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Race #4:
course:
START at #2
>3>2>3>1>2;
winds
SW 12-18 knots at start decreasing to 8-12
knots with gusts to 15 late in first beat
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| SHADES race plan: The SHADES
crew was really determined to stick to the
race plan come hell or high water this time!
Specifically, the plan was to stick to the
west shore and then edge over towards the east
shore about ¾ down the beat to the dam to pick
up a port tack lift. The run would be played
“by ear” and the only other concern was to
stick to port as long as necessary on the
final beat. |
...
Race #4: It
took some doing but Uncle Al managed to start right next
to the RC boat.
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Al
briefly worried about tacking since Jens
Biskaborn (I think!) was planing in on a reach
from above the RC boat but then Uncle Al
remembered rule 16.2, new for this year, which
forbids a starboard boat to alter course in
such a way that a port boat which was keeping
clear would have to immediately alter course
to stay clear. Thus Jens was not entitled to
luff up to his proper course around the RC
boat and starboard Al who was slowly building
up speed after tacking without building up
full starboard tack speed. (see diagram on
left) |
.....
Anyway,
it was quite a duel between Uncle Al and Peter as both
showed an obvious predilection for the west shore. Al
managed to get a slight early lead by leebowing Peter
on the port tack angling in towards the west shore.
Instead of calling starboard on Peter after both boats
tacked, Al again tacked off Peter’s lee bow. Finally,
Al and Frank were able to build up a 50-yard lead and
continued to tack in such a way as to remain between
Peter and his destination (mark #3). In the last
quarter of the beat, Al made particularly sure that
Peter could not get closer than Al to the east shore
where a port tack lift was expected. All this worked
to perfection and SHADES rounded with a comfortable
lead over Peter who in turn had Scott, Brian and Jens
and the others snapping at his heels.
Down
the following run and beat, Al again sailed to stay
directly between his pursuers and the next mark, and
held most of his early lead. (see photos from end
of first run below)
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And
here comes the pursuit: (left to
right) Peter Rahn, Scott Town, Jens
Biskaborn
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A
nice-looking rounding for Peter. All three
downed their spinnakers pretty early
which in most cases is a very sound safety
play in Wayfarers!
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Lucky
Peter: the puff waited just long enough to
let him and Alex get nicely around!
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| Here, it was
really tempting to tack to starboard,
especially if you had bad air, since you
were within 30º of laying the windward mark
at the dam when you tacked. Repeated
experience has shown however, year after
year, that the move is to hold port tack
until you (almost) hit the far (west) shore.
Note Scott taking Peter's bad air as the
lesser of two evils! This could just as well
be #1 instead of #2, where again, it almost
always pays to hold the seemingly unfavoured
port tack around the mark until the big
knock comes in (or past) mid-lake, at which
point you virtually lay #2 on starboard! |
.....
By
the end of the second trip to #3, Al and Peter had
pulled away from the rest of the fleet a bit. In
slowly dying winds, things became exciting on the
final run to #1 as Peter made maximum use of all puffs
to edge ever closer to Uncle Al. As our course down
that run took us right past the RC boat, Rick Goldt
was able to get some fine action shots as seen below:
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Part
of our hard-working RC: Jenna (left)
and Sue Goldt aboard Fanshawe's pontoon RC
boat.
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Unidentified
but
not unappreciated Safety Boat
personnel awaiting the call to action.
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Scott
(standing) and Grant Town in
excellent downwind form......
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As
are John and Dolores deBoer who had a bit
of a rough day on Saturday.
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Roger
Shepherd
and Joanne Kumpf (right) and
Brians Jeffs with Scott
Bamford bring a puff with them as they
approach the RC boat.
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Good
spinnaker
form for Joanne
as she keeps it on the edge of collapse!
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(left
to right) a Y-Flyer, a Hobie (?), Uncle
Al, Peter, Roger,
Bob Kennedy with Steve Carroll, Scott (off
Bob's main leech), Brian and Jens
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In
the end, Uncle Al managed to hold just enough lead to
round #1 onto the final short beat to be able to
tenaciously cover Peter to the finish. Scott Town held
off Jens Biskaborn for 3rd while an excellent final
run propelled Roger past Brian into a 5th-place
finish. This was Robert Kennedy’s only relatively poor
finish of the series – a 7th! In the “smart move”
department, we had Al Nichols and Mike Miethig
avoiding the need for that pre-dinner shower by taking
a quick dip during the race. As we watched them bail,
we were definitely one crew that did not smile at
their misfortune!
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Derek
Innes in fine Dart form: those two pointy
hulls look particularly
impressive from in front, and it behooved
us to keep a good look-out!!!
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Saturday
afternoon and evening: Everyone was off the
water by 5 p.m., just nicely in time for the big,
yummy catered dinner scheduled for 5:30 p.m. in the
chalet. Of course Uncle Al, Frank and Lucy almost
missed it, having decided on a pre-dinner beer chez
les deBoer where Al had to capture Dolores and John’s
new mobile home (below) for the web site.
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the
deBoers' new "home away from home": (left
to right) Frank 'Wayfarer Man' Goulay,
Dolores' daughter, Michelle, Lucy Camacho,
and Dolores.
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post-race
analysis
with (left to right) Dolores,
Frank, Lucy, Michelle and John
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inside
the deBoer 'land yacht':
view towards the master bedroom
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view
towards the bow and kitchen
as Lucy hides from the lens
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Michelle
with beverage and burn
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Frank
with Cassie
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