So . . . How Was Your Sail Today ?

[Ex-Calif]

Wow! Scary story. It is heartening to hear that you didn't give the "helpers" grief for attempting to help out your boat. There are those that would be looking for compensation for the "extra" damage.

I don't know if I would be brave enough to move another person's boat without their knowledge or consent. I might have been harping on the boat yard to call you or put me in touch with you.

Glad it worked out for you.

It's also very cool to pick up a mooring under sail just like a pro! Well done.

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by Charlie

He said don't worry about it but I thought it was a perfect excuse to do a MOB drill. Light winds 10 to 15 knots.

We had a real tragedy here last week. One of the university teams practicing for an upcoming regatta lost a man off the bow during a spinnaker douse. The spinnaker went in the water, then under the boat and the bowman reached over to try and retrieve it.

Piecing it together it was a tragedy of errors and ultimately the bowman was lost. Incredibly this heppened less than a mile off shore in mild conditions.

We talked about it at our club and the keelboat group os going to put together a MOB course with our club instructor.

We practice MOB regularly but losing a life in 10kt breezes and almost flat seas is scary enough that we think getting the keelboat skippers to go out and practice makes a lot of sense.

[sfreivald]

Originally Posted by Ex-Calif

Wow! Scary story. It is heartening to hear that you didn't give the "helpers" grief for attempting to help out your boat. There are those that would be looking for compensation for the "extra" damage.

I don't know if I would be brave enough to move another person's boat without their knowledge or consent. I might have been harping on the boat yard to call you or put me in touch with you.

Glad it worked out for you.

It's also very cool to pick up a mooring under sail just like a pro! Well done.

Thanks for the comments. Yes, I realize it must have been a tough decision on their part.... my plan is a thank you note and a bottle of wine - not grief for being a good samaritan!! It's too bad that we have to really think about those things. All is well that ends well... I'll take the minor dings.

Sarah

[Ex-Calif]

I had a great opportunity to sail as crew on a Beneteau First 40.7 this weekend in the Replublic of Singapore Regatta. I was on L'autre Femme.

::: RSYC REGATTA ::: - Make sure you notice the links at the top of the page.

The First race on Saturday was an "around the island race" from Raffles Marina in the west to Changi Yacht Club in the East. Due to the significant shipping traffic the course had several dog legs and kinks in it and covered about 60 nautical miles. We averaged better than 5.3 knots even though we pushed a 2.5 kt current most of the way and had a good 1 hour drift in the middle when we had to go inshore to stay out of shipping traffic. The max speed we saw on the boat during on spinnaker run was 10.8 knots! And for a lot of the time we were doing between 7 and 9.

I was fortunate to be grinding and trimming the genny. That's my favorite position on a boat. I find the bursts of speed when tacking and then optimising the sail for speed as the apparent goes forward to be very cool. And then when we were drifiting it becomes very critical to catch every puff.

The first beat was fast but took a while as we were against the predominantly south westerly wind and against the current. We then had a medium speed reach in building thunderstom conditions and light rain and to south of Pulau Pawai. We were able to get our first meal in on this leg as well.

Once we made the turn we were able to set the symetrical spinnaker and because we had the thunderstorm behind us we were absolutely flying. This is where we pegged 10.8 kts. The Mumms were out in front of us, still almost in touch with spins up but being out in front of the tunderstorm conditions were almost out of control at times. We were able to carry the spinnaker all the way to abeam One-15 Marina through almost 90 degrees of course change.

Then the going got really slow along the shore and we had to work current and puffs, but were able to get our second meal in with our hostess announcing that the final meal would be at dark - coincidentally that's when the beer cooler would be unlocked - LOL.

We finally were able to turn south to "Eastern" buoy and got back in the wind. The wind had been backing to the south and this was a single close haul tack at some good speed to Eastern. We all grumbled a bit that we had to run so far out. Several of the slower boats had called it quits when they reached the inshore area. Light airs against a strong current were killing them. We had been holding up pretty well with 2 Mumm 30s but the biggest yacht a TP52 was gone from the beginning. I heard the TP eventually got in a 6:15 more than 2 hours ahead of us and 1:20 ahead of the first Mumm.

We turned Eastern just at dusk around 7:15 PM. Becasues the wind had backed to the south, we were able to set the spinnaker and the crew demanded their beer! Cheese and crackers, hummus, spicy tortilla chips fruit and beer were well enjoyed.

We were home free in the dark. As we approached changi channel some of the backmarkers started passing us under motor. However we were still holding +6kts. The time limit was 9PM (12 hours) and we crossed the line with 18 minutes to spare. Only the TP52, the Mumms and L'autre Femme finished the race. But all was not lost. The race was divided into 4 legs at which time was taken. Any boat could discard 1 leg, so finishing 4 legs gave you options but finishing 3 kept evreryone in the game.

I thought that I would get off the boat and go home and pass out. However, somehow there was still energy enough to spend the next 4 hours drinking the captain's beer and telling war stories - sweet!

[Ex-Calif]

Here is a shot at sunset right after we set the spinnaker.

Definitely read for a cold one...

[donradcliffe]

Dan,

Your trip to Sebana Cove brought back memories...we kept the boat there for a while, and it seems like 10 pages of my passport are filled with Singapore and Malaysia entry and exit stamps.

Is there any truth to the rumor that Singapore is requiring AIS transponders for all boats in their waters??

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by donradcliffe

.

Is there any truth to the rumor that Singapore is requiring AIS transponders for all boats in their waters??

Singapore registered yachts are required to have something called a Harts transponder. It is basically a radio unit that gets interrogated by singapore radio and then it "responds." It's directional and each transponder has it's own code so they know which yacht is where.

On the Beneteau this weekend someone who should know (but probably doesn't) said that visiting yachts are required to have AIS and a sail plan before moving.

The yacht we were on was NZ registered so I said, "So this boat doesn't have AIS or Harts and is registered in NZ. We also didn't file a sail plan so basically sailing illegally. Right?"

"Well I don't know if they are that strict about it but that's what I heard." Was the reply.

I haven't seen anything in writing, there are lot's of non-Singapore boats around here so I think it is either a bad rumor or someone is "floating the idea" out there to see what's up.

What was a slight annoyance is that because we lost a young Plateau sailor last week in a spinnaker douse/drowning incident the authorities have clamped down hard on life jacket use.

Right now all racers are required to wear jackets at all times. They are also likely to enforce jackets on all the time on all boats, but we are hoping not. It is too blinking hot here to wear a jacket in benign conditions.

You may look back at the photo above and ask what's up? Well out of sight out of mind I guess. They had 4 checkpoints where we dutifully donned our gear and our bow person usually wore an inflatable.

If I am in the pit I won't wear one but if I am on the mast or bow I wear a jacket. It's too easy to get knocked overboard and if also knocked out the jacket is the only saver.

[donradcliffe]

The authorities only require life jackets on kids under 16, but in San Francisco and Santa Cruz life jackets are required while racing. The water is cold, and they lost several people. Just hopped on a boat last Thursday night out of Marblehead, and lifejackets were required while starting and finishing...can't quite figure that one out.

[imagine2frolic]

No sailing this weekend, but sailed nearly the whole month of June. Getting to, and from the Bahamas from N.E. Florida....WORKING SUCKS, I really miss the four years I took off to sail

[Morgan Paul]

I had a great sail on Long Island Sound on Sunday just myself on the boat. I sailed from Port Jefferson Harbor to Oyster Bay and back. Total roundtrip distance about 50 nautical miles. It was a perfect day for sailing winds 15 with gusts up to 25. If you were on the LI Sound this past Sunday you would probably agree it was a "top ten" sailing day.

Paul

[Ex-Calif]

Day 2 of the Regatta was Sunday. After too many celebratory drinks and a 3:30 AM head down we were back on duty at 9:00 AM. Sunday was a race half way back on the same course to One-15 Marina.

It was going to be a timed pursuit race which I thought was pretty cool. Everyone will have an actual corrected time but the starts were staggered so the boats might bunch up at the end. We started 65 minutes after the first boat. The Mumms started 80 minutes after the first boat and the TP started at something like 120 minutes after the first boat.

It was a beautiful day with about 15 kts for the long beat out to Eastern buoy. I was working the bow and mast having given up my spot on the Genny. There aren't a lot of people who love the mast, including me, but it is a very technical position and very important to the success of the team.

Unfortunately we were real early to the line and even though I was shouting well in advance that we were early we didn't manage the boat well and probably were 10-15 seconds early - dumb mistake. We went back and restarted and away we went.

5 minutes into the first leg we blew out the genoa - split horizontally about 1/3 down from the top - we actually worked pretty fast getting the cruising jib up but were gonna be at a disadvantage with the smaller sail. Already a busy day on the foredeck.

We settled into a rhythm of tacks and my job consisted pretty much of getting the jib clearly past the mast, skirting it and then getting my big butt on the rail.

About 500 meters from the first mark we looked back and saw the TP52 in the distance. It looked to be a couple of km back. We then got busy rigging the spinnaker and pole and getting ready to round the mark. We rounded and there was a ship in front of us so we delayed the lift until we had maneuvering room. The wind was fairly brisk probably 10-g15.

We made a successful lift, lowered and secured the jib and settled on to the rail and then, like a batteship the TP52 came roaring by going like the clappers. They caught us like a flash! Oh, well - they are supposed to do that.

The Mumms were loving life and they caught us and passed us on the run as well. We then started to reel in some of the earlier starters as well.

As we drove into shore we saw a pretty good rainstorm right on the coast. We talked about it and I predicted (accurately) that the rain storm was going to back the onshore wind and it would be tough going close in.

We kept following the lemmings for a while and then we saw the TP basically park right on the shore. There was a Swan 40 and couple of other boats there as well.

We dropped the spinnaker and hardened up well off shore and while we weren't zooming along we were making ground on everyone including reeling the Mumms back in a bit who didn't go all the way in but were further in shore than us. Brilliant. We ghosted along for about 20 minutes and then the rain shower stopped and the on-shore breeze was allowed to come in.

We had two advantages, we got the wind first, being upwind, and we were closer to the finish. We got the boat going again and I reckoned to the skipper that we had about a 3 minute jump on the TP. Sure enough a couple of minutes later she just took off. A very beautiful thing to watch.

As conditions built everyone was trying to figure out the correct sail combination. We eventually raised an Assymetric and were really catching it.

Then we blew the mainsail - Well it wasn't a complete blow out but the boltrope failed between two cars and a big slot opened up at the luff. Fortunately it was up high and the sail didn't split and we managed to finish the last couple of km with it.

They shortened the course by about 3km and that probably worked in our favor as well. But it really favored the slow boats because everyone bunched up in that parking lot. I didn't get our results and I am waiting to see them posted on the RSYC website.

The next leg is an ocean passage to Tioman Island off the coast of Malaysia in the South China Sea. Unfortunately I can't do that one. That would have been fun...

After the finish we motor sailed to one-15 to secure the boat and I got the bonus of helming that final distance - Whoo, hoo! I did pretty good on the bow and through 4 sail changes didn't make any major mistakes. We did lose the asymetric bag over the rail but that wasn't really my bad because I wasn't the one who set it on the rail and forgot to clip it on.

While chatting with the Skipper, I asked about replacement sails and he estimates about $16,000 for new sails. And those are probably cheap. He said a set of sails for the TP would run about $40,000! That's a lot of boat bucks...

So I have decided that while regattas are fun, beating the crap out of your boat is not the wisest thing to do. If you are gonna race get a racing boat. Cruisers can go fast but they are cruisers.

Speaking of racing boats - the Western Circuit is coming up and I have a secured position trimming on a J24. I love racing the J24 because in one design racing you really know how you are doing all the time. And if something breaks I have a much better chance of being able to afford fixing it - LOL.

I'll keep you all posted on that one - Our first practice is August 10th.

[FrankZ]

Went down to the boat Friday night after dinner. Had planned on spending the night just sitting about reading and listening to music. I ran into a friend on the dock next to mine who was also spending the night down there as well. We started chatting, and I remembered he had just moved his outboard motor from a transom mount to the well and had mentioned wanting to test it, so I asked if wanted to go for a boat ride. His answer indicated that I had just invited him sailing, so off we went.

I have not sailed my boat after dark before, though I had been out with a friend at night. I have motored across the river and had been coming in from sailing as it got dark, but this was a full on night sail. Just across the river and back, but a nice time. The wind was perfect out of the SE at about 9 knots, very steady. We did have to wait on a ship in the channel while heading back.

Saturday morning we headed out on my friends boat (Columbia Contender) with a third person. We decided to bend on the large headsail before leaving the dock as the wind seemed so light. As we rounded the bend in the creek we could see it was getting windier, but we left it bent on and waited to see how the boat reacted. Once we had full sail up it was very apparent that we were carrying way too much sail so down with the big headsail and up with the slightly smaller one, and a reef in the main. The boat settled down nicely and we had a fast, and controlled, run across the river to the first tack. We did see several boats carrying full sail that appeared to be having a difficult time keeping things under control.

About 10 minutes after the first tack I looked down into the cabin and noticed a magazine laying on the floor, lots of things slid off the berth, was wet. We had the main hatch closed but the boards out because of spray over the bow. I got to thinking about the wet magazine then realized it was wet because of the water coming up out of the bilge. We were taking on water and it wasn't leaving the boat.

After telling the skipper about it we turned on the electirc bilge pump and started using the manual one to help it along. Putting the outboard in the well meant taking the plug out. This allowed water to splash into the well, which wouldn't be a huge issue normally. The PO of the boat (my friend bought it mid season last year) had run the bilge hose through the bulkhead about an inch above the bottom of the well, and had not sealed it. After the tack, to a starboard tack, the water rolled to that side and the opening was about 5 inches below the water level of the well. It went in, and without the bilge pump being on didn't get pumped out.

Once we evactuated the water we headed in, no need to tempt fate.

All in all it was a good weekend with two new experiences, night sailing on my own boat and being on a sailboat that was sinking, so I got to expand the horizons so to speak.

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by FrankZ

I have not sailed my boat after dark before, though I had been out with a friend at night. I have motored across the river and had been coming in from sailing as it got dark, but this was a full on night sail.

Sailing at night is magical. We get lot's of light polution here but at times the sky opens up and you get to see the carpet of stars out there. Really beautiful.

Originally Posted by FrankZ

After the tack, to a starboard tack, the water rolled to that side and the opening was about 5 inches below the water level of the well. It went in, and without the bilge pump being on didn't get pumped out.

Once we evactuated the water we headed in, no need to tempt fate.

All in all it was a good weekend with two new experiences, night sailing on my own boat and being on a sailboat that was sinking, so I got to expand the horizons so to speak.

How much water do you reckon you took on? We periodically get water in the salon. The main culprit is the water tank under the v-berth. If we fill it full it will leak a lot of water when we heel pretty good. That runs back under the salon berths and then dumps on the cabin floor.

On my list of to-dos is a new filler cap.

[FrankZ]

Originally Posted by Ex-Calif

How much water do you reckon you took on? We periodically get water in the salon. The main culprit is the water tank under the v-berth. If we fill it full it will leak a lot of water when we heel pretty good. That runs back under the salon berths and then dumps on the cabin floor.

On my list of to-dos is a new filler cap.

I don't know how much the bilge on the Columbia Contender holds, but it took about 5 minutes for the electric and manual pumps to get the water out. We weren't in immenient danger, but we have a general rule of people stay in the boat, water stays out. We broke part of that rule.

My water tank was leaking last year, I replaced it with a flexible one. I was out sailing and had a friend along that goes with me often. He went down into the cabin to get something to drink and looks up at me and tells me there is standing water on the cabin floor. I told him to look in the bilge and it was damp but not standing water. I figured it was the tank and didn't worry about it. Had to dry some cushions when we got back in though.

[Sandero]

On Sunday we sailed from Newport to Shelter Island. We upped the anchor at 1030, set the sails full hoist west of Fort Adams and set a rhumbline course for Point Judith. The winds were from 13-18 out of the S so we were hard on it for the 10 miles, but we just sliced through the water and past all the boats sailing in the groove. We rounded Pt Judith and eased the sails to a beam/close reach for a 40+ mile rhumbline sail straight as an arrow to the R2 at Shelter Island. And we had a lovely lift from the current and made the 56 mile journey in 8.15 hours under gorgeous blue skies. Not many boats out there and that seemed strange since the weather was picture perfect for a Summer Sunday. One of my best sails ever. Nice when the wind, sea and sky all conspire to make a perfect sail.