There’s not a whole lot to say about Driftsure 2019. Bruce warned you. 14 finishers on the various courses needed perseverance and hopefully enough food. At this writing there were still three boats out there. The rest have “withdrawn” and a lot of them are probably back in their home slips by now.
Jan and Skip Anderson were out there shooting, but as she says “This pretty well sums up the race this weekend! 😊” She did shoot this video and promises stills (very still no doubt) soon.
As my son Gabe said when I asked him if he wanted to see a funny video, he saw it and said, “That’s not funny, it’s just sad.” That said, I’m sure the folks who stuck it out had a good time. .
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
One thing that renews my faith in the future of sailboat racing is seeing fleets emerge, or reinforce, organically. The sailors choose the boat and build fleets and the manufacturers come along for the ride. Think Star, Snipe, Thistle, 505, OK Dinghy, Opti. Cal 25s in Detroit. Catalina 27s on Chesapeake Bay. J/Boats has done a good job of letting its various one-designs govern themselves while offering support.
This is happening right now with Martin 242s in the San Juan Islands. And they’re going to celebrate it by having the Martin 242 North Americans at Orcas Island at the end of June. Here’s the regatta site. The Martin folk know how to race hard and enjoy themselves after racing. Twenty four boats are signed up.
Here are a few tidbits from Ken Machtley, Co-chair of the event:
•~280 Martins were built from the early 80s to early 90s in Vancouver, then 8 more were built in CA around 2005-7 by MG Marine, who still supports the fleet with parts. The builder is planning to attend with his boat “All In” and has won the NAs before.
•The fleet is growing most here on Orcas, but there are hints of interest in Seattle (one boat being chartered by a SEA crew, another Melges interested in buying one) and there’s one in Bellingham (and hopefully soon two).
•Betsy Wareham was the first to “discover” and buy one on Orcas, Chris White was right behind her. Chris is the biggest evangelist (he hooked me and several others).
•There’s discussion on doing Whidbey/Pt Roberts for the next three years. It’s CA’s turn to host NAs next year, but Chris is working to get that fleet and the Race Week folks talking. Almost certainly we will be there the following year and either there, OIYC, or Cow Bay the following.
We’ll have a race report right here on Sailish following the three day event.
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
It was one of those Puget Sound Races where everybody gets to win, but the last one to win is declared the real winner. A wandering convergence zone meant the Seattle Yacht Club Vashon race last Saturday was one of those races that kept everybody engaged. We have a few reports a few found photos to tell the story.
First off, we have Megan Kogut “from the narrow stern of Elixir.”
Two weeks ago, Elixir was in the PSSR race report solely by virtue of being the only boat in our class among nine PHRF boats total at the line. There was some associated worrying about PHRF boats, one by one, hanging up their spinnaker sheets for good.
So I hope it is with some cheering, or at least some coffee spilling, that we are in the report this time for our first place overall in the short course at the Vashon Island Race.
Elixir battling with a pair of J/105s
But, it must be understood that that win was handed to us by three rolling shutdowns of the wind on the return trip, thanks to the convergence zone going north with us. It was almost as the winds wanted to make a point about the back of the fleet. We just happened to be deeper into the southerly by virtue of being slower, and the leaders were working its northern edge. We came rather close to the leaders at Three Tree Point, where they must have waited for wind for a couple of hours. We bunched up again at Alki and at West Point. And so all we had to do was take what was on the plate, greatly helped by crew members Andy Cross and Jenna Swalin. We had a fabulous view from the back row of what everyone was doing, like a menu of what to do and what not to do. Jarred and I have been making the best of this view for years, learning a lot even though last year was our first first full season of racing. But it was great being in the mix with J/105s and boats in our class at the end of the race in a variety of conditions, and across the finish line in variable winds and strong current.
I want to take this opportunity to encourage other PHRF-NW boats, old and new, to get out there. It’s not fun getting dropped off the back, but if you are, you’re still so far ahead of getting off the dock. And, again, that back seat view is unbeatable for learning. Lastly, you never know what’s going to happen out there. Yesterday was tricky at first, but then it was a total treat. Megan Kogut
Then we have a report from Otto Helm sailing somewhere in the cruiser racer class. It should be noted that there were nine finishers in the cruiser/racer class, the most of any class. Here’s Otto:
1) Race was started after a postponement awaiting wind to fill from the NNW – resulting in a downwind start in light winds.
2) For the cruiser/racers that headed to Blakely Rock, winds were variable with no clear ‘best path’ – those who stayed on the center seemed to do a bit better.
3) At the Blakely Rock mark, the course was to Duwamish Head – those who could carry their asymmetrical spinnakers (or even symmetricals with pole on forestay) on a reach were cooking across Elliott Bay – until close to the mark when there a drop in wind and a ferry that cut in front of some competitors resulting in loss of headway – the back-end of the fleet had difficulty in getting around the mark and the gains that some had made with their spinnaker reaching vanished into the light air. Some competitors overstood the mark which turned out to not be a bad thing as the wind died just inside the mark.
The “start.”
4) Heading back to Shilshole for the finish line, those who stayed in the center seemed to do better than those who stayed on the Magnolia side. After West Point, the wind got very light inside and those who had stayed out were rewarded.
View from the cruiser/racer class.
Overall, the Cruiser/Racer class was competitive with – a lot of fun with some great boat on boat battles that went back and forth. It would be great to get even more cruiser/racers out for the Blake Island Tri-Island Race on June 1 (Cruiser/Racer course is around Blakely Rock, round a temporary mark near West Point and finish line in front of Elliott Bay Marina)
In the big boat ORC class, the TP 52s and Crossfire all took turns at the front and the back of the fleet. If you want a glimpse of the big boat ORC class, check out Marek Omilian’s blog post. Here’s a shot onboard Crossfire from Malcolm MacNeil’s Facebook page and a shot from the deck of Sonic:
Ed. Note: Some people may tear their hair out at these kinds of “crapshoots,” but I have to say I think races like these are just fine. You learn a lot, especially focus. The trick is to not take the results too seriously. KH
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
Protection Island: Maybe
a bit too much wind. Vashon: maybe not enough. And so it goes in Puget Sound or
even for the Oregon Offshore which started yesterday off of Astoria and as of
the morning the fleet is going fairly slow well south of Tatoosh with a
forecast for light air in the Straits maybe even an easterly as this offshore
flow may persist until late this afternoon. A stronger onshore flow will
develop on Saturday and that will cause the problem for the Vashon Race. The
onshore flow will not only come down the Straits, but it will also flow in
through the Chehalis gap with the meeting point being the south Sound and
Vashon Island creating a very frustrating situation for sailors.
By mid-afternoon
tomorrow there will be quite a strong flow coming down the Straits with the
potential for gale warnings in the central and eastern Straits. Unfortunately,
it will take longer to work its way down the Sound. Then as the sun gets closer
to setting, it is once again going to become light and shifty.
May 10 500MB
May 10 Surface Analysis
May 11 Surface Forecast
May 12 Surface Forecast
May 13 500MB
May 14 Surface Forecast
With the current weather
models, I have the TP-52’s and Crossfire around the long course in about 11
hours. I have the J-105’s around the short course in 16 hours. Don’t forget
it’s Mothers Day on Sunday…..
Tides will not be much
of an issue until early Saturday evening when the wind starts to go light.
Tidal Current at West Point.
0742 .58knts Flood
1024 Slack
1136 .15knts Ebb
1306 Slack
1948 .98knts Flood
2300 Slack
As far as tactics go, as
we noted last weekend, the northwesterly will build on the west side of the
Sound first, just don’t lose track of sailing the shortest possible course to
get to Pt. Robinson. From Pt Robinson to the bottom end of the Island could be
a very light, like wind seeker light, beat. Then you’ll have to get into the
constant ebb in Colvos and hope that it will sweep you up the Passage to the
northwesterly.
The short course boats
will be challenged to sail south in very light air until about mid-afternoon.
Then it will be, sail your angles and sail the shortest possible course. Once
you round the mark the short course will be to sail up the east side of the
Sound. Especially working your way up under Magnolia to get get to West Point.
Overall, it should be a
lovely day on the water just be sure to put a lot of sunblock on.
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 weekend’s Sloop Tavern YC Race to the Straits was yet another not-to-be missed event. Saturday’s leg to Port Townsend was a light wind, current-plagued challenge with a lot of did not finishes. Sunday’s leg back was with plenty of breeze from the north, spinnakers flying and smiles all around.
Of all the great aspects of this race, my favorite is that it draws a whole lot of boats that “don’t” race out to race. There are couples, dogs (go Dakota!), kids, cruisers and sails of every imaginable and unimaginable condition. Win or lose, it always appears to be a good time. And with the staggered start (figuring handicaps into the start time) seems to make the whole thing results thing more palatable. It’s what’s racing should be. On Saturday it was a day for concentration and a lot of tacks. Ryan Helling estimated he did 60 tacks with Velella. On Sunday the boats with big spinnakers and long waterlines reveled. On Sunday the Westsail 32 Hula was so far ahead it seemed like she was in a different race. Results here.
We’ve got a lot of pictures to show, but no on the water reports (if you want to chime in, I’ll happily add your thoughts to this post!) First of all, there are Jan Anderson’s wonderful shots. There are many good closeups of happy sailors at her site. As always, I’d recommend going to her site and buying some to commemorate the weekend.
Sean Trew has a number of amazing shots, including one of the Schock 40 with her canard/keel/rudder configuration. Here are some:
Finally, Jay Leon was out as well, and has a number of great shots, especially of boats working the light air on Saturday along the bluffs. Here are some. The rest here.
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
The surface charts for the weekend show a very interesting pattern. Today’s surface analysis shows a nice, round, high-pressure system off the coast yet at 1033MB it is not what we would consider terribly strong. The shape, however, and the fact that the jet stream is going to be staying pretty much in the same general vicinity, means not much is going to change for the next five days. Oregon Offshore people should take note. Today’s satellite picture also shows just how extensive this high-pressure system is as well as clearly showing that compact low-pressure system with attached front at 35N & 135W.
While the offshore high-pressure system will continue to
weaken, going from 1033MB today to 1026MB on Monday, and become not so round,
nothing is going to move it very far. By tomorrow morning it will have drifted
slightly north and slightly to the west. This will stretch the gradient and
bring lighter air to the Pacific Northwest. Sunday looks a little better
especially with the tide helping to bring the northerly breeze down the Sound
after about mid-day.
Tidal Current
in Admiralty Inlet at Bush Point
Saturday
0530 Slack
0836 2.66knts Ebb
1142 Slack
1436 2.66knts Flood
1848 Slack
Sunday
0600 Slack
0912 2.82knts Ebb
1218 Slack
1506 2.81knts Flood
1930 Slack
For the RTTS folks, it should be fairly straight forward
with the early starters being able to take advantage of the ebb. Start with
clear air and then work to the west. You may have wind for your start however
it will ease as you go north. When the northerly does fill in, it will come
down the west side of the Sound and be stronger over there as well. While the
morning breeze will tend to be northerly, it will tend to back to the northwest
the closer you get to Pt. No Pt. so after PNP just stay on port tack and get
across to the mark at Double Bluff. You may get headed as you come across
towards DB just get across and if the flood is starting you can work the back
eddy to the east of DB to get around the mark. It may be a little light under
the bluff so watch the boats ahead of you.
May 3 500MB
May 3 Surface Analysis
May 4 Surface Forecast
May 5 Surface Forecast
May 6 500MB
May 6 Surface Forecast
May 7 Surface Forecast
After DB you’ll want to stay on the Whidbey side because
with a northerly flow coming down between Whidbey and Camano there will be some
breeze that funnels down Holmes Harbor and spills over into Admiralty Inlet.
This should mean if you’re beach-hopping to stay out of the tide, you’ll have
long starboard tacks and short port tacks as you work your way up the Whidbey
shore. It will be important to remember that this breeze is not your typical
afternoon northwesterly and will go up and down in velocity, and wander around
the compass.
The next question will be tougher. When to cross over to
the Marrowstone and Port Townsend side so you can get to the finish. Again, use
the bino’s and try to see how the boats ahead of you are doing. There will tend
to be more wind on the Whidbey side and if the flood is still rolling maybe
waiting a bit to cross might be an option. A lot of variables here.
Sunday it really looks like there will be a big advantage
to being a later starter as the early boats will have to fight the big ebb of
the day until around noon and there will be less wind in the morning. As the
sun climbs that will bring more northerly and the flood will start first on the
Marrowstone side. Since overnight there will be a drainage northeasterly there
may be more wind on the Whidbey side. As the day progresses this northeasterly
will back to a northerly before it becomes northwesterly by early to
mid-afternoon.
After DB, you will probably want to work your way down
the Sound on the west side as the flood tide is stronger and the breeze should
be stronger over there as well. Again, watch the boats around you and after
Kingston watch to see when folks are gybing to get over to the east for the
finish.
Should be a beautiful weekend, just be sure to be safe and
put your sunblock on before you even get down to the boat. Have a great
weekend.
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 start belied what would be a rough weather race. Photo by Catie Plourde
What started out as seemingly a light air race last Saturday turned into a barn burner, one that sent most of the SYC’s Protection Long Course racers home, humbled. Long course boats started dropping out while they approached Point Wilson when winds topped 30. Short course boats never saw those extreme conditions, but still had plenty of wind.
First to finish on the long course, and the only finisher in the big boat “0” class was Marek Omilian’s TP 52 Sonic. Maybe it has something to do with Omilan’s Clipper Race experience (around the world), because he not only had reef points in his main, but had reefing lines ready to go. His account of the race is worth reading.
A reefed TP 52 main. Photo by Patrick Doran.
This race puts issue of rough weather sailing comes front and center. There’s no doubt the sailors have the skills to deal with the heavy conditions. There is a question of whether the boats are up to the task. Some boats, even with huge mains, don’t have reef points. In a quest for that extra 1/100th of a knot of speed, there are no reef points or the reef lines are left out even in the face of a coming blow. And the boats themselves are so powerful, and so fast, that pounding into a seaway can tear a boat apart.
Alan Johnson points out that there’s another question regarding the big boats – who wants too risk blowing out a $25K sail?
And there were very big seas. “Some of the biggest waves I’ve seen,” said Nigel Barron aboard Crossfire, that was one of the last to pull out.
One ultra light, powered up boat that handled the conditions was Jonathan McKee’s Dark Star. Of course McKee is one of the more experienced sailors around and worked with Paul Bieker to come up with a boat fully capable of rough water sailing. Estimating the worst of the waves to be about 11′ and the waves “really vertical,” he agrees the conditions were about as bad as they get on Puget Sound, but you could see them coming and they didn’t stay that way too long. Without judging anyone’s decision to pull out of the race, he noted that the big boats dropping out “sends a message to the whole community” that big weather is something to avoid. Dark Star was the lone finisher in class “1,” coming in about an hour after Sonic.
For Hamachi, it made sense to pull out because it would have made no sense to break the boat just before it was to be shipped south for the start of the Transpac later this year. Instead of pounding upwind, they did some downwind training:
And then there were the fun rides home. Here’s Malcolm MacNeil’s video from Crossfire’s return home.
On the shorter course, they had a great, fast race. Erik Kristen won overall with the J 105 More Jubilee after a close dual with sistership Panic. A healthy fleet of six starters sailed the cruiser-racer course.
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
Corinthian Yacht Club’s PSSR was, in many ways, epic. Last weekend’s regatta saw enough breeze on Saturday that racing was called after a couple of races when winds were heading up into the 30s. On Sunday conditions were milder and made for great racing.
The J/80s and J/105s fielded very competitive fleets, and four San Juan 24s made the trek from Lake Washington to sail off Shilshole. Erik Kristen on More Jubilee sailed another strong series to win the J/105 class while second place Jaded and third place Moose Unknown ended tied. In the J/80 class it was a dead heat between Rush and Crazy Ivan, with Phillip Dean’s Rush finishing ahead in the last race and winning the class. Ken Johnson’s Grauer Geist won the San Juan class with straight bullets..
Winners in the PHRF classes were Absolutely, Dos and Elixir in four boat, four boat and one boat classes respectively. Results here. Nine, count ’em nine, PHRF boats competed, though more were registered.
My friends Joe Cline at 48 North and Matt Woods, fleet captain at CYC, cite Easter and Southern Straits crew stealing as the reasons for the low PHRF turnout. I’m more concerned.
As a CYC member and racing evangelist, I’m alarmed. For every sailor there’s a slightly different logic to this down trend, but consistently it’s noted that the old round-the-buoys racing for cruiser/racers is way down. Too much work/effort, too time consuming, too competitive, handicapping issues are all often cited. My questionnaire of a year and a half ago revealed a few things that sailors want to see. Casual racing is a common thread.
I’m sure race organizers and my fellow sailors have a seabag full of great ideas to implement. This year’s PSSR might just be the signal that the race to get sailing back on track is starting and we better trim in and harden up.
If the last PHRF boat hits a wave, does it make a splash?
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
Last weekend’s Southern Straits Race put on by the West Vancouver YC was neither a gear-buster nor a maddening drifter. It was just a good old fashioned fast race. Sailish’s Bruce Hedrick supplied a pre-race weather briefing that was delivered the night before to racers in attendance.
There were three courses, a 133-mile long course allowing the faster boats to stretch their legs, a 98-mile medium course that seems to appeal to a lot of cruiser-racer types and a 70-mile short course.
The coveted honors of first to finish on the long course was done emphatically by Steve Travis’s Smoke, which finished an hour ahead of the two other TP 52s. Results here. Photos here (skippers is password). Facebook page here.
We have a report from Peter Salusbury, owner and skipper of sailish-favorite Longboard, a Bieker 35. He finished third on corrected time on the long course.
Longboard‘s Race
The 2019 Southern Straits of Georgia Race will be remembered as one of the best and fastest ever! Bruce Hedrick’s pre-race forecast proved accurate (once again) with a 5 – 8 knot westerly at the start which gradually built as the fleet beat out of English Bay and tacked up the Bowen Island shore. There was a massive ebb current on the start line which really accelerated at the committee boat end and Steve Travis’s TP 52 Smoke timed the start perfectly at the boat end and jumped into a massive current ‘elevator’ before the rest of us – there’s some great drone photos and video of the start which captured Steve’s amazing start. (ed note: I’ll try to find that video and post it later)
Most of the long course fleet left the south shore of Bowen for the long starboard tack across the Strait with the TP 52’s (Smoke, The Shadow, and Sonic) along with J/160 Jam really using their long waterlines to their advantage over us tiny 35-footers to stretch out a nice lead. A few interesting wind shifts further west on the race course created some interesting passing lanes – the J/111 65 Red Roses skippered by Alex Smyth called it well by staying north, we opted to keep more west and they did a nice job getting a jump on us before Sisters.
After Ballenas the seas flattened out and the wind lifted nicely on port tack so we gained a little back jib reaching into Sisters. Smoke really legged out on the other TP’s and rounded at 1753. The leg from Sister’s to Entrance couldn’t have been better. The most amazing full moon came up right in the east and with the crystal clear sky, lit up the race course all night – truly magical to be sliding downwind at 15+ knots boat speed with an A2 on such a beautiful evening.
We caught up and passed 65 Red Roses by Ballenas so the battle was on after that! Our timing crossing Nanaimo Harbor on the approach to Entrance couldn’t have been worse as we had to douse the chute really early to negotiate our way around two large inbound ships and then got into an interesting conversation with a tug and barge coming out of Nanaimo on the beat upwind to Ballenas!
The stiff beat from Entrance to Ballenas was bone jarring for us little 35 footers with TWS hovering between 21 to 26 knots and a steep chop. The TP 52’s reveled in the conditions and rounded fairly closely at half past midnight. We were very happy in our upwind speed and legged out on 65 Red Roses to round 36 minutes ahead of them. From Ballenas to the finish line of Point Atkinson, the NW stayed in the 20+ knot range all the way home which made for an impressive, enjoyable downwind slide home.
Smoke did a nice job stretching out over The Shadow and Sonic and won line honors at 0313 – less than 3 hours after rounding Ballenas! From the results, it looked like The Shadow and Sonic had a close finish over an hour behind Smoke, finishing within minutes of each other. The always well sailed J/160 Jam skippered by Bill Fox finished a little over an hour later to take second overall on the long course. Alex and the team on 65 Red Roses did a masterful job all race and deserve full credit for finishing first overall on the long course. On Longboard, my team did a great job pushing the boat around the course to grab the final podium spot on the long course.
Ross Macdonald and his very fast X-41 Daia made short work of the beat to Sisters on the Medium Course and took line honors just before 0200 – well done to Ross who always gives an upwind clinic in these conditions! On corrected time, John Peterson’s J/109 Legacy took Division 2 (by 8 seconds over Lodo!), Steve Blaine’s Hanse 400e Rubato won Division 3, and the Dufour 34 Invictus skippered by Vern Lhotzky took Division 4 and the Medium Course overall win.
On the short course, the Hotfoot 30 XS sails by Benoit Sonrel held off some close competitors to take the Short Course line honors win. My old Flying Dutchman colleague, Huntly Gordon sailing Flyway took Division 5 and the Short Course overall win. We all had to admire those short course boats on the stiff beat to Ballenas Island on Friday afternoon/evening – tough conditions to go upwind in such small boats – really well done to them all.
As always, the host club West Vancouver Yacht Club put on a great event – thanks to co-chairs Kelly Brix and Adam Ferguson and PRO Jen Ross – and of course the army of volunteers and club members who truly make it all happen. And a big thanks to all the competitors who travel from the US and Vancouver Island for this event – it’s a big commitment and we appreciate you all making the trek to and from your home ports.
Kurt grew up racing and cruising in the Midwest, and has raced Lasers since the late 1970s. Currently he is a broker at Swiftsure Yachts. He has been Assistant Editor at Sailing Magazine and a short stint as Editor of Northwest Yachting. Through Meadow Point Publishing he handles various marketing duties for smaller local companies. He currently is partners on a C&C 36 which he cruises throughout the Northwest. He’s married to the amazing Abby and is father to Ian and Gabe.
We still have some showers around the area however those should all be gone as this cold front moves on to the east. As per usual, this will bring a post-frontal, onshore flow to the area which will mean SW a breeze for the central Sound this afternoon. With a strong westerly coming down the Straits watch for our famous convergence zone to develop this afternoon and maybe into the early evening from Edmonds north to Marysville.
April 19 500MB
April 19 Surface Analysis
April 20 Surface Forecast
April 21 Surface Forecast
April 22 500MB
April 22 Surface Forecast
April 23 Surface Forecast
With a weak ridge of high-pressure trying to build over the
area tomorrow, this will bring strong westerlies to the Straits and a nice
northerly flow down the Sound and should give racers a pretty nice day on the
water. You could start off with 15-20 knots of northerly which will gradually
ease off starting about mid-afternoon.
Current won’t be much of an issue as you can see from tidal
current at West Point.
Saturday
0700 .39knts Ebb
1206 Slack
1530 1.15knts Flood
1818 Slack
Sunday
0748 .40knts Ebb
1236 Slack
1618 1.17knts Flood
1918 Slack
On Saturday you should probably expect the flood to start
maybe 30 minutes early because of the northerly wind flow down Sound so you’ll
really want to watch COG and SOG on the beats. Eventually, it will pay to come
off the starting line and go west as the wind will back from a true northerly
to a more traditional northwesterly. Something to watch for.
Sunday will be a more difficult day as there won’t be
much gradient over the Salish Sea and the area will begin to feel the approach
of the next frontal system due to arrive late Sunday or early Monday. This will
create a light southerly flow over the central Sound on Sunday morning which
will give way to very light conditions by Sunday afternoon before a weak
northerly comes down from the Straits in the late afternoon or early evening.
Have a great weekend and good luck on the big Easter Egg
Hunt!
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)
