PNW sailors around the world

STAPYs (Sailish.com Totally Arbitrary Performance of the Year Awards)

Kurt Hoehne PNW sailors around the world, STAPYs 0 Comment

Bruce promised some Boat of the Year awards, so here we go with the 2022 Sailish Totally Arbitrary Performance of the Year awards. The STAPYs if you will.

Pacific Northwest sailing and sailors are so spread out and diverse, we’ve chosen to pick and choose some arbitrary awards. Here’s the kicker, since our beloved pastime is so diverse, we want YOU to send in your choices. One rule, you can’t choose yourself. And here’s the kicker, it can be for just about anything sailing related. Racing, cruising, organizing, teaching, designing, building new boats, resurrecting old boats, good crew work, writing, rescues, selling and so forth. There’s a lot going on and plenty of people deserve kudos. Email me your nominations.

Kurt’s Nominations

Dalton on the Tasar

Dalton Bergan We know Dalton’s been winning races ever since laying hands on a tiller. But this year was truly exceptional. He won both the RS Aero 7 Worlds on the Columbia River Gorge and the Tasar Worlds with wife Lindsey on Puget Sound.

Andrew Nelson

Andrew Nelson Andrew has been the junior sailing director at The Sailing Foundation for 8 years. During that time youth sailing has exploded in participation, largely due to his energy and skills. He is moving on from that position now and leaving some big booties to fill.

Craig Horsfield

Craig Horsfield My old skipper has truly outdone himself this time. First he took on the Mini Transat with two successful races. He is currently in the throes the first-ever Globe 40 doublehanded round the world race aboard Amhas. Teaming up with two other sailors, and splitting the legs between them. He’s sailed legs 2 (4th) and 4 (1st) and plans on racing three more legs.

Jonathan McKee

Jonathan McKee His lifelong sailing resume is legendary. Dinghies, keelboats, inshore, offshore, Olympics, pro sailing, you name it. This year he received the recognition he deserves, entry into the Hall of Fame. Just remember, when you race against Jonathan, you’re racing against royalty.

Kirk at the helm of Teaser

Kirk Utter  Well-known on the Seattle racing scene, he’d been threatening to sail off cruising into the sunset for many years. Well, he did it! Those of us wanting to do the same have to admire him for “just doing it.” He’s very active on Facebook if you’re interested in his adventures.

All those rescuers of Andy Schwenk   While delivering his Express 37 Spindrift V back from Hawaii after winning his class in the Pacific Cup, expat Northwesterner Andy suffered a severe injury and resulting sepsis. Without the help and coordination of fellow sailors, a commercial ship, the Navy and many others, he might well have died. It’s a good sign that the first law of the sea (help other mariners in need) is alive and well.

Arrival Interview

Kurt Hoehne PNW sailors around the world 0 Comment
Arrival Interview

Here’s the arrival video for Horsfield and Oliver Bond as they arrived first in the Globe 40 leg finishing in Mauritius.

Horsfield First into Mauritius, Wins Globe40 Leg

Kurt Hoehne PNW sailors around the world , 0 Comment
Horsfield First into Mauritius, Wins Globe40 Leg

Local Seattle sailor Craig Horsfield has added another feather to his singlehanded racing cap, and this is a big one a victory with Oliver Bond in the longest leg of the initial Globe40 race. We’ll hear more from him soon, “Craig is very chatty so I’ll have him call you as soon as he’s slept and the time difference works,” according to his wife Carolyn who took these photos. In the meantime, here’s the press release.

Craig Horsfield

After 35 days 10 hours 42 minutes and 42 seconds of navigation, Craig Horsfield and Oliver Bond reach Mauritius as the winner on this second and longest leg of the GLOBE40. By crossing the finish line this Monday morning at 2 hours 42 minutes and 42 seconds (UTC), the American crew treated themselves to a finish under the magnificent colors of the Mauritian sunrise. From Cape Verde in the North Atlantic to the Indian Ocean, passing through the Doldrums, the Equator, the Saint Helena High and the Cape of Good Hope at 38° South, the sailors of the GLOBE40 experienced a veritable epic of 7,667 nautical miles (14,200 km) worthy of the greatest tales of sailing around the world.   

“It’s been a long trip so far, longer than we had planned before departure. We managed this big step by cutting it into 4 pieces. The stage seemed so huge to us before the start that it was necessary to manage the events one after the other. The first piece was a quick little regatta through the Cape Verde archipelago that lasted 2 days. Excellent moments of gliding, only happiness. On the second part, the South Atlantic and the Saint Helena high, it was necessary to show good strategic analysis to cross this level crossing. The third part, with the circumvention of southern Africa and the passage of the Cape of Good Hope, was physically tough because we encountered difficult sea conditions and sometimes very cold temperatures. The last piece in the Indian Ocean was very difficult. In fact we thought it was going to be the easiest part of the stage, but it was the hardest. »say the two sailors after touching down.

A victory acquired in a very good way by the American skippers. In the right tempo from the first miles, they have rarely accumulated more than thirty miles behind the rival and Japanese leader Milai throughout the descent of the South Atlantic. They didn’t give up, despite the hardness of the stage on a physical and mental level due to its long distance, the harsh sea and weather conditions encountered and the technical problems faced. In this mano a mano on a planetary scale, the American-British duo benefited from the South African pit-stop operated by Masa Suzuki and Andrea Fantini to take the leadership of the fleet as they passed the Cape of Good Hope, without stopping never give it up to the turquoise Mauritian waters. This victory on this major stage with a coefficient of 3.

“Our strategy was to stay in contact with the front of the race. When we were off Brazil, turning to Cape Town, we wanted to be among the best. The next strategy was to pass the South without incident and then finish at full speed in the Indian Ocean. In practice, we had to adapt. We accelerated a little more than expected during the crossing of the South by being in contact with Milai. Then, when we took the lead, we managed the sequence of events more. We changed our plans to preserve the boat, while the others tried to catch up with us. Our roadmap evolved according to the race situation. Twice we changed options to join another competitor’s route. We lost half a day to find ourselves in a position that prevented them from overtaking us. It would have been faster to go east but if there had been a problem, we offered them the opportunity to win so we decided to come closer to take that option away from them. This is how we managed the finish. Even if it forced us to navigate more slowly at times. »analyze Craig and Oliver on the spot before continuing by emphasizing the excellent spirit present between the competitors. “One of our best memories is the communication between the boats. Especially with Masa (Milai) and Mélodie (Whiskey Jack) trying to solve their technical problems. Despite the fierce competition, even if we like confrontation, it’s nice to share. We appreciate helping each other. If a problem arises, if someone breaks something, we are sorry for him. »

After another very fine sail, the Dutch duo aboard Sec Hayai are on a favorable run-off to clinch second place on Tuesday 23rd August.

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

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.”

Al Clark and Bill Symes at ILCA 6 (Laser) Worlds

Kurt Hoehne Laser Sailing, PNW sailors around the world 0 Comment
Bill Symes heading into a leeward mark.

As I watched the resuilts come in from the ILCA 6 (Laser Radial rig) Worlds scores come in from Vallerta, I was certain that I’d be reporting overall wins for my friends Bill Symes in the Legends (75+ year old) class and Al Clark in the Grand Master class. Alas, a black flag DSQ in this morning’s first race and a third in the last race cost Symes the overall win. He had, after all, a nearly perfect scoreline. Clark had a tough final day as well, but finished off a hard fought victory. Congrats to both of them. Here’s the press release:

Vallarta, Mexico – Although Hurricane Blas threatened to steal the breeze, the wind gods prevailed on Banderas Bay for the final day of the ILCA 6 Masters World Championships. With the hurricane moving west, two more perfect races were completed under sunny skies and warm temperatures in Riviera Nayarit, Mexico. The 10–12 knot wind put the onus on boat speed and tactics for all the divisions. Downwind technique was also critical – those able to catch the waves most efficiently could make big gains on the fleet. 

The final day brought a shake-up in the Legends division, for sailors over the age of 75. American Bill Symes who was unstoppable throughout the week, was caught over early in the first race of the day allowing fellow American Chris Boome to take the win and move into a tie for first overall heading into the last race. In the final race, Boome managed to sneak ahead of Symes and clinch the championship by one point over Symes. 

Australia’s Jeff Loosemore added to his incredibly consistent event to win the Great Grand Masters division by a comfortable 25 points over former Olympic gold medalist, Miguel Noguer of Spain. 

Allan Clark of Canada closed out a hard-fought victory in the very competitive Grand Masters division, with the overall championship decided in just the final race. After a capsize on the first leg, Clark’s victory appeared in jeopardy, but Australian David Luketima’s fourth place in the final race was not enough to close the difference for the win. 

Great Britain’s sailors Ian Gregory and Jon Emmett closed out the championship in style, winning the Masters and Apprentice Masters divisions by comfortable margins. 

A thank-you goes out to the Vallarta Yacht Club and all the volunteers, staff, and event sponsors for an unforgettable week of sailing.

For full results, see here: sailwave.com/results/vyc/ILCA6Masters2022.htm