DF95 Series #10

It was a very muggy morning at the cove but full of fun. Paul set the course with a vaguely east-west starting line. We used our normal southwest wind clockwise route. South to the red stripe and orange marks, both taken to starboard, then downwind to the northerly red stripe mark also taken to starboard and back to the line. We had eight races, the last one being twice around.

It was great to see the return of Dick Mahoney who came down to the cove to try a couple of races. We also welcomed David, a new resident of the Village who raced Jim Kelly’s boat for three or four races. Connie Sampson and a friend came along to cheer on boat 44.

I kept score and started the ten boats racing today.

Half the races were won by Paul who, with one second and one third did enough to win overall today. Second today with one win but 4 second places and 2 third places was Nick Bailey just 2 points behind Paul.

Other race winners today were Henry DiPietro and Bill David. Henry was third overall today and Bill was fifth. Splitting them was Rich Field. These three sailors were just one point apart.

Also joining in the fun were Kim, Jim, Albert,  Al,  Pat, and Dick. Well done everyone. Smiles all around.

The full results are on our website mhbmyc.org as always

Solings take to the water next Tuesday, July 26th when the tide will be low, turning at 12.10

And the DF95s race again in a week’s time, Thursday, July 28th when the tide will be going out towards a low at 1.41 pm.

Have a great weekend and have fun,

Derek

Soling 1M Series #10

Yet another sunny, humid day at the cove with a brisk wind from the west saw 5 members bring their boats to the shore. Fleet Captain, Bill Raposa set the course: From the north/south line, head south to take the red striped and the orange mark to starboard, then north to the red striped mark also to starboard then back to the line. Thanks, once again, to Judy David for keeping score. I was there but didn’t race.

We had six races today, the first and last two being won by Bill David who was also first overall today. The only other winner was Kim who won the two middle races and had three second place finishes to end the morning in second place. Pat’s boat looked strong today and he was third overall with two second place finishes and one third,

Bill Raposa and Jim Kelly also raced but ran into occasional problems.

The full results are on our website mhbmyc.org

On Thursday, July 21st it’s the turn of the DF95s when the tide will be coming in to a high at  around 3.30 pm

The Solings race again next Tuesday, July 26th when the tide will be low, turning at 12.10

Stay happy. Stay cool,

Derek

DF95 Series #9

It was good to see Rob back at the cove following his adventures at racing events in Stowe, VT, and Chicago.  It was a hot and humid start to the morning with a moderate but strengthening wind from a southerly direction. Rob set the course: south from the line around the orange mark taken to starboard, downwind to the green mark also taken to starboard, then repeat, orange mark, green mark, and back to the line.  Six races were held and Connie Sampson came to our aid by starting the races and keeping score. Thank you very much, Connie.

Soling Fleet captain, Bill Raposa paid us a visit to see what the Thursday crowd gets up to. The “crowd” totaled eight members with boats and not a rescue in sight.

Paul won the first race and went on to win three more to be first overall today. The other two races were won by Rob and, with three second places, was second today.  

Rich Field had four third places and that was good enough to clinch third place. 

Also there to enjoy the fun were Bill David, Al Sampson, Albert Meyer, Pat Donovan and me.

The full results are on our website mhbmyc.org

The Solings race next Tuesday, July 19th when the tide will be coming in to a high at 1.44 pm.

And the DF95s will race again on Thursday, July 21st when the tide will be midway coming in towards a high at 3.31 pm

Have a great weekend and stay safe and well,

Derek

Soling 1M Series #9

Yet another beautiful sunny day and a brisk wind tempted eight members to bring their boats down to the cove this morning. There was plenty of beach as the tide was very low

We were also joined by Judy David once more to keep score. Thanks, Judy.

Before racing got going, Bill Raposa’s boat lost its backstay and my boat had a tangled jib sheet.  Bill rescued them both and everyone agreed that the wind was too damaging to continue so racing today was abandoned. 

No  results this week, but all the news may be found on our website mhbmyc.org

DF95s take their turn next Thursday, July 14th when the tide will be going out from a high at 09.12.

Solings hope for better weather conditions on Tuesday, July 19th with the tide coming in towards a high at 1.44 pm

Stay safe and well,

Derek

DF95 Series #8

It was another sunny morning with a gentle breeze that saw 6 members at the start line. With the wind from the SE the course was set: south from the start line, starboard around the red striped and the orange marks, then downwind north to take the red striped mark to starboard and back to the line.

The six racers rapidly shrunk to four as Paul and I had electrical/electronic problems and didn’t race.

We were thankful that, once again, Judy David kept score and started the races. There to assist were Connie Sampson and, later, Marilyn Marvel. Thank you all.  Pat Donovan also called in to say hello.

It was Henry DiPietro’s birthday today and he celebrated by winning two of the six races and his three second places meant that he took first place overall today.  Happy Birthday, Henry!

Henry won by only one point over Wilkie who won three races and was in the lead for the final race when he mysteriously slowed. The culprit was copious weed around the keel. The only other race winner today was Bill David who was third this morning and seemed to have some intermittent problems culminating in the only rescue of the day after the last race when Bill rowed out to get his boat.

Al Sampson with a second and a third place came in fourth.

The depleted attendance was probably because of all the other plans that members had this week. We always left the July 4th week off the calendar in the past. Do we need to reconsider the decision to put it back on?  But it was still fun!

I realized today that I was the only Village resident there.  Come on Village residents. See you Tuesday. 

All the results and all the news can be found on our website mhbmyc.org

The Solings take their turn next Tuesday, July 12thwhen the tide will be going out to a low at 12.23.

The next outing for DF95s is on Thursday, July 14thwhen the tide will be going out from a high at 09.12.

Time to get those boats fixed. Have a great weekend, take care and have fun,
Derek

Soling 1M Series #8

A rather dull start to the day, but a favorable wind saw seven members bring their boats down to the cove this morning. Once again Judy David kept score and started the races. Many thanks, Judy.

Bill Raposa set the course with some input from Bill David. South from the start line taking the striped red and the orange marks to starboard, then downwind to the northern red striped mark round to starboard, and back to the line. 

We had a total of six races and Bill David won them all except one when he finished second. In that race, the winner was Jim Kelly. Jim also finished second in two races and third in another to clinch second place overall. Paul Mercer had his new Vac-U-Boat today and finished third despite sitting out the second race with technical problems. Fresh back from his cruise, Danny McHugh finished fourth, just two points behind Paul. 

Bill R, Pat, and I were the other racers this morning.  Lots of fun, once again.

The full results are on our website mhbmyc.org as always.

We’ll try again with DF95s next Thursday, July 7th when the tide will be coming in towards a high at just before three pm.

The next opportunity for the Solings will be next Tuesday, July 12th when the tide will be going out to a low at 12.23.

I hope everyone had an enjoyable Fourth and I look forward to seeing a large group on Thursday.

Take care, smile, and have fun,
Derek

DF95 Series #7

Can you believe that we’re already halfway through the year?  To celebrate (or commiserate) we were treated to a beautiful morning, sunshine, cooling breeze, just the day to be at the cove standing in the water. Ten members thought so too and brought their boats to engage in friendly competition. Bill and Shelley Northup were there, but without boats so Bill called the numbers and Shelley assisted Judy David who kept score. Connie Sampson was also there.  Many thanks to you all.

Paul set the course with the line sort of parallel with the beach as there was a NW wind. A counter-clockwise configuration which headed north to the red/blue mark taken to port then down to the southern, orange mark taken to port, then port round the southern red/blue mark and back to the line approached from the beach side.  We had ten races.

Curtis Rencurrel ran into problems and didn’t race today so nine boats set out this morning. Paul won the first race and one more. He also had two seconds and two thirds allowing him to finish third overall today.  Bill David won the second race and another five, making him the clear winner today by a large margin. Nick Bailey won the third race and finished second four times and third twice and that was enough to clinch second by just one point.

The only other race winner today was Kim and he also had one second and two thirds to finish in fourth place this morning. Al Sampson was fifth closely followed by Wilkie in sixth 

.Al Meyer, Pat, and I splashed around and had fun.The full results are on our website mhbmyc.org

If you’re not traveling or need a break from the family for an hour or two come down to the cove for more racing next Tuesday, July 5th when the Solings race again. The tide will be coming in towards a high at 1.21 pm

Then, next Thursday, July 7th it will be the turn of the DF95s.  The tide will be coming in towards a high at 2.56 pm

Have a wonderful July 4th,
Derek

Soling 1M Series #7

A sunny, blue-sky morning with a light breeze brought 6 members to the cove with their boats. I say a light breeze, but early on the breeze was virtually non-existent and this caused a delay in the start.  We eventually got going only to find that the starter wasn’t working so improvisation was needed and it came in the form of Judy David counting down the starts using Jim Kelly’s watch. Robert Chappelle joined us to keep score.  Many thanks, Judy and Robert.

 We held 6 races around the usual clockwise course.  Bill David finished on top with 3 wins and 3 seconds.  Paul was second overall with 2 wins, 2 seconds, and 2 thirds.  The only other winner today was Jim Kelly who also had 1 second and 4 thirds.

The full results and all the other news are on our website mhbmyc.org

Nobody failed to start or finish a race and the starts were all clean: no barging or bumping, just air and water!  Well done everyone.

The Solings sail again next Tuesday, July 5th when the tide will be coming in, heading to a high at 1.21 pm.

Before that, though on Thursday, June 30th the DF95 fleet takes to the water when the tide will be going out from a high at 09.52

Good clean fun today despite the difficulty of that first mark……Oh no. Missed it again…..

And when Kim operated the starter after the racing….it worked.

Another good day at the cove. if you missed it, come along next time, and don’t forget to send or give the membership fees to Kim if you haven’t already done so.

Stay safe, happy, and have fun,
Derek

DF95 Series #6

Another nice summer day with yet another quirky, flukey breeze saw 12 members for racing this morning. Shelley Northup took care of the starting and scoring and was assisted by Al Sampson’s wife, Connie.  Thank you both very much. 

Paul set the course with the line roughly east, west. all marks were taken to starboard. South from the line, round the two marks, then north to the far mark, and back to the line.  We had nine races with the last race being twice around.

There were 4 race winners today. Paul won four, Nick Bailey won two, Jim Kelly won two and Kim won one.

Overall Paul came first, Nick was second, and Bill David was third.

Personal thanks to Al who rowed out and separated my boat from a buoy and to Paul who did a long-distance row to rescue our boats locked together. Just another day at the races!

The full results are on our website mhbmyc.org

More racing next Tuesday, June 28th when it will be the turn of the Solings. the tide will be heading out to a low at 1.12 pm.

The next outing for DF95s will be Thursday, June 30th when the tide will be going out from a high at 09.52.

While most members have paid their dues, some still haven’t so please get your $25 checks to Kim.

Lots of fun in the puzzling wind today

Stay safe and well, and have fun,
Derek

Rob Hill Wins EC-12 Regatta

Thanks for the congrats. It was a great event.

The Stowe Yacht Club hosts two events, back to back, in early June – Region 1 J Boat
Championship followed by the Green Mountain EC 12 regatta which has become the Region 1 EC 12 Championship. They have been doing this one for many years, and I’ve done it maybe 12 years including traveling from Chicago to attend.  It’s a great time in a beautiful location.
The regatta location is the pond behind the Commodores Inn in the valley below the ski resort. The hotel hosts us, handles food and serves as regatta central. The owner of the hotel is a well recognized blue water big boat racer.
Stowe is renowned for light air which frustrates many first timers. But it’s a good learning experience and the racing atmosphere is decidedly relaxed.

This year was very unStowe like. Heavy air and cold. The J’s were first up, Thursday and Friday. Cloudy, rainy and 10 to 12 wind. We used full A rigs in day 1, barely under control. Most of us reduced sail on day 2. I used a B+ main and a full size jib which proved to be very fast but still mostly controllable. At one point, my boat was leveled by a gust, sails underwater, and I feared my 65lbs of ballast would dislodge inside the hull and sink the boat. A long minute and the boat slowly righted. Also dismasted in a collision near the end of day 2. Managed to put things back together and finish the regatta. The other boat weighs 100 lbs.
AMYA President Chuck Millican took 1st. I took 2nd.

The Green Mtn was held Sat and Sunday. More of the same weather. Cool, a little rainy and 12ish wind. A rigs Saturday. 12 races. Some breakdowns as the rigs overpowered the boats. Saturday night, temps dropped to mid 40s in the valley, snow showers on the mountain. Sunday morning, very brisk temps, NW wind 12 to 15 with higher gusts. Lots of black holes on the pond. Mostly B rigs which still over powered the boats in the gusts. The day was a real battle up wind to keep the boats moving. Lots of knock downs. Nine races on Sunday.
We had 13 boats both days. I used new sails both days from Ct. sailmaker Brian Kerrigan.  They worked superbly. The fleet was not as strong as is usual for Stowe, so the start line was a little soft allowing me to get my preferred pole position most of the time. Being windward boat gave me a huge advantage in the gusts both days. Off the line quick and in clear air, I could feather the boat upwind at will to keep it upright and driving. The boats below me generally didn’t have the room to deal with the gusts. Of the 21 races, my three throw outs were a 12, 5 and 3. I won 16 of the 21 races. A real testament to Brian’s sails. They just powered the boat forward both days. 
I stayed with pretty much the same track both days, trying to be windward boat throughout. Paid off handsomely. Dominic Bonanno from NJ took 2nd, 40 pts behind and Chuck Millican took 3rd, 9 pts behind Dom. You walk the course at Stowe, and I figured we covered 15 miles up and down the pond during the 4 days. A real treat and a good time for all.
As I write this, I’m on my way to Chicago for the Santa Barbara Nat’l Championship Thur and Fri and the J boat National Championship Sat and Sun. Certain to be a competitive 4 days.
See you next week.
Rob

Judy Bonanno photo