Tag: ILCA ACC

ILCA Atlantic Coast Championship. Formerly Laser Atlantic Coast Championship.

Friday

Last weekend I headed to Annapolis for the ILCA Atlantic Coast Championship at Severn Sailing Association. With over 100 boats across three fleets, it promised competitive racing—and delivered plenty of challenges. Here’s how the weekend went.

I arrived on Friday and after a quick trip through downtown Annapolis, I arrived at SSA, unloaded and got things ready for sailing.

Saturday

Rain swept through the area in the morning, clearing out just in time for rigging. With skies brightening and a west wind building from 10 to 14 knots – and gustier as the day went on – it looked like we were in for a pretty epic day of sailing on the Chesapeake Bay.

After the skippers meeting I grabbed a few drone shots of the rigged boats across the campus as they started to launch. I got myself launched and sailed 2.2nm out to the course.

About 10 minutes before the first start I went to tune up sailing on starboard for a minute or so, I made a few rig adjustments and tacked onto port. About 20 seconds later—crack—I heard a pop, lost all pressure in the sail  As I heard the top of the mast hit the water next to the boat I balanced the boat as I pulled myself back in.  I had broken the top section of the mast just above the collar where it joins with the lower section. There was a gaping hole with now two ends of the mast sticking out of it.

I grabbed my mainsheet to make a tow line and a few minutes later one of the power boats picked me up for the tow in. Back ashore I quickly took the boat apart, retrieved my wallet and a spare sail and bought a carbon fiber top section to go back sailing with. By the time I got back to the course, the fleet was still mid-way through the first race—delayed by a major wind shift that forced them to abandon the initial attempt.

I joined in the second race of the day. The breeze was now a solid 12–14 knots, with some early whitecaps. I started near the committee boat and had a solid first leg, rounding somewhere around 8th or 10th. But I couldn’t hold position. I lost boats on the downwind and struggled on the second beat, eventually finishing 14th.

Race 3 got off to a strange start. As the fleet neared the weather mark, the buoy broke loose and began drifting downwind. A few boats chased it; others correctly rounded the committee boat, which was now flying the M flag. The race was eventually abandoned after sailing another lap.

The second attempt at Race 3 finally got off clean. By now, depowering the rig was a challenge. The breeze was shifty and strong out of the west—tough conditions to find a rhythm. I gave it my best but couldn’t quite stay competitive, finishing 17th.

The sail in was punishing. The wind had continued to build, and the 2-nautical-mile upwind slog back to the harbor was a workout. The weather buoy later confirmed: we’d raced in upper-teen winds with gusts into the 20s.

Sunday

Sunday’s forecast promised even more breeze and it delivered. By the time the fleet was getting ready to launch the weather buoy was already showing winds into the 20s. I knew the fun factor was not going to be there for me in that wind, so I packed up.  Just before the start there was a gust to 35 before it settled down to 18-23 for most of the days racing.

I made the right decision and went to visit the J/42 that I’ll be sailing on for two upcoming distances races out of Annapolis in the coming weekends.

PICTURES | RESULTS | EVENT WEBSITE | VIDEO

By Posted on Posted in ILCA Sailing, Life, No Quarter Sailing, Sailboat Racing No Comments Tagged with , , , , , ,

Friday

Having seen the forecast for Friday and good conditions for some afternoon practice, I left for the ILCA Atlantic Coast Championship at Brant Beach on Thursday night and drove to Baltimore enabling me to miss DC traffic the next morning. 🙂

Friday morning I had a relatively easy drive to Brant Beach arriving around noon and going for some practice in the afternoon sea breeze.

We were able to jump into some practice races that one of the coaches were running and it was good to get practice around marks and other boats. In the evening there was a beautiful sunset.

Saturday

Saturday started with breakfast in the clubhouse and a postponement until the wind filled. After about two and 1/2 hours the sea breeze looked like it would fill and they sent us out around noon. I managed to be the very last boat to leave the beach, but had plenty of time to sail 1nm to the course and they postponed on the water for another 15 minutes or so as the wind settled and the course was set. After a general recall we got started under I-flag and I had an okay start by the boat. I went middle right and the folks that went hard left and started at the pin made out. I was mid-fleet and picked off a couple boats on the ensuing legs finishing 22nd.

Race 2 was another start under the I-flag. I had a great start pretty close to the boat and I was able to tack out to the right early and get in clear air. I stayed with the leaders and found myself 6th at the top mark. I didn’t play the reach very well and the fast guys went right around me downwind and I continued to drop back to the mid-20s.

For the final race of the day the wind continue to increase and the waves got sloppier. I didn’t have a great start down by the pin and found myself duking it out and just trying to find a good lane to go fast in. The rest of the race was uneventful and I finished 28th.

That evening we had a cookout in the clubhouse while the sun set behind the island just off the club’s waterfront.

Sunday

Sunday started with another postponement on shore as we waited for the sea breeze to build. This time it was a little earlier and a little stronger when it did come and we were racing by 12:30.

The starts today were a lot more competitive and I didn’t have nearly as clear of starts as I did yesterday. That meant I was tacking more and trying to find clear lanes of wind. So for race 4 I finished 29th.

In race 5 the wind increased into the double digits. I started down by the pin and went left and everyone to the right seemed like they were climbing over us so I worked my way back to the right. At the top mark I was mid fleet and I rounded the offset and tried to duck a stern to go downwind; only I mis-judged it and tapped my bow on the back of the rudder and had to do turns putting me further back in the fleet and I finished 30th.

By race 6 the wind was up to 14-16 and hiking conditions upwind. The sloppy waves from yesterday had returned and we started under U-flag. I started in the middle of the line with Eric and Andrew just below me who just flew right by me and I found myself having to tack behind everyone to look for clear air. 2 legs later we were coming into the leeward gate and I had George overlapped and just outside of me. As we hit the 3 length circle he lost control of his boat and rounded up into me. I rounded up to crash tack and avoid him as he ended up tipping on top of the right gate mark and blocking my path from rounding. I ended up in irons outside of the mark and had to go back upwind to get around him and the mark. Another boat just behind us rounded George and the mark and as they turned upwind, the side of their boat glanced across the top of my rudder leaving a gouge in their boat. I would realize later that my rudder pin was bent on the force of the impact. I would go on to finish 25 in this race and ended up 28th overall.

It was good to be back in the boat and get 3 days of sailing. I have definitely gotten out of sailing shape and have a little work to do there. I appreciate all of the people at Brant Beach who made this event possible – it was very well run and they made it easy to attend.

EVENT WEBSITE | RESULTS | PICTURES | VIDEO

By Posted on Posted in Life, No Quarter Sailing, Sailboat Racing, Video No Comments Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

The 2016 edition of the Laser Atlantic Coast Championship was held in beautiful Bellport, New York at Bellport Yacht Club.  As usually navigating the van up 95 and through New York City is always a challenge and I somehow found myself on surface streets among the taxi cabs before re-finding the expressways.

The racing started Saturday morning right off the dock of the club with 29 boats in the standard class.  Having not been in a Laser since Easter and back to sailing the original MkI sail I found myself a bit off speed in the moderate winds and chop.  The highlight was the race I rounded the first mark in the top 5, but would fall from there picking the wrong side on the 2nd beat.  I finished 17-20-16-23 and found myself in 18th after the first day.

Sunday the weather called for much higher winds.  When the RC didn’t immediately take us out on time and postponed us due to the wind conditions – I decided I wasn’t going to be in the kind of shape or practiced enough to make a respectable showing in those conditions and got on the road home.  Quite a few others did the same.  Eventually the RC took the fleet out for 2 more races.

RESULTS | PICTURES

By Posted on Posted in ILCA Sailing, Life, No Quarter Sailing, Sailboat Racing No Comments Tagged with , , , , ,

The 2nd day of the Laser Atlantic Coast Championship started out early and started with no wind.  We had a 0930 first warning and they sent us out – towed most of us out to where we sat for 2 hours.  By 11 the wind started coming in from the south and built from there.  The Standard rigs got 3 more races in, 2 for the other fleets.  By the 3rd race we had solid hiking conditions.

I had a tough day.  I didn’t start well and the short first beat meant everyone went around the first 3 legs in a clump.  The 2nd beat was always where I made my gains picking out the shifts upwind and picking off 10+ boats to get me back closer to the middle of the fleet.  Thanks again to Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club for putting on  a good regatta and I had a great time meeting new people and seeing friends.

RESULTS | My Photos | Regatta Photos

By Posted on Posted in Life, Sailboat Racing No Comments Tagged with , , , , ,

Quite a day for the first day of the 2013 Laser Atlantic Coast Championship at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club on Long Beach Island NJ.  Looking at the scores – everyone was up and down  and very inconsistent.  We had 4 races with 4 very different conditions for each.

In the first race I had a poor start, but picked my way into mid fleet.  Right at the end I tapped someone at a mark rounding and had to do turns.  Finished 41.

2013 Laser ACC Race 2 start

By the second race we had 6-8 knots of breeze.  I picked out the pin end to start and nobody was down there.  I won the pin and just punched out and kept going out to the left and stayed out front.  By the top mark only Eric Reitinger was just ahead of me.  On the downwind a couple boats caught me and on the 2nd upwind I found a hole and lost 10 boats.  I held there and finished 15.

2013 Laser ACC Race 3 -a

In the 3rd race we started under black flag and had what I thought was a great spot, but suddenly I found myself bow out, chickened out and backwinded so I didn’t get black flagged.  As we went upwind the wind continued to die and it started to rain.  That continued throughout the race and by the last leg we were barely going along and I finished deep.

In the last race the wind came up to 9-11 with clear skies and I had another terrible start.  I immediately tacked out and got bounced further to the right and found myself on the layline at the mark about 25th.  Both downwinds I went way right mostly just to stay away from the other sailors and picked up a spot or two on each.  On the 2nd upwind we had a course change with the wind shifting.  I picked the phase perfectly and picked up at least 10 spots upwind.  Finished 13th.

All in all it was a tough day but still a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to day 2 tomorrow.  Keep an eye on Twitter on @LaserACC for my updates.

RESULTS | VIDEO

By Posted on Posted in Life, Sailboat Racing, Video 1 Comment Tagged with , , , , ,

Friday

I arrived in Marblehead Massachusetts for the Laser Atlantic Coast Championship at Eastern Yacht Club.  The wind was a bit light so I only took a short practice sail.  Expecting close to 100 boats tomorrow.

Marblehead Harbor

Saturday

First day of racing for 83 boats at  the Laser Atlantic Coast Championship at Eastern Yacht Club in Marblehead MA.  The wind was light and patchy for 3 races for the 44-boat Standard rig fleet.

In the first race I got a good start and worked my way up to the right.  At the top mark I was about 8th and stayed there for the reach.  On the downwind I went way right and I was the 4th or 5th boat through the gate.  Upwind I lost a few more boats and ended up 15th.

The second race started in very little wind and I got a terrible start and just fell behind everyone.  Up the first beat it got even lighter and we continued racing in 3 knots.  I was near the end of the pack until the last upwind where I was able to claw back a few boats to finish 32.

The wind shifted about 40 degrees and picked up a tad for the 3rd race which we started around 4:30pm.  I had an ok race and pretty much hung mid-fleet the entire way around the course.  We finally got back to shore at 6pm having been on the water since 10:30am.

I’m tied for 22nd which puts me just into the top half of the fleet.  We’re expecting another light day tomorrow.

Today was also an experiment with having the phone with me.  I’ve got a waterproof case for it which is tied into my lifejacket.  Between races I was able to take a few pictures and post tweets.  I’ve been posting updates for the ILCA-NA on twitter:@LaserACC.  The case makes it too cumbersome to do anything else other than tweet and take pictures.

Sunday

Sunday was another light day and we were on the water a long while for just 2 races.  At mid-day we got a bit of breeze and got one race in while the wind waned.  I had a pretty terrible start and was just never able to get far in moving up.

With just minutes remaining before the time limit we started another race.  Determined not to have another bad start, I worked my way up 1/3 of the way from the boat and took advantage of the line sag to get a front line start and quickly punched out.  I worked my way out to the right lay line and rounded the top mark in 4th.  I lost a boat each on the next two legs.  As I rounded the mark to the final downwind leg I lost the main sheet from the blocks and ended up sailing a crippled, jury rigged boat the rest of the way around the course to salvage a 10th.

15-32-21-36-10 finishes put me in 22nd overall which kept me in the top half of the fleet.  Eastern Yacht Club was beautiful as was Marblehead.  Having heard about Marblehead from Sonar and Flying Scot sailors from my club for such a long time- I’m glad I made the trip.

RESULTS | PICTURES

By Posted on Posted in ILCA Sailing, Life, Sailboat Racing No Comments Tagged with , , , ,

Friday

After a half day of work and an afternoon drive to Wrightsville Beach North Carolina I’m at Carolina Yacht Club for the Laser Atlantic Coast Championship this weekend.  It looks like we’re going to have some beautiful weather with warm conditions and mostly sun.  That also means the wind could be a little light at times.

Sunset on the sound at Wrightsville Beach NC

This evening I hung out with the SSA crowd who have a house a couple blocks down from the club.  We had a lasagna dinner and watched the sunset.  Approximately 16 sailors from District 11 have made the trip down.  We’ve all got D11 pinnies so we should be easy to spot.

Watching the Sunset on the sound at Wrightsville Beach NC

Saturday

First day of the Laser Atlantic Coast Championship at Carolina Yacht Club in Wrightsville Beach NC.   I was on the fence and decided to go with the standard rig.  We had mostly clear skies with 10-14 knots of wind.  The first race started around 11:45  and I had a good start out to the left.  On the very first tack of the very first leg of the first race my vang broke.  I’m not sure if I just didn’t have the pin in all the way or what happened, but I spent two minutes getting that straight and being DFL at the first mark.  I made up a little over 5 boats and ended up 37 out of 45 boats. 

In the second race I had a great start and was able to hold my lane most of the way up the first beat. I hung with the main pack and managed a 26th place finish. In the 3rd and 4th races the wind calmed down a bit and the lumpy sea state made it tough to maintain boat speed. I was well into the 30’s boat races putting me in 33rd for the regatta.

After racing I cleaned up and put away the boat. We ate the regatta dinner and then hit downtown Wilmington with the Annapolis crowd.

Sunday

Sunday just wasn’t my day. I sailed out to the course, but knew it was going to be a rough day for me.  Overpowered with big waves and not feeling so great so I headed back in.

PICTURES | VIDEO

By Posted on Posted in ILCA Sailing, Life, Photography, Sailboat Racing, Video No Comments Tagged with , , , , ,

District Secretaries

The first weekend of May was the 2009 Laser Atlantic Coast Championship (standard rig). 84 Lasers sailed in a variety conditions for two days in Annapolis, Maryland. Results are here. Off-the-water photos are here.

This photo is of me and my fellow District Secretaries: Jon Deutsch (D11), John Shockey (D18), John Coolidge (D17), Eric Reitinger (D10)

By Posted on Posted in ILCA Sailing, Life, Sailboat Racing No Comments Tagged with , , , ,

2009 Laser ACC Website Screenshot

This is the website for the 2009 Laser Atlantic Coast Championship that I just launched with the event organizers from Severn Sailing Association. The site will serve as the central source for information about the two events in May and June. We have a few experiments going both in marketing the site and event as well as tracking how the website is used. Check it out at http://www.LaserACC2009.org

By Posted on Posted in Life, Website No Comments Tagged with , , ,