Fall 48 at Lake Norman YC

We just got back to the room following a good day of racing. This is our first time visiting here, we had heard it was really nice but we were still impressed, what an awesome club/venue.


Here is one of the club docks from the porch

A view of the cove which is wrapped by club property

The weather was decidedly grey with some early fog/mist which became rain about the time we returned to the club. Three five leg windward leeward races were completed in about 8 to 12 knots of breeze. Allan Terhune with Kris Smith crewing have a commanding lead. We faile to visit the scoreboard before leaving the club so we don't know the actual results. Great reporting eh?!

We had two threes and maybe a 12, Hans had a couple of twos and maybe a six, Mike Miller is up there too so we see tomorrow.

Being Halloween there were some festive ones at the dinner I took some photos but the light was bad so they werent so good;

Here is our oldest skipper recieving an award

Stacey Brake the mermaid collecting and enjoying her prize

We will try to get an update up tomorrow before we hit the road for home.

Flying Scots give it a go on Lake Eustis

We raced only on Saturday this past weekend (October 24 and 25), since that was the only day the breeze cooperated – and even then it cooperated somewhat grudgingly.

Eight Scots turned out on Saturday: Dave and Jay Asaibene in 5179, Ray Laguna and Charles Devereau in 5770, Pete Smith and Mary Anne Bennett in 715, Jack Bazner and Joe Lobato in 3387, Chuck Smith and Tony Tussing in 5125, Francois Simon and Dean Grimes in 3362, Ron Baerwitz, sailing solo in 3360, and me with Nick Chorley in 5810.

Ron in 3360 was the big winner for the day. He placed first in both races, with never a serious challenge from anyone. His success was due, no doubt, to outstanding crew work, even if his crew did lead him over the line early in the first race. Nick and I in 5810 managed second in each race, but only because we caught some lucky breaks. In the first race, we split from the fleet and managed to hold off Ray and Charles in 5770, who finished third. In the second race, Francois and Dean in 3362 were ahead of us the entire final windward leg to an upwind finish, when a magic lift pointed us straight for the stern of the Committee Boat and a second place finish, leaving Francois and Dean in third, no doubt wondering whether there is justice in the world.

On Sunday, although we again had a good turnout of Scots, the Race Committee abandoned racing after about half a windward leg. No races were completed.

Complete results are posted on the Lake Eustis Fleet website. Thanks to everyone who came out this weekend.

This past weekend ended our Keenan Series, and I’ll get series results out shortly. Our next series – the Hartge Series – begins on November 6 and 7.


Reminder: Sarasota District Regatta; November 6 and 7 are also the dates of the Sarasota District Regatta. Dave Thinel has previously distributed the Notice of Race, but I’ll attach another copy to this e mail. I plan to attend (with Nick Chorley’s help), and I know Ray Laguna has been thinking about going as well. I’d love for us to have a good turnout from Fleet 150. Sarasota Bay is a wonderful place to sail, and the Sarasota Sailing Squadron are outstanding hosts.

Thanks to all. George

Flying Scot Regattas are On Sale! Now!

What's this you say? You already knew the Miami regatta had no entry fee, plus it happened already. The other Florida District regattas are only $50 to $60 or so, how much less could they be?

I may be a little late to this party but I just scored another Hotel deal from Priceline. So the regattas themselves may not be on sale but the most expensive part of traveling is hotel rooms and there are some deals to be had.

I just did my first "name your price" deal on Priceline a couple weeks ago. We snagged a room at the Doubletree in Naples for $45, check that, it was a suite. Not one, but two nice flat screen TV's, marble countertops, WiFi, very nice pool, a really nice bed and best of all; free warm chocolate chip cookies at the front desk when you check in! I don't know what they thought of old Pig Pen lounging around in their parking lot but nobody said a word.

So this weekend we are going to Lake Norman NC to do the Fall 48 and we could camp or get a room. Hmmmmmmm, camp or room. Checking the weather and seeing nightly low temps forecasted to be mid forties, and camping is quickly losing it's rustic appeal. So, I decided to check out Priceline again, I chose 2 1/2 stars and the small area near the lake, and for good karma, tried $45 again. After entering the offer a red pop-up appears informing me that my low bid has little chance of being accepted. So I paused a moment and remembered about the tent being plan B and hit the submit button. A minute or two of suspense later and poof my bid was accepted! Nice. This time they booked us in a Fairfield Inn which was the highest rated hotel in that area, sounds good so far. Curious about the "normal rate" I checked online and saw that room available for $89. Cool.

The only real drawback I see to this method is the rooms are not refundable, I can live with that.

So maybe you are on the fence about attending the Florida District Sarasota Regatta Nov. 7 and 8.Ok, you will have to race against these two guys...
and Susan and John might kick your butt...

Maybe the lure of the aqua blue water, perfect sea-breeze, some free drinks, a pile of good food and great Scot racing wasn't enough to nudge you along....What if the Hotels were On Sale Now?!

Get Busy!

The Heat Is On

The Lake Eustis and Tampa fleets both faced the summer heat, check that, the October heat that seems like July. WTF. Here is the blow by blow;

Light wind this weekend at Lake Eustis, but at least it was miserably hot.

It’s easy to understand intellectually that the heat will break soon, but it’s sure hard to believe it!

Saturday, six Scots raced: Ray Laguna and Glenda Libby in 5770, Dave and Jay Asaibene in 5179, Ann Ireland and Joe McConkey in 5366, Francois Simon, ably assisted by Francois Simon, in 3362 (but confusingly sporting sails with 770 on them), Jack Bazner and Joe Lobato in 3387, and me with Dean Grimes in 5810.

Both races were sailed in light but not minimal air. There was enough breeze to sit on the rail at times, but not so much that anyone was overpowered. Each race was two laps to a downwind finish.

In the first race, Ray and Glenda led the whole way in 5770, although Dean and I did our best to make them nervous, especially downwind. Ray, though, did a terrific job of keeping to the inside on the downwinds and we were unable to get past them. Ray and Glenda crossed the finish line first in 5770, Dean and I followed in 5810, and Jack and Joe were third in 3387.

In the second race, Dean and I were over early and had to round the pin end to restart (my fault entirely). We continued on port and caught a nice breeze on the right side. Thus, we switched roles with Ray and Glenda, and managed to lead the whole race, with nervous moments both upwind and down as Ray and Glenda came on fast. Dean and I held on for first in 5810, with Ray and Glenda second in 5770 and Francois Simon, working both ends of his boat, third in 3362.

All in all, in spite of a depressingly light forecast, Saturday produced some nice sailing.

On Sunday, though, another depressingly light forecast proved depressingly accurate. A number of sailors showed up at the club and launched their boats, but most were intimidated by the shifty one or two knot breeze and did not sail. That and the 90+ degree heat and humidity.

In the first race, there were just two Scots on the water – Chuck Smith and Tony Tussing in 5125 and Dean and me in 5810. The race was a reach-fest, as the wind went left and stayed there the whole time. Dean and I finished first and Chuck and Tony came across second.

The second race on Sunday was much the same, with port tack strongly favored, but at least Francois joined us on the water. Annoyingly so, because he sailed fast and finished first, followed by Dean and me in 5810 and Chuck and Tony in 5125.

David Leather of the MC fleet pinch-hit for Dave Williams on the Committee boat this weekend, and did a great job. Many thanks to David.

Lake Eustis. The next fleet racing at Lake Eustis will be in two weeks – October 24 and 25. We’re supposed to get cooler temperatures later this week. Let’s all hope for some cool weather and steady breezes in two weeks!

Florida Districts. The next Florida District regatta is in Sarasota on Saturday and Sunday, November 7 and 8. I’m seriously thinking about attending, and it would be great to have a good turnout from our fleet (even though that regatta conflicts with a club racing weekend). The Sarasota Sailing Squadron make wonderful hosts, and Sarasota Bay is a shockingly beautiful place to sail. The regatta ought to be a great deal of fun. I’ll e mail everyone a link to the NOR as soon as I can, and if you’re thinking of going let’s coordinate by e mail..

Thanks to all who braved the heat this weekend. I’ll look forward to seeing everyone in two weeks.

George

Here is the scoop from Tampa;

It's October, it's the Fall, a chill is in the air, NOT! Fortunately for the six teams that came out on Saturday the 8-12k Southwesterly did keep us moving.

Big thanks to Dave Bell, Susan Cintron, Keith Lockley and Mark Taylor for running the 5 nice races, well done!

The racing was very tight, the breeze was shifty enough that no lead was safe, and I think that every finish had multiple overlapped boats at the downwind finish. No team dominated but in the end Dave Clement and new crew Andrew prevailed with the most consistent score line. The breeze built as the day progressed
and Al and Cameron got faster, winning the last race and the tiebreaker for second with Paul and Leslie.

Results:

Team R1 R2 R3 R4 R5 Tot

Dave Clement / Andrew # 4925 1 3 2 1 2 9
Al Thompson / Cameron Salmon # 504 4 4 1 2 1 12
Paul Silvernail / Leslie Fisher # 5026 2 1 3 3 3 12
Dean Bell / Lisa Hayward # 5477 3 5 4 4 4 20
Drew and Andy Hayward # 38 5 2 5 5 dns 7 24
Matt Dalton / Dawn Naramore # 2262 6 6 6 6 dns 7 31

Our next practice is Sat November 7th @ 1400. Jay Tyson has volunteered to be Race Committee, BIG thanks Jay! And the next biggie is the DIYC Thanksgiving Regatta Nov 28, 29th that is always a great turnout and a fun time!

Andy

Kim and I attended neither of the above, instead we had committed to running races for handicapped kids in Clearwater. I know,I know, they wanted handicapped people to run the reces, blah blah blah, I get that.

In the morning we had little breeze and big current so I spent a good part of the time towing the sailors upcurrent before they got sucked under the Clearwater Pass bridge and out to the gulf. There were, fortunently, no incidents. The southerly sea breeze kicked in right after lunch so the kids on the afternoon shift had a good time of it. I had lots of practice with the Boston Whaler.

Make plans now for Sarasota Nov 7 and 8!

Piggy's Last Stand

We were talking about the competition assembling for the Miami Regatta, the first in the FL State Series, and we wondered if we would be using it as our throw out.

Robby Brown, with Nate V crewing, Mark and Tom Taylor would be tough, Ron P with Chuck –a dangerous team—it wasn't going to be easy, especially if it blew! We also thought the Pardeys were coming, a last minute injury to Marshall kept them away. Eleven boats in all, it was great to see some new faces!

On Saturday morning, the race committee did a great job being patient, and waiting for the breeze to arrive. Several of us went swimming during the postponement – the heat was beastly. We made the serious miscalculation of bringing too little to drink, note to self, fix that for Sunday. We ended up getting in three races on Saturday – light air of like 5 to 10, unless you are Mark Taylor, then it was much less! Good conditions for us lightweights and we somehow managed to get 3 bullets. Quite exciting and very surprising.

It was nice to get back to the dock to a waiting keg and out of the blazing sun. Maybe it was just me but I was really hot, a little dehydrated and somewhat lightheaded. After spending some time near the keg and in the shade I was feeling a little more normal. Our host, Larry Whipple, directed us to "The Grove" and the Barracuda Bar where we had some excellent food, would have liked to explore more, but the sun had done an effective job of zapping our energy. Next time!

Sunday morning, on our way out, we observed that it was 9:30 and already quite warm. The wind filled in, the race committee chased it, and got in 2 more races. It didn't seem as hot as saturday since there was a little more cloud cover and maybe a tad more wind, we'll call it 5 to 10 again.

Holy crap, we won those, too! What the hell!? The full results are on the Florida District website

Some of you may know that we have been discussing the idea of getting a newer boat since old Pig Pen is old and overweight. This probably foolish idea has been under our consideration on and off for a year or more but more seriously since the NAC. In fact, recently we decide to purchase another boat but we don't actually have possession yet. The plan is we will try the new boat for a while and see if we miraculously become better sailors! After this scientific evaluation period we will sell one of the boats.

Obviously, Pig Pen overheard the rumors that a new boat is on the horizon, and the Pig is making a last ditch effort to avoid being replaced. Afterall, who could sell a boat that just one five out of five? Hmmm....