2012 Seattle Turkey Bowl - Angus Brackett

Before I report on our regatta I wanted to give a big thanks to Bruce Van Deventer for organizing the chase boat and to Brian Watkins and CYC Seattle for opening the club for us. Also a welcome and Thanks to Krysia Pohl for joining the fleet and taking on the roll of fleet Captain.

Now onto the sailing, this year’s Turkey Bowl was attended by ten 505’s, with Port Townsend sending two boats and eight from Seattle.  The forecast was for strong southerlies and this came true with winds in averaging 20 knots, and some gusts around 30 in the late afternoon.  Four races were held with rabbit starts with the good fun had by all and a few capsizes.  After racing we held a debrief and annual meeting at CYC, with Fish and Chips supplied by the Watery Tart’s (Annie and Chris). Sadly a few boats had some rigging issues that kept them off the water on Sunday.

Sunday’s forecast was for building breeze and rain; however this was delayed enough for six boats to get out on the water and have four more races with Buchans and Fritz & Scott trading firsts in the 8-12 knot Southeast breeze, before the wind shifted farther to the East, signaling it was time to head in.

Thanks to everyone that turned out for the weekend, and again to Bruce and CYC.  The 2013 Schedule was discussed and will be finalized soon.  A reminder to those west coast boats planning on racing in the Barbados worlds, please contact Paul Von Grey get your deposit in to secure a spot in the container.

Thank you and hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

Photos courtesy of Bruce Van Deventer:

St. Francis Fall Dinghy Report - Reeve Dunne

10 505's showed up for 6 races for great San Francisco racing at the St Francis fall dinghy Oct 20-21

It was cool and foggy Saturday morning so after spending fall dinghy last year in sunny 80+ weather an no wind.

At first it looked like the wind might not cooperated with my hopes as we started the first race right in front of Alcatraz around 12:30 in a fickle light breeze coming right over the city.  We got off to a start but after 2.5 laps the race committee cancelled (much to Holt and I's dismay as the current race leaders) as the breeze was lightning and flood was increasing.

After 30 minutes of sailing hard upwind to maintain position against the current the breeze increased to marginal trapping and more importantly enough wind to get upwind against the current.  AJ/Ben won it followed by Pierre and Mike Holt once again up in the front of the boat, and Ted Conrad's also up front  in 3rd.  Holt and I decided to try the right and paid the price finishing 6th

For the second race the breeze was up. we chased Jeff and Mike Smith to the left all the way around the course with Tim Murphy/Geoff Gales right behind us, up until the top mark where Jeff/Mike got pulled into the mark (did I mention it was flooding) and lost Holt/me and Tim/Geoff trying to get back to the offset.

Third race was the same idea go left and prosper we rounded the first followed closely by Jeff/Mike and Pierre/Holtie as the breeze increased the the flood subsided and managed to stay that way 3 laps to the finish

We were greeted on shore with the usual St Francis hospitality and warm food very welcome for all.

Sunday morning was colder but once on the water it was windier.

True to their word the race committee got the first start for another 3 legger off at 12, the flood was less intense but like the previous day the left still paid.  We chased Jeff/Mike around the course again, but were never able to get around them with Aaron Ross/? and Eben Russel/Pat Diola next

Second race the breeze was really up and the course was much more even but with big holes.  Jeff/Mike determined not to let the young guys beat them got off to another fast start with Eben/Pat next and a tight pack behind them.  We became the first of many casualties in this race deciding to test the water on the first downwind.  Mike and Jeff held on to win with Holtie and Pierre next Pat and Eben were primed for third until a broken guy ejected Pat from the boat and we stole the third spot.

Last race Jeff/Mike put on the jets once again to take a commanding lead followed by a close race between Eb/Pat, Steve Kleha/Matthias, Pierre/Mike and us. Eb and Pat took second us third with Steve/Matthias right behind.

St Francis as always put on a great regatta, and SF bay delivered perfect conditions for 6 great races to end the summer season

Final Results:


Pos, Crew, Skipper, Yacht Club, Results, Total Points 
1. Mike Smith, Jeff Miller, SCYC, [4]-3-2-1-1-1- ; 8  
2. Reeve Dunne, Holt Condon, St Francis YC, [6]-1-1-2-3-3- ; 10  
3. Mike Holt, Pierre Jeangirard, Bishop yacht club, 2-4-3-[5]-2-5- ; 16  
4. Geoff Gales, Tim Murphy, Tim Murphy, 5-2-8-6-[10]-6- ; 27  
5. Robert Park, Aaron Ross, Santa Cruz YC, 9-6-6-3-4-[12/DNS]- ; 28  
6. Matthias Kennerknecht, Steve Kleha, SCYC, [8]-7-5-8-5-4- ; 29  
7. Unknown, Edward Conrads, St Francis, 3-8-4-9-7-[12/DNS]- ; 31  
8. Glass/Pedlow, AJ Crane, StFYC, 1-5-[12/DNF]-7-8-12/DNS- ; 33  
9. Pat Diola, Eben Russell, none, [12/DNF]-12/DNF-12/DNF-4-6-2- ; 36  
10. Matt Kroystad, Christopher O'Leary, BYC, 7-9-7-10-9-[12/DNS]- ; 42

New American Section Website

All,

As your newly elected information officer, I have been taking some steps to unify and expand our web presence. To me, this all starts with a simple, functional, and information-rich web page. As of tonight, I have launched the new website at the same familiar URL www.usa505.org. Please check it out!

Note that this is still a work in progress, but at this point it has all of the information and functionality of the Wiki page, which is no longer accessible. My hope is that you will find it more functional and professional. I am still populating responses as they come in for the "Who, What, When..." promotional piece on the home page. My goal with this is to showcase the best thing the 505 Class has to offer: it's people.

Over the next few months, I will work to incorporate all of the great articles from the old International Site as well as information from around the web into the "Rigging and Project Archive" and "Improve Your 505 Sailing" pages. I want our American Section website to be the one-stop shop for all this type of information. There is a lot of content out there, but I just want to make it easier to find.

We will still utilize the International Site for forums, classifieds, supplier listings and schedule (although I will maintain a Google calendar with all the events from the Int. site). However, we will keep our contact information up-to-date so that perspective 505 sailors can get in touch with the fleet in their area.

I would also like to utilize Facebook to expand our reach with prospective sailors. Please "Like" us on Facebook to subscribe to updates, new Tank Talk posts, regatta results, pictures, video, etc: http://www.facebook.com/AmericanSection

I am 100% open to your feedback on the new website; positive or negative. This not my website, but rather OUR website. If there is something that you would like to see that is not currently incorporated, please post in the comments section here!

Thank you for your time.

Craig Thompson
USA 7346
webmaster@usa505.org

SSA Plane Insane / Region II Championships - Drew Buttner

Spinsheet Photo Gallery

The 2012 Region 2 Championship was held this past weekend at SSA in Annapolis, MD.  14 teams competed including the past two North American champions.  The strong fleet enjoyed some great racing, great weather, and great hospitality.

The event started on Saturday, but a few boats decided to get a little practice in on Friday.  The word on the street was that the Chesapeake Bay served up some champagne conditions and that those that couldn't make it out missed a perfect day for tuning.  For those that couldn't make it, some evening rigging or a morning scramble would have to suffice.

Saturday dawned with warm temps and very little wind.  The forecast wasn't great either with a 9 knot breeze to peak at 11AM, then dying throughout the day.  Needless to say everyone was worried about the prospects of the day.  The lack of wind did give the fleet some extra time to digest the coffee and donuts that were supplied by Bryan Richardson!!  The breeze started to fill around 10AM, and after a short postponement ashore, everyone quickly made their way out to the race course and the RC got things started with only a small delay.  The breeze was from the NW, and with the course set just north of the Severn, the wind was off the towers and pretty variable.  In race number one, the majority of the fleet looked to take advantage of the seemingly more pressure on the left, but it would be right angle that would prove dominate.   Nelson/Falsone played things perfectly and led the fleet around the first weather mark.  Diaz/Lanzinger found that pressure on the left at the very top of the beat to sneak into second and put them in position to battle for the lead downwind.  A mistake (jibing away from the pressure) on the run by Nelson/Falsone allowed Diaz/Lanzinger the passing lane they were looking for they capitalized quickly.  Once in the lead, Diaz/Lanzinger would not be caught.  Nelson/Falsone finished second with locals Sitzmann/Becker sailing a solid race to get 3rd.

Unfortunately the breeze was dying throughout the first race, and as the second race of the day was getting started things really went downhill.  Zagol/Buttner were the rabbit, but upon rounding the pin the wind shifted hard left and they were already above the port tack layline to the weather mark.  Great for the rabbit, but not great for the fleet.  The RC wisely postponed at the starting gun and reset the course.  A second attempt got the race underway, but the breeze was light and it really became a guessing game as to where the breeze would fill from next.  Zagol/Buttner headed right (not a big surprise given they were the rabbit) and this tactic paid off as they rounded the top mark first.  Both Meller/Coe and Moore/Ewenson were close but neither could pass on the downwind leg.  On the second beat the wind got even lighter.  Meller/Coe and Moore/Ewenson tacked out to search for pressure coming from the Severn river on the left.  Unfortunately for them the pressure never materialized.  Instead it came in from the right.  Diaz/Lanzinger had rounding the leeward mark in 4th and never tacked, enabling them to be the first to get to the new pressure and to take the lead.  The RC wisely shortened the course and finished the fleet at the top.  Zagol/Buttner were second and Papadakis/Falsone Jr. were third.

After racing the fleet converged under a tent (SSA is being completely renovated) for beer and oysters.  Conversation about a 2016/2017 worlds bid ensued.  Eventually the need for real food took over and everyone convened at a local establishment down the street.

Sunday was much better from a breeze perspective.  The forecast was 10-15 out of the NW and that is pretty much what we saw all day.  The cost of this was of course the temperature which dropped a few degrees overnight.  The sun stayed shining through and kept things manageable all day.  Three races were completed.  Each race turned into a three way battle between Diaz/Lanzinger, Moore/Ewenson, and Zagol/Buttner.  In the first race of the day, and by far the most exciting, the three boats separated from the pack and pushed each other all the way around the course.  Each had their moment in the sun with the lead changing constantly.  Down the last run, Zagol/Buttner held a slight lead but started running out of pressure on the downwind left near the finish.  Diaz/Lanzinger were closing fast on the downwind right.  Zagol/Buttner jibed back to the finish with starboard advantage but now sit running.  The two boats were bow to bow.  Diaz/Lanzinger were forced off the wire by the starboard Zagol/Buttner and tried to square back and beat them across the line.  But Zagol/Buttner held on for the race win.  Diaz/Lanzinger were second and Moore/Ewenson followed in third.

The fourth race of the series was won by Diaz/Lanzinger.  (the editor forgets the details of that race)

In the fifth and final race, Thompson/Curtin jumped out to a commanding lead by nailing the shifts on the first leg.  The course had been changed to a triangle meaning we all had to find the new reach mark.  The fleet had all but conceded the race to them, until they decided to do a harbor cruise and check out the starting pin for another race course.  The rest of the fleet sailed to the correct jibe mark.  Thompson/Curtin's was so big however that they were able to round the wrong mark and then sail to the jibe mark still in the lead.  They held on the rest of the way for the race win with Zagol/Buttner in second and Diaz/Lanzinger in third.

In the end, the team of Augie Diaz and Fritz Lanzinger proved too good and they captured the overall title.  They sailed an amazingly consistent event given the tricky conditions.  Congratulations!!

Many thanks to Bryan Richardson and everyone at SSA for all their hard work, and for putting on a truly GREAT event.

Pos	Sail	Skipper/Crew/Club	1	2	3	4	5	Total Points	Pos
1	8808	Diaz, Augie/Lanzinger, Fritz/ CRYC	1	1	2	1	[3]	5.00	1
2	8830	Zagol, Mark/Buttner, Andrew	[4]	2	1	2	2	7.00	2
3	8722	Falsone, Jesse/Nelson, Macy/ SSA	2	6	4	[8]	7	19.00	3
4	9007	Moore, Tyler/ewenson, Geoff/ HYC	9	[11]	3	3	4	19.00	4
5	7346	Thompson, Craig/Curtin, Mike	[11]	7	7	5	1	20.00	5
6	8851	Sitzmann, Tom/Becker, Geoff/ SSA	3	5	[9]	9	5	22.00	6
7	7200	Meller, Ali/Scannell, Peter/Coe, Mike/ SSA	6	8	6	4	[9]	24.00	7
8	8012	Duncan, Whit/Miller, Russell/ Sail Newport	10	[12]	5	6	8	29.00	8
9	8822	Burchfiel, David/Froman, Andy	7	4	10	[12]	11	32.00	9
10	8952	Smith, Charles/Smith, Jay/ CYCNC	8	10	[13]	10	6	34.00	10
11	8850	Watson, Doug/ WRSC	[12]	9	8	7	10	34.00	11
12	814	Papadakis, Stergios/ SSA	5	3	[15/DNC]	15/DNC	15/DNC	38.00	12
13	8535	Seamon/Artman/ SSA	13	[15/TLE]	12	11	12	48.00	13
14	8766	Richardson, Bryan/Schoene, Matt/ SSA	[14]	13	11	13	13	50.00	14

Region II Fall Events - Are you in?

We have two exciting events coming up in the next few weeks in Region II:

1. SSA Plane Insane / Region II Championships October 20-21 (12 Confirmed Boats)

Schedule:

Saturday 10/20

0830 to 0930- Registration (payments will accept credit card)

0930- Skipper's meeting

1000- committee boat leaves the dock

1100- First Warning

Sunday 10/21

1000- Committee boat leaves the dock

1100- First warning

1400- No more races will begin

Trophies!

SCRATCH LIST

1. Whit Duncan/ Russell Miller
2. Macy Nelson/Jesse Falsone
3. Bryan Richardson/Matt Schoene
4. Ali Meller/Mike Coe
5. Drew Buttner/Mark Zagol
6. Tyler Moore/Geoff
7. Erika Seamon/Bruce Artman
8. Mike Curtin/Craig Thompson
9. Augie Diaz/Fritz Lanzinger
10. Tom Sitzman/Anthony Burton
11. Jay and Charles Smith
12. Doug Watson/ Eric K on Saturday and Gabe on Sunday
13. Sterg- possible, still trying to work out schedule, would sail with brother

2. Hampton Fall Training Weekend November 3-4 (10 Confirmed Boats)

*Coached training event with video debrief! DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ELEVATE YOUR GAME!

Schedule:

Friday 11/2
1200 to 1600- warm up drills for those interested

Saturday 11/3
1100- briefing at sailing center

1200 to 1600- practice

1700- debrief at sailing center

1900- party at Tyler's house

Sunday 11/4

0900- Briefing

1000 to 1400- practice perhaps finish with a race or 2

Current Scratch List:

1. Thompson/Curtin
2. Englert/Huntsman
3. Duncan/Miller
4. Nelson/???(SAT) Falsone(SUN)
5. Richardson/???
6. Long/Long
7. Rasmussen/???
8. Smith/Smith (SAT) Revill (SUN)
9. Moore/Ewenson
10. Amthor/Amthor(SAT) James(SUN)

The Art of Crewing - Scott Ikle

Sailing World dug up a great crewing article today from a past issue written by the retired 505 crew Scott Ikle:

http://www.sailingworld.com/racing/from-the-archives-doublehanded-synergy

Scott is seen below sailing with October 2012 Sailing World "Coverboy" Tyler Moore. I would say this picture was probably taken close to the time the article was published based on those Reebok Pumps he is wearing.

Santa Cruz Fall Regatta Report

Written by Mike Holt:

Santa Cruz Yacht Club hosted a 505 regatta this last weekend but unfortunately most of you had better things to do than sail in 15-20 knots with warm sunshine and great waves. Most certainly your loss!

However six boats made it to the start line for the first race and Santa Cruz delivered the best weekend of sailing on a long time. Great race management from Beau Vrolyk and his team with straight forward windward leeward courses with a gate in the beat. Unusually for Santa Cruz the course was not right hand biased, in fact we felt we gained by going left on most beats and certainly watching the compass was important. For a change my view of the race track was from "the wire" hanging on the side for Steve Anderes who kindly stepped in to sail with me.

At the end of day one Mike Smith and Jeff Miller had a perfect 1,1,1 score although they did have to cover us up the last beat of the second race! Steve and I ended the day with a 2,2,2 score and to complete the symmetry Evan Diola and Eb Russell had a 3,3,3 score. However the racing was close and exciting with some really full on wire running and tight mark roundings.

Sunday was pretty similar to Saturday, starting just a shade lighter but by the time we were going up the first beat of the day the wind had filled in to a good 15+. This was a more typical go right upwind, left downwind day than though which nearly caught Mike and Jeff out, heading right downwind while we gybe set. However when it all matters at the finish line Mike and Jeff maintained their perfect score and Steve and I maintained our less perfect run of 2's. However Reeve and Pat managed to pass Evan and Eb in the last race to ruin their run of 3's!

A real shame more of you did not make it to Santa Cruz, we had absolutely perfect conditions.

Results:

1. 9082  Mike Smit Jeff Miller  1  1  1  1  1  5
2. 9002  Mike Holt Steve Anderes  2  2  2  2  2  10
3. 8829  Evan Diola Eben Russell  3  3  3  3  4  16
4. 8967  Cameron McDonald Philippe Kahn  5  4  4  5  5  23
5. 8878  Reeve Dunne Pat Diola  4  7/DNF  7/DNS  4  3  25
6. 7156  Geoff Gales Aaron Ross  6  7/DNS  7/DNS  7/DNC  7/DNC  34  

An Update on the New Parker 505

Dave Parker has provided the below updates on the new Parker 505:

We have received much interest and comment on the new Parker 505, all good and informative. So here's an update on what's next . . .

The new Spinnaker Shute

All new boats will have the new Spinnaker shute, positioned higer through the front bulkhead, the shute will be some 12"x18" in dimension exiting to port of the centerline, the tube will be off-horizontal accelerating drainage to the bow through a 35mm carbon tube that exits either side. Pictures to follow.

Adjustable Shroud Controls

Many questions around the ability to use an adjustable shroud track. Well we are working with Harken exclusively and using a turning bock above the carbon tube entry, we can accommodate an adjustable track, however it is not necessary to use the tube for the shrouds, these can be bypassed, by running the control lines forward past the line of the new deck and through the deck to the void to the mast step area.

Port Side Shute Launcher

I have talked to many more experienced sailors and sail manufacturers regarding putting the jib tack as far forward as possible, we all know that Steve Benjamin "wiped" most out in 1980 using this technique, I have spoken with Steve on many occasions and with assistance and advise from Ethan Bixby and many at La Rochelle during the summer, this will be a configuration option on our boats from the new year.

Many thanks for everyone's comments (keep them coming), Jesse, Ethan, Steve, Mike, Jens, Peter, Howie and many, many others, including many old friends of my father Bill Parker.

2012 North American Championship - Jesse Falsone

h2o Shots Photo Gallery

Here's a report on the 2012 505 NAs, which I had never expected to give.

I'm sitting in my office on Wednesday mid-morning when I get a call. It's Mike Martin and he needs me to hop a flight to San Francisco immediately to sail the 505 NAs with him, but not until he makes absolutely sure that any one of 7 other local (and not so local) alternatives absolutely cannot make it. I don't remember the entire list, but Carl Buchan, some local kite boarder, and one of the Barbados Worlds rum girls were in there so I'm not in such bad company. Mike's regular crew, "Jeffa" Nelson, had to bolt out of town for a family emergency, otherwise the regatta would have been over since they are 10% faster. Mike and I sailed together in 2005 on both coasts and the Germany worlds where we were one bad tactical move from the title (and decades of an unbearably smug Falsone). This success accounts for why I'm #8 on the Mike Martin 505 crew depth chart.

After explaining to Mike that although it was possible, I would undoubtedly pay a large price at work, where I had proposal work, and at home being that it was my daughter's 10th birthday and my wedding anniversary. Mike was undeterred by such flimflam, but said to give him another hour to check in with the junior club after I said that I only weighed 192 and had a bad shoulder. Meanwhile, I watched the internet prices of last-minute plane tickets ratchet ever-higher by the minute.

In desperation, Mike relented and asked me to push the "purchase" button, which I did just before airfares reached a grand and I would have to connect through Anchorage.

So, after an unconvincing explanation to my boss and tepid approval from my wife, I risked life and limb dodging DC traffic to get home, pack, and race back up to BWI for my flight to SFO. Fortunately, I did have just enough time to stop at CVS and pick up a prescription for some little pills to calm my nerves. There was a lot to live up to after snatching the crewing spot from some anonymous kite boarder.

Mike picks me up at the airport on-time, which is like 10pm west coast time, 1pm east coast time. He told me I looked small and weak. I didn't tell him I hadn't slept the night before. Everyone was happy.

It bears mentioning that I sailed the 2009 worlds made famous by the 25 knots of wind going against a 3 knot ebb which made for some of the nastiest conditions on the Berkley Circle and any 505 worlds (except for the epic pre-worlds race in Durban 2000 which is now folklore). I survived, and declared I was now retired from 505 crewing in San Francisco. And I meant it.

But September on the Bay is different than August. It's kinder and gentler, and certainly nothing my 43 year old body and bum shoulder couldn't handle. My temerity was rewarded with 4 days of some of the best sailing conditions you could hope for if you neglect the 50 degree water temperature and the hour sail to the race course.

I won't bore you with the details of the racing other than to say that most races were sailed in 15-20 knots, and the flood tide kept the sea pretty flat. We sailed 11 races, with none other than Pip Pearson, 505 legend and class president, presiding over the race committee on behalf of the sailors. Courses were square and just the right length for the 27 boats. Gate starts went off without a hitch. Mike and I even had the honor of being the first pathfinder, which has nothing to do with Mike Holt appointing us, and possibly believing that the left side would be favored early in the day (speculation and slander!). Now I'm no Russ Miller in the front of the boat, but we did have our chances to win, some of which were unrelated to a broken trapeze ring or over standing the finish while in the lead or not slamming our competition during a crucial time on the last day. In the end, it was none other than Hampton's Tyler Moore sailing with Rob Woelfel who would come out on top by two points over Mike and myself. Tyler and Rob were masterful when it counted, and that's what champions do. I expect this victory, Tyler's 4th at the NAs, is especially gratifying since it comes in west coast waters, where west coasters hate to lose. Well done, my friend! You earned it through two decades of commitment to the class and bettering your game. Rob - you earned it too (insert surly in defeat comment here).

As for me, I believe I was the only sub 6 foot or 200 pound crew in the top half of the fleet, but this only shows how hard Mike hikes. It is a convenient excuse nonetheless. But, the important thing is that we beat Mike Holt, which was the real goal anyway. Holty was severely handicapped himself with Dave Shelton on the wire, so who can blame him.

So, with a heavy heart, I caught my red eye back to BWI, rushed back to work, literally walking into a meeting with company brass this morning while still buttoning the same shirt I had ditched in the car last Wednesday. Was it worth it? Damn straight it was! I had another shot at the title with Mike Martin, notched another top three finish at NAs, and solidified my legend as the best midget 505 crew in modern times (not counting Darren Nicholson). What's more, I'm told I'm eligible for the US Sailing grant for worlds. Unfortunately, Mike's involvement in the AC has labeled him a professional and therefore forfeits his half of the grant to me (thanks, Mike!). Now, I just need to get some sleep before I write something that will get me in trouble.

"Jessee" Falsone

Moore / Woelfel Win 2012 North American Championship

Congratulations to Tyler Moore and Rob Woelfel for winning the 2012 505 North American Championship hosted by the San Francisco Yacht Club.

The win marks Tyler's successful defense of the Championship as he and crew Geoff Ewenson won the 2011 edition of the NA's at American Yacht Club.

Complete Results

Please watch this space for complete details on the event.

Parker 505's Return to the USA

Dear American 505 sailors.

This email is to inform you that Parker's are offering special pricing on 10 boats, pricing is valid until the end of September 2012 and delivery must be before the end of the year, the pricing is as follows

 

Model 0, 11,280 USD

Model 1, 12,180 USD

Model 2, 17,080 USD

 

Specifications/Pricing are available on the website http://parker505.com/parker505/Ordering.html, all prices are ex. taxes, delivery and insurance.

 

Please feel free to pass this information around your United States class members and please feel free to contact me directly if you have any further questions.

 

We look forward to supporting the United States 505 fleet.

 

Best Regards

 

David Parker

USA: +1.203.400.9515

2012 North American Championship - Registration

Registration is open.

NOR

Registered Teams

2012 505 Worlds - From The View Of USA 9041

Our great adventure in La Rochelle began with a nice practice sail in sunny 12 to 18 knots on Friday ( the day before the start of the Worlds).

Upon arrival from ORF, NY, Paris then La Rochelle, Barb, Keaton & I were a bit jet-lagged, however the beautiful regatta setting made it easy to stay up without sleep.

I had a work commitment so Dustin had arrived a few days earlier to get the boat through the measurement and weigh-in process.

I rigged a bare hull Rondar last winter from scratch and added about 6 lbs of lead to get up to minimum weight.  It was a bit tense not knowing if our scale was accurate with the one used by the Worlds officials; to our delight we were within two pounds!

Things were looking good for team USA as Howie & Andy won the Pre-Worlds and many other US teams had strong finishes.

So Worlds race day one arrived with another sunny day, however, as with many days to follow, the breeze did not fill in until late in the day. The regatta took on a Cali type feel as most days were under postponement (onshore) which allowed for a leisurely approach to the day. 

Tyler and Howie had the bulk of the USA boats camped at the container together along with a few Ozy’s for flavor.  The camp was within a two minute walk to the local restaurants and grocery outlets and most important “The Wine & Cheese store”.  This also allowed for an easy trip to buy beer for the week, each morning.

The first day had two races in a moderate sea breeze. The starting area was a bit hectic with 185 boats and another 50+ support boats. A lot of teams spent the mornings cleaning their sail windows for better vision (especially on PORT Tack).

As the week went on our results improved almost every day. Getting a lane at the start was paramount. If you could sail for three minutes in clear air, you had a chance to round in the upper third. If you got flushed you could easily end up rounding in the lower third (125th!!! or worse). Climbing back through 125 boats was almost impossible.  However, if we got the first beat halfway right we would round in the thirties which would allow us to move up before we ran out of runway.

Our best race was heat #5 in a shifty 15kt offshore breeze. We gated early just above Tyler & Big Geoff.  Two minutes after the start we got a nice left shift that held long enough to cross the fleet on port before it went back right.  It was an awesome sight to see the whole fleet in the main window four minutes after the start! I think Team Hampton both rounded the windward mark in the top 5!  Sailing down the first run we were concerned about a crack that had developed in our boom near the goose-neck (cracked booms only seam happen when you’re having your best day).  Dustin did a good job jury rigging a Rope collar around the boom to keep it from splitting completely. We held to a conservative game plan trying not to tack or jibe too much and went on to get 9^th!  Tyler & Geoff made a gutsy call to go deeper into the right corner on the first run and move up to get 4th!

So here comes the great part: on the way in Holger spotted our boom and offered to sell us an unrigged one from his stock.  However, instead of working day and night to rig a new boom, a nice gent from Hampton named Tyler Moore walked up and handed us his (fully rigged!) spare boom. That was very generous of Tyler as the regatta was only half over! The boom fit our rig perfectly and allowed us to focus on vacation instead of rigging. 

So after three days of racing we felt good about our boat speed. In fact all of the US teams where sailing fast in the sea breeze conditions . Unfortunately the breeze began to fade as the week wore on. Large fleet management in light air is tricky. We felt a bit off the pace against many of the smaller teams. We could beat most of the fly-weights to the weather mark however, off the wind they were quick.

We will be hoping for a bit more breeze at the next one in Barbados!

On the social side it was great to spend some time with our international friends, many of whom have unique qualities.  We learned once again to not try to hang with the Ozy’s (late night) as they are professionals in the Pub.  Also, if they offer to buy you a balloon animal from a passing clown, just say no.

Andy did manage to win the USA vs AUS YC swim off, although the club manager gave them low marks for their lack of clothing.

The Brits have a unique after dinner practice of buying Rum shots for their nearest international competitors and then disappearing as the drinks arrive for the balance of the evening.

The Germans and the French still love to argue with each other on the water - mostly in two different languages!

The class camaraderie was up there with a nice boat parade to the race course on the last day honoring long time British sailor and 79 year old Jim Berry who plans to retire. Our title sponsor SAP would have none of it and promptly bought Jim and his wife an all-expenses paid trip to the 2013 Worlds in Barbados.

The French were great hosts on and off of the water.

The PRO made some great calls to postpone "onshore" when there scout boats confirmed that the conditions were too soft to start a race. This allowed us to relax out of the hot sun in the awesome SAP tent with full access to the net and espresso.  Many thanks are due to Tyler for organizing the East Coast container and for providing the new Boom.

We had a blast and will forever have fond memories of 185 5o5 kite’s spread out over two legs of the course off that sea side port of La Rochelle.

Team Benchmark USA 9041

CORK - Eastern Canadian 505 Championship

August 24-26th in Kingston, ON.

Contact Jeff Boyd.

Newport Regatta - Craig Thomspon

Ten teams made it to the annual Bacardi Newport Regatta, hosted by Sail Newport, on July 14-15 2012. This regatta also served as the 2012 Region I Championships and unfortunately, no boats from outside Region I made the trip to challenge for out-of-region bragging rights. The Newport Regatta is a large, multi-class event held at one of the best sailing venues on the US East Coast. Sail Newport is a public access sailing center which is very well aligned with the 505 Class. There is no fancy restaurant, no blue blazers, and no silly yacht club etiquette. Sail Newport is all about running first class one design races and making access to the water available for all. This type of event is a great opportunity to showcase the 505 class amongst a large number of sailors, including juniors.

The 505’s shared a circle this year with some unlikely company; Viper 640s, J22s, Stars, and Snipes. Needless to say, managing traffic on the race course was an important component of the racing. Also, in atypical fashion, the 505s used conventional line-starts along with the other classes on the circle. The Viper class served as a reminder why gate starts are the preferred starting method in the 505 class; virtually every Viper start resulted in at least one General Recall. The racing area was in Potter’ Cove, north of the Newport Pell Bridge on the East Passage of Narragansett Bay, tucked up against the shore of Conanicut Island.

The first day of racing was delayed due to lack of wind at the start time. The breeze finally filled in lightly from the southwest, allowing the start of the first race. It became quickly apparent that the right hand side of the race course, adjacent to shore, was the place to be at the top of the beat. Buttner/Zagol quickly picked up on this and led Race 1 wire-wire to take the early lead. The second race saw more wind as the sea breeze began to pulse, but the velocity peaked around 12 knots with a mix of wire and sit running in races 2-4. Breton/Breton held the lead for the first two legs of Race 2, but were eventually reeled in by Buttner/Zagol who took their second race win. Race 3 again saw Buttner/Zagol out in front, but Marks/Thompson were able to find a passing lane on the final run to take the win. Gerson/Ferrarone were also in the mix on the final leg, netting their second 3^rd of the day. The final race of the day came down to the final minute; Gerson/Ferrarone, Buttner/Zagol, and Marks/Thompson all led the race at one point on the final beat. However, Marks/Thompson found themselves in a fortunate position for the final tack towards the finish. Gerson/Ferrarone made contact with Buttner/Zagol when ducking, and had to do a penalty turn, allowing Carney/Komar to grab the 3^rd place; their highest finish of the day. Burd/Duncan had a solid day, showing speed and consistency, but were not able to break into the top three.

The second day of racing got started on time in a similar breeze velocity and direction as Saturday’s racing. At the start of Race 5, it appeared that the right side may not be getting the big shift that was present for most of the prior day, and the regatta leaders found themselves on the outside of a big right shift on the first beat of Race 5. Schulter/Dienhardt had an impressive first beat and led by a significant margin at the top mark. Gerson/Ferrarone did a good job working the right/middle of the race course and rounded in second with Buttner/Zagol in third. Schulter/Dienhardt led for most of the race, but Gerson/Ferrarone were able to sneak by them on the final run for their first race win of the event. Race 6 again proved to be a battle for the right side, and Buttner/Zagol made it look easy after tacking out and taking several transoms off the starting line. On the second beat, Marks/Thompson were able to hitch into a slight lefty at the bottom of the course, moving into second place. However, Buttner/Zagol had superior speed and decision making, which they turned into another race win. Burd/Duncan were consistently in the mix throughout the regatta, and were able to break into the top three in Race 6. Carney/Komar had another solid showing in Race 7, but were narrowly beat by Gerson/Ferrarone right at the finish.

Overall, the regatta was a great success. Particularly impressive were that 3 of the top 5 teams at the regatta had both Crew/Skipper under age 30. It is great to have young guns like Burd, Komar, Duncan, Marks and Carney out there racing 505’s. The event had all the other bells and whistles including open bar, great food, and great company. Everyone should make sure this event is on next year’s calendar. Congratulations to Mark Zagol and Drew Buttner on the decisive victory and Region I Championship.

Results

Paid 2012 American Section Members

As a reminder, all participants in the World and North American Championships need to be current and paid class members.  American Section Treasurer Macy Nelson has provided the below spreadsheet showing those members that have paid dues as of 7/2/12. If you have not paid dues, please get your checks in Macy.

TT Interviews Macy Nelson

Tank Talk had the opportunity to sit down with class stalwart and long time Treasurer Macy Nelson to hear a bit about his history in the class, his thoughts on making a team work and on the growth of the class.

TT: You've been an active member of the class for several decades.  When did you first start sailing 505's? Where? Who or what got you into the class?

MN: My first look at a 5o5 was at New Bedford in about 1974. I walked up from behind was impressed by the shape of the wings. That was a radical design for a kid who had been sailing Blue Jays, Lightnings and 470s.

In 1976, I had a summer job in the Boston area and met Bill Salvo who sailed with the Marblehead fleet. YCYC was running an event and someone needed a crew so I went. At that time, the Patterson brothers were sailing separate boats. One had sailed in Europe and was discoursing on something I had never heard of – gate starts.  According to him, it was easy. Sometime you start early; sometime you start late. None of it made any sense to me. Then, Bill’s sailing partner, Moose McClintock, suddenly got seriously ill and Bill needed a crew for the Marblehead NA’s. I signed on. It was great. 67 boats. Rock and Roll music when the sun went down.  Boats from California. I think Jon Andron had a drum on his boom to adjust his outhaul. Ethan and Larry won in a Butler hull with Larry’s deck and tanks. It looked like Larry used a staple gun to affix the wood laminate for the tanks. I was hooked and haven’t looked back.

TT: Is there any regatta that sticks out in your mind as one of the best?

MN: There have been a lot of really good events over the years. If I must pick one, I’ll pick the Santa Cruz Worlds in 1992. We had Santa Cruz’s best conditions for the entire Pre-Worlds and Worlds. After the first day of racing, we sailed in past the sea lions and when we reached the dock, the PA system was playing the Rolling Stones’ “Flight 5o5.” It got better from there. I didn’t appreciate it at the time, but the fleet had the old and the new. Jon Loveday was sailing. Peter Colclough was sailing with the tallest forward hand I had seen anywhere. John and I had a good first beat of the first worlds race. At the top of the run, two young Aussies sailed by on what seemed like a tight reach. John asked, “What do you think?”  I said, “They’re crazy. Don’t worry about them.”  I didn’t see them for the rest of the regatta. Those guys won the worlds with a race to spare. That was my introduction to wire running. Later, a Dane who won the worlds in Kingston claimed that he was the first to figure out wire running. Maybe he was. He finished second or third in Santa Cruz.

TT: You've sailed with many great crews over the years, most recently with Parry Barclay.  Can you comment on how you approach the relationship with your crew? What makes you and Parry such a competitive team?

MN: I have a lot of fun sailing with some really good sailors. Duncan Skinner was the tallest and the best sail maker. Mike Martin laughed at me the most. Peter Alarie was the most definite in his opinions. Mike Mills used the most abstract language to describe the boat. Jesse Falsone and Parry Barclay have a really good feel for the boat. I have sailed a little with Luke Lawrence, and I predict he will be the next great crew. There are others, too. Each is better sailor than I, and that is why I invited them to sail with me.

History teaches me that my performance is inversely related to how much I try to do while racing. The less I do, the better we do. For that reason I try to do as little as possible. The problem is that I respect all the people I sail with so my instinct is that I should do what they say all the time. But there are a few occasions when I cannot. A start is the best example. When the boats are that close, I take the lead in positioning the boat.

505s are rewarding but they have the potential to be expensive and a hassle.  I try not to discuss money with my teammate. Each contributes on terms that he finds acceptable. I try to have the boat ready so we can avoid a lot of boat work at the event. I try to be quiet in the boat. If racing the boat is no fun, no one should do it.

TT: Your son Nick Nelson has been an active member of the class (not as much recently!).  In your opinion, is there more we can be doing in the US to recruit and retain talented young sailors like Nick? 

MN: This is a really hard question to answer. Part of me says that we that we need to help people like Nick as much as we can. Another part of me says that if a young person cannot figure out that sailing 5o5s is a good way to spend one’s time and energy, nothing we do will change it. It’s all a mystery to me.  

We could probably learn from people like Whit Duncan, Mike Renda and Luke Lawrence. After Whit sailed USA 9005 in 2011, I was told that he was thinking of getting out of the class. Hearing that frustrated me because Whit is the type of person we need and want. Then something changed. He bought USA 8012 and seems committed. We should speak to him to learn what we can do to encourage his peers to sail 5o5s. Mike, too, is a guy we want and need. He bought a boat and is keen to sail even though he has a demanding job and is getting married. We should ask him what motivates him. Luke Lawrence is another young guy we cannot afford to lose. Our problem is that he wants to sail professionally so that will limit his time. Our only hope with Luke is to keep the sailing fun and rewarding so he makes time to do it.  

Here’s my answer: we need to find the right sailors one at a time. A large pool of strong candidates will yield somebody like Craig Thompson every few years. If you know of such a person, I have some gear to lend.


TT: Thank you Macy.

Santa Cruz June Open - Matthias Kennerknech

Last weekend the Santa Cruz Yacht Club hosted the 505 fleet for some great racing. Even though a lot of the boats are already in the container going to the worlds we still had a turn out of 12 boats at the starting line. PRO Beau Vrolyk introduced the concept of a pursuit race to the fleet that he would try as a non-counting race at the end of the day. Everyone seemed excited to try it.

The weather pattern in Santa Cruz over the last week was nuclear, during the week the breeze came up into the 30s and almost hit 40 during parts of the day. Even Friday it blew, the forecast for Saturday was a bit of the same and everyone was preparing for a tough day on the water. Turns out a forecast is just a forecast. The breeze started the day left of "normal" around 10 knots. Throughout the day it picked up a bit to 15kts and shifted back to "normal". After a bit of a course flag snafu (course 5 was hoisted, there were only 4 courses in the SIs) the RC figure out that they had the FD SIs still on board, a quick cleanse of those and off we went on a double sausage course. The story for Saturday was whether to go left for potential breeze or go right for the geographical advantage. Both scenarios paid at different times of the day which kept the racing interesting. The "black boat" lead the day after three races. Rob Woelfel followed right behind. Bruce decided to try single handling a three sail reach when Dave's trap adjuster line broke in race 2.  Pat Diola showed speed as well finishing the day in third. Reeve was kind enough to strap a two boat trailer to his VW golf and bring the "blue boat" up for Paul and Skip to sail. After racing the yacht club hosted a great burrito night. With the new beautiful deck done and an unusually warm evening the sailors enjoyed sharing stories and some skippers were even heard asking for a second burrito.

Sunday's forecast was for lighter breeze than Saturday, once again a forecast is just a forecast and the racers were greeted with a building breeze that finished the day around 18-20 knots. Two races were scheduled for the day, Rob W started the day strong with a bullet. Patrick finished second yelling something about eating less burritos as Matthias followed behind. Justin showed good boat speed all day. Reeve had speed bursts and Skip was going strong for his first time in a 505. Race two was sailed in defcon 1 reef state and the big boys showed they can carry their weight in the breeze. Dave pulled the correct call on the first down wind and jibe set passing 2 boats down wind to take the lead. With a foul in the spin halyard Dave had a bit of trouble dousing at the last leeward mark and gave up the lead. Rob W came in right behind Dave and Justin wasn't far behind them. With the breeze still strong Beau decided to try the experiment. Here are the basics:

-          3 stage start, 3 groups of boats.

-          Last 3 finishing boats for the event started at the hoist of the prep flag

-          The bulk of the fleet would start at the prep down

-          The three leading boats would start at the gun

This makes it a 4 minute gap to the first starters and a 1 minute gap to the fleet. Course was once around which brought the whole fleet together at the leeward mark and made it a real tight race to the finish on the last weather leg. Interesting concept; fun to have everyone close together.

Thanks to the RC and their volunteers for another great event. See you at the next one.

Results 

Ps: It's written from a crew's perspective since they do all the work in the boat besides holding the little stick in the back of the boat.