Monthly Archives: July 2009

‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week 2009

Day Five – Friday, July 17
By Liza Tewell

Oak Harbor, WA, USA (July 17, 2009) – Sunny 75-degree weather ushered in the warmest day of the fourth and final day of racing in the five-day ‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week regatta. Two solid races for each of the 10 classes were run by the Corinthian Yacht Club-Seattle race committee Friday afternoon in a 8-14 knot westerly. The committee’s big, red boat lead the fleet to the race course in Penn Cove on Friday morning blaring the Pat Benatar song, “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” while decked out in yellow caution tape, a not-so-subtle taunting of the Cookson 12 Meter, White Cloud, who had attempted to impale herself on the committee boat’s bow while barging the P0 start of Thursday’s first race.

The final outcome of the hotly contested P0 class wouldn’t be known, however, until the finish times of Friday’s two races for the nine PHRF-rated boats in class P0 were calculated and announced at the results party Friday evening in the rum tent of the grounds of the Oak Harbor Yacht Club. Once the throw-out was factored in, it was Greg Slyngstad’s beautiful blue J/125, Roxanne, taking second for the day and first for the week with a total of 22 points. Even without placing among the top three for the day, John Hoag’s relentless 1D35 slid into second place. Edging out the Cole family Melges 32, Ballistic, for third place was Geoff Longenecker’s San Diego-based Melges 30, Nemesis, which had made the drive up the coast for their first Whidbey Island Race Week.

For some of the 94 competing boats, Friday’s gybe mark was set close to the Coupeville dock, much to the delight of the spectators lining the rails. Well-performed gybes earned loud cheers from the crowds – or jeers for those maneuvers that “earned the ugly award” according to one energetic fan.

A definite crowd favorite was class P1 as the seven Flying Tigers had a tendency to round the marks in a cluster and whose asymmetrical spinnakers allow them to knock out quicker gybes, adding to the suspense. Eric Nelson’s Gardyloo, the lone Henderson 30 in the level-rated class, nipped at the heels of the FTs, as did David Cohen’s J/90, Eye Eye, but by week’s end it was all Flying Tigers on the podium: Chris Winnard’s Dangerous When Striped (aka, Tigger) in first; followed by Kirk Leslie’s Navy named Prowler, down from West Vancouver; and Mark McCuddy’s Tiger Lilly, up from Portland, Oregon.

The top three spots in the 12-boat P2 class proved that solid sailing can overcome challenging ratings. Race week veteran, Wayne Berge’s J/35, The Boss, took third place for the week, behind Stuart Burnell’s J/109, Tantivy. But it was Charlie Macaulay’s familiar black-and-yellow 1-Ton, Absolutely, that scraped her way to the front the fleet.

The firefighters aboard What? A Tripp! also fought hard to climb to the top of their class, P3. Over recent years, the deep blue-hulled boat has ridden the learning curve in the right direction to become the boat to beat. Gary Morgan and Chris Yob’s Tripp-designed Peterson 37 squeaked out a win over Don Will’s Peterson 40, Shoot the Moon, by just half a point, no small feat as the smart money every year has been on Will’s venerable red boat. Tom Kerr’s J/33, Corvo, landed in third. This year’s Broken Bone trophy, fought over like dogs between two Baltics campaigned by local orthopaedic surgeons, Byron Skubi and Mac Madenwald, was snatched up by Skubi’s 37-footer, Skookumchuck.

Class P4 was one of two one-design classes at this year’s Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week. Nine J/105s scuffled all week, with Erik Christiansen’s Jubilee winding up in third behind JP Peterson’s Last Tango, and in first, with five bullets, Mike Schlitz at the tiller of his Money Shot.

In the event’s other one-design class, nine Melges 24s spent the week swarming Penn Cove. Top spot was dibbed early in the contest by Seattleite Dan Kaseler’s pTeron, which finished the week 25 points ahead of the next closest boat. The remaining two slots in class P5 remained a mystery until the finish of race 12. Rod Buck’s Myst came up from Oregon to take second place, followed by Bill Checkley’s newest boat down from Canada, Bula Bula.

The P6 class raced with a 31-second ratings spread but it was the “slow” boat in class that took first for the week. Jim Meteer’s handbuilt 6 meter, Fokus 3, sliced an elegant line through the water while relishing the perfect conditions for the narrow, pinched stern boat. Former race week Boat of the Week winner, Pat Denney’s J/29 Here and Now, took second. One of two Rocket 22s in the class took home third, Mike Mechaelis’ South Lake Union Trolley.

Dennis Muri travels from his home in Montana every summer to call tactics on Ken Chin’s Olson 911, Kowloon, in class P7. By the end of Thursday’s racing Kowloon was so far ahead, “we don’t even have to race on Friday,” said Muri. “But what fun is that? We’re going to go back out there and kick some more butt!” And kick butt they did. Kowloon and her loyal crew earned bullets in both of Friday’s races, as well as taking top honors for the week in class P7. On top of that Kowloon took home for the second year in a row the Performance 30 pennant, one of several in-class trophies, ranging from rum bottles to bones to love pigs, for personal vendettas run renegade-style in addition to the officially sanctioned races. In class P7, Frank Roger’s Santana 30/30 took second, while the S2 9.1, Rubicon, held on to third.

More renegade shenanigans were evident Friday morning when many of the racing boats showed up on the course sporting imaginative new names. Those that can be mentioned on a family website include Doug Ullmer’s Laser 28, Imzadi, trailered from Eugene, whose moniker for Friday was “I’m Dizzy,” to George Brown’s Martin 241, Skookum Too, which competed Friday in class P8 as “Scoop the Poop,” to Adam Korbin’s J.109, Astral Plane, which for Friday was simply known as “Bob.”

With 14 registered entries, class P8 was the largest in the fleet. Four Moore 24s added their unique competitive nature to the mix, including Anthony Devita’s Frecklebelly Madtom, Chris Rosinki’s Moore-On and Ray Poorman’s hot rod, Amore, with Ben Braden’s Moore Team Uff Da taking second. But it was the two Hotfoot 27s in the class that took spots one and three. Not surprisingly, though, it was Moore 24 sailor Andy Schwenk at the helm of Steve Trunkey’s Hotfoot 27, Egress, who took the lead. Mick Corcoran’s Blackfoot secured the number three position for the week.

Event organizer Gary Stuntz, of Clear Ahead Marine Productions, bestowed Boat of the Week honors on Bill Stange’s 40-year-old Columbia 26, Tuesday, which earned straight bullets in class P9. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree when it comes to sailboat racing in the Stange family. Bill handed the helm on Friday to his teenage son who, like his father, managed to put the boat in the right place on the race course and earned Tuesday two more bullets. Duking it out for second and third all week were Shannon Buys’ San Juan 24, Magic Juan, and Oak Harbor locals Jim McAlpine and crew aboard McAlpine’s J/24, Lucky Jim.

Mark your calendars and start preparing for next year’s ‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week, scheduled for Sunday, July 18 through Friday, July 23, 2010

posted by wirw admin at 7:46 AM.

‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week 2009

Day Four – Thursday, July 16

By Liza Tewell

Oak Harbor, WA, USA (July 16, 2009) — The fourth day of the ‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Company Whidbey Island Race Week regatta saw the third day of actual racing. With a minimum of three races shot off each day so far for the 94 boats in 10 starts, this event, 27 years in the running, is an opportunity to immerse one’s self in sailing and hone racing skills. Sailing for multiple – uninterrupted – days is like going on a skiing vacation, where by the last day of the trip double diamonds aren’t nearly as daunting. In the same vein, four or five days in a row of sailboat racing make one a much better sailor than four or five Wednesdays in a row of beer can races. By day three of this year’s race week, it was apparent that the quality of racing had already improved.

On land in Oak Harbor, the temperature had reached 70 degrees by 10:30 Thursday morning, and the thermometer was climbing quickly. In Penn Cove the day had dawned sunny yet still. By start time the breeze had built to a comfortable 8 knots. Though to get to the race course it was safe to keep a bow watch out for the wayward red-and-white buoys bobbing in Penn Cove as dozens of crab pots posed a navigational challenge for those heading out the channel from the Oak Harbor Marina.

By noon, Corinthian Yacht Club-Seattle had set the courses for the fleet and Thursday’s races were on. It was not all guns and roses, however, for the men and women on board the boat from So Cal, as the Melges 32 with articulating pole, Nemesis, found a formidable foe in John Hoag’s Seattle-based 1D35, Shrek, as well as the rest of the “1Ds” in class P0. Going into Thursday’s races, Shrek had played the consistency card and rose like cream to the top of the reader board, even with just one first place in their quiver. That move works best, however, when there are no throw-outs involved. When throw-outs come into effect, those boats that tanked a race can simply pretend it never happened. Which is what Hoag will do with their first race of Thursday, which, to put it kindly, wasn’t their best. Regardless, Hoag was selected as Seattle Yacht Club’s Sailor of the Year for 2006 for a reason, and losing isn’t it. 2006 was the same year his Beneteau 40.7, Snake Eyes, was selected as Seattle Yacht Club Boat of the Year. The prior year, Shrek won the West Coast 1D35 Championship.

Shrek’s pit boss, Bob Combie has raced with Hoag on just about every boat Hoag’s ever campaigned, beginning with Hobie cats and including multiple Offshore Championships. At the 2001 U.S. Offshore Championship, Hoag and his crew posted a winning performance aboard Navy 44s in Chesapeake Bay.

Combie offers up no secrets about their gold medal tactics. “Sail fast and win. Or at least have fun. That’s our usual strategy,” says Combie, fresh from a morning bike ride around Penn Cove.

Thursday’s three races (four for the one-design classes), were not without drama. In the start sequence of class P0, the Cookson 12-Meter, White Cloud, messed it up with YC5, the big red race committee boat. White Cloud’s bow caught the anchor rode of the RC boat, struck the bow of the committee boat with a sickening thud, and yanked out a stanchion. White Cloud quickly withdrew to analyze her damage at the Coupeville dock, but was back on the start line – at the pin end – for race two.

Said the race committee, busy with firing off starts for the remaining nine classes, “At the moment, if we’re not sinking, we don’t care.” The rest of the fleet was busy returning to the starting area (around the ends because the “I” flag was on display) as they had democratically earned themselves a general recall.

Next, class P1 saw the first individual recall of the day when the J/80, Eye Eye, was called “on course side” at the start of the day’s first race. Both classes P2 and P3 were called “all clear,” though What? A Tripp! was the first of the day to unfurl their red protest flag in response to a double-dog-dare-ya during the prestart of class P3. Subsequent classes saw their fair share of recalls, as well, though the usually aggressive J/105s in class P4 were uncharacteristically hesitant to begin Thursday’s contests, finally crossing the line about 10 seconds after the horn sounded. Rod Buck’s Myst and Chris Johnson’s Wiggle Room were the two Melges 24′s called over early, but that’s not always a bad thing, as it forces one’s hand – being the first to port tack and head toward the north beach in search of clear air and a clean lane sometimes pays off if the wind and currents are in one’s favor. Myst and Wiggle Room instead chose the wiser move by quickly tacking back to starboard to hitch a ride up the strong current flooding up the center of the cove.

By the time the next classes were setting up for their first race of the day, the J/125, Roxanne, was legging out on her nearest competitor in the big boat class and approaching their first spinnaker drop. It took only about 40 minutes for Roxanne to reel in the first two legs of the double windward-leeward course. Behind her were the two Melges, Ballistic and Nemesis, and John Leitzinger’s Kahuna, the first of the five 1D35s in class P0 (like his rival, John Hoag, Leitzinger has also won the U.S. Offshore Championship). Meanwhile, most of class P6 was charging across the start line. Bill Sheldon’s Humboldt 30, Opposition, and Ed Snyder’s triple-handed Laser SB3, Back Marker, exchanged some choice words before forcing each other to peel off the race committee boat and take another stab at crossing the start line properly. Hinting at the aggression that the rest of the day had in store, even the usually sedate starters in class P9 posted a premature start when the sail numbers of Gabe Murphy’s Thunderbird, Factotum, were called out over the VHS for all to hear. However, Bill Stange’s Columbia 26, Tuesday, which looks like the kind of boat Bill Murray would sail, pulled off a clean start in the middle of the line.

Like an elaborate nautical square dance, the final few classes in the fleet were beginning their first race while classes 2 through 6 were all rounding the Z mark – set just upwind of the start line – and the Flying Tigers were running down the north shore while the J/109s chose the south shore for their downwind attack. It wasn’t long before Roxanne showed up again, screaming all alone downwind in a sliver of a back eddy on the north beach. (A gutsy move as she’s been known to get a little too cozy with some of the beachfront waters off Oak Harbor.) It was definitely a day for horizon jobs as John Peterson’s J/105, Last Tango, was so far ahead of her sisterships in class P4 one would be hard pressed to guess they were even racing in the same class. After rounding the leeward mark for her second douse for the day, Roxanne was on her way to the finish. And finish she did – before the next boat in class had even made it to the leeward mark. Roxanne crossed the finish line a full leg ahead of her nearest competitor. It was a drubbing.

Continuing the day of big leads, Adam Korbin’s Canadian J/109, Astral Plane, who had a rocky start to the week but crawled back up the reader board by posting a 1-5-2 in class P2 on Wednesday, was also way ahead of the J/35s and other J/109s in her class. But if it was a day of big leads, the first race had some other surprises in store, as well. Rounding the leeward mark first in class P1, Tiger Lilly, Prowler and My Tai stomped on class leader Tigger, who was uncharacteristically helping to bring up the rear.

Race one on Thursday was just the first of what was to be a total of three each for the fleet, plus a fourth race for the one-design classes. By the time the first race was in Thursday’s pocket, crews were busy tallying the myriad mathematical possibilities that a throw-out now added to the equation. The thing about throw-outs is that they don’t favor consistency. It skews the outcome more if one gets to throw out a double-digit fiasco, than if one is required to toss out a 1 or a 2.

The day’s second race was not as blown up as the first, but it was no less exciting. The first weather mark rounding for class P1 was the tightest of the week. The entire class, which consists of seven Flying Tigers, one J/80 and a Henderson 30, hoisted their chutes within 10 seconds of each other. Within moments, the J/105s rounded en masse. Their collective hoists were equally as awe inspiring. Who says that sailboat racing isn’t a spectator sport?

For the final races of the day, a gybe mark was set for the asymmetrical boats off the Coupeville dock. A historic town, used as backdrop for movies thanks to its spectacular waterfront location and charming period buildings, Coupeville draws its share of the tourists who come to Whidbey Island. Those lucky enough to have paused near the ‘red barn’ at the end of the town’s dock, were treated to the sight of nearly 100 sailboats racing up and down Penn Cove. A well-placed gybe mark makes the railings on the Coupeville dock the “best seats in the house,” and brings the action on board the boats close enough for the crowds to hear the heated exchanges between rivals as well as see the intense action that, from a distance, only appears to be quiet and without effort.

The fleet had plenty of on-the-water support and encouragement, as well. A dozen photo boats zipped up and down the cove, documenting the competition. IFB, the event’s press boat, managed to cover much of the action while going about the same speed as free falling from an airplane. Some of the more colorful maneuvers captured forever on film included Avalanche’s unintended sideways spinnaker hoist, and Symbiosis’ port tack start in the third race, which was not at all a bad way to end the day before finishing out the night doing the limbo at the Navy-hosted tropical bbq to live music by Andy-O.

Speaking of symbiosis, a word about sponsors. The reality of the times is that sponsors are a necessity, and not an evil one. The support of those companies and organizations who understand the mutual benefit of such a relationship must be nurtured if the symbiosis of economics and adventure is to continue. So support your sponsors. Please.

p.s. Massages just a dollar a minute in the rum tent.

posted by wirw admin at 6:54 AM.

Day Third – Wednesday, July 15
By Liza Tewell

Oak Harbor, WA, USA (July 15, 2009) — Wednesday, July 15, the third day of the five-day ‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week regatta, brought the total number of starts fired off for the 94 boats so far to 64. Ranging from the J/125, Roxanne, with a PHRF rating of 6, to Tom Black’s US25, Blackie, with a PHRF rating of 244, each of the entries in the regatta’s nine classes has accumulated six races – just one more race is needed to allow each boat a mulligan and to throw out their worst performance for the week.

This year’s event is a week earlier than those of some other years which makes the weather more of a crapshoot, though the marine layer bubbling over the strait to the west on Wednesday morning signaled the imminent arrival of the familiar westerly in Penn Cove.

And a crapshoot is what the sailors faced in the day’s first race. For the first four of the nine classes competing, they saw their initial race – a longish windward leeward – abandoned because of a 90-degree wind shift at the leeward mark set in Saratoga Passage. Whereas the westerly in Penn Cove was consistent and true, the wind outside the cove shifted to a northerly after the race began. The convergence of both winds created a hole, coincidentally just where the big yellow triangle was set. An hour earlier the breeze was stable, but as the sailors aboard the nearly 100 racing boats have learned, anything can happen weather-wise in early July.

Though temperatures did not reach into the 70s, sunscreen was still a necessity. When the sun comes out in the Northwest, even if a northerly bent to the breeze keeps it cool, sunburns arrive quick and hot. When it comes to sunblock application, mid-July racing at sea level can be uncannily like spring skiing in the Cascades.

With a day of three races already under the collective belt of the fleet, and another couple of days slated for more competition, one day doesn’t necessarily make a regatta. The decision to abandon the race was made in the best interest of running fair races. Unlike some weekend races when there’s only one chance at running the course and that’s it, a regatta such as this, with the possibility of perhaps 11 races total, the choosing to run – or abandon – a race is made in the best interest of holding the fairest race possible. Those who may have felt it was the right decision included the Melges 32, Ballistic, whose Tuesday starts were a little more on target. On board is rigger Chris Tutmark, who is taking a breather from campaigning his Mini TransAt. Follow his progress at http://usa724-mini.blogspot.com/.

Because the wind was a bit breezier on Wednesday, the current a little messier, and opening day jitters had given way to more cut-throat competition, starts were more aggressive, as well. The “Performance 30” boats in Class P7 even managed to rack up a race week rarity – a general recall. Unfortunately in some classes, not all boats that were on course side when the horn sounded went back to dip the line, resulting in some unhappy campers, literally. Plus, an additional finish line created some confusion to those who didn’t keep track of the courses as best that maybe they should, as a start line violation results in automatic disqualification.

For those who did manage to keep track of their proscribed courses throughout the day, they were lucky. Of course, there are those who say that luck is when preparation meets opportunity. And then there were those who went into Wednesday’s racing with some unanticipated issues, such as DSQs from the protest hearings in the morning. Wednesday’s interesting results simply added to the hodgepodge, indicating that the regatta is far from decided.

Those who were seeming to be the clear front-runners Tuesday in class P4, Erik Kristen’s Jubilee, and Mike Schiltz’s Money Shot, were shadowed by the performance of Lorenzo Migliorini’s Allegro Vivace on Wednesday, who pulled a reversal of fortune. “There are a lot of good sailors in our class,” says Kelly Martin, emphasizing “a lot.” A crewmember aboard Bifrost III, Martin acknowledges that the talent among the one-design J/105 class is not lacking.

There are plenty of distractions, however, to keep racers from dwelling too much on missed starts and rules infractions. Crabbing (with a license) is legal Wednesday through Saturday in the waters around Oak Harbor, and in addition to sails and foulweather gear, and sandwiches and beer, several boats also carted crab pots out to the race course. Planning to pool their catches of Dungeness crab, the racers of ‘Ohana Whidbey Island Race Week seem to be channeling the Deadliest Catch.

Back at the docks, the plethora of hotel boats make sure that the instant community that has sprung up on the Oak Harbor Marina guest docks is full of like-minded sailors who play as hard as they race.

On dry land, REI tents have sprouted like mushrooms in tent city on the Navy base, just a stone’s throw from the marina – and the rum tent. A misnomer, the tent is actually an area on the beachfront grounds of the Oak Harbor Yacht Club that’s surrounded by vendors and drink stations. A covered stage at one end hosts a live band during each evening’s festivities and results ceremony. It’s been some years since the party grounds were indeed held in a true tent, not unlike a circus big-top, but the name stuck.

Additionally, the handle “Adult Summer Camp” is also a misnomer as there are half as many kids at race week as adults. In fact, some adults were at one time the kids at the regatta. Those still making the transition between the two include Clara Koch, who, at the age of 12, is at her 13th race week. Koch was just three months old when she attended Whidbey Island Race Week for the first time. Brenda Stuntz, racing in P5 her all-women Melges 24, Cool Beans, and her husband Gary Stuntz, organizer of Whidbey Island Race Week, have brought along for his first race week, the newest member of their family, three-week old Christian James.

posted by wirw admin at 7:34 AM.

‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week 2009

Day Two – Tuesday, July 14
By Liza Tewell

Oak Harbor, WA, USA (July 14, 2009) — For the 94 boats competing in the 9 classes of ‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week, the crew’s watches could be set by the noon-sharp start of Tuesday’s first race, one of three races completed successfully during the second of five race days scheduled for the 27th annual regatta. Making up for the event’s first day, which was sat out in non-wind, day two of the five-day regatta chalked up a total of 27 starts plus finishes, and more than 100 mark roundings.

Ranging in PHRF ratings from 6 to 244, the fleet kept PRO Charlie Rathkopf and his crew from Seattle’s Corinthian Yacht Club busy deciding which marks to assign to which class in order to give the nearly 100 boats enough room to maneuver within the waters of Penn Cove. The race committee’s fleet of five vessels ran three solid races between noon and 5:00 pm, testament to why the club was awarded the US Sailing One-Design Club Award in 2001 for its outstanding performance in support of sailboat racing.

New this year was a decision to increase communication between the race committee and the fleet, including calling countdowns for the start, and attempting to hail those boats “on course side” at the starts. The philosophy of this courtesy being that those seasoned enough to not need the reassurance could take it or leave it, but those newer to the sport would find the assistance a help to their learning curve. For the race committee itself, it is hoped that over-earlies would be reduced – a benefit to all involved.

Regardless, and thanks to the still-flooding current, premature starts were still seen in about half the starts earlier in the day. However, and thanks to the increase in communication, those that were over early were alerted to their infraction and restarted, rather than having to spend an entire race competing only to find at the end that it was all for naught. Nearer the end of the race day, as the tide turned and the currents rushed back out the cove, over-earlies became more rare, though of course there were a fair share of protests, and a collision or two, including one involving the head committee boat itself.

But with a refreshed Corinthian spirit, the fleet began Tuesday’s competition under clearing skies, a freshening breeze and mild temperatures looking to reach the low 70s. Still pushing the last of the lingering low out the door, the winds were a bit fluky for the day’s first race. Conventional wisdom says head to the northern beach and hop aboard the elevator. But go too far in too early on Tuesday and one would find themselves languishing in the calm waters of a still undecided breeze as the wind, unsettled and restless, coaxed the racers to the northern shore like Greek sirens.

One thing was apparent – banging the corners was a Penn Cove rule that still held true for Tuesday’s three races. When the waters rush up Saratoga Passage and find themselves pinched out as Skagit Bay constricts into an increasingly narrower outlet, the water doglegs into Penn Cove and flushes through the bay in a counter-clockwise rotation, creating what’s called “the toilet bowl.” When the tide turns and comes spilling back into Saratoga from the Skagit Bay northern spigot it again finds refuge in the nearest outlet: Penn Cove. So whether coming or going, the water rushes up the north shore and back down the south shore. But there are several shifty shoals, and if the wind shuts off, even the wind can’t save you.

A quick look at the regatta’s first day results shows how it all shook out, and how well boats, skippers and crew were able to negotiate the myriad challenges of the Penn Cove playground:

Making the short trip up Whidbey Island from his current home in the artist town of Langley, Soling world champion and Olympian medalist Jeff Madrigali joined the crew on Tuesday of the fleet’s scratch boat, the J/125 Roxanne. A solid performance wasn’t enough, however, to keep her ahead in the ratings game. Instead it was WIRW first-timers from San Diego who took top honors for the day. The Melges 32, Nemesis, goes into Wednesday’s racing top of the reader board ahead of the Melges 30, Ballistic. Essentially similar hulls with modifications, the Melges 30 and the Melges 32 fight like siblings. The top 1D35 in class, John Hoag’s 1D35, Shrek, rounds out the top trio. Bob King, tactician aboard Roxanne, explained some of the strategy behind how a J/125 is to compete against two Melges and a boat load of 1D35s. Without giving away too much, suffice it so say that King firmly believes in not only knowing your own strengths and weaknesses, but those of your rivals as well.

Designed by Robert Perry (who coincidentally lives on one of the islands in the local archipelago to which Whidbey Island belongs), the seven Flying Tigers in class P1 were pestered relentlessly by Eric Nelson’s Henderson 30, Gardyloo, though the top three boats for Tuesday in this level-rated class were all FT10Ms: Prowler, Dangerous When Striped and Firecracker. Gardyloo’s inadvertent lassoing of the leeward mark in the day’s second race – and consequent exonerating spin – was enough to put her out of pickle dish territory for the first real day of racing.

By about 2:00, as race 2 got underway in a breeze that had picked up but still not broken double digits, Adam Korbin’s J/109, Astral Plane, added her own unique handicap to the P2 class when she crossed the start line in the day’s second race three minutes late – under a wee #3 jib, putting her out of contention for the day’s top three places, which were earned instead by the J/109s Tantivy and Illusionist in first and third, sandwiching Wayne Berg’s stalwart J/35, The Boss, in second. Not windy enough to qualify as a “sailmaker’s stimulus package,” Tuesday still threw the sailmakers a bone or two as several entrants returned to the stalls after the day’s racing in need of repairs.

Several classes have their own traditional rivalries, the Furniture 40s in class P3 being one of them. Mac Madenwald’s Baltic 39, Pangaea took third for the day, throwing down the first gauntlet in the perpetual race for the “broken bone trophy” between him and colleague, Byron Skubi and Dr. Skubi’s Baltic 37, Skookumchuck. (In the day’s third race the two actually tied.) Another race week regular, Don Wills’ Shoot the Moon returned for her 27th year, and took second for the day. Don’s son, Andrew – age 27 – once sailing as a baby by Don’s feet, now sails by his side as co-captain. But it was the firefighters aboard the Peterson 37, What? A Tripp who took top honors for the day in class.

There’s something satisfying about seeing a stable of similar steeds charging the start, and the nine one-design J/105s in class P4 do just that. First place went to Mike Schiltz’s Money Shot, which sports a tiller rather than the famously oversized J/105 wheel. Rounding out Tuesday’s triumvirate were Erik Kristen’s Jubilee and Jerry Diercks’ Delirium.

Three bullets were to be expected by Seattle NOOD champion Don Kasele and his crew aboard the Melges 24 pTeron, fifth-place winners in last month’s Melges 24 U.S. National Championship held in San Francisco Bay. But the play of the day belonged solidly to Chris Johnson’s Wiggle Room, who port tacked the start in the last race of the day, rolling over the entire class, including pTeron. Says Wiggle Room crew Lynn Gleason, “We didn’t really plan it. Bruce (the driver for that race) saw a lane and bang! We went for it.”

The seductive lines of the two 6 Meters in class P6 do more than just look good. When the breeze picks up and the water’s flat, they glide around the course like a knife through warm butter. Jim Metteer’s stunning hand-built Fokus 3 stayed far enough ahead on time of Mike Mechaelis’ Rocket 22, South Lake Union Trolley, and Chris White’s J/80, Crazy Ivan, to stay in first place for the day.

Another classic rivalry is the friendly competition among class P7. Dubbed ‘Performance 30’ for their relative similar waterline length, the assortment of boats ranges from the scratch boat in class, Ken Chin’s Olson 911, Kowloon, to the two J/30s, Allen Roberts’ Jayhawk, and Grady Morgan’s Slingshot. Throw in a Laser 28 and a C&C 33 and you’ve got a spodie-odie of sailing styles. By week’s end the winners may have changed several times, but after three good races on Tuesday it was perennial favorite Kowloon followed closely by Lance Staughton’s S2 9.1, Symbiosis in second, and Doug Ullmer’s Laser 28, Imzadi in third.

The noisiest start of Tuesday also belongs to the regatta’s biggest class. With 14 boats jostling for one of three daily spots, class P8 is bound to mix it up all over the course. Throw in a bunch of Moore 24 sailors and you’ve got a recipe for raucous racing. Conspicuously absent from the front of the fleet at the beginning of the day’s contests, Ben Braden and his Team MUD Moore 24 exhibited a more expected performance in the day’s second and third races. It wasn’t enough to earn them a top spot for the day, however, but perhaps Team MUD was simply getting their throw-out out of the way early. Beating the Hotfoot 27, Blackfoot, in a tie breaker for second place, Moore 24 racer Stephanie Schwenk and her all-women crew on her new Santa Cruz 27, Wild Rumpus (p.s. the movie comes out in October), gave the first place boat, Egress, the other Hotfoot 27 in class P8 a run for their money. Steve Trunkey’s Egress is being campaigned by yet another Moore 24 sailor, Schwenk’s husband, Andy…

Consistently crossing the finish line first in class P9 is the second “slowest” boat in the fleet, Bill Stange’s classic Columbia 26, Tuesday. Local Oak Harbor boats Lucky Jim, Jim McAlpine’s J/24, and Shannon Buys’ San Juan 24, Magic Juan, took second and third.

By 6:00 pm on Tuesday, as the fleet began their half-hour mosey back to the protection of the Oak Harbor Marina, the earthy smell of cattle was carried down on the back of warm thermals to the water below Blower’s Bluff, promising more wind and sunshine in the days ahead.

Protests in some classes were pending as of Tuesday night, to be settled soon after dawn on Wednesday. None, however, affected the top three spots in any of the day’s classes. But with three solid days of racing still in the forecast, any ding to one’s results could be damaging. For those so affected, chances are they are hoping for at least 7 races for the week to toss that scarlet letter as a throw-out.

posted by wirw admin at 8:59 AM.

‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week 2009

Day One – Monday, July 13

By Liza Tewell

Oak Harbor, WA, USA (July 13, 2009) — Monday, July 13, 2009, 94 sailboats congregated in the waters of Washington State’s Penn Cove in anticipation of ‘Ohana Harbor Coffee Whidbey Island Race Week XXVII. Unfortunately, the wind was left off the guest list. Regardless, enthusiasm remained high as the approximately 500 racers looked forward to the remaining four days of competition. Indeed, this annual regatta, which attracts entrants from across North America, is one of the last true race “weeks.”

In spite of battling a dampened economic climate, racers from as far south as San Diego and Canada to the north chose to spend their time and racing budget at what is affectionately called Adult Summer Camp. And though 2009 is both a Transpac and Van Isle 360 year, which traditionally lure away some talent as boats and crew must decided where and when to spend their sailing vacation, several first timers made the trek across Deception Pass to race in the waters off the third largest island in the contiguous United States.

By Saturday, prior to the Sunday evening kick-off party on the lawn of the Oak Harbor Yacht Club, many of the sailboats had already arrived, securing not only their pre-assigned berths but also coveted tent spots at the end of the docks. Those that did choose to spend their Saturday traveling by land or sea to the Oak Harbor Marina were treated to a day that was sunny, breezy and hot, with temperatures reaching the mid 80s. Also taking advantage of the weather were Hobie racers who staged their two-day HCA Area Championship in the waters outside Oak Harbor on Saturday and Sunday. Many of those partaking of that regatta simply stayed on, hopping aboard bigger boats Monday as crew transitioned between the back-to-back regattas.

When the largest body of water on earth is just a stone’s throw away, however, the weather is a tease at best and a fickle temptress at worst. By Saturday night, the skies between Whidbey Island and Camano Island lit up like the Fourth of July as a low ushered in a summer thunderstorm which rolled noisily in from the west. Sunday dawned cool and damp, with grey skies obscuring the Navy jets that roared overhead.

The Navy presence is a race week tradition, as the nearby Naval Air Station Whidbey Island makes Oak Harbor truly a sailor’s town. Prior to 911, a Thursday night barbeque at the Navy’s Crescent Harbor was a much-anticipated event. Race week organizers have worked together with the Navy to resurrect the tradition and for the second year in a row the public is once again invited on base to the dinner and dance on the docks. The Navy has also again opened up the base for free camping, with the distance between the campsite and the docks being about 50 yards.

Tension had plenty of time to build on Monday as the racers drifted around the waters of Penn Cove waiting for wind to arrive. Two horns at the noon start time signaled what everyone already knew: postponement. About an hour later, a whisper of a breeze skipped across the water, prompting the race committee to send the mark boats west toward the head of the cove, just in case. The breeze was fleeting, however, lasting no longer than a sigh. By 3:00, the fleet was on their way back to the marina, race-less.

“It is what it is,” says racer Richard Hargreaves, of the lack of wind on Monday. Hailing originally from England, but now calling Canada home, Hargreaves is crewing aboard Simon Walmsley’s 1D35 Carrera. “I kind of like it when the first day doesn’t really happen,” he says philosophically. “It kind of deflates all the tension so by the time it really starts everyone’s ready to just race.”

Carrera is one of five 1D35s competing in class P0. Their PHRF rating of 36 pits them against the fleet’s scratch boat, Greg Slyngstad’s J/125, Roxanne, who rates a 6. Rumor has it that Olympian Jeff Madrigali may join the Roxanne crew later in the week. Rounding out class P0 is the Cookson 12 Meter, White Cloud, who comes in at an 18, and two Melges, Geoff Longenecker’s Melges 30, which made the trip up from California by trailer, and the 2006 Whidbey Island Race Week boat of the week, Brad Cole’s Melges 32, Ballistic.

This year, just two classes qualified for one-design status, the Melges 24 class and the J/105 class. Both attained the magic number of nine entries. That’s six boats less than the previous year for the Melges 24 fleet, but 2008 was the Pacific Coast Championships for the Melges 24, as well as for the Moore 24. Sailmaker Gary Stuntz, owner of Clear Ahead Marine Productions and the event organizer, forecasts that Whidbey Island Race Week will continue to attract fleet championships.

Though not attracting enough to qualify for a one-design start, the Flying Tigers actually saw a year-over-year increase in entrants, up three to seven. They’ll be flying around the course with the lone J/90, David Cohen’s Eye Eye, which made its annual trek from Idaho, and Eric Nelson’s Henderson 30, Gardlyoo, whose trip up from nearby Tacoma is slighter shorter. Though both Cohen’s and Henderson’s ratings are each 54, for the regatta the entire P1 class will be level-racing at 57.

No regatta is without controversy, however, and race week 2009 is not an exception. Decisions made by management to adjust ratngs based on numerous factors, including venue conditions, did not sit well with the J/109s in class P2, which consists mainly of J/109s and J/35s. Those familiar with the boats can readily identify the differences with the older style J/35s and their newer cousins. The shaving off of a few seconds from the J/109 PHRF rating to 69 may, or may not, make a difference to the results.

In the end, it’s all about the racing, though those who came to race are willing to put up with a little fun while waiting for wind to arrive at the party. Sunday’s live band kept the sailors dancing for hours, and Monday’s band let crews shake off the anticipation that built up earlier in the day. Monday was also the first of two Penn Cove mussel nights hosted by the Oak Harbor Yacht Club. For only $11, one could feast on an entire pound of the moist mollusks (harvested just hours earlier from just around the corner), fresh green salad, plus garlic bread to sop up the savory nectar. Throw in another buck and you’d get an ear of sweet corn on the cob. The volleyball nets, this year brilliantly cordoned inside the rum tent, saw action until it got too dark to see the balls. In the dying light, Catherine Pica, who is doing race committee duty for Seattle’s Corinthian Yacht Club, offered a tentative prediction for Tuesday’s races.

“I think we’ll have a race or two,” says Pica. “The low (that arrived Saturday night) has finally come and hopefully gone, and now,” she says with more of a wish than a conviction, “the high-ish is here.”

posted by wirw admin at 5:17 AM.