National Weather Service map of storm and flood watches and warnings. Click to enlarge.
As I said last Friday, it’s starting to get interesting which is why we wanted to give you a heads-up about tomorrow, especially the afternoon. This will be the most wind we’ve seen so far this fall/winter so if you haven’t gotten those winter mooring lines out or taken that roller furling jib off the headstay, today would be a really good time to get this done.
The surface chart for today doesn’t show much but the forecast chart for tomorrow shows a rapidly intensifying low-pressure system coming ashore and into the Sound tomorrow afternoon. The coastal waters could see 40+ knots of southerly with higher gusts and seas in the 20’-24’ range. The eastern end of the Straits and Admiralty Inlet will see 25-35 knots of southeasterly starting early tomorrow morning and continuing through the day. By mid-morning, the south and central Sound will see 25-35 knots of southeasterly to southerly breeze with gusts near 50 knots. The stronger breeze will be to the north of Seattle. This will continue and when the front passes tomorrow afternoon, the breeze may drop a bit and clock to the southwest however as the post-frontal flow establishes itself, it will build back into the 25-35 knot range before it starts to ease in the early to mid-evening tomorrow night.
Click any image to enlarge.
December 13 500MB
December 13 Surface Forecast
December 14 Surface Forecast
December 15 500MB
December 15 Surface Forecast
The other interesting feature is the tides for this storm with the high tide in Seattle coming at 1012 and being at a height of 11.72’.The next low will be at 1705 but will only go down to 5.65’ which means for the highest winds, your mast will still be well above the breakwater height at both Elliott Bay and Shilshole.
I’ve also included the surface chart for 15 Dec because it shows a very impressive 955MB low headed towards us and yes, it does say hurricane force winds. The good news is that it will probably create more rain for us on the 17th but most of the wind impact will be felt in the coastal waters of northern BC and SE Alaska.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
The weather is definitely getting more interesting the closer we get to the end of the year, the shortest day of the year and the first day of winter. Naturally, we’ll have a celebration of the Winter Solstice on the 21st at 1423 hrs because the days will start getting longer from that point on.
Satelletie image
The weather charts for today offer a very interesting picture of what’s to come for the weekend. While today’s analysis shows a very impressive low-pressure system off our coast with a long cold front attached, it won’t have much effect on the central or south Sound. There are two reasons for this: the first is that persistent high-pressure system (1036MB) just east of the Cascades and the second is our coastal buffer zone which will once again have a deleterious effect on any frontal system as it hits the coast. That high-pressure system is the one that has been responsible for bringing us the coldest temperatures we have seen so far this Fall. Since it is on the other side of the mountains it creates an offshore flow that brings cold air from the interior of BC and forces it through the mountain passes into the Puget Sound area. This is going to slowly change.
If you look at the surface forecast chart for tomorrow morning you can see that front from today has already been significantly degraded and our guardian high-pressure system has been weakened to 1032MB and pushed to the southeast. This will open the door for that next frontal system to come ashore late Saturday and into Sunday morning. You will also notice that these low-pressure systems instead of being sent in a northerly path are now on a more northeasterly path. Eventually, this will become more east-northeasterly as the week goes on, allowing more moisture into our area.
Click any image to enlarge.
December 7 500MB
December 7 Surface Analysis
December 8 Surface Forecast
December 9 500MB
December 9 Surface Forecast
December 10 Surface Forecast
December 11 Surface Forecast
What effect will this have on the breeze for this weekend? The strongest breeze today(20-30 knots)will be the pre-frontal south-easterlies in the coastal waters and the eastern and western parts of the Strait of JdF. There will be a brief respite for those areas on Saturday morning and into mid-afternoon at which point the winds in advance of the next front will once again pick up in those same areas. The winds in the central and south Soundwill be 10-15 knots from the southeast on Saturday morning becoming lighter as the day goes on.
After midnight on Saturday, the pre-frontal breeze will pick up significantly along the north coast and the eastern part of the Straits as in 25-35 knots of southeasterly. This will ease as the front passes through late Sunday afternoon. The central Sound will see 10-15 knots of southeasterly easing around mid-afternoon while the south Sound will see generally lighter conditions all day.
The next front which will bring more lowland rain and mountain snow will start to show up on Tuesday.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
While tomorrow’s race won’t be quite as cold as some of the past Winter Vashon races, it will still be fairly cool out there so dress accordingly and don’t skimp on the warm beverages. The good news is that when the breeze does come up you should be on the downwind leg to the finish.
The surface chart for today shows a low-pressure system off our coast heading off to the southeast. This will make the coast sometime this evening after which an offshore flow will develop over the central and western Strait of JdF. Over the eastern end of the Strait and the rest of the Salish Sea, this will become a northerly flow with the area in the central part of Admiralty Inlet seeing the strongest northerly maybe in the 15-20 knot range. It will take a while for this to fill down the Sound and into the race area.
Click any image to enlarge.
November 30 500MB
November 30 Surface Analysis
December 1 Surface Forecast
December 2 Surface Forecast
December 3 500MB
December 3 Surface Forecast
December 4 Surface Forecast
Typically this pattern will result in a light (4-8 knot) northerly in Colvos. Following the nice southerly we’ve got today, this will keep the ebb going in Colvos for tomorrow which will help get you up to the top mark. There will be rivers of stronger current in Colvos and those will tend to be in the center of Colvos Passage. You will really want to watch your COG and SOG as well as the other boats in order to find the axis of the current. Since it is a reverse start there will also be rewards for those who can keep their air clear and not fall into any of the dead zones on either shore.
Hopefully the northerly will fill to the north end of Vashon by around noon. This should be in the 10-12 knot range and I do mean northerly, not northwesterly so you’ll probably set up to sail the port gybe to Pt Robinson. This will also coincide with the start of the ebb so if you run into anti-water gybe back to the west, just don’t sail too close to Vashon and gybe back when you can make Pt Robinson.
From Robinson south to the finish you will want to stay off the Vashon shore because it will be light in there so even if you have to sail in some ebb, it’s better to stay out in the breeze. Unlike the spring and summer Vashon races, the wind you have at Pt Robinson will probably hold all the way to the finish.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
It’s not the same as last weekend but it’s close, with some notable differences. The primary one being that there will be more wind in the central and south Sound on Saturday than in the north Sound and San Juan Islands. Sunday, it will be light just about everywhere with some fog in the usual places.
As you can see from the surface charts for today and tomorrow, we are transitioning from a weak onshore flow following a weak frontal passage earlier today to an offshore flow later today and into tomorrow. This will result in a strong offshore flow through the Straits of JdF with Small Craft Advisories in place for the northern coastal waters, the Straits, and the northern inland waters. This will ease over the course of the day tomorrow with winds becoming light over the entire Salish Sea on Sunday. Both days should have some sun so don’t forget that sunblock before you leave the house.
Click any image to enlarge
November 18 Surface Forecast
November 17 Surface Forecast
November 16 Surface Analyis
November 17 500MB
November 19 500MB
November 20 Surface Forecast
For the central and south Sound, we could see 20 knots of northerly tomorrow morning and into the early afternoon. This will ease to 15 knots by mid to late afternoon. The reason for this is that 1042 MB high sitting over central BC that is feeding into a weak and amorphous 1025 MB hight sitting off of our coast. Both of these highs will weaken over the weekend and ease the gradient, reducing the offshore flow. This, combined with a relatively static jet stream, will keep any of those impressive low-pressure systems from getting into our area and bringing some much-needed rain to the valleys and snow to the mountains. More importantly, these highs won’t allow any rain into California to help the firemen.
So where are we in terms of rain? As of today, we’ve had .84 inches of rain compared to an average of 3.19 inches. For the year, we’ve had 25.07 inches compared to an average 28.76 inches for this date. Then there was last year where we’d had 37.81 inches by this time! Unfortunately, not much is going to change. Even though by Wednesday we’ll have another weak front approaching the coast, when it hits the coastal buffer zone, it will be significantly degraded. So I wouldn’t get those ski’s out quite yet, I would just keep enjoying the boat for a while longer.
As always, check the VHF station reports and track the barometric pressure gradient reports before you leave the dock, develop your own forecast, and keep an eye on what’s going on around you.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
Absolutely one of our most favorite races with challenging conditions, challenging tidal currents, incredible scenery, and best of all, great competition with great parties before, during, and after the racing.
Click to enlarge
This year will be no different except that, as always, no two races are ever the same. The good news is that at least for Saturday, the currents will be relatively favorable. Sunday a slightly different story with the tides being against us until Patos, at least they won’t be very strong. The really good news is that while there won’t be a lot of wind either day, there should be enough to get around the course and there shouldn’t be any rain. I have Crossfire taking about five hours to complete the course, both days.
Tidal Currents
Rosario Straits Turn Point, Haro Straits
Nov 10th Nov 10th
0848 Slack 1248 Slack
1148 Max Ebb 1.43 knts 1512 Max Flood 1.56 knts
1530 Slack 1742 Slack
1636 Max Flood .29 knts
Nov 11th Nov 11th
0936 Slack 0948 Slack
1242 Max Ebb 1.23 knts 1112 Max Ebb .72 knts
2318 Max Ebb 3.16 knts* 1330 Slack
*Not an error see the chart 1548 Max Flood 1.39 knts
We have a weak frontal system passing over us today after which high pressure will build over the area bringing a northerly flow over the area. For the race course, this will mean 5-10 knots of north-northwesterly in the starting area making for a colorful, downwind start and with the ebb tide you should make pretty good time down to the bottom end of Lopez. The problem will be that with the northerly flow over the Islands it will be light and shifty across the bottom of the course until you get past Eagle Point and False Bay where you’ll back into a more solid northerly for the beat up to the finish.
Click any map to enlarge.
November 9 Surface Analysis
November 10 500MB
November 10 Surface Forecast
November 11 Surface Forecast
November 12 500MB
November 12 Surface Forecast
November 13 Surface Forecast
As you can see from the surface chart for Sunday, it doesn’t change much, except for that whopping big low out in the middle of the Pacific. The high over our interior is building in strength that will act as a blocker until the end of next week. For the race course, this will mean a nice breeze of 8-12 knots from the north in the starting area and this will drop slightly after you get around Turn Point, with slightly more breeze just to the north of the rhumb line to Alden Pt. After Alden, it should be a pleasant run south to the finish with the northerly building slightly after early to mid-afternoon. The real challenge will be from Lawrence Point to the finish because the closer you get to the finish the less wind there will be in the lee of Orcas so watch the boats ahead of you as they fall into the holes and sail around them, just don’t get swept past the finish line in the ebb tide.
For the delivery home, it doesn’t matter if you’re going north or south, it’s going to be light.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
It is really starting to look a lot like winter out there and this weekend will totally reinforce that outlook as we begin to deal with a series of fronts making their way into the Salish Sea. Today’s front went through between three and four o’clock this morning as indicated by the barometric pressure starting to rise at that time. This will then bring a change in wind direction starting in the offshore waters and then working inland.
As of 1230 hours, we have 24 knots from the south at West Point, we still have 31 knots from the west at Race Rocks. The wind has also come around to the west-northwest at both Hein Bank and Smith Island. These winds have to meet somewhere and that will bring a convergence zone to Puget Sound. The models are not in agreement as to when this occurs but if you track the VHF station reports you’ll have a pretty good idea and right now it looks like between 1300 and 1500 hours this afternoon. The other interesting feature is the pressure gradient from Forks (1015.5mb) to Bellingham (1015.0mb) and from Astoria (1019.1mb) to Seattle (1017.2mb). This would indicate that the southwesterly will probably slow the northerly from coming down the Sound.
Click to enlarge any image.
500MB October 26
October 27 Surface Forecast
500MB October 28
October 28 Surface Forecast
October 29 Surface Forecast
October 30 Surface Forecast
As you look across the Sound, you can see that the big ships anchored off of Manchester have already swung around to the southwest and that there is less breeze along the Bainbridge shore. This will be very different tomorrow as high pressure builds over the area, see the chart for 27 Oct and notice the approach of the next frontal system offshore. This will result in a strong southeasterly flow out the Straits of JdF Saturday evening while the Central Sound will remain light all day on Saturday. This next front will reach the Central Sound early Sunday morning giving the race course southerly breeze of 10-20 knots easing in the afternoon to 5-15 knots.
So, other than Saturday, this should be a pretty nice weekend to get out sailing.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
It is really starting to look a lot like winter out there and this weekend will totally reinforce that outlook as we begin to deal with a series of fronts making their way into the Salish Sea. Today’s front went through between three and four o’clock this morning as indicated by the barometric pressure starting to rise at that time. This will then bring a change in wind direction starting in the offshore waters and then working inland.
October 26 Surface Analysis – click to enlarge.
As of 0830 hours, while we may have 28 knots from the south at West Point, we already have 31 knots from the west at Race Rocks. These winds have to meet somewhere and that will bring a convergence zone to Puget Sound. The models are not in agreement as to when this occurs but if you track the VHF station reports you’ll have a pretty good idea and right now it looks like between 1300 and 1500 hours this afternoon. This will mean that the current southwesterly begin to drop in velocity around 1200 hours and you’ll see short, sharp swings to the west at the mast head. The northerly will start as a northeasterly and then back to the northwest after around 1600.
Tomorrow looks light but I’ll have an update this afternoon.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
It may have been a little foggy in the morning in some spots, however overall it was just another lovely week of Indian summer weather. This will, unfortunately, end early next week as a series of frontal systems will bring rain, wind and cooler temperatures. We currently have a weak onshore flow which will bring strong westerlies down the Straits of JdF this afternoon and into the evening. As we transition to a more prefrontal southeasterly flow early next week we should enjoy a very nice weekend with perfect sailing conditions on Saturday with 10-15 knots of northerly over the central Sound with lighter conditions in North and South Sound.
October 19 Surface Analysis
October 20 Surface Forecast
October 21 Surface Forecast
October 22 500MB
October 22 Surface Forecast
October 23 Surface Forecast
Sunday will not be quite so good for wind as the gradient will ease (see the chart for 21 Oct) bringing light and variable conditions to the Salish Sea. The sun will still be out so don’t skimp on the sunblock.
Sea Surface Temperature. Click to enlarge.
Also of interest to boaters and especially fishermen is the return of the “blob” in the Gulf of Alaska. Take a look at the Sea Surface Temperature Anomaly Chart and it is pretty clear to see. The real question is just how long will this body of abnormally warm water stay there bringing mild winter conditions to Alaska and BC. The long-range forecast has us in for a mild to “normal” winter with average precipitation. Unfortunately, average precipitation won’t do much to help us with our abnormally dry conditions or ease the drought conditions in central Oregon.
Today’s satellite picture shows very clearly our next frontal system winding up in the Gulf Alaska as it prepares to move into our area late Monday or early Tuesday. It may also bring our first big southerlies of the fall so be sure to make the boat ready for this as you tie up on Sunday after a great weekend on the water.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
It has been getting noticeably cooler this week and last Saturday you could even see a new dusting of snow on the taller peaks in the Olympics as well as up at Whistler. This will present some challenging conditions for sailors this weekend. Today we have a moderate onshore flow as a result of the high-pressure system (1029MB) just offshore. The fact that it is irregularly shaped and less than 1030MB tells us that it will be pushed around by the two fronts to the west of that high. Offshore we’ll have very strong northerlies today, possibly gale force, that will last into the late evening. After that, the gradient that causes this will ease and a northeasterly offshore flow will develop and last into Saturday morning. In the Strait of Georgia, this will last until midday when it will be replaced by a weak northwesterly filling down the Straits which will last into the early evening hours at which time a weak offshore northeasterly will once again develop. With our highly varied topography, which will generate its usual plethora of micro-climates, sailors in both venues will face challenging conditions, not too much wind but plenty of sun so USE THE SUNBLOCK EARLY AND OFTEN!
12 Oct 500MB
12 Oct Surf Analysis
13 Oct Surf Frcst
14 Oct 500MB
14 Oct Surf Frcst
14 Oct 72hr Surf Frcst
15 Oct 500MB
16 Oct Surf Frcst
Of general interest to boaters will be that whopping 967MB low in the central Pacific, luckily with the current configuration of the jet stream this won’t present a problem to boaters on the Salish Sea. This is, however, the time of the year that we can get these systems and as the jet stream changes, they will eventually come into our area. It is, after all, the 56th anniversary of the Columbus Day Storm.
The Pumpkin Bowl Regatta.
This is a very cool event run out of West Vancouver YC which as of last night had over 200 sailors in 190 boats registered for the weekend. Last year, in just two days, they completed 63 races. In order to do this, they have an army of over 100 volunteers with 70 of them being on the water. WOW!
Tidal Currents: Measurements at the First Narrows
13 Oct
0850 Slack
1125 Max Ebb 2.1 knots
1422 Slack
1644 Max Flood 1.5
1857 Slack
14 Oct
0947 Slack
1220 Max Ebb 1.8 knots
1524 Slack
1729 Max Flood .9 knots
While there won’t be this much current in Howe Sound it will be something to watch especially if any of the marks are near the shore.
My point in bringing up the cooler weather and snow in the mountains is to make the point that the gradient will reinforce the usual squamish effect that occurs in Howe Sound and will also show itself in English Bay. In the morning the flow will be from the northeast in both Howe Sound and English Bay. As the sun comes out and the land starts to warm, this flow will ease to less than five knots somewhere between 1000 and noon. The flow will back to the north and then around 1300-1500 hours back sharply to the west. Your key to this will be your masthead wind indicator since the air aloft will be warmer than the surface air and will start warning you the shift is coming. The westerly will be around 4-6 knots and will slowly build to 5-8 knots by the late afternoon. After about 1700 hours the breeze will start to ease and clock back to the northeast as we go into evening cooling.
Sunday doesn’t look quite so good as the morning squamish will die to light and variable conditions however as the land starts to heat, a light west-southwesterly breeze (3-5 knots) will start to fill around noon and as the day goes on this will clock to the west-northwest and remain light.
Regardless, this will be a fun weekend to be on the water.
Sailors in Puget Sound will face similar conditions except that there will definitely be a northwesterly breeze especially on Saturday morning, like maybe 20+ and it will hold until mid-afternoon when it will start to ease very slightly. In the morning along the east side of the Sound, there could still be some of the downslope drainage effects which will create a shift to the north-northeast, however, this will go away as the land heats and draws more of the northwesterly down the Sound.
There will still be wind on Sunday just less of it and it will start out being from the north and then back to the northwest as the land heats. It will start out at around 7-10 knots and pretty much stay at that velocity until mid-afternoon when a solid northwesterly of about 10-14knots should have made its way into the central Sound. It will last until late afternoon when the cooling land mass will start to drop the breeze.
Tides at West Point
This is going to look a bit strange so I’ve included a graph to explain what is going on. Overall, just not a lot of current however you still need to be aware of it.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
It’s finally starting to look a lot more like Seattle today as the streets are wet and the lawns are screaming thank you to the rain. You can clearly see why in today’s surface analysis chart which shows an occluded front extending from a 1004MB Low-Pressure system that is going to just barely hit us today as it heads in a southeasterly direction towards Oregon. After it passes, the high-pressure system you see over eastern Washington and southern BC will interact with this passing low-pressure to bring a northerly flow over the Salish Sea tonight and into tomorrow morning. As the offshore high-pressure rebuilds, this will cause an onshore flow to bring a westerly down the Straits of JdF tomorrow afternoon. This will also cause the northerly gradient to weaken over the area starting by early to mid-afternoon. As you can see from the radar shot, the end of the rain is now showing up off the coast.
Click any image to enlarge.
5 October Surface Analysis
6 October Surface Forecast
7 October Surface Forecast
8 Oct Surface Forecast
9 October Surface Forecast
How does this translate to the Foulweather Bluff Race? The models are not in agreement as to when the northerly breeze will start ease. The GFS model has 5 knots of northerly in the starting area and building slightly as you head west and then easing to 4 knots at around 1400 hours. The MM5 model has 5 knots in the starting area, then building to 10 knots of northerly by Scatchet Head, building to 12-15 knots of NW as you head across the Sound. This will ease to about 10 knots by 1400 hours across the Sound becoming 5-8 in the start finish area. By 1700 hours it will ease to 5-10 knots of northwesterly all across the Sound except less than 5 in the start-finish area. Plus we may have some fog in the morning which will really make life interesting.
Running the numbers for a J-30 if it were to go on the Long Course it would take them about 8.5 hours to finish. If they were sent on Course 2 it would take them about 5 hours.
Running the numbers for Crossfire, if they were sent on the Long Course it would take them about 3.75 hours. If they went on Course 2 it would take them about 2.33 hours.
The other factor will be the tides at Foulweather Bluff:
0930 Slack
1212 Max Flood 1.3 knots
1606 Slack
2012 Max Ebb .47 knots
Your basic tactics are going to be to get a clear start and hold starboard off the line to get away from the Edmonds shore and tack when you are slightly overstood on the Scatchet Head because the tidal velocity increases as you get closer to the mark and the wind can ease under that bluff. From there whether you are going Long Course or Course 2 you just sail the course to the next mark and anticipate the set as you approach the FWB mark. You’ll probably do a gybe set at that mark so talk that through before you get there and then it will be trim, trim, trim, all the way to finish anticipating that the breeze will ease as you approach the Edmonds shore which will mean moving people out of the cockpit and up to the shrouds to keep the stern out of the water.
J/30 Long Course Analysis
Crossfire Long Course Analyses
Crossfire Course 2 Analysis
If you are going on Course 2 then you may not be able to set at the first mark just be ready as you get to Pt No Pt because you will be lifted as you approach Pilot Point and then be ready to gybe at the Pilot Pt mark.
Sunday it will be generally light over the Sound as we await the approach of another frontal system late Sunday afternoon which will bring more rain to the area. Note also that the great folks at the NWS have now added a 72 Hour forecast chart. Finally!
Have a great weekend, have a great race and we’ll see you up there.
Bruce has raced and cruised the Pacific Northwest his entire life. He earned a Bachelor’s of Science from the University of Washington in Biological Oceanography and learned meteorology “to keep from getting kicked around on the race course.” Bruce spent nearly two decades as Associate Publisher for Northwest Yachting Magazine, retiring in mid-2015, and was the chairman of the board of trustees for the Northwest Marine Trade Association in 2014. (photo of Bruce driving Playstation is a bit dated, but cool)
