Lee Bow Current

(Lee bow current is when the current is pushing the boat from the down wind (lee) side of the boat ) Understanding what the currents are doing on the Bay and using them to your advantage can make a big difference in your performance around the racecourse. On a flood tide the current is coming in and on an ebb tide the current is going out as we have all learned in Basic Sailing. Knowing the strength of the current at any given time will help you understand the currents effect on the movement of the boat across the bottom and ultimately to our destination. When racing, we want to use the currents to our advantage when possible. This includes staying in the stronger current if it moves us faster to our destination and staying out of it if it slows us down or takes us away from our destination. As a rule the currents are generally stronger where the water is deeper. Knowing the current and its effect will influence your decision on when to tack or jibe onto a lay-line to the mark. When sailing toward a weather mark - lee bow current will generally push the boat to windward towards the mark. Taking advantage of this may allow you to tack early and use the current to lift you towards the mark thereby sailing a shorter distance. When approaching and rounding a windward mark, lee bow current will help to keep the boat from hitting the mark as the current will be pushing you away from it. Knowing this may help you keep an inside position as you round the mark. When sailing off the wind and toward a leeward mark, lee bow current will be pushing you either toward or away from the mark. This may influence the heading you choose to the mark compensating for the pushing effect of the current. When approaching and rounding the mark make sure you have plenty of room between you and the mark so as not to get pushed into it. Knowing the tides and currents are an important aspect of sailing on the Bay. Understanding them and using them to your advantage will help you in a big way. Please feel free to post any questions in the comments.

Smooth Sailing.

Rich

Spinnaker Sailing

The 2011-2012 Winter Series Has Begun

Sailors: The Merit Winter Series Race No. 1 was sailed on November 13 with a record Five Mighty Yachts crowding the start line! Here are the season standing after one race, with a four-way tie for sixth place: 1. Hans & the fearsome Dutch/French/Dutch/French boat (Dave Preageant counts as French) .75 points 2. Brett 2 pts 3. Peter McCormick 3 pts 4. Dave Goeke 4 pts 5. Gary Polson 5 pts 6. John Dick 7 pts. 6. Your name here 7 pts 6. Jeremy W. 7 pts 6. You get the idea 7 pts If you did not race the first race because you were playing for the 49ers on Nov. 13th, then: -Thanks, good victory! -Sorry the Niners cut you. -You have 7 points in the series, and one throw-out, so come on down with your crew and race THIS SUNDAY DEC 4: START TIME 1PM. Peter McCormick has two season championships! Hans has never won a season, but has Peter pinioned in third place and is coming off a three-bullet sweep of the Los Gatos Challenge!! What will happen this year?!?!?!?!?!? Inquiring minds want to know... See you at the start line, -Brett Herr

2010 Winter Racing Series

Its time once again for the Winter Racing Series to begin. Starting in November we will be racing Merit 25s on the third sunday of the month. The start time is 1:00pm and the mandatory finish time is 4:00pm. If you want to skipper a boat please reserve one with Mike or Bob at least a week in advance to guarantee yourself a Merit. There will be no skippered boats during this series as this race is a series of races and accrued points go to the skipper. Try SailMates if you want to be crew or if you are looking for crew. Check out our webpage for more details.

Now in the Extended Season

Well we are now in our official extended season with races starting a half hour earlier than the normal season due to the nights coming sooner. The boats are still being reserved to capacity and it seems our racers don't want the season to end at all. Perhaps we will even have a winter race series. Stay tuned for more.

2009 Cheeseburger in Paradise Regatta and BBQ

Sally Mitchell, Pascal Bruyere, (skipper) Jeremy Westerman, Steve Castelotti

Winners of the 2009 Cheeseburger in Paradise Regatta

So how does it feel to come in first in the biggest race of the Spinnaker Sailing Club year? Well by all observations, it's nonstop smiling. The water was flat, the wind picked up late and so the course was hot and fast. Most entrants finished in under 3 hours which was an amazing feat. The course was from the end of the Redwood Landing Marina to marker 12 at the San Mateo Bridge and back again, This was the fastest race in the history of the Cheeseburger and the competition was very close. Just about everyone had the boats put away and were at the conference center well before the 5:00pm BBQ start time so there were a few beers to be had before the food began coming off the grill and there was plenty for everyone. Check our link to the website for more pictures and please feel free to comment on this blog if you wish to add your own perspectives. There was still some room on the deck of the conference center so if you didn't make it to this event, you could have. Next year we expect an even larger crowd, so be sure to RSVP for this well ahead of time.

2009 Beercan Racing is ON!!!

Well the beginning of the 2009 Beercan racing season is on with a vengeance. All but one Merit have gone out in the first two races, and that includes the newest boat M8 which coincidentally makes 8 boats in the Merit fleet. Since M8 is so new and does not have matching sails as the other boats we are reserving this boat for our "Club" boat so anyone who signs up to race as crew could potentially get aboard this rocket and have a better chance at winning. This should even out the odds when comparing the efficiency of a crew that works together regularly together. Don't wait until the last minute to sign up as the best boats go fast. (pun intended : ) So then, as they say, " The race is on!"

Winter Racing Final

Well our last race for the Winter Series concluded Sunday with Brett Herr taking the finish and John Dick who was subbing for Dave Goecke came in second with Peter McCormick coming in last when he tried to take a shortcut across the mud : ) The final tally for the season gave us a tie for second with Brett Herr and Peter McCormick having identical scores after dropping the worst race from the season. Dave Goecke gave a mighty showing after joining the series after the first race had already been run and having to use ALL of his races in the series without the forgiveness of throwing out your worst race like the other racers had. All in all this was a great time for our die hard racers who refuse to shut down for the winter. Congrats to all and hopefully we will run this again next year!

Last Race Called for Wind

Well, the San Francisco Bay is famous for it's wind, but yesterday that would have seemed an understatement. Gusting to 32 knots in the channel and over 40 knots on the bay we decided to call the race off rather than flirt with disaster and have to clean that mess up after it happened. There is a saying, " It is better to be on land and wish you were at sea than to be at Sea and wish you were on land"

Till next time,


Mike

Winter Racing Season update

Well the February winter race date Feb 15 got postponed due to inclement weather (really windy) so it was actually held 2/22 where we had less wind and plenty of rain. The few souls who showed up were hearty indeed and all returned safely and had a great time anyway. After all the weather we get down here is just an excuse to use the foul weather gear we bought anyway. The results are as follows:
1st place- Dave Goeke
2nd place- Brett Herr and Peter McCormick

Totals for the season so far, excluding one race per entrant:

1st place Peter McCormick - 3.50
2nd place Brett Herr - 4.75
3rd place Dave Goecke - 5.75

December Winter Race

There was a bit more of a turnout this month as Dave Goecke, Brett Herr and Peter McCormick went head to head in light air to try to establish a leading position in the series standings. All finished the race and they posted the following results:

1st place Brett Herr .75
2nd place Peter McCormick 2.00
3rd place Dave Goecke 3.00



The series totals to date are as follows:

1st place Peter McCormick 2.75
1st place Brett Herr 2.75
2nd place Dave Goecke 3.00

Miraculously because there were only 3 entrants and there is a tie for first, nobody came in last. Go figure.