Held in Santa Cruz California

NA's - August 9-12

Worlds - August 15-20

 

Three teams from Fleet 3 participated in these major regattas. Dan Merino and Bill Jenkins, sailing USA8411 (Team Phlegm), made it for both. Following the NA's, John Billings and Bill McKinney in USA7773 (Team Kitty) and Ben Wood and Geoff Nelson in USA6991 (Team Tortuga) arrived and joined in the fun for the Worlds. In all, there were 102 boats from the US, Canada, Britain, Germany, Denmark, France, and Australia.

 

The wind varied from barely sailable (maybe around 6 knots) at the low end to 25 knot gusts. We had beautiful sunny warm days when you could see forever, cold gray cloudy days, and foggy days. The swell never got over a couple of feet. Only once was the sailing cancelled for lack of wind, but there were several days when racing was postponed while waiting for wind to fill in.

 

The parties were monumental - lots of great food, way too much alcohol thanks to the drink tickets, and music. Brady's Yacht Club worked it's evil as well, and was often a late night gathering point when the day's organized activities were over.

 

Here are some websites with more info. Be sure to check out the photos from days 1 and 2 of the Worlds - the windy days:

Official regatta website with results, stories, and photos

Rhumbline Photography (the largest and best collection of windy shots)

Photos from Mike Renda (crew on 7093)

PaparazziH2O photos

Finally, here are the reports from the guys who sailed, collected for your reading pleasure. They might be a bit redundant - I mean, they're all about the same thing after all - but they give you a great perspective of what happened and what it was like to be there.

 

From Dan Merino, Crew on USA8411

August 8 - We're Here

Bill and I arrived in Santa Cruz last night about 9:00pm. On the way up we discussed several things, but mostly agree that we're much less prepared for this worlds than we were in 2001. As a result our excitement level is a bit lower than normal. That is until we pulled into SCYC and
saw the containers and all the boats that have already arrived. We suddenly remembered... This is the worlds and are already looking forward to meeting our fellow cometitors from all over the world...

Today we're going to re-rig some items and the get some practice in. I'll try to send daily reports to let you know what's going on. Bill and I are staying with my friend Susie one block from the club and so far it's better than the Ritz...

August 8 - Day One, Non-racing

Bill and I spent much of today doing last minute projects  and hanging out at SCYC. There was plenty of activity going on as most teams were prepping their boats for the NA's that start on Tuesday. Some of the Team Tues guys showed and to our surprise the new owners of USA 6934 "Bob" pulled into the parking lot. Yup... even "Bob" is doing the Worlds. We did get a few hours of practice in in the 15-18 knot range and shook out some of the cobwebs that have developed over the past few weeks. Tomorrow we get measured in and help out with the measurement of other boats. Rumor is one of the Fremantle 505's didn't measure in...  Just a rumor thought...

 

August 9 - Measurement Day

This morning Bill and I stumbled to the YC in just enough time to pull the rig out of the boat and get it into measurement. Seems we had a fight with a bottle of Mount Gay last night and we thought we won... unfortunately this morning it was apparent that it had actually won... We weighed in at 128 Kgs (only .6 kg to spare). Good thing we went sailing yesterday. Turns out our Phillips kite luff length was too long and didn't measure in. We made a quick trip to the laundry mat and after 15 minutes in a dryer it finally measured in.

 

We then started our 4 hour stint measuring spinnakers... I'll be happy if I never have to measure another one. During that time I met the legendary Dennis Surtees and we exchanged several stories. Some boats ventured out to practice today and the carnage officially began. One East coast boat snapped their rig, Howie came in with a bent rig and Morgan came in with several "speed holes" in his spinnaker. Reports were there was plenty of wind with some pretty severe holes. The welcoming ceremony started at 6:00pm and SCYC put on a great spread.

 

Racing starts tomorrow at 1:00pm

August 11 - NA's Race Day One

After two races there is a three way tie for first. Unfortunately Bill and I aren't one of the three teams. Currently Mike Martin, Mike Holt and Morgan Larson all have 4 points. Races 1 and 2 also dished out more carnage with "Bob" breaking his rig and Harry breaking a rudder. I'm sure there was also many blown out sails as the winds ranged anywhere between 15 and 22 knots.

 

In race one Bill and I got off to a bad start and managed to fight our way to about mid pack. We borrowed Harry's HA rudder off USA 7201 and were told by Andy Zinn that we would be better off using our old barn door because the 7201 rudder has a bad tendency to stall on the reaches. We decided to ignore his advice (bad move) and use it anyway. We ended up capsizing twice because of it and once due to our typical screw ups. Luckily we were able to get the boat upright and sailing fairly quickly and salvaged a 47th place finish.

 

Race 2 we again gated opposite of everyone else and fought our way back through the pack. Bill babied the boat on the reaches (and I didn't mind at all). As a result we gained on the upwind and lost on the downwinds and managed a 25th place finish. Overall we're sitting in 30th place.

 

Last night I helped spring some of the Australian boats from a container using a crow bar that Bill dug out of his car for me use. I should have put the crowbar back in the car afterward, but I'm too important for little things like that. After a few days Bill realized I never would and he put it away himself.

 

There are still two more containers that I know of that are supposed to arrive today. They've been stuck in customs for about a week. Today there are three races scheduled and we're switching back to the old rudder.

 

August 15 - NA's Wrapup

 

August 19 - Races 3 and 4 (Worlds)

Wed was a tough day for us... When we arrived at the dinghy park we discovered that someone had punched a hole in the port side of the boat. Either someone wacked it with a dolly or toolbox or hit it with a bike. Either way it damaged the core... We did a temp fix with a left over bow sticker and away we went.The prediction was 10 to 20 knots, but most people thought it would be another drifter. Fortunately the wind came up to the 14-18 knot range and we had some fun racing. In race one Bill and I decided to go right and as usual, we got pinned going left. I figure we rounded the weather mark somewhere around 80th. We spent the rest of the race coming from
behind to salvage a finish in the mid 40's.

In race two we stuck to our game plan and went right only to find that there was no gain to be made, however we did sail a good leg and rounded about mid pack. The next downwind and upwind we made major gains and rounded the next weather mark in the high twenties/low thirties... that is until... we capsized at the weather mark while trying to navigate through a kelp mine field. It took us a while to get the boat going again but by then most of the fleet had past us. I think I counted 15 boats behind us when we finally got going again. For the next 4 legs we shifted into gear and fought our way back to a mid 50's finish. Although we capsized we still haven't blown any of the heavy air gybes... The racing was *long* and I think everyone was plenty tired after the finish. I also found out that the auto rachet on the spin sheet was not working... no wonder my arms are sore...
Races 5 and 6 start at 1:00pm today...

August 23 - Worlds Races 5-7 (Worlds)

Races 5 and 6 were a low point for Bill and I and as a result we vowed never to talk about them again... Conditions were light and lumpy and as someone told me when it was all over... Whoever you went around the top mark with were the people you were racing all day. Unfortunately for
Bill and I, that was pretty deep in the fleet. Two things resulted from the day of racing...
One was that we dropped into the bottom half of the standings and

Two, we needed to chage our game plan.

Changing the game plan was a no brainer... I went to Albertsons on Friday Morning and picked up a twelve pack of Tecate's (I almost went for the 18 pack that was on special, but still having a blurry memory of the B2B I opted for the 12 pack). Upon arriving at the dinghy park I immediately loaded in a six pack into the boat and popped open one of two beers I'd have before we launched. Bill for his part went out the night before and closed down Brady's. We vowed, no matter what, we'd have fun in race 7.

Wind conditions were light and as expected the start was delayed. I coaxed Bill, still feeling the "Brady effect", into having his first beer of the afternoon. That was followed by both of us polishing off a another before the actual start. The starting sequence gun caught us a little off guard as we had just opened a set of beers. I'm sure it may have un-nerved a few competitors as we navigated our way around the hundred boats while I tried not to spill the opened beer. The start was eventually abandonded and  sequence was re-started.

We had a great start and for once had a great first upwind leg. We managed to stick to our game plan, play shifts and pressure and round the weather mark somewhere in the 30's. From there we picked off a few boats on the various legs finishing 28th in the last race. Great way to end the regatta. Overall we placed 46th out of 102 boats. Not quite as well as we hoped, but still top half...
SCYC and thew worlds organizers did an outstanding job with the 2004 worlds.

 

From Geoff Nelson, Driver on USA6991

 

August 17 - (Worlds)

Ben and I met Friday to make Team Tortuga complete.  We spent two days doing repairs and admin and helping out with logistics for the event.  The air is really great with over 100 teams from all over the world all speaking the same language (sailing) in many different toungues.  We have taken over the boat yard at SCYC and 100 boats all leaving the small harbor at the same time is a great site.

Sunday was the first race day with two scheduled.  We spent the first race struggling.  The combination of first race jitters and 102 boats on the line had me start the race hitting another boat and having to do two turns for the penalty.  That started us near the back and within 5 mins the main sheet block lost a pin and we were forced to stop for repairs. 

 

We got going again and somehow reeled in the back of the pack, when the strong winds at the top of the course had us struggling.  As I figure it, we flipped the boat 5-6 times during the day for a variety of reasons including being overpowered, the jib not uncleating during a tack, Ben accidentally dropping himself off the boat and just too much wind for us.  We eventually timed out of the race and got a very dissappointing DNF after completing most of the race.

The second race started much better but again the wind at the top of the course and the beating we took in the first race made it a struggle and we had a dissappointing finish at 82.  The weather mark on the third lap was amazing with at one point 5 boats all upside down (including us).  It was carnage and it showed the teams with the big air experience had the advantage in this wind. 

We had some highlights on Sunday though including picking off three boats at one time at the gybe mark by pulling off a two-sail gybe in 18kts on the face of a 4' wave.  It was awesome as it has always been one of our weakest maneuvers and we looked something like pros doing it.  We were also quite fast on the lower half of the course (where the wind was lighter) so we know if we can keep it together at the top, we can pick off a lot of boats on the bottom. I did get off the water as tired as I have been in a long time and it was the hardest I have ever sailed.  The races were about 11 miles long and took over an hour each to complete.

This Sunday result was well off our goals but we started Monday's racing with renewed spirit and a focus to have more fun, figuring that better results come when we are enjoying ourselves and not getting angry at the boat or the wind and wave gods. Unfortunately, the wind gods did not show up and racing was cancelled after a general recall and several postponements.

What that also meant was everyone was well rested to attend the beach BBQ the organizers put on and at least 100 people were still present when they kicked everyone out!

Tuesday has been a much needed layday and everyone is very anxious to start racing again tomorrow.  It is absolutely stunning in Santa Cruz today and it looks to be one of the best racing days yet.  Figures!
 

August 19 - Races 3 and 4 (Worlds)

Team Tortuga started Wednesdays racing with the goal of having fun, going fast and no wipe outs (things we forgot to do for Races 1 & 2).  The racing started on time in ~19kts and in typical Santa Cruz fasion the wind built up the long course to being strong at 18+kts with gusts of more.  We managed to keep the wheels from falling off and while not being fast upwind, we picked off at least 10 boats on the first downwind leg.  The great thing about having 100+ boats on the course is it is easy to find boats to pass!

Unfortunatly, the opposite is true as well and when you do wipe out, it seems like 1/2 the free world is passing you while you get the boat moving again.  Anyway, the sausage-triangle-sausage course was very long at like 13 miles total and when we finished, we had an 82 again.  We are off our targets, but having fun now and looking for ways to improve our upwind speed.  We had only one flip from being over powered but we quickly got it under control and back up and so did not loose many boats.  We have been so overpowered upwind that I spend a lot of time inh puffs with the main luffing and the jib alone enabing us to blast along on a plane upwind.  It is fun and fast but we can't point and hold boat speed at the same time.

The second race was much the same except the sadistic Race Committee added another final windward leg making this race 2 miles longer in our weaker direction.  We were strong and conservative again downwind and managed to hold off the pack behind us on the last beat to get I think an 84th.

 

It was a great race to the finish and the waves were steep and numerous but with big holes in the middle of the course making it very difficult to keep Ben from getting tea-bagged.  When the breeze was on though it was a very wet ride up the waves!  The other highlight of the race was passing Team Kitty at the gybing mark after thay had an epic spinnaker up wipe-out.

Positions change as protests get filed and resolved so our 82 from Sunday has wound up a 74th as boats get DSQ'd.  The post race activities were subdued yesterday as everyone was walking-wounded from the ~28 miles of racing.  Typical telling of lies over numberous beers as everyone dried out in the dinghy park, and then a big dinner followed by big sleep.

Everyone is going to be sore this morning!

Todays racing (races 5 and 6) look to be the same but the rumour is that the wind will subside a bit.  Ben thinks he knows why we are overpowered upwind (not enough headstay tension) so we are going to work on re-rigging our shroud tension so we can get more on the headstay.  If it works, I hope to get out of the pack we are currently stuck in and be able to pick off more boats upwind.

August 20 - Races 5 and 6 (Worlds)

Races 5 started under grey skies and very ligh wind with a one hour postponement while Race Committee waited for the breeze to build to 5kts at the windward mark.  Eventually the race started and the mass of 102 boats all gated fairly evenly and slowly made their way upwind.  Team Turtuga had yet another lack-luster start but kept good speed upwind and also picking the right side to round the weather mark mid fleet and ahead of a lot of boats that normally we only view from behind.  We picked off some more on the downwind leg to have an awesome leward mark rounding solidly in the hunt with a lot of boats surely surprised to see us there.  We consolidated upwind and held off a lot of them on our side of the course but alas the other side was favored in the light breeze and we finished the race with our best result of the regatta (73) but still below expectations.  We were happy that we kept the position as long as we did and actually thought we finished
much better than we did.

Race 6 started in slightly more breeze but not much and with another classic Nelson start (near the back of the fleet!) we started up wind trying to pick off boats.  We rounded the weather mark doing well with Ben picking pressure up the course and had another solid performance downwind getting quite a few more boats.  The top of the next weather leg saw the proverbial wheels fall off as we both missed the 30 degree left shift until it was too late and we could not carry the chute through the reaching leg.  We figure we lost 15+ boats there along.  With the rest of the race skewed to one side so much it became a parade with us only able to pick off a few boats on the way to the finish.  The day never got above 11 kts of breeze and the sun only peeked through briefly dunring the postponement making it a long and tedious day. 

With only one more race and the winner already locked, the atmosphere was quite a bit more jovial and the post race celebrations bacame more raucous and lasted quite a bit longer than in the past with Brady's Yacht Club (a local dive bar) really getting going after 11PM.

Thanks again to all for all your support and hopefully the wind gods will smile on us today for the last race!

[We're all still waiting for Geoff's final report...]

 

From Bill Jenkins, Driver on USA8411

 

August 9 - The Arrival

Arrived in Santa Cruz Saturday night at 9, the first time all year we have driven into town before midnight. Quite an experience to see people walking on the street, stores open, friends around to talk to. We are staying with one of Dan's friends, Suzy Foredeck, who's apartment is 100
yards from the YC. She's great - made us dinner and breakfast, and has surrendered her living room and entertainment center to us.

Spent most of the day on Sunday working on the boat, making some of the repairs and upgrades that somehow never got done in the last few months - longer jib halyard, better take-ups for the mast rake and shroud adjusters, stuff like that.

Our new spinnaker rode in on the Ullman Sails van. There must have been at least 20 brand new sails in the back of that van. It was quite a sight. Unfortunately our new mainsail was not there. We do have our headsails now, and rumor has it that Dan Thompson will be bringing the rest of the Ullman sails tomorrow. We look forward to seeing our new mainsail then.

We made it out onto the water around 5 for and hour or so to practice and check the work we had done on the boat. The wind was in the 18 kt range by that time. We practiced a lot of tacks and gybes. Nothing broke and there were no capsizes. All good.

Conditions were very strange on Sunday, even by Santa Cruz standards - heavy fog in the morning, and the fog never moved offshore more than half a mile or so until late in the afternoon. The wind, meanwhile, was blowing in the high teens all the way to the harbor entrance. What would the RC do in those conditions if this were a race day???

Monday morning we get the boat measured in. Our appointed time is at 9:30am. Dan prevailed at registration Sunday morning and named the boat, for the NA's, "The Dude Abides" based on our viewing Saturday night of the movie "The Big Lebowski". I was against that since we have used that name before. We are watching the movie "Dogma" tonight, and have agreed to name the boat "Horny Retards" for the Worlds next week. Updates on this crucial subject to follow.

Anyway, Monday, after getting the boat measured in, we will either visit Larry Tuttle, the West Coast god of 505 manufacturing, or we will stay at SCYC and continue to make improvements to our own boat and rig. The only thing we know for sure is that we must serve time as measurers
ourselves from noon until 3pm. This will be our chance to fuck up the campaigns of our friends and comrades. Hopefully we will rise above temptation and and do the right thing. Opening ceremonies comence at 4pm Monday. Racing begins on Tuesday.
 

August 11 - Day One of the NAs

A brief summary of the last couple days because it's late.

Dan and I got 8411 measured in on Monday, the only discrepancy was that the spinnaker we have been using for the last year was a couple of inched too long. We took it to a laundromat, on the advice of some of the class veterans, and it shrank up after several minutes in the dryer. Our stint as measurers began before noon, and ran straight to 4pm. Four hours of measuring spinnakers is about as tedious and tiring as you can imagine. Last night's entertainment was a viewing of Chasing Amy, another Mike Smith movie.

Today, the NAs finally began. There are around 65 boats entered, and the forecast is for lots of wind. The program calls for two races today, three tomorrow, and two on Thursday. The first race today was in 20 knots on average. We got a very bad start, but were doing okay around the first lap and a half. Then the capsizes started - we went over three times. I think we ended up around 50th. Not a stellar opening. We believe that part of the problem was the high aspect rudder that we are borrowing. It is very swept back, and has a reputation for stalling at high speed when loaded up. In either case, tomorrow we will go back to our original (low aspect) rudder and see if things go better.

Race two went a bit better with a little better start and no capsizes even though there was more wind and the course was longer. I was very tired after the finish. We finished around 25th and beat many of the teams that we typically compete with. It was good to know that we can do okay if we keep the boat upright. Will see how things progress, but I think that right now we are right about in the middle over all. (I didn't have a chance to look at the results this evening, and am just reporting what I remember being told.) Nothing has broken on our boat, although in the rest of the fleet there was a broken mast, a broken rudder, a broken nose (reset by a plastic surgeon who is competing in the regatta) and some other miscellaneous broken equipment.

For those not privileged to have sailed a 505, the boats are very exciting in these conditions - fast if a bit of work going upwind, extremely fast and a hell of a ride going downwind. There is so much noise we can barely hear each other as we talk over tactics and boatspeed issues. When we're really hauling going upwind, there is so much water flying back that sometimes I can barely see, and have to time when I breath so that I don't drown.

That's it for now. In case you were wondering, it turned out that the mainsail was on the first deivery van, just not marked properly. So now all our new sails have arrived and we're looking forward to breaking them out for the Worlds later this week. Let's hope the old sails make it that long.
 

August 18 - NAs Wrapup

The North Americans ended yesterday. By the end there were 89 boats entered - almost as many as are expected for the Worlds - of which 75 competed. Dan and I ended up in 38th place, just shy of the top half, and well outside the top third which is our goal for the Worlds. We had some equipment issues that cost us some points, but mainly the level of competition here is very high. We actually beat most of the California boats that we normally compete with in regional regattas, so we feel our speed is okay. We just need to raise the program up to the next level in order to make it to the top third, and the only regatta left in which to do it is the one that counts.

The second and third days of the NAs were completely different from the first day. Conditions on day 2 were foggy, clearing to overcast, with 10-12kts wind all day. Yesterday (Thursday) was cloudy with wind from 6-10 knots. Not what Santa Cruz is known for, but we've seen plenty of
days like this here before, in spite of all the local claims to the contrary. The racing was very tight since there weren't all the normal capsizes to separate the boats out. The first beat was a challenge to head to what we thought was the favored side, while keeping our air clear from the rest of the fleet. That seems to be the weakest part of our program as we tend to round the first mark below our final finishing position, then pass boats on all the legs after that.

The runs are particularly exciting since the boats tend to bunch up a lot more, and the leeward mark roundings are very tight. Also, since the wind has been puffy, and right on the borderline of being able to wire run, frequently some boat will get a puff they think is big enough for wire running and suddenly streak off to the horizon, leaving us wondering if that's the right call, or we should stick with running ddw. Mostly ddw is the fastest, and we often see boats reaching back and forth, dropping further and further back each time we cross paths. At one point yesterday we did pick up a nice puff on the run and jumped up onto a plane, we passed lots of boats, only to sail into another lull just as we got to leeward of a big clump and dropped back to about where we had been before.

The equipment problem was with the Phillips spinnaker we have been using for the last year or so. It is make of very light material  and lately we have had to patch it after each day of racing. It is (or was) a fast sail even though spinnaker design has advanced a couple generations since it was built. But yesterday during the first race, we pulled the spinnaker down and (without going in to the details of the sail design) one of the grommets that the take down line goes through pulled out and the rest of the sail got pulled through the hole. We could tell something was wrong because, while the take down line was all the way in the boat, most of the sail was still sitting on deck. Sure enough, when we hoisted it the next time, it was pulled inside out, something I've never seen before. In the few minutes that it took to unsort the whole thing and get it flying properly, a dozen or so boats passed us. We still finished in 29th which was our best race of the series, but we had  been doing very well at that point.

The spinnaker got us again in the second race yesterday again. When we went to douse the sail at the first leeward mark, the whole thing ripped in half and ripped out of the luff bands rendering it completely useless. That was the last race of the day, and of the regatta, so we sailed on in and got an early start on the evenings festivities. Unfortunately, using our throwout for a dnf meant that the first race, the one with all the capsizes, had to count, so that dropped us back a few positions.

The good news is that yesterday we did seem to improve our sailing in the last day. Our new sails are waiting to be put up and will be in excellent condition when the Worlds start on Sunday. We will be taking them out this afternoon to get them broken in. Also, we will be picking up a brand new rudder to replace the stall-monster we used on Tuesday and the old barn door that we normally use. So, barring additional breakdowns, it looks like we will be competitive and have a shot at breaking into the top third of the fleet.

 

August 17 - The Worlds Have Begun

The internet shack is about to close for the day, and I'm going to be thrown out soon. So I'll just forward the message that Dan sent to our local fleet earlier and add as much as possible before then. The wind looked great today (layday) and will hopefully still be good today when
racing starts up again. The plan is for two races Wed and Thursday and the final race on Friday. We are tied in 32nd place right now, with one race in the 40's and one race in the 20's. The challenge will be to keep our scores in the twenties and stay out of the forties. There are
just over 100 boats entered, so we are currently meeting our goal of being in the top third.

The sailing on Sunday was spectacular. With 20 kts or so at the weather mark we were just in control and the runs with the spinnaker up were incredible. The boats are so fast in those conditions, it's just amazing. In the first race the the wind was pretty consistent across the course, but in the second race there was a big differential between the leeward mark and the windward mark. We would typically tack out to the left looking for the big breeze, but the right side here is often favored by a geographical shift. So it is tough to make the right call - go far enough out to the left to get wind, but not so far that the shift to the right kills you. Sometimes we get it right, sometimes not.

The beach party last night was lots of fun. Afterward, many of the sailers adjourned to the local dive bar for pool and juke box music. It was probably one of the best Monday nights that bar has had.

All the San Diego sailers are staying in an apartment building on the boardwalk right next to the roller coaster, about a 10 minute bicycle ride from the Yacht Club. It's a little noisy, but a very pretty location. The bike lane goes over a bridge that is currently under construction, so we walk across the adjacent train trestle instead. So far, no trains have claimed the right away!
 

August 18 - (Worlds)

A rough day for Team Weasel today. The first race started in 12 knots or so, with 18 at the weather mark. We got a good start, but again did not follow through on our plan of going right on the first beat. Ducking boats just seems so painful, and we kept opting to tack back to port whenever a crossing situation came up. We paid the price and rounded the first mark well back in the fleet. The first run was not brilliant either, and then we hit the leeward mark. We completed the penalty circle very quickly, and were off and running without losing more than a couple of boats.

 

After that, we essentially made a pact that we would duck as many sterns as necessary to go right, no matter what the cost, just to get that mind set going. By that time, the right wasn't so favored, but it was good practice anyway. We did manage to pass boats on almost every leg after that, including an exciting run to the finish where we picked off 3 boats in the last couple hundred yards. Nevertheless, we took 48th place, not even top half of the boats that raced. Clearly the strategy of finishing in the 20s is not working.

And that was our good race. Race 2 today started off much better. We got another good start and worked our way successfully toward the right side. Took a few sterns, but still had clear air for the most part. The wind at that point was now solidly in the high teens, and there were some gusts at the weather mark well over twenty. We rounded the first mark in good shape, easily in the top third, and began passing a couple of boats on the next two legs.

 

That was when the wheels fell off. After rounding the second weather mark, we were sailing fairly conservatively toward the reaching mark. I was dodging few patches of kelp that suddenly seemed to have covered the course. I don't know if we picked up some kelp on the rudder, or if I just pulled the tiller too hard while avoiding a patch, but suddenly the rudder stalled out and we rounded up and capsized. During the few minutes it took to right the boat and get the spinnaker sorted out, many competitors passed us and we looked to  be in the 70s or 80s. There were still two full laps to go in the race, so all was not lost, but we could only pass about 20 or so boats before the finish. I haven't seen the results for that race yet, but I'm sure it's not good. So now we have certainly dropped back many places. There are still 3 races left in the regatta, but I'm not expecting to be able to do well at this point.

Nevertheless, the sailing is terrific fun. Very tiring, but very fast and exciting. We have met lots of new people from around the world during the social events too. The whole yacht club boat storage area has been emptied of the normal resident keel boats and converted into a 505 town. Flags fly from many different countries, the tent city bustles in the morning and evening with people who decided to camp instead of renting a room. Very entertaining.

 

August 27 - Worlds Finale