ABYC Memorial Day Regatta - Aaron Ross

Eight 505 teams from San Francisco to San Diego turned up for the 2011 Alamitos Bay Yacht Club Memorial Day Regatta. The weather was beautiful with sunny skies and great breeze. There were also two Lindsays and two ladies, so the fleet looked good as well.

Race 1

Wind low teens. No Hubert, AJ or Jake

Howard Hamlin and Andy Zinn and Ryan Cox helming for Mike Martin break away from the fleet, with the former taking the win. Aaron Ross and Rob Waterman battle it out for third with Stine Cacavaas and Bill McKinney. After the first gybe Rob discovers his auto ratchet is rigged backwards. It was a painful port gybe wire running, Rob doing his best to hold the sheet and Aaron doing his best to steer to the kite. The flat water made it somewhat manageable. Approaching the leeward gate, a request from the Crew’s Union to re-lead the spin sheet was overridden by the slave driver holding the tiller, and the second run was equally painful. Antoine Laussu and Jake Wes finished fifth.

Race 2

Saw the same breakaway up front with the same outcome. Hubert Guy and Frederic Courouble make it out to the course and join the 3 way battle for third. After the first lap, Aaron and Rob get the course wrong and head for the finish, letting Hubert and Frederic get to the right and hold on for third.

Race 3

Same breakaway up front but with a bit more breeze, the places swap. After two trips to West Marine, AJ Crane and Ted Conrads get one of their two boats put back together after the container trip home from Australia. They hold third place until a swim at the gybe on the second run. They recovered quickly, but found themselves on a 3 sail reach over standing the leeward mark with the wind now into the high teens. Aaron with proper size Rob made short work of AJ and soon to be knick named Pinner Ted.

Jake Muhleman and Reeve Dunne made it out and took advantage of Hubert’s close encounter of the Laser kind to finish fifth.

Race 4

Saw the same break away and same result up front as the previous race. At the leeward gate, AJ and Ted douse early, allowing Aaron and Rob to close the gap and round just behind with speed. Not knowing the course was only one lap, AJ can’t figure out why Aaron stays on her weather hip in bad air, until he tacks for the finish, slightly over stood. Aaron and Rob steal another race from AJ and Ted.

The day ends with the top 2 tied with 6 points each, and Aaron and Rob in a comfortable third with others having each missed at least one race. The forecast was for big breeze on Sunday. The morning started with a solid 20-25, but dropped to the high teens by the time we launched. The race committee set the course close to the outer breakwater and even set a reach mark, presumably to keep the fleet in one area for the safety boats.

Race 5

The race starts with wind pretty far to the right in the mid teens and rapidly drops to maybe 5 knots. Howard and Andy and Mike with Don Smith bang the right and come out ahead. Rob and Aaron and AJ and Ted work the middle, with Pinner Ted occasionally getting on the trapeze and earning his new name. The breeze came back up to the mid teens for the 2 sail reach to the reach mark. Mike tested out his new America’s Cup match racing knowledge and forced Howard into a penalty. Andy was heard later saying to Howard “I told you so.” AJ and Pinner Ted take advantage of the less than proper amount of breeze and pull away from Aaron and Rob. The next leg was a gusty and too tight 3 sail reach, and AJ can’t hold it down with Pinner Ted. They go for a swim, and Aaron and Rob steal a third race from the sub-300 pound team.

Race 6

The wind is back to the high teens with some gusts that might have topped 20 knots. With the cold wind, cold water, fatigue and long waits between starts, the race was a blur. The race committee sent us to the shorter weather leg, and the race was a 20 minute triangle windward leeward sprint. Mike and Don won the race, and the tie breaker for the regatta win.

Results

505 Barnegat Bay Championship

Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club, Beach Haven, NJ - June 11/12

Event website - http://web.me.com/barclay8/Regatta/Home.html

Housing available - please pre-register to secure housing!

**Event held in conjunction with Laser District 10 Championship

Great shore town setting - restaurants, bars, nightlife all within blocks of club

On the water photo/video by the great Richard McOrmond - http://www.legendaryphotos.net/

Little Egg Harbor is one of best small boat racing venues in the country - reliable, steady thermal breezes, moderate current, no motor boat traffic….

Keeping it in the Family - Dan Esdorn

As a starving college kid getting into the 505, one of my first tasks was finding an appropriate partner to campaign the boat with. After much deliberation I made a somewhat unorthodox decision to pitch my old man, a lifelong leadmine sailor, on the idea of giving the 5o5 a whirl together. Lucky for me, he jumped on the opportunity, most likely because it would give him the opportunity to break the elusive “double digit barrier” that often eluded him in keelboats. Three months later, we were road-tripping out to Cincinnati to pick up our ride: USA 8011, a PVC foam-core Waterat with the most horrific beige and banana-yellow two-tone 80’s color scheme known to man. We christened it the Ugly Duckling, and our unlikely 5o5 campaign was born.

With our boat prepped for our first regatta, the 2006 ECC’s, we went out on the water with (we thought) reasonable expectations: get the boat around the racecourse, and have fun. Those hopes and dreams were quickly dashed in our first race, as we proceeded to run over our spin retrieval line 3 times, snapped the jib halyard, and capsized twice. Holy crap, I thought. Not only am I terrible at this, but I have a 50-year old man crewing for me who might be just as bad as I am! This was going to be a rough season…

Fathers and sons don’t often have discussions about addressing their shortcomings with one another, so one of our largest problems starting off in the boat was recovering and learning from our innumerable mistakes. With the help of some of our fellow Fleet 9ers, we went back to the basics of learning to communicate effectively out on the water and ashore after the ECC's. Though the swimming sessions and breakages continued, the exhilaration of sailing the boat kept us in the game. Hair-on-fire downwind rides, catching boats in the odd well-executed maneuver, and laughing about our spectacular capsizes made the tense moments much more bearable.

Over the course of our early practice sessions, I came to see that the 5-0 also presented some great opportunities for our team. My dad had zero time on the wire, but was an engineer by training and was great at making our old stallion work like new again. I had been sailing dinghies for the past 12 years, but struggled with tuning and optimizing such a complex boat. In retrospect, the 5o5 was the ideal platform for us to apply our unique individual skills. I don’t think there is a more forgiving boat out there to learn on while still being so much fun to sail.

After four years of slogging it up the learning curve, Team Ugly Duckling (now with a new, more photogenic ride) decided to campaign at the Denmark Worlds last year. The highlight of that regatta for our team was undoubtedly the extremely breezy first day (even Mike Holt admitted he could feel a gust or two out there). Over half the fleet retired for one or both of the races, but we were one of the lucky few that made it through. I’ll never forget weaving through the graveyard of boats downhill, both my Dad and I holding on for dear life, and whooping and hollering the whole way. Moments like those made the hard work, time, and frustration all worth it, and made me glad I had decided to keep our program in the family.

I’d encourage every 5o5er out there to take a family member – a husband, wife, son, daughter, cousin – out for a ride or two in the boat. You might just end up sailing with a future national or world champion; see Carol and Carl Buchan’s track record for a taste of the possibilities. Even if that doesn’t turn out to be the case, I can list a few reasons why this is a great idea:

• Time: Everyone out there wishes they had more time to spend with their family. We’re all pressed for free time in this day and age, with jobs, travel, kids, and a myriad of other responsibilities already making it hard enough to carve out time to get out on the water. Why not kill two birds with one stone?

• Become a better sailor: Teaching my dad how to crew in a trapeze dinghy challenged me to take on much broader responsibility for our team’s development. At the same time, sailing with him did a lot for my own interpersonal communication, team building, and project management skills that translated into a better ability to sail with other crews.

• Deeper relationships: While many join the 5o5 class purely based on the fact that it is an awesome boat to sail, they stay with it because of the great people in our class. Sailing with family members brings dynamism to our class both on and off the water, and also provides a great way to get to know your family members in a new light.

• Fun: Sharing the great moments we have out on the water with family members just makes sailing the 5o5 a hell of a lot more fun, and helps you keep perspective when the going gets tough.

Whether you decide to sail together in a boat, or ultimately end up going head to head, keeping it in the family is a great way to bring new members into the class, and enjoy your time out on the water in a new way.

2011 Worlds: A Memorable Experience - Jeff Miller

“It’s never like this…”


We arrived at Hamilton Island to find the expected tropical climate, but the fresh breeze was blowing out of a non-typical northwest direction. “This is very rare, but soon it will change,” the locals promised. “Just wait; when the wind blows out of the southeast, there are no islands to block the waves. You’ll have some fun then!” As we unpacked and set up our boats, we looked out over the water and thought this little island paradise will be a great place to hold a world championship. As long as we pile on the sunblock, drink enough water, and jump into the pool every five minutes, the heat and humidity won’t be a problem.

Wild parrots come by to welcome us.

Hamilton Island is a fantastic community, with all levels of accommodation, stores, restaurants, etc. Wild parrots are everywhere. Most of us were issued electric golf carts for transportation (note: if we all drive electric cars in the future, the world will be much quieter!) The locals were prepared for us, SAP brought their incredible special events team, and registration and measurement was organized and efficient.

Each day, the northeast wind would fill in lighter and later. “It’s never like this; just wait till it blows from the other direction.” We sailed the first two pre-worlds races in beautiful 10-15 kts., but the next day things began to change, as predicted. The southeasterly filled in, and although we started in a pleasant 8 kts., the wind was sporadic and unsettled. Eventually the wind shut off altogether, and we headed in, confident that the two-hour time limit could not be met. But the race committee fooled us and finished boats at the bottom mark with one lap to go. Oh well, these are practice races, so who cares? A new weather system was approaching, so conditions were likely to change. With two days off before the real racing, we had time to finalize things as well as take a cruise out to the Great Barrier Reef. Dead calm at the reef; perfect for snorkeling, but what about the seabreeze we were promised, and what about all this overcast?

Conrads/Haines chase Hamlin/Zinn. ©Christophe Favreau

The beautiful weather wouldn’t last. ©Christophe Favreau

First day of racing

Well, the wind did turn around and blow from the southeast; 15-20 kts. with big waves. The locals weren’t kidding; when the wind fills from that direction it’s an exciting place! With the breeze up, we decided to start early. Best to get going and avoid problems up the line. Big mistake. We got a continuous lift and before we could get back to the right side we found ourselves back in the 50s. We made some gains, but each place would be hard fought, and so we finished 31st. Not a good way to start off the series. The next race we tried to start late to take advantage of the current on the right, as did most of the fleet. The gate was open for three minutes, and nobody started within the first minute. I set up to start a bit too high, and killed my speed rounding the gate boat such that we were hosed immediately. No problem, just tack and take some transoms to the other side, right? Only there were so many boats wanting to start late that when the gate boat stopped at three minutes there were 30-40 boats that hadn’t started yet, so there was a wall of starboard tackers that couldn’t be crossed. So we had to tack underneath them all and wait for our chance to clear our air. Needless to say, it was another sad performance as we scraped together a 34th. Meanwhile, current world champions Wolfgang Hunger and Julien Kleiner showed they weren’t just light air specialists by taking two bullets, while Mike Holt and Carl Smit were locked in a 3-way tie for second with hotshots Ted Conrads and Brian Haines from San Francisco and veterans Sandy Higgins and Paul Marsh from Adelaide.

Jeff Miller and Mike Smith start race #1. ©Christophe Favreau

Mike Martin and Geoff Ewenson ©Christophe Favreau

Mike Martin and Geoff Ewenson—front of the pack in race #2. ©Christophe Favreau

Day 2: Cancelled!

The wind was up early, and the seas were even bigger than the day before. So big that the race officials decided that it was too dangerous to send us out. So they postponed the race for a few hours until it was decided to cancel for the day. Wind was gusting to 35 knots, and seas were over six feet. I was actually a bit relieved, because these are the kind of condition that break boats and people as well.

Day 3: Cancelled again!

They had us prepare for a 10am start, hoping the conditions would be favorable, but it was not to be. Once again 30 kt. winds with 10 ft. seas and heavy rain squalls meant we would sit on the beach. As the day progressed things got worse, and the changing tide meant current would be running against the wind creating even bigger waves. The rain poured down in the way the tropics are famous for, and all we could do was shake our heads in amazement. “It’s never like this!” we heard, over and over. Still, the officials were confident that more races would be held; we could race on the scheduled layday. But all we could do at that point was wait for Mother Nature to give us a break.

Day 4: The storm continues!

Once again the weather kept us on shore. With winds above 30 kts. and dangerously large waves, the race committee was forced to cancel for the third day. The torrential rain squalls caused us to huddle under the tents, and most of us were wondering what to do with ourselves since outdoor activities were all but out of the question. Mike Martin and Geoff Ewenson went out for a demonstration sail that morning, and concluded conditions were survivable but not suitable for racing. Three days cancelled? “It’s never like this!”

Mike and Geoff video

Day 5: We need to get some races in!

The racing got going again after the storms backed off a bit. With only periodic rain squalls, we left the beach and encountered 15-20 kt. winds and big seas. The first race saw most of the fleet favoring the left side of the course after the start, opposite to four days earlier, presumably because the tide had changed by then. But tide was not as big a factor as the shifts, and Higgins/Marsh figured that out to lead at the first mark with Hamlin/Zinn close behind. By the bottom mark Hamlin/Zinn had worked into the lead, Hunger/Kleiner had moved to third with Holt/Smit fourth. By now the fleet had figured out to play the shifts in the middle of the course, as Higgins/Marsh moved back to 1st at the top mark, Hamlin/Zinn were 4th, Holt/Smit in 5th, and Hunger/Kleiner 7th. The situation didn’t change much until the final beat, when the fleet split and places changed several times. Holt Smit came out on top, rounding first and holding on during the final run to take the bullet, with Hunger/Kleiner 3rd. Mike and I found ourselves in the middle of the pack again, scoring another 31st.

The next race seemed like a replay; the wind seemed a little stronger, and the waves weren’t getting any smaller. Higgins/Marsh rounded 1st, never losing that position, Hamlin/Zinn 2nd, Conrads/Haines 3rd. By the bottom mark 2nd and 3rd had switched, and Holt/Smit had moved from 7th to 4th. Aside from Higgins/Marsh, the top five switched around throughout the race, when on the final run Conrads/Haines pulled off the big gainer, moving from 5th to 2nd, while Hamlin/Zinn dropped from 2nd to 4th.

After four races, the scoring system allows everybody to discard their worst race, which didn’t help us much as we ended up sitting in 31st. Holt/Smit put together scores of 1,3 to keep them in second place behind Hunger/Kleiner, who now needed that throwout, having turned in scores of 3,15. Close behind were Higgins/Marsh with 5,1 and Conrads/Haines holding on to 4th with a 10,2 for the day.

Day 6: Two more races

With an early start, the race committee decided we could avoid the tidal current pushing against the wind and causing the big, steep waves. But the breeze was still up, and the periodic rain squalls continued. The first race saw a healthy 25 kts. and the big waves that characterize this venue. The day marked the return of the Fast Danes, Saugmann and Ramsbaek, who rounded the first mark 4th, then moved into 2nd behind Aussies Cameron and Mortensen, but dropping to 3rd behind Higgins/Marsh before turning in a spectacular last run where they gained a minute and a half to take the bullet. A minute and a half! Hunger/Kleiner, Holt/Smit, and Hamlin/Zinn all worked up through the fleet to take 4th, 6th, and 8th, respectively. We managed to finish 15th. By the start of the second race another rain squall materialized as the wind picked up to 30 kts. with gusts above 35, and waves as big as houses, making for one of the most epic races in world championship history. Holt/Smit were in their element; I’m pretty sure I heard them giggling as they rolled us not long after the start, and they left us all behind as they went on to win by more than two minutes. But that next boat was Hunger/Kleiner, who showed off their heavy air expertise as well, and that may have been the performance that won them the championship. All they needed to do now was stay close to Holtie in the final race. Hamlin/Zinn were a close 3rd, while the Fast Danes finished 4th. We had done a good job on the first upwind leg, rounding the first mark third and we held that position on the downwind leg. But the wind shifted a bit on the next upwind leg, and five boats moved past us. As the race progressed we maintained good speed, only to capsize on the final downwind leg, causing us to drop some more places before righting the boat. We finished with a mildly disappointing but respectable 15th. The good news is that our consistent finishes boosted us from 31st to 22nd place overall.

Day7: The final showdown

More windy and rainy conditions, with no end in sight. “We haven’t seen weather like this in 25 years!” “Why didn’t you guys hold this event in July?” While most of us were laughing at the absurdity of the situation, we couldn’t help but feel some sympathy for the organizers, who had worked so hard, only to have Mother Nature try to spoil it. But the air was warm, the water was warm, and by then we were used to it. We got out to the race course for another 10 am start, but just after the warning signal a wind squall hit, and postponement flag went up. Seemed like a good 35 kts. with building waves. We went into survival mode, but capsized anyway, and after a few turtles decided we didn’t need to be out there. We would use our discard here and end up with 23rd place overall. Another mistake, because the wind dropped to a manageable 25 kts. after about 30 minutes, when they started the race. There was a showdown developing; Hunger/Kleiner had to finish 10th or better, and stay within 3 places of Holt/Smit. And Higgins/Marsh could win if they won the race and Holt/Smit finished worse than 5th and Hunger/Kleiner finished worse than 9th. As the race unfolded, Hamlin/Zinn moved into the lead and were never threatened. Holt/Smit were sailing well with a solid 2nd, and Higgins/Marsh were back in 9th. But Hunger/Kleiner were holding onto a very safe 4th, so Holtie decided to take action on the last beat by turning around to plant a full facial on the four-time world champion, trying to drive him down in the fleet. The ensuing tacking duel up that last beat was working, as both boats slowed and the rest of the fleet started to catch up. But there weren’t enough boats and there wasn’t enough time, and Wolfgang Hunger won his fifth 505 world championship, and Mike Holt and Carl Smit once again came oh-so-close.

Overall, I have to say it was a memorable experience; despite the weather we had some great racing in exceptional conditions. And how many championships have we had where the weather didn’t exactly cooperate? Seems like most of them. And in the face of a difficult situation, the race officials always seemed to make the right call, balancing the conditions with safety considerations and the need to hold races worthy of a world championship. The organizers put together a spectacular event, the weather added an additional adrenaline-inducing factor (aren’t we all adrenaline junkies?) and the final awards banquet was as close to a Hollywood award show as you can get. I’m really glad I went.

Boats launch as another squall line approaches.

Mike and Carl pour it on. ©Christophe Favreau