Fall Race 3 Post-Race Report from Shields #15

When we arrived at the dock, the wind was out of the SE at about five and the expectation was for light breeze and the need to hurry to get out to the course in time. As we gathered our stuff, however, the sea breeze arrived, with 10-12 knots inside the Navy marina. I thought of my conversation earlier in the afternoon with Chris Withers who was scheduled for race committee, and my comment it might be a good day to have RC duty. Not anymore, and picked up fifth crewmember for insurance. After the course signal was posted, we drove past the pin and caught an interesting sight, as Lime Rock (with the aforementioned CAPT Withers onboard), had wrapped their prop around the pin line while trying to drag it forward. Knowing Robin would have to postpone, we beat towards Goat Island to check out the current along the shore. While we noticed the current was ebbing already, the more important find was that the wind went progressively left, so we abandoned our plans to start at the boat end of the line and decided for a start closer to the pin. Just as well, because AP wasn’t up very long, we got caught upwind of the line, and by the time we got back to the pin there were only two minutes left in the sequence. Bill Doyle in 222 was even further upwind and barely got back in time. Fortunately we found a hole and tacked back onto starboard about 50 seconds before the gun and were able to keep our air clear before the start…well, other than Peter Clark in 224 who rode over the top of us about 15 seconds before the gun, but he was gone pretty quick. We had decent speed at the start and clear air (first time in a while at the pin end of the line). My crew noted the port-starboard encounter at the pin (believe between 101 and 53, though Chris on the mark boat thinks it was 217 vice 53) and the resounding bang, and when I glanced to see what the other boats were doing, a strange sight unfolded, as no less than 2-3 starboard tack boats ducked port tackers that were trying to clear their air…they really wanted the left side of the course like we did. We ended up getting pinned left by 53, but as we slowly were headed, we eventually were able to tack and cross them. Upon tacking, we noted Andy (Bang Hard Right) Burton in 201 was even further left than we were, so we figured we weren’t too bad off, although we appeared to be well overstood for the windward mark. After letting a little out of the bank (why do we keep doing that), about three quarters of the way up the course we got the bad news as we fell out of the lefty and the wind went way right and the boats on the right began to cross us. Fortunately, we at least made the Dumplings and went all the way to the rock along the shore inside Quebec. We tacked at the rock and leebowed 222 (sorry Bill, but crossing you wasn’t an option with the rock there). After clearing the rock, we tacked back for clear air and the starboard layline, and rounded with only two or three boats behind us. The run downwind was a good one, as we were able to team up with 188 ahead of us to gas Stubby in 59 and 21 and past them, and then we reached over 188 and pass them as the wind continued left, and then watched Stubby return the favor and ride 59 over the top of 188. We were back in the lefty we saw before the start and the first half of the first beat, so we settled on east gate since we were right already and that gate was further upwind. We had a great mark rounding, having clear air even with the ebb pushing the boats ahead of us upwind, held it for about five boat lengths until we found a clear lane and tacked. Then we found out fairly rapidly that it was a fetch to the finish (so the boats that went to the west gate ended up making out as they were less overstood…ugh!), and we lost several of the boats we overtook downwind. When it was all over we felt fortunate to put six boats behind us. Congrats to Bill and Nicole in 74, Chuck Allen in 202, and Dan Holloway in 127 for doing the best job of figuring out which way the wind was going and finishing top three, and to Bernie Patterson in 163 who put a Navy boat in the top half of the fleet for the third straight week. Thanks also to Robin Wallace and the RC who persevered to get a race off and had to watch the wind play havoc with the course they set. Ron Oard Shields #15