Racing ????
- Thread starter Alan
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Uh, yeah, but I think you know about it already. ;D
I'm just teasing Alan. For those of you that don't know, Alan, races his Hunter 35.5 very competitively out of Long Island. He has a great deal of insight into how to get more speed out of his boat. I also have a Hunter 35.5, which I have raced occasionally, but not nearly at the level of Alan. With this year being the 100th running of the Chicago to Mackinac race, I extended an invitation to Alan this spring to join my rag-tag crew and help me get some more speed out of the boat and to improve our position this year. (I also wanted a chance to meet the guy that I've swapped emails with and spoken to numerous times over the last couple years, comparing our boats and projects.) Alan has been gracious enough to offer to bring a couple of sails from his inventory to fill where I'm missing. We've got a bit of a challenge in that Alan will be arriving in Chicago about 24 hours before the race, not a lot of time to be making last minute changes. But I'll be sending him some photos of my deck layout, running rigging set up, etc., and we'll be talking about potential improvements that we can make ahead of time. Anything that comes out of that, I'll be happy to share here. I'm also thinking that Alan and I will have to keep separate notes during the race, and then compare them online here afterwards. That might prove to be interesting. Everyone here can follow along during the race by going to the Chicago Yacht Club website and following the links to the race tracking. Every boat in the race will be carrying a transponder, showing progress as the race unfolds. And who knows, if we work and race well together, and I don't disappoint him, maybe I'll get an invite the next time he decides to tackle the Newport-Burmuda race!!
T J
I'm just teasing Alan. For those of you that don't know, Alan, races his Hunter 35.5 very competitively out of Long Island. He has a great deal of insight into how to get more speed out of his boat. I also have a Hunter 35.5, which I have raced occasionally, but not nearly at the level of Alan. With this year being the 100th running of the Chicago to Mackinac race, I extended an invitation to Alan this spring to join my rag-tag crew and help me get some more speed out of the boat and to improve our position this year. (I also wanted a chance to meet the guy that I've swapped emails with and spoken to numerous times over the last couple years, comparing our boats and projects.) Alan has been gracious enough to offer to bring a couple of sails from his inventory to fill where I'm missing. We've got a bit of a challenge in that Alan will be arriving in Chicago about 24 hours before the race, not a lot of time to be making last minute changes. But I'll be sending him some photos of my deck layout, running rigging set up, etc., and we'll be talking about potential improvements that we can make ahead of time. Anything that comes out of that, I'll be happy to share here. I'm also thinking that Alan and I will have to keep separate notes during the race, and then compare them online here afterwards. That might prove to be interesting. Everyone here can follow along during the race by going to the Chicago Yacht Club website and following the links to the race tracking. Every boat in the race will be carrying a transponder, showing progress as the race unfolds. And who knows, if we work and race well together, and I don't disappoint him, maybe I'll get an invite the next time he decides to tackle the Newport-Burmuda race!!
T J
In a race on Saturaday
We crossed the start line backwards with the current. After an hour and a half we had made it half way to the first mark. Finally withdrew and retired to the dock for refreshments. One of the racers was cited for using propulsion - his crew jumped overboard, swimming with lines. One of the Great Races of the Potomac. Jim S/V Java
We crossed the start line backwards with the current. After an hour and a half we had made it half way to the first mark. Finally withdrew and retired to the dock for refreshments. One of the racers was cited for using propulsion - his crew jumped overboard, swimming with lines. One of the Great Races of the Potomac. Jim S/V Java
;D
You guys are great!! Its good to know there REALLY are Hunter racing skippers. Thanks for the plug TJ, I hope I don't disappoint. Jim, I feel your pain. Saturday we raced in a local fund raiser race on a Soverel 33. We fought our way to first place only to have the race abandoned due to a dying breeze that finally left the fleet fighting a loosing battle against a fairly strong current. Very frustrating, but hey, that's sailing!!
You guys are great!! Its good to know there REALLY are Hunter racing skippers. Thanks for the plug TJ, I hope I don't disappoint. Jim, I feel your pain. Saturday we raced in a local fund raiser race on a Soverel 33. We fought our way to first place only to have the race abandoned due to a dying breeze that finally left the fleet fighting a loosing battle against a fairly strong current. Very frustrating, but hey, that's sailing!!
FWIW
I can see a number of problems with this boat Jim. They are sailing far too deep for the conditions. Heading up will develop a better apparent wind and boat speed. The boat is sailing almost completely flat. Everyone on-board should be sitting on the leeward rail up around the shrouds to develop heel in the boat and help create sail shape. The sock at the masthead is not up all the way leaving the most valuable part of the sail covered. In ultra light air wind speed at the mast head is far better than further down. Giving away those valuable feet is senseless. Sorry but that's just me, I'm always looking to improve things and get the boat moving. We don't quit sailing till we cross the finish line or the race is called.
I can see a number of problems with this boat Jim. They are sailing far too deep for the conditions. Heading up will develop a better apparent wind and boat speed. The boat is sailing almost completely flat. Everyone on-board should be sitting on the leeward rail up around the shrouds to develop heel in the boat and help create sail shape. The sock at the masthead is not up all the way leaving the most valuable part of the sail covered. In ultra light air wind speed at the mast head is far better than further down. Giving away those valuable feet is senseless. Sorry but that's just me, I'm always looking to improve things and get the boat moving. We don't quit sailing till we cross the finish line or the race is called.
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