, particularly between the top boats is so close, that most races are being decided by who makes the fewest mistakes.  Even with our fifty practices, spinnaker hoists and drops still weren't consistent.  Sometimes we were incredibly smooth and other times we couldn't seem to avoid fouling everything up.  The other thing you practice, is taking what you know and applying in different wind conditions.  It's easy to over estimate your skills when you've been sailing in light to moderate conditions, and suddenly find that everything is moving too fast, and the pressure on everything is greater when the wind ratchets up to moderate to heavy.

Although Terry, Mike, and I had been racing C30's, C25's, and C22's all season, we hadn't been racing together much, so the SYSCO One-Design was a challenge as we fought to regain the smoothness we come to take for granted in 2004.  What follows are my notes from two days of One-Design racing.

The SYSCO One-Design Regatta tries to fit five races into two days of competition.  Three races are typically held on Saturday and two on Sunday.

Following Sunday's racing, a BBQ is held on the lawn at Tomahawk Bay Moorage where crews are offered burgers, hot dogs, and beverages.

I've participated in the One-Design Regatta aboard my Catalina 22, but all my recent experience has been as a crew member aboard Lematike.

Saturday, August 13

It's Saturday morning and five Catalina 25's have registered for the SYSCO One-Design Regatta.  All the boats are members of Catalina 25/250 Fleet 94, and all the crews know each friends.  The five boats are:

• Lematike
• Encore!
• Buzz
• Plan 'B'
• Courtship

Race 1.  The winds are light, and the temperature is 100 degrees.  We motor past the race committee (RC) to pick up materials they are handing out.  The course board on the RC boat identifies that all fleets will race course #3 shown on the OCSA course chart.  The RC then goes onto confuse us all by not placing an orange mark to identify the other end of the starting line opposite the RC boat and by not indicating on the course board the starting order of the fleets.  You can hear lots of talking on the other boats as everyone just sort of of figures out that the green buoy the RC has set, which represents the finish line, is going to be used as the starting line also.  The RC handout doesn't include a fleet starting number either so you have to guess at that too.

We all eventually determine that the starting order is:  Martins, J/24, C25, and then Cal 20.  Terry gets a good start and we are first to windward mark.  Like everyone else we wrap our spinnaker.  It's clear we are all rusty.

It's a slooooooow HOT trip to the downwind mark.  Our strategy going in is to stay between our competition and mark and not repeat our mistake made on the last leg of the last race of the Nationals that cost us the regatta.  We are sailing well, but we aren't able to pull away from Encore!.  The RC shortens the course for starts 3 and 4 but doesn't fly the correct signals.  Instead the RC verbally yells that starts 3 and 4 will finish at the windward mark (good luck hearing the RC if you were too far away).  We continue our painfully slow crawl to the downwind mark.  In the light conditions it's pretty clear that whoever gets there first probably wins the race since the leg to the windward mark will have the assistance of the current.

We get around the mark with a clean drop using the "Stretch and Blow" method where the genoa is raised and the spinnaker is pull aft so it flattens against the genoa (the stretch) and then the halyard is released (the blow).  We decide to place a tight cover on Encore!, so as he tacks we tack, always staying between Encore! and the finish line.  Lematike finishes first, followed by Encore!, Plan 'B', Buzz, and Courtship.

C25/250 Fleet 94 Potluck Dinner. Katie Annis, Terry Annis, and Gary Whitney helping with the SYSCO BBQ. The crew of Plan 'B' Gary Bruner (Encore!) on the right discusses the racing with one of his crew.

Race 2.  We are starting after 4 pm so its clear that there won't be a third race on Saturday.  The RC puts up course #3 again (two laps).  We have a very good start in light air.  We are away clean and increasing our separation on the fleet.  We sail the downwind leg well.  In the dying wind we have a very smooth mark rounding with a clean spinnaker drop.  We continue to increase our separation but we know it won't last because the fleet will predictably bunch up after rounding the windward mark.  Encore! is off our port quarter.  The wind is dying fast.  We fight for clear air and round the mark first.  Encore! turns shaper at the windward mark and carries  more momentum upriver even though their spinnaker set is very late.  Lematike stalls after rounding the windward mark and fights to regain speed.

Encore! and Lematike go to Washington, while Plan 'B' stays in the middle of the river.   Everyone is looking for wind.  Onboard Lematike we're discussing whether to sailing in the same wind as Encore! or to jibe and sail in the wind Plan 'B' is finding.  We decide to stay between Encore! and the finish line knowing that Plan 'B' might get first since Lematike and Encore! will be slowing each other down.  Encore! is three boat lengths astern on the port quarter.  Encore! can't pass on port side because Lematike can luff up.   After several jibes Encore! ducks Lematike's stern and we fail to cover allowing Encore! to break free on the starboard side.  It's now a horse race because Lematike must hold a proper course to the mark and not interfere with Encore!.  All three boats converge on the finish.  Plan 'B' has slowed down, but has moved into the lead.  With time running out for Lematike, we duck Encore's stern and position Lematike half a boat length behind Encore's transom hoping to slow Encore! down.  Time runs out and Encore! finishes first followed by Plan 'B', Lematike, and Buzz (Courtship does not finish).  The mood aboard Lematike is quiet.  We're all frustrated because we made errors on that last leg that cost us a first or second place finish.  On the other hand, you had to enjoy the chess match we and Encore! were having.  Gary and his crew just out sailed  us on that last leg.

After the racing Fleet 94 enjoys a  potluck dinner on the docks while listening to the live music coming from grassy picnic area as Columbia Crossings hosts the Tom Grant Band Reunion.  Things finally brake up about 9 pm.  What a great day despite the heat.

Sunday, August 14

Sunday arrived cooler with good but not great wind.

Race 3.  Encore! is coming in on port tack for the start.  Terry nails the start, and Lematike forces Encore! to duck.  Lematike is sailing in clear air, but the right side of the course is favored.  We are late to cover Encore! and it is already clear that their port starting strategy is paying off.  They have recovered from the duck of Lematike's transom and are moving well to weather.

Lematike is two boat lengths behind at the first crossing.  By the windward mark we are one boat length behind.  Before the race we had decided that Terry should try sailing wider angles downwind.  Terry sails about 40 degrees off the direct lay to the next mark and we are seeing some of our best speed downwind.  Lematike and Encore! each separate as Gary sails more dead downwind.  Lematike is on Encore's transom as we approach the leeward mark.  Our plan is to allow Gary the inside since he is coming in tight which will translate into him coming out wide.  Lematike on the other hand is deliberately coming in wide so we can come out tight.  Lematike executes a perfect "Stretch and Blow" and cuts inside Encore! at the mark, then all hell breaks loose.  Our spinnaker halyard and starboard side spinnaker sheet are out of position.  As we tack inside at the mark suddenly everything is fouled and the genoa has a useless shape.  Our mistake allows Encore! to escape and stretch out a lead.

We recover aboard Lematike, but our mistake has cost us a shot at a first  place finish, at least that's what we thought.  As we look up the course we see Encore! sail past the point we expect them to tack for the line and that's when we know Encore! doesn't know which course we are sailing (been there, done that).  Lematike easily takes the win, followed by Plan 'B', Encore!, and Courtship.

Race 4.  It's the final race and Encore! cross the starting line first with Gary's best start.  Lematike is late to the line and crosses second.  The difference for race is that we will be going around twice.  The weather leg is a repeat of the previous race.  Since fleets tend to compress on downwind legs, we know all we have to do is stay close.  The downwind leg is uneventful with both boats moving well.  Terry's wider angles give him more speed, and although Lematike is sailing a longer course Terry is catching Encore!.  Plan 'B' has been sailing her own race and continues to threaten if Encore! and Lematike mix it up too much like Saturday where they slowed each other down.

The downwind mark rounding is cleaner than race 3.  Encore! remains in the lead, with Plan 'B' in third.  The trip to the windward mark is fast with neither Encore! or Lematike gaining an advantage.  It clears that in this regatta the passing is going to have to happen downwind because the windward legs are too short and really favor the right side of the course.  There just isn't enough tacking to differentiate the windward boat handling skills of the crews.

We approach the windward mark and start debating weather we should do a jibe set or a bear away set.  Never listen to the bow regarding tacks.  I want to do a jibe set so the genoa can help drive the boat.  Instead, I let myself get talked into a bare away set with a spinnaker so badly packed that Mike has pulled most of it out of the bag trying to find the ends.  Up goes the spinnaker with a huge wine glass and the wind off the back of the mainsail wraps the spinnaker around the forestay.  We take forever cleaning up the mess.  Meanwhile Encore! discovers that they haven't repacked their spinnaker for the second downwind run and are forced to reach upstream.  While Encore's bowman beats himself up for not repacking the spinnaker, Gary urges patients as he watches Lematike struggle and he welcomes Christmas in August.

By the time Encore! is under spinnaker, Lematike has drawn nearly even and Plan 'B' is close behind and to the south.  While Encore! and Plan 'B' sail at the mark, Lematike sails wider angles between the other two boats.  Lematike draws even with Encore! but Gary covers forcing Lematike to jibe away.  Unlike Saturday, Encore! and Lematike haven't slow each other down so much as to hand a big advantage over to Plan 'B'.  Encore! rounds first with Lematike close behind.  We're on our final leg to the finish and there's little chance that Gary doesn't know the course this time because we handed Gary a course chart for the start of the fourth race.

Encore! crosses first with Lematike three boat lengths behind, followed by Plan 'B'.

After the race SYSCO hosted a BBQ up on the lawn for all participates.

Final Standing
Catalina 25 Fleet - Sailed: 4  Discards: 0  Rating: None

Lessens Learned

• After Saturday's third place finish in a race in which Lematike got passed by both Encore! and Plan 'B' in the downwind leg to the finish, I spent time rereading North Sail's Performance Racing Tactics by Bill Gladstone.  Bill stressed the need to sail wider angles downwind in light air just as if you were tacking to windward.  Lematike showed her fastest numbers sailing this way, and when we could keep our air clear, we were faster than the other boats to the mark.
• Defend your air.  We weren't good at this.  Passing downwind is one of the hardest things to do in sailboat racing and yet we got passed on Saturday and went from first to finishing third in the second race.  What happen?  Once again my answer was in Gladstone's book.  In the last leg of the second race Encore! was positioned off Lematike's port quarter.  Gary's attempts to overtake and pass on the windward side were shutdown by Terry who would steer to port to stay in clear air.  Without superior boat speed Gary had only one option;  slow down, duck Lematike's transom while jibing, and then reach off to gain speed, all the while hoping Lematike would be slow to react.  Lematike didn't pick up on the signs of the pending jibe and got caught off guard (lesson here, always have your bowman telling you what the other boat is doing).  What Lematike should have done was jibed and stayed between Encore! and the finish line.  Lematike's slowness allowed Encore! to build speed faster, place her wind shadow on Lematike and pass.  Great move!
• Sailing in August is HOT.  100 degrees on Saturday, and 95 on Sunday.
• Round the windward mark more aggressively in light air to carry momentum upstream.

Catalina Newsletters of the Northwest

Checkout these links to Northwest Catalina newsletters and local racing:

Catalina 22 Fleet 20 of Portland www.C22pdx.org Sail Portland www.sailpdx.com Oregon Women's Sailing Association www.owsa.net

Catalina Assoc.  of Tacoma and South Sound (CATSS) home.earthlink.net/~catss/CATSS Web Page.htm Catalina Association of Puget Sound (CAPS) capsfleet1.com/News Letters.htm Small Yacht Sailing club of Oregon (SYSCO) www.sailpdx.com/sysco.htm

September

• 17-18, Catalina Rendezvous:  Sand Island, Upper Dock, St.  Helens
• 25, Sail for the Cure

October

• 8, SYSCO Awards Banquet
• 22-23, Cruise:  Government Island - East Dock

See the calendar