Author: Kurt Hoehne

Going to the Dark Side

Kurt Hoehne Uncategorized 0 Comment
The RS Aero

Ever since my friend and Laser regatta roommate Todd Willsie imported his RS Aero into the Seattle dinghy racing scene, one of the fleet’s questions has been “when will Kurt make the switch from Laser to Aero?” It was a question only because I was often the loudest cheerleader for the Laser fleet.

It wasn’t long before the dam broke and the remnants of the struggling Laser fleet made the switch as well. The Laser Performance vs. ILCA feud helped anyone on the fence make the move. (ILCA triumphed and if I were enlightened, I wouldn’t call them Lasers, just ILCAs.) This new Aero boat drew out new blood and some former Laser sailors from the woodwork.

At least the grown-up crowd made the switch. Covid breathed some life into the Pandemic friendly sport for kids and many were introduced to Lasers. They were available and not too expensive. And they were still an Olympic boat after all. I remained a cheerleader and honestly optimistic that the Lasers and Aeros could not only co-exist, but maybe even help each other thrive.

Fortunately, local dinghy and rigging company (and Sailish sponsor) West Coast Sailing saw things the same way. They continued to support Lasers while doing their utmost to establish and support the Seattle RS Aero fleet.

Largely, that symbiotic relationship between the classes has continued. And it’s a very good thing for the future of sailing and sailboat racing.

The evidence is in the summer of Columbia River Gorge sailing. In the recently concluded RS Aero Worlds, 54 sailors duked it out in near perfect conditions, including some “epic Gorge conditions” of around 30 knots. The boats held together, and the out-of-country visitors will no doubt go home singing the praises of the conditions and level of talent making the trek down from Seattle.

Embracing the Dark Side

Watching my friends beat up on each other in Aeros was a little hard to watch, so I finally made the switch this year. Hence My Aero’s name (suggested by fellow Laser sailor Mark Ross) being Dark Side.

I’ve sailed the Aero several times, and it’s taken all of them – and probably more –  to flush some old Laser habits out of my system. RS Aeros are undeniably different. On the obvious side is weight of the boat (and particularly the spars). The flat aft sections of the Aero versus the rounded Laser sections certainly provide a different feel.

On the practical side, the Aero has several advantages. It’s easier to rig – especially when it comes time to hoist the sail. No more lugging the big sail around before putting it into the maststep. It’s substantially lighter to move around on shore. And it’s faster, particularly downwind when the wind picks up.

However, the Lasers (OK – ILCAs) still have some advantages, especially for youth sailing. They are certainly more rugged. Even with modern materials, you don’t get rid of that much weight without affecting the ruggedness factor. My experience capsizing an Aero (and I’ve had fair amount already) is certainly scarier than capsizing a Laser. First off, the Aero might just decide to drift away from you faster than you can swim to catch up. Hang on to that mainsheet when you go over. Secondly, the most consistent way to get onboard is over the transom. Coming in from the side on a righted Aero will likely mean it will capsize toward you. If you stubbornly try to come in from the side, as I did once, 50-degree water will zap your strength in a hurry. Right the boat and promptly make your way to the transom.

And then there are the fleets. The ILCA class remains strong, particularly for youth. There are fleets all over the world, plus world championships and Olympics. At the other end of age spectrum, Master racing in this class is unparalleled. The RS company does a great job of supporting their boats but it will be a while before Aero’s are a mainstay like Lasers.

Sailing an Aero

For those wondering about the transition, I’ll put it this way. Remember when you first sailed a Laser and everything seemed happened twice as fast as you were used to? And then eventually you got the hang of it and the rate of things was the new normal? Expect the same evolution in Aeros. Damn, things happen fast. And of course, Aeros like to move – they have to move for the high efficiency foils to work. Speed supersedes pointing. Downwind, they’re quick to react. When starting, you can’t remain quite as static as you did while holding position in a Laser.

If my 11 or 15 year old boys were to take up singlehanded dinghy racing, I’d point them at the Laser. Actually, I’d just have them use mine – I’m keeping it in case there’s a masters regatta I can attend. I guess I’d have to buy a new sail with that ILCA logo so I don’t stick out.

As long as I’m quick enough to keep the boat upright I’ll be racing the RS Aero against my old friends.

Craig’s Epic Adventure: Leg 2 Mindelo Cape Verde to Mauritius

Kurt Hoehne PNW sailors around the world 0 Comment
Craig’s Epic Adventure: Leg 2 Mindelo Cape Verde to Mauritius

Craig Horsfield is racing a Class 40 boat around the world in the Globe 40. Here’s his report from partway through Leg 2. Following is a more recent update – they’re leading!

Amhas


“Slow is Smooth and Smooth is Fast”

We are 8 days and 1500 NM in with no breakage or damage.

July 17 was the start of the longest ever class forty race leg, covering over 700 miles with 3 oceans and one cape.


With limited experience, we elected to start conservatively down at the pin end where there was no traffic and the risk of been rolled was low.  The mark was a reach, then you can go inside the mark and south past Sao Vincent to Port or Round the mark and go North around Sao Vincent a longer route. Why would anyone do that? We all took the latter as the wind shadow on the south option was an issue and we could use the acceleration on the east side of the island. We started with 1 reef and a J2 up. Most other boats were J1 and Code 0 quickly coming out. Our simple start took us to the mark and in 3rd place before rounding and going upwind. However, we needed more sail and had to change from J2 to J1, dropping back on the few  mile beat around the north side. Our goal for Day 1 was to sustain no damage and just to stay close to the fleet.


With more than 20 Knts in the acceleration zone we set up for a very slow and safe first hoist of a spinnaker. We set an A7 –  a new fractional all-purpose spi. Other boats went for full size masthead A2 spi. We thought we would be left behind but found ourselves safe on auto pilot, doing about 15k nts downwind while other boats around us rounded up and had issues. As night fell we were surprised to be right with most the fleet despite our simple start, which built our confidence into the night. Late into the night, we started to feel the impact of the wind shadow to our port and we could see on AIS that the 3 other boats to our port had started to slow. We gybed west to stay in the wind corridor, making a gain that would later put us in the lead.  The next decision was whether to go inside or outside the island of Pogo, a large southern Cape Verde island. We decided to stay inside, on the east side, again looking for acceleration as we had still been using the smaller A7 and needed pressure. Mostly the east/ west split on Pogo was a wash in the fleet and we later crossed gybes with the Dutch who went the other way. Then it was a long haul to the SE on starboard, waiting for a SE wind shift we could tack on and get south. The shift came in and we went for it 3 hours after the shift and were again the first boat to change course. This turned out to be bitter sweet, as we drag raced south and won the race to the equator but we are more west and have west current set. This with the wind not lifting enough we are sailing close haul almost currently on the 1800-mile port tack to the South Atlantic High and the Southern Ocean. Overall we are going to have to pay a 12 – 18-hour penalty for this westing for sure.

Long hot days in the sun, currently passing 4 deg S.  All is well onboard.  The teams have all been very collaborative and supporting;  it is good to know that they are nearby, both pushing us and supporting us.

Following are late-breaking updates from Globe 40 headquarters:

GLOBE40 IN THE INDIAN OCEAN

Amhas (purple) leading around Africa

🇫🇷 This day at 12H44’23” UTC AMHAS skipped by Craig Horsfield (USA) and Oliver Bond (UK) was the first GLOBE40 competitor to reach the length of Cap des Aiguilles and therefore to return to the Indian Ocean. A strong moment for racing as it certainly was for the skippers and especially South African-born Craig Horsfield.

AMHAS had also taken the lead of the race this morning, a constant presence in the forefront since the departure from Cape Verde, away from the Japanese competitor MILAI Around The World having rarely exceeded 20 miles for the last 3 weeks ines. 5,000 miles have been covered since departure from Mindelo at an average of 9.3 knots and about 2,250 to go before we see the silhouette of Morne Brabant in Mauritius, superb promontory to the south of the island.

A course that will not be risk-free over the next few days with a weather situation set to deteriorate. MILAI following unidentified noises at the level of its bowling, although not directly struggling at the moment, has made the prudent choice of a technical stopover for control in Cape Town or it should arrive in the night. SEC HAYAI, WHISKEY JACK and GRYPHON SOLO 2 will also have to negotiate this hectic passage over the next few days to the dreaded Indian Ocean.

🇬🇧 THE GLOBE40 IN INDIAN OCEAN

This day at 12:44’23”UTC AMHAS skippered by Craig Horsfield (USA) and Oliver Bond (UK) was the first competitor in the GLOBE40 to reach the longitude of Cape Agulhas and therefore to return to the Indian Ocean. A huge step for the race as it has certainly been for the skippers and in particular for Craig Horsfield of South African origin.

AMHAS had also taken the lead in the race this morning, a constant presence in the foreground since the start from Cape Verde, the gap with the Japanese competitor MILAI Around The World having rarely exceeded twenty miles for 3 weeks. 5000 miles have been covered since the start in Mindelo at an average of 9.3 knots and there are still around 2250 before touching to see the silhouette of Morne Brabant in Mauritius, a superb promontory in the south of the island. .

A course that will not be without risk in the coming days with a situation expected to deteriorate in a few days. MILAI following unidentified noises at the level of her keel, although clearly not directly in difficulty at the moment, made the prudent choice of a technical stopover for checkpoint in Cape Town where she should arrive in the night. SEC HAYAI, WHISKEY JACK and GRYPHON SOLO 2 will also have to negotiate this turbulent passage towards the formidable Indian Ocean in the coming months.  · 

Schwenk Airlifted to California

Kurt Hoehne PNW sailors around the world 1 Comment
Schwenk Airlifted to California
Andy Schwenk

Longtime and very successful racer Andy Schwenk, who until recently called the Pacific Northwest home, suffered an infection and subsequent sepsis while delivering his Express 37 Spindrift V back from Hawaii to California after the Pacific Cup. He was treated at sea and then airlifted back to California in an amazing flurry of coordination between other sailors, the race organizers, the US Coast Guard, US Air Force and a Taiwanese tanker. Here’s Scuttlebutt’s report:

(August 8, 2022) – USCG-licensed captain, instructor and rigging specialist Andy Schwenk (57, Point Richmond, CA) has been brought safely to land by a combination of Coast Guard, Air Force, commercial shipping, and assistance from a fellow yacht. A rapidly-spreading infection required the action.

Schwenk’s Express 37 Spindrift V had completed the 2022 Pacific Cup from San Francisco to Hawaii, finishing first in her class on July 18. Returning to California, the boat faced heavy weather, damaging their mainsail and leading to an injury to Andy’s ankle, which subsequently became infected.

Various elements of Spindrift’s communications tools were also damaged, leading to challenges in getting assistance. A relayed call to Pac Cup race organizers led to the diversion of fellow racer (and division winner) Surprise, a Schumacher 46 owned by Bob and Maryann Hinden and skippered for the return by Robin Jeffers, diverting to transfer antibiotics to Spindrift V.

The August 4 transfer at 1:00 am was a “real pro job,” as Andy later texted. Because of Spindrift’s communications problems, many of the communications in this incident were routed through systems that had been established to manage the race itself.

“When the boats couldn’t make direct contact, a lot of coordination took place on my iPhone,” commented Principal Race Officer Michael Moradzadeh.

Read on…..

Pacific Cup Rap Rufless Retires, Hamachi Wins Class

Kurt Hoehne Pacific Cup, PNW sailors around the world 0 Comment
Pacific Cup Rap Rufless Retires, Hamachi Wins Class

We’ve been watching our PNW boats very carefully this Pacific Cup, and were disappointed to see that the J/125 Hamachi was apparently going to finish second to sistership Rufless. But wait, there’s more. Hamachi filed a rating protest and Rufless withdrew, giving Hamachi a class win and third overall. See Ronnie Simpson’s report here. I’ve excerpted the Hamachi-relevant part:

Third place overall and first place in the BMW of San Rafael Division is Jason Andrews and Shawn Dougherty’s Seattle based J/125 Hamachi. After an overall win in the 2019 Transpac, the team is back on the box in a Hawaii race after yet another fantastic crossing. With a slower rating than Hamachi, Rufus Sjoberg’s J/125 Rufless finished just a couple of hours behind Hamachi but seemingly corrected out to claim the divisional win. We say apparently because Hamachi had lodged a protest against Rufless’ ORR rating, claiming a rating discrepancy. After much deliberation, the crew on Rufless has decided to withdraw themselves from the Pacific Cup. While this is a sad occurrence for all of us here at Pac Cup, who view Rufus Sjoberg and his Rufless team as part of our ohana (family), we support their decision and wish them the best of luck in having their boat re-measured, re-rated and coming back stronger in 2024. Rufus, Navigator Skip McCormack and the entire Rufless crew were incredibly gracious in coming to this decision. The Corinthian spirit of sailing is alive and well here in Kaneohe as the Rufless crew and Hamachi crew congratulated each other on a hard-fought race and shared a warm and friendly debrief.

Zvi celebrating

As far as the rest of our PNWers go;

Moonshine (Marc Andrea Klimaschewski, Sloop Tavern and CYC Seattle, Dogpatch 26, Kolea Doublehanded division) Won the Kolea DH1 Division.

Alternate Reality (Ian, Mitchell and Darrel Jensen, Sloop Tavern YC, Express 27, Ocean Navigator class).  Fourth in Ocean Navigator Division.

Dash (Stephanie Arnold & Ken Machtley, Orcas Island YC, J/99, Mahina DH2) Fifth in Mahina DH2 

Free Bowl of Soup (Erik Hopper & Douglass Schenk, Portland YC & CYC Portland, J/105, Weems and Plath) First in the Weems and Plath Division.

the Boss (Chad Stenwick, West Sound CYC, J/35, North Sails division) Second in the North Sails Division to Andy Schwenk’s Express 37.

Lodos (Tolga Cezik, CYC Seattle, J/111, Goslings Rum division)  Sixth in Goslings Rum Division.

Such Fast (David Garman, SSS, One Design 35, Goslings Rum division) Ninth in Goslings Rum Division 

Freja (Jonathan Cruse, Sloop Tavern YC & CYC Seattle, Aerodyne 43, Goslings Rum division) Fifth in Gosling’s Rum Division, and has the best quote of the event describing “non-consensual surfing.” See report here.

Raku (Christina and Justine Wolfe, Orcas Island YC, J/111, Mahina DH2) While they seemed to be a lock on first place for much of the race, the Donovan 30 Wolfpack made a dramatic final push to finish first and push the Wolfes to second.

Hamachi (Jason Andrews and Shawn Dougherty, CYC Seattle & Sloop Tavern YC, J/125, BMW of San Rafael division) First in the BMW of San Rafael Division.

Blue (Michael Schoendorf, South Shore YC, Pacific Cup YC, Riptide 41, BMW of San Rafael) Third boat to finish in Hawaii and third in the BMW of San Rafael Division. You absolutely have to love a 41′ boat finishing that early.  

Rage (David Raney, Corinthian YC Portland, Wylie 70, Alaska Airlines class) Third in the Alaska Airlines Division. Rage  came from behind to finish ahead of Westerly, though not enough to beat her on corrected time.

Westerly (Stuart Dahlgren, Royal Victoria YC, Santa Cruz 70, Alaska Airlines class) Second place in Alaska Airlines Division and overall. I’m going to call her first among normal boats, as Pyewacket with her canting keel really should be in a different class. This was an amazing achievement especially considering the final push it took just to get to the starting line.

Shadow II (Peter McCarthy, West Vancouver YC, TP52, Alaska Airlines class) Fifth in Alaska Airlines Division. 

Zvi (Alan Lubner, Seattle YC, Reichel/Pugh 55, Alaska Airlines class) Second boat (first of the normal boats) to get to Hawaii and fourth in the Alaska Airlines Division. The Zvi program continues to improve in its second race to Hawaii, and has show consistently high speeds in this race.

FULL RESULTS

Party on the Pier at Sail Sand Point

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Party on the Pier at Sail Sand Point

Ed. Note: At the risk of redundancy, Sail Sand Point is a Seattle sailing treasure and we should support it. Based at Magnuson Park, it brings sailing to Seattle community. Between sailing lessons, open boating and hosting interscholastic regattas, it’s the place to be. The Party on the Pier is a great way to support it and fun. And the paella is to die for. -KH

From Seth Muir, Executive Director of SSP.

Sail Sand Point is returning with their annual Party on the Pier on July 30th. This event benefits their programs which serve over 15,000 people each year ranging from 8 year olds in Optis to 80 year olds in keelboats. Head down to Magnuson Park’s beautiful pier and enjoy live music, paella, libations and some light fundraising for a great cause–getting more people introduced to the joy of sailing! Info and tickets are available here: https://www.sailsandpoint.org/events/party-on-the-pier/

Pacific Cupdate Again, Four PNW Leaders

Kurt Hoehne Uncategorized 0 Comment

The Pacific Cup fleet is starting to enter the full on sledding part of the game. Pyewacket will soon be finished and at last look was doing 21+ knots.

Thanks to alert readers, I was made aware of two other PNW Pacific Cup boats. We’ll start with those.

Mako

Mako (Jason Vannice/Kyle Reese-Cassal. South Sound Sailing Society, Sydney 38, Goslings Rum division) Mako has been on the southern side of the fleet and is now consolidating with those to the north. She is currently in third in division on corrected time, and her main competitors are quite a bit larger. It will be interesting to see how this develops, especially if the wind builds.

Perplexity

Perplexity (John Wilkerson, Sloop Tavern & Port Madison YCs, Express 37, North Sails division) Early on, Perplexity had a medical emergency and transfer at sea. See Latitude 38’s coverage: https://www.latitude38.com/lectronic/2022/07/11/#navy-medevacs-pacific-cup-crewman. That all said, she’s been playing catchup on a southerly track and currently lies sixth in division with less than 1000 miles to go.

(Apologies to both crews and their fans for not covering them in the last post)

And now for the rest of the PNW fleet:

Moonshine (Marc Andrea Klimaschewski, Sloop Tavern and CYC Seattle, Dogpatch 26, Kolea Doublehanded division) I’m pleased to report that Moonshine is leading her division and must be driving the bigger boats crazy when they realize they haven’t passed her yet!

Alternate Reality (Ian, Mitchell and Darrel Jensen, Sloop Tavern YC, Express 27, Ocean Navigator class). Alternate Reality took a deep dive south and is making their way north to consolidate with the fleet. The boats ahead of her on handicap are all bigger and heavier, so it will be interesting to watch the lightweight Express 27 in straight line speed against waterline

Dash (Stephanie Arnold & Ken Machtley, Orcas Island YC, J/99, Mahina DH2) Dash remains fifth in her division. The doublehanded boats ahead of her are all capable of very fast downwind speeds, so it will be tough to find a passing lane.

Free Bowl of Soup (Erik Hopper & Douglass Schenk, Portland YC & CYC Portland, J/105, Weems and Plath) Ding ding ding, another PNW division leader. FBOS has sailed a conservative course and it’s paid with the division lead. The J/105 should have consistenltly high speeds on the run to Hawaii.

the Boss (Chad Stenwick, West Sound CYC, J/35, North Sails division) the Boss is showing that the venerable J/35 is still a good ride to Hawaii. Lying in second in division, she is trailing the Express 37 Spindrift skippered by none other than PNW transplant Andy Schwenk, who knows his way to Hawaii very well.

Lodos (Tolga Cezik, CYC Seattle, J/111, Goslings Rum division) Lodos remains sixth in a closely contested Goslings Rum division. No doubt all the Goslings boats will be pushing hard these last few hundred miles.

Such Fast (David Garman, SSS, One Design 35, Goslings Rum division) SUCH FAST is in the same class as Lodos, trailing by a fair amount.

Freja (Jonathan Cruse, Sloop Tavern YC & CYC Seattle, Aerodyne 43, Goslings Rum division) Freja has established some separation from her class, staying to the north. Currently standing fifth in division, she could move up if her northerly position pays.

Raku (Christina and Justine Wolfe, Orcas Island YC, J/111, Mahina DH2) The Wolfe’s made a bold move to the south has paid, and she’s leading her division by a good margin, and sailing in the same waters as many larger boats.

Hamachi (Jason Andrews and Shawn Dougherty, CYC Seattle & Sloop Tavern YC, J/125, BMW of San Rafael division) Hamachi is leading the BMW of San Rafael division. I have a lot of confidence they’ll close out the victory.

Blue (Michael Schoendorf, South Shore YC, Pacific Cup YC, Riptide 41, BMW of San Rafael) Blue is starting to really move, 13.4 knots at present, and I expect her to finish first in division on the water, but it will be very tough to correct ahead of the speedy boats in class. Currently she lies fifth.

Rage (David Raney, Corinthian YC Portland, Wylie 70, Alaska Airlines class) Rage is in her element, her narrow Wylie designed hull slicing up the miles at a high rate. It will be interesting to see if she can catch Westerly on the water in the approaches to Hawaii.

Westerly (Stuart Dahlgren, Royal Victoria YC, Santa Cruz 70, Alaska Airlines class) Westerly gave up the division corrected time lead when Pyewacket hit the afterburners. She is currently lying second and pretty much on the rhumb line.

Shadow II (Peter McCarthy, West Vancouver YC, TP52, Alaska Airlines class) Shadow II has made her way from the northern-most position in class to the southern most. She’s trailing the other division boats but should have a great ride into Hawaii.

Zvi (Alan Lubner, Seattle YC, Reichel/Pugh 55, Alaska Airlines class) Zvi is now in the conditions the team was hoping for, at last check going 14+ knots and looking solid for being the second boat into Hawaii.

Pacific Cupdate

Kurt Hoehne Pacific Cup, PNW sailors around the world 4 Comments

As the strong downwind rides start to develop, it’s time to check in on the PNW contingent in the Pacific Cup.

The smaller/slower boats suffered light air in the early stages of the race, but by the time the Alaska Airlines class (the biggest, fastest boats) started the winds were more typical of San Francisco Bay. All the fleets have had some less than thrilling winds to contend with. Predictably, the PNW is well represented. I count 15 boats.

Note that when you read this, things may have changed. Go to pacificcup.org to check out the tracker and other news!

As of this writing:

Moonshine (Marc Andrea Klimaschewski, Sloop Tavern and CYC Seattle, Dogpatch 26, Kolea Doublehanded division) This little boat has been toying with the corrected time lead in their division the whole time on the north edge of the fleet, and they currently lie 2nd.

Alternate Reality (Ian, Mitchell and Darrel Jensen, Sloop Tavern YC, Express 27, Ocean Navigator class). Alternate Reality suffered slow going in the early parts of the race and then made the decision to head south for better conditions in the long run. Time will tell if it pays off. They’re currently lying fourth in class.

Dash (Stephanie Arnold & Ken Machtley, Orcas Island YC, J/99, Mahina DH2) Dash had an excellent beginning of the race and was, for a while, toying with the lead. She is now in fifth in her class.

Free Bowl of Soup (Erik Hopper & Douglass Schenk, Portland YC & CYC Portland, J/105, Weems and Plath) This J/105 logs a lot of traveling miles. Currently lying second in her class, FBoS is looking for a strong finish.

the Boss (Chad Stenwick, West Sound CYC, J/35, North Sails division) Well known to Puget Sound sailors under previous owners, the Boss is continuing her racy ways. She’s currently second in the North Sails division.

Lodos (Tolga Cezik, CYC Seattle, J/111, Goslings Rum division) Lodos suffered somewhat on a more northerly course, but is picking up the pace now and is currently sixth in the Goslings Rum division)

Such Fast (David Garman, SSS, One Design 35, Goslings Rum division) SUCH FAST has had a less than fast race so far – she’s trailing the fleet, for now anyway.

Freja (Jonathan Cruse, Sloop Tavern YC & CYC Seattle, Aerodyne 43, Goslings Rum division) Freja has been building up to this race, and the light and fast Aerodyne 43 is well suited for it. My colleague Molly Howe and her husband Jake are onboard, which is certainly a big help. They are currently fifth in division.

Raku (Christina and Justine Wolfe, Orcas Island YC, J/111, Mahina DH2) The Wolfes made a bold move to the south early, and it appears to be paying off as they continue to sail in better breeze than the bulk of the fleet. They are currently winning their division.

Hamachi (Jason Andrews and Shawn Dougherty, CYC Seattle & Sloop Tavern YC, J/125, BMW of San Rafael division) Hamachi is one of the best optimized J/125s for this race, and there are several other 125s in the race. The team has one a Hawaii race before and are currently second in class.

Blue (Michael Schoendorf, South Shore YC, Pacific Cup YC, Riptide 41, BMW of San Rafael) While not strictly a PNW boat, Blue was designed by Paul Bieker, built by Betts and features NW talent such as Jonathan McKee. So we get to adopt her. While Blue is leading her class on the water, she hasn’t had the chance to leg out on the J/125s and other longer waterline boats in her class. That time may yet come as they approach Hawaii.

Rage (David Raney, Corinthian YC Portland, Wylie 70, Alaska Airlines class) Built by Schooner Creek, the well travelled Rage is a very impressive ULDB. One time holder of the Pacific Cup elapsed time record, Rage will log some serious miles as the wind moves aft and builds. She’s currently standing fifth in the Alaska Airlines class.

Westerly (Stuart Dahlgren, Royal Victoria YC, Santa Cruz 70, Alaska Airlines class) The Dahlgrens didn’t let a serious bump in the delivery stop them from competing. On the delivery down, the keel was damaged. Working up to the last minute, Westerly was fixed and relaunched in time for the start. She currently lies second in class.

Shadow II (Peter McCarthy, West Vancouver YC, TP52, Alaska Airlines class) This is the kind of race the TPs were designed for. Shadow II was one of the most northerly of boats, and has been making up ground as of late. She’s currently lying fourth in class.

Zvi (Alan Lubner, Seattle YC, Reichel/Pugh 55, Alaska Airlines class) This multi-year program continues to add talent and performance. If it weren’t for the mighty Pyewacket, Zvi would be the 800-pound guerilla of the fleet. She is well behind Pyewacket and well ahead of the rest of the American Airlines fleet. Approaching the islands she should achieve some remarkable speeds.

Lodos
Zvi
Westerly
Raku
Hamachi
Free Bowl of Soup
Dash
Shadow II
Blue
Moonshine

Star Fever, the Story of Seattle Sailing’s First Family

Kurt Hoehne PNW sailors around the world, Sailing's Great 0 Comment
Star Fever, the Story of Seattle Sailing’s First Family

In Seattle sailing circles, the name Buchan conjures an image of infinite sailing expertise that seems, in some ways, other-worldly. Across generations, the Buchan lineage seems to sail smart and fast nearly all the time. Actually, the Buchans are very human, and Bill Buchan’s autobiography Star Fever (written with Maureen Lander) explains a lot.

Star Fever chronicles how Bill Buchan’s father, also a William, applied his Scottish work ethic to the world of sailing. And how that do-it-yourself and do-it-right attitude filtered through the family. Early on, the father Bill home-built Heather, from lofting her on butcher paper to steaming the oak ribs himself. Heather was fast and a good cruiser.

Bill took it all to to the next level, immersing himself in sailboat racing. The father and son team won the Mallory Cup in Lightnings, among many victories. But the pinnacle of sailboat racing was (and some of us think still is) in Starboats. Bill and his father started creating (designing and building) and refining Stars, taking advantage of the loose tolerances allowed at the time and coming up with light, fast boats. Along the way Bill met his wife Karen, who despite spending some of their first date bailing out a Star, enjoyed Bill and sailing!

Fast forward through several Stars, innumerable regattas and three children. Along the way, Buchan won the Soling Worlds and his Star designs based on his various Frolics were being adopted around the world. Locally, he built the Peterson 44 racer cruiser Sachem from a bare hull to compete in the Pacific Northwest. Disappointment at the Olympic boycott in 1980 turned to Star triumph at the 1984 Olympic Games. That was followed by another Star Worlds victory in 1985 with Steve Erickson as crew.

While Star Fever is well worth the read simply to get insight into Bill and the whole Buchan sailing tradition, I think it’s worth a read from a sailing cultural standpoint as well. Bill and his father designed and built boats, refining and improving them with each iteration. They weren’t the only ones. All this time there was a family to raise and a business to develop. These days, racers often can’t get away for a casual Wednesday evening race.

Proceeds for this book go to the University of Washington Sailing team. It can be purchased here at Fisheries Supply.

Seattle Sailors Shine in RS Aero Worlds

Kurt Hoehne Columbia River Gorge, PNW sailors around the world, RS Aero 0 Comment

Soon after the rumblings of a new, better (than the Laser) singlehanded hitting the water, Seattle sailors took notice of the RS Aero. Soon the stalwart Laser sailors were trading in their Lasers for RS Aeros. Let by Todd Willsie, soon virtually the remaining singlehanded sailors made the switch. More important, the burgeoning fleet drew some of the area’s best singlehanded sailors out of the woodwork and attracted new sailors to the sport.

Some of the things the Seattle sailors retained was their experience sailing in (Columbia River) Gorge conditions and an attitude of cooperation to develop faster as a fleet and not just individually.

All of this came to fore in the just-concluded RS Worlds sailed out of Cascade Locks, Oregon, expertly put on by the Columbia Gorge Racing Association.

Photos by Bill Symes

The racing conditions weren’t typical “Gorge” conditions at first. A strong easterly sent the fleet to the shore where more than a couple boats hit rocks staying out of current. After the strong easterly for the practice race, a number of competitors switch down a sail said, leaving only 6 boats in the “9” class, but bolstering the “7” and “5” classes.

At the awards, from left: Paul Gloster (Donor of the Declan Gloster Memorial Trophy), Dan Falk, Dalton Bergan and Dieter Creitz.

The normal 20 knot westerly made its appearance on Monday of the regatta, and it became clear that the fast course upwind was to get to the biggest positive current in the washing machine of wind against current on the Washington shore. And that was pretty much the way the rest of the regatta went, with Thursday and Friday not as breezy but epic Gorge conditions on the penultimate race day Saturday. It was windy enough that even many of the top boats chicken-gybed.

This regatta featured a “long distance” race midway through. While probably not viable at many venues, it was certainly a highlight for many at this year’s Worlds. A standard windward-leeward course was followed by a 6-mile downwind course of reaches, ending in one of the windier spots in the vicinity. The fleet then had the long beat back aided by the current. The day culminated in a post race pub crawl, followed by a layday the following day.

The results board was dominated by Seattle sailors who made the short trip to Oregon, which many had done several times in preparation for the regatta. Dan Falk dominated the “9” fleet. After the two throwouts, his score line was all firsts except for one second. In the “5” fleet, Dieter Creitz had the same score.

The “7” fleet was controlled by Dalton Bergan, who didn’t have to sail the last race to win and might well not have had to sail at all the last day. At less than 170 pounds, he was competitive upwind. Downwind, his speed was uncanny, playing the all-important jibe angles to the best advantage with consistent speed. Results here. Peter Barton’s Race Report here.

Daily debriefs were a staple, which was much appreciated by those in the middle and back of the fleet. Impressive performances were also put in by Jay Renehan, Peter Barton, Keith Hammer, Mike Johnson, Ryan Zehnder and Yannick Gloster. As with the Laser class decades ago, RS Aero techniques promise to improve year by year. As Joe Burcar says, “There’s more to get out of the boat. For me, the training group was great fun and the regatta was the icing on the cake.”

Kids These Days

Kurt Hoehne Adventure Sailing, Northwest Maritime Center, r2ak, Youth Sailing 2 Comments
Kids These Days

And now for the most impressive crew in this year’s Race to Alaska (R2AK). Mustang Survival Team Rite of Passage is the youngest team ever to complete the race, which they did yesterday finishing 9th in the wee hours of the morning. The brilliant writers in R2AK headquarters wrote up a wonderful team profile, which should be read. (As all the profiles should be! They’re that irreverent, er, entertaining.) Congratulations to Nadia Khalil, Francesca Dougherty, Sebastian Dougherty and Enzo Dougherty. You guys rock. Make sure other young people hear your story – We’d love to run anything you have to say here in sailish. Without further ado, here’s their story from the R2AK race boss:

Mustang Survival Team Rite of Passage

In hopes of avoiding another “kids these days” conversation, I’ll put it right out there: Mustang Survival’s Team Rite of Passage has an average age of 16.75. They now hold the record for the youngest team to ever complete R2AK, as well as the youngest racer: Francesca Dougherty, 15. It does take a minute to let the ‘wow’ of it all settle down, because right when we think we’ve wrapped our heads around how incredible this is, they go and reflect that the difficulties of R2AK include high school (high school!). “We couldn’t have done this without our mentors. Finishing the school year and prepping for R2AK at the same time was a lot. Our mentors helped us to the start line and we took it from there.”

Okay, forget it. There is no way to talk about this team without bringing age into it. It’s like telling a joke with half the punchline, it’ll never land the same—but whatever tired stereotypes about this generation just don’t seem to apply.

Meet the teenage incredible behind that tracker blip you’ve been rooting for: Nadia Khalil, Francesca Dougherty, Sebastian Dougherty, Enzo Dougherty and a Santa Cruz 27: Mustang Survival’s Team Rite of Passage.

This is a team with boating pedigree. Siblings Enzo and Francesca are 2nd generation R2AK’ers, Nadia a varsity sailing team racer, and Sebastian—can we stop a minute to say how irritating and confusing it is that he has the same last name as Enzo and Francesca, but no family relationship?—spends his days on a family boat that happens to be the neo-legendary Hamachi, a J/125 and winner of the 2019 Transpac.

Up and coming sailors all, the team had long considered the Race to Alaska a life goal, dream board material that would have been out of reach for most 15-18 year olds. Yes, because of their pedigree, but being in their presence you immediately pickup that behind their affable exterior there’s something unnervingly competent about them.

Enzo, the engineer and rigger of the group, built out the pedal drive they were going to be spending days on, and supplied the Santa Cruz with enough gear to rerig it if necessary, including a legacy tool box. “We brought 100 feet of Dyneema and my dad gave us the same tool box he used in 2015.” Heirloom redefined. Like all teams, each experienced different trials; separate and distinct moments of wavering. For Nadia the challenge was never the sailing. “Headspace was so hard. Being in a good mood and being motivated was way harder than moving the boat.” Cape Caution was a universal high/low. A psychotic point of land with such a swing of behavior that one team can pass it calmly and without notice, while the next day its exposure, lee shore, and steep, confused seas create a ride of terror. For Rite of Passage, it was the best and worst. “We were going around Cape Caution in the middle of the night.” Sebastian recalled, “Ginormous waves and hitting 12 knots (of boat speed)! It was the fastest we went on the trip. We were surfing waves!” But they all realized that if one of them went overboard at that time, they would never be able to get them back. “If we would have lost someone overboard, we’d have lost them.”

Woah.
A virtual hug for their parents who were watching the tracker like the rest of us, and read that for the first time right now, too. Kudos to your offspring, and to you for believing in them.

The race has always had a knack for exploiting a team’s weakness: sleep deprivation, worn gear, failing bodies, questioning judgment. It’s always about making it to Ketchikan before something breaks or the doubts take over the mind. Nadia and Fancesca’s knees were failing them from endless hours on the bikes, sleep had become a rare and sea-pitched commodity, but even then, Nadia found a highpoint. “Francesca and I were on watch and pedaling for four hours. We hadn’t slept for a long time and were having a conversation about something and then I realized, we were talking to each other, but having completely different conversations! I was hearing Francesca’s response in my head and responding to that, not what she was saying. It was hilarious!”

Yeah, Nadia, on land we call that auditory hallucinations.

Kids these days and their shenanigans.

Like many teams landing in Ketchikan, these four didn’t have a plan for “What next?” But it doesn’t much matter. Adventurers find adventure and how to descend from Race to Alaska’s summit doesn’t need to be discovered for these four today. Today it’s fish and chips, hugs with loved ones who flew in to bask in their achievement and reflect heartfelt admiration, and sleeping in a bed that doesn’t rise and fall with every wave.

If you’re over the age of 20 it’s hard to impossible to look at this achievement and not reflect back on what youth meant for yourself. If you’re like me it was more like petty vandalism and skylarking than heroism. Are they heroes? We guess it’s how you define it, but if you spend your days being better than you were the day before, why be anything else?

If you’re under the age of 20, hell even if you’re older, whoever you are, it’s my sincere hope that their heroics inspire you as much as they’ve inspired me. Mustang Survival’s Team Rite of Passage, you didn’t just race to Alaska, you fulfilled a long held dream. You proved to yourselves and the entire internet what you are capable of, what the rest of us could be. You showed us an alternative narrative to the blanket dismissal of a generation, helicopter parenting, and some vague belief that without forced march interventions the explorations of anyone born after 2000 will be limited to Mine Craft’s square and pixelated geography. You self-motivated IRL. You achieved, you inspired, and you’re just getting started.

Welcome back to land, Mustang Survival’s Team Rite of Passage. It’s been an honor.

In a world where kids are sometimes scared to go to school and are often conditioned to be afraid of everything, these young adults showed they’re more than capable of doing the extraordinary. For more on the team’s efforts, check out the Instagram page @teamriteofpassage. 

–KH

(An earlier version of this post implied the team was affiliated with the Rite of Passage community organization. It is not.)