Montreal Sailing

Racing Tip

2012-02-01T19:32:00.000-05:00

US SAILING Blog: Daily Lift

Racing tip from Bill Gladstone:

Aim toward the finish. More boats win races with this simple strategy than any other. Don’t over think the strategy. Until you have a good reason to do something else just aim toward the finish.

Fireball World's 2012 in Mandurah, Western Australia

2012-01-05T07:42:00.000-05:00

Joe Jospe and Tom Egli appear to be having a super class championship in Western Australia. They are sitting in 17th overall out of 60 some odd boats. In the last two races so far, they have done their best with two finishes in 12th. Racing continues until the 7th of January. 4 Canadian teams made it down under, and I noticed Montreal Sailor Stephen Waldie teamed up with longtime Ottawa Fireballer Mike McEvoy to compete. Looks like the best place to be in January!

Fireball Worlds 20122 Mandurah, Western Australia

Doing RC on a Race Night Early This Summer

2011-12-26T13:51:00.000-05:00

Team Ambitious did Race Committee duty in late June, and truth be told, it was somewhat problematic, but still fun. It was an evening of light winds, which can make things more challenging. Still, it always beats working, and good stuff can happen. It was a lot of fun to join up with the usual RC people, who are out there for us every race night. Aileen, the main scorer knows almost every boat now.

First, we postponed the usual 6:40 pm countdown to wait for late boats. That is something I am not keen on with evening racing, but when you only have a handful of boats, and you can see most of the competitors are not only late, but are just leaving the mouth of their harbours, you don't have much choice. With a north breeze making our start line distant from shore, it took yet longer for the fleets to arrive. While we waited, the winds, already light and shifty, began their light evening die-down. Hmmm, perhaps, Montreal's oft-light summer period had begun. We sent off a mark boat to bring the windward marks in closer. Radio contact was lost . One mark was moved closer, but not close enough, and the 2nd mark for dinghies did not get moved. A second mark boat was dispatched with radio to re-establish communication at the windward end. The second mark is moved after some confusion. Neither mark is close enough for the light winds. However, at this point we need to get racing going without further delay, or it won't happen, given the wind and time. Most of the boats had arrived. So, we re-started the countdown sequence at 7:04 pm, and settled for a long race, and a late night. Still, all the fleets finished their races and were back in harbour well before sunset. Hooray for late summer nights. Sometimes, you just have to take what conditions are thrown at you and make the best of it.

The big shifts in wind were coming pretty frequently, so the favoured start-line side would change, but mostly ended up being the pin. The Fireballs congregated at that end making the start difficult to call. As many as 4 teams may have over early, but we only called out the 2 sail numbers we were certain of. In PHRF 3, Encore Une Fois went over early, re-started, and still accomplished finishing 2nd. Jospe and crew finished first, thanks to the two Fireballs that did not re-start after being OCS. Even in difficult winds, entertainment can always be had on the water.

Eclipse at 2011 Shark World's

2011-12-20T07:19:00.000-05:00

Peter, Alexander, and on the foredeck Krista Rahn in action mode rounding weather mark. That sure looks like a quick launch! This great picture is yet another taken by Heather Deeks.

Clarke & Bjorn Finish 8th in the Medal Race at ISAF World's

2011-12-17T14:54:00.000-05:00

Despite having to do a 720 degree penalty turn after being in fifth place at the first mark, Clarke and Bjorn fought back, sailing their Star to finish eighth in the final medal race at the 2011 ISAF World Championship in Perth, Australia. This gives them a tenth overall for the regatta.

The Start:
Montrealer Tyler Bjorn and BC native Richard Clarke had a fine start near the Race Committee boat, but it, of course, was a congested crowd. Of the 10 boats qualifying for the medal round, 6 of them chose the RC end. Clarke swung the bow up and down jostling for air and position for the last 20 seconds before the gun. The Polish team of Kusznierewicz & Zycki pointed right at the pin, and entirely alone, spurted out ahead of the fleet. The German team on #8414 saw the opportunity and followed the Poles left.

4 teams sailed from the start on the Canadians' windward side. The Swedes immediately ducked sterns to go right after clearing the RC boat, followed by a different German team on #8340 looking for clear air. That left the French right on Clarke & Bjorn's leeward hip, and the Norwegians a little more to the right. A cluster of teams sailed on the windward side of the Canucks, essentially all in the same pack. Clarke/Bjorn tacked out ducking the French and Norwegians to head right followed by the Americans and Brazilians.

Windward leg:
When the Swedes and Germans came back from the right on starboard, only two minutes into the race, the Canadians tacked to leeward and so did the Americans and Brazilians. Clarke/Bjorn led the pack back to the left in 6th overall. As boats bailed out of the cluster, the Canadian team pushed forward on the same tack.

Then, at three and a half minutes, Bjorn/Tyler tacked onto port sailing the same direction as most of the fleet. Crossing the rhumb line only a little more than four minutes into the race, they are already about a quarter up the short leg of a short, fast race.

By this point of the race, the Poles and Germans on 8414 who started alone at the pin and went left, sailed alone, and were in a strong leading position, first and second. The remainder of the fleet then all lined up side by side, all sailing on port tack, and about 10 to 15 metres separated them in terms of distance from leading boat. Clarke/Bjorn were now fourth.

It's all pretty close, and the Canadians bounced up and down in the standings in the tacking fleet. With no one reaching the laylines just yet, the Canadians made a bold tack, moving alone onto starboard, below the windward mark. This tactic helps them move into third position. Then, coming back at the fleet on port tack, they mix it up and jostle their way in to the layline. The whole fleet is jam packed in tight. Clarke/Bjorn get onto the starboard layline in 5th, but somehow manage to round the mark through the crazy melee of boats in 4th position.

Leeward leg:

Moving down the course, Clarke/Bjorn went left of the fleet, and were maintaining fourth to fifth position overall. Well to the left, they then spun the boat in two circles, a 720 degree penalty turn! This immediately put them into last position, tenth, and about 200 metres back from the leading Polish team. This was 14 minutes into the race. That sure seems like a heckuva lot of action for less than a quarter-hour!

Second Windward Leg:
The fleet passed through a leeward gate, still led by the Poles who go left to windward until they run smack up against bending land and tack. The Canadians went through the gate well back in tenth. Initially, they also headed to land, but then broke off to sail unhindered to the right. The fleet worked their way up without any consistently favoured or long tack. The Polish team rounded the windward mark all by themselves in first place. The Canucks are well back, still in last place working to windward. Then, below the windward mark, they repeated their methodology of the first windward rounding. They tacked to starboard still a good ways below the layline, and were sailing in relatively unhindered wind. Most of the boats then are mixing it up around the mark or on the starboard layline. Clarke/Bjorn continued to sail fast on starboard below the layline, and moved up, now into 8th place. The Swedes and Americans who were ahead on the same tack became involved in a pissing match and screwed each other up as they went out to the port layline. The Canadians opted not follow them, and instead tacked towards the starboard layline. The Americans and Swedes then approaching on port have to alter course to avoid boats, including the Canadians who just round ahead as the battling last teams approach.

Second Leeward Leg:
Bjorn and Clarke made good headway downwind, and are now in a position to attack a French team in 7th. All of this time, the Polish team that started by itself at the pin, continued to sail far ahead all by its lonesome, and unhindered by boats behind. The entire fleet has sailed a downwind course to the right side directly at the same bending land barrier. At only 36 minutes into the race, the leading Poles went through the leeward gate and made their short dash towards the finish line to the right. The Canadians finished in eighth position comfortably ahead (by roughly a hundred metres) of the Americans and Swedes who are still locked in battle. The Polish team of Mateusz Kusnierewicz and Dominik Zycki finished the race victorious, in a little under thirty-seven minutes. The Canadians finished the short, intense racing in a little under 38 minutes.

The Penalty:

Montrealer Tyler Bjorn and BC native Richard Clarke were flagged for kinetics. Clarke assumes the penalty was given for rocking the boat, difficult to avoid in waves. Were it not for that foul, they may have been able to strike for the podium. Their impressive finish, tenth overall in the regatta, both qualifies Canada for the 2012 Olympics in London in the Star Class, and Clarke and Bjorn as Canada's representatives. They will certainly be exciting to watch. Their challenge now is to find that last little missing puzzle piece to make that small and most difficult graduation from top ten in the world to top three and the Olympic podium.

Guys, congratulations on a super race from Montreal Sailing.

Clarke & Bjorn Make it to the Medal Round at ISAF World Championship

2011-12-16T07:31:00.000-05:00

It must have been a pretty stressful day of racing for Montrealer Tyler Bjorn and his helmsman Richard Clarke but, they have done it! They have made it into the final medal round race to be held Saturday. The weather in Perth was tough with reports citing puffs of breeze and glassy areas during some of the racing. After two races for the day, Bjorn & Clarke held onto 10th overall. Only the top ten teams move on to the final medal round race Saturday. Legendary sailor Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada of Brazil, the defending World Champions are dominating, in 1st overall. Anything can happen in the medal round format though, so it will be an exciting day tomorrow.

Day's Star racing summary

Clarke & Bjorn after 8 Races at 2011 ISAF Worlds

2011-12-15T07:00:00.000-05:00

photo by Fried Elliot

Richard Clarke and Tyler Bjorn continue to hold onto their top ten position. After 8 races, they remain in 8th overall. Today is a day off. From yesterday, here is the most recent post from Clarke:

Well the trend of one good race and one bad race continued today. We carded a 7 and 19 to sit 8th overall in a real dog fight for placed 5 through 12th. Everyone except the top 4 guys are struggling in the unpredictable winds, on good day can move a team up many places and the reverse is true for a bad day. We seem to be plugging along having OK races and maintaining our position, while the elevator takes our competition up and down the leader board. I talked to someone today who asked if we were just trying to qualify and I told them that I was trying hard to win this thing but that it was proving extremely difficult.

We almost saw Fremantle Doctor conditions in the first race today as winds were in the correct quadrant but a bit lighter. We had an average start that saw us looking over our shoulders a few minutes after the start for a lane out right. After patiently waiting for things to clear out we tacked and headed out to what I hoped was the favoured side. It didn't look all the good early but came together towards the end of the beat as we rounded the first mark 6th. Unfortunately we dropped a few places on the first run but managed to take them back on the second beat and found ourselves in 8th place down the final run. What should have been a straight forward affair turned into a bit of a crap shoot as the wind completely died and tried to fill in from many directions. Luckily we survived the lottery and finished 7th.

In the second race we had the unfortunate privilege of starting between 2 boats that were both over the line at the gun. Luckily we realized our predicament and dropped back far enough not to be called over but our start was severely compromised. Things went from bad to worse as the side we chose on the first beat was not correct and we rounded the first mark in the 30's. A typical Clarke/Bjorn come back saw us close distance on the leaders but we could only catch 12 boats over the course of the race for a 19th.

It will be a good battle Friday (tomorrow is a day off) for the top 10 to see who makes the medal race.

Stay tuned.

Clarke/Bjorn Sailing Team in 8th Overall Thus far in ISAF Worlds

2011-12-13T23:20:00.002-05:00

Wow! Star class team Tyler Bjorn and Richard Clarke are having a pretty exciting time at the ISAF World Championship. Most of the countries there are qualifying to compete at the upcoming London Olympics, and individual competitors are vying for selection. That means some extraordinary competition. Montrealer Bjorn and BC sailor Clarke results so far are:

(17)

Freaks Frighten Montreal Sailors

2011-11-20T10:18:00.001-05:00

One of the highlights of sailing this past summer was the 2011 Shark World Championship hosted by Beaconsfield Yacht Club. Lots of exceptional sailors, including this team, "Freak On A Leash" Whenever they weren't sailing, Jeremy Crowder could be seen skateboarding around the club. I assume the team's name comes from the song "Freak On A Leash" by Korn. So is the mask in keeping with the song's lyric "Sometimes I cannot feel my face", or just Jeremy being "Korny"?

Jeremy Crowder, Connolly Aziz, Steve Mazza from Royal Hamilton YC on Shark #185 placed 8th overall out of the fleet of 54.

Heather Deeks took the pic, and this summer she has an even larger portfolio of great shots!

Clarke/Bjorn Sailing Team make CBC News

2011-10-22T09:56:00.000-04:00

Montreal sailor Tyler Bjorn recently appeared on CBC news in a feature on his London 2012 Olympic campaign with team mate Richard Clarke. See the video online here. The pic above is from their website.

Mobility Cup 2011 – Royal Hamilton Yacht Club

2011-09-19T06:42:00.000-04:00

Toby Bryant competing in PCYC's latest acquistion, a 2.4mR.

Thanks a bunch Jenn Davey for keeping us up to date on the action in this fleet. - Ralph

The 21^st Annual Mobility Cup drew to a close onFriday September 3^rd in Hamilton, ON after a week of great winds andfantastic competition.

The event, co-hosted by the Burlington Sailing and BoatingClub with the Royal Hamilton Yacht Club, included 5 days of racing for theMartin 16 fleet and the Access Liberties. Over 60 sailors with disabilitiesfrom Canada, the US, Australia, the Netherlands, and the UK participated.

AQVA came out of the event with their strongest performanceto date, with the 4 PCYC/AQVA sailors sweeping the top 4 places in Gold Fleet(in fact, after the first day of racing, two AQVA racers were tied for 3^rd– meaning 4 AQVA sailors in the top 3!).

Pierre Richard capped off a strong season finishing with 10points after 8 races to clinch first overall. Team mate Marc Villeneuve was infact in the lead going into the last day, but Pierre finished the event withtwo commanding bullets to sneak 2 points ahead on the final scoresheet. After awinning the Mobility Silver Fleet last year, Hafsa Chaar, in her first fullseason in Gold, took 3^rd place while AQVA founder and veteran RenéDallaire sipped and puffed his way to 4^th, also taking the SamSullivan Trophy for top-placing Sip n’ Puff sailor. AQVA did not send anySilver participants this year, but several new Learn to Sail graduates arechomping at the bit for next season!

Off the water, AQVA’s strong support did not go unnoticed.Paula Stone, who once again coordinated the docks, transfers and companions,was awarded the Graham Alvey Memorial Award, given annually to the person who ‘has pushed the boundaries to support,encourage and inspire people with disabilities to participate in sailing’.She received her award to resounding applause from sailors and fellowvolunteers alike.

Congratulations also to Matt Palardy, AQVA’s team leader forthe event who not only assisted and coached 4 AQVA sailors to an excellentregatta, but also transferred, companioned and encouraged countless moresailors from other clubs as well. To the relief of many sailors, he also cameto the rescue more than once when assistive electronics failed or were fussy –we knew your studies in electrical engineering would come in handy forsomething!

2.4mR North AmericanChampionship

Held as a separate event to the Mobility Cup, but at thesame time and also at RHYC, was the 2.4mR North Americans. An “open” event –meaning sailors with or without disabilities may participate – the championshipdrew 16 competitors with a variety of abilities and from a variety ofbackgrounds, including PCYC’s own Toby Bryant. Sailing AQVA’s newly acquiredclub 2.4mR Abyssinia, Toby finished a strong 5^th on the heels ofCanadian and US national team members and Paralympians.

Toby, who also helped the Mobility racers by towing a Martinto the event, said he hopes to learn the 2.4mR better in order to help buildthe fleet at PCYC and coach AQVA athletes new to the boat. His ongoing help andenthusiasm over the years - and now in this new capacity - is hugelyappreciated by the AQVA sailors and fellow volunteers who look forward to theinjection of his expertise into our burgeoning 2.4mR program. Thanks Toby!

Championnat SHARK du CNDM (Québec Open)

2011-09-01T21:23:00.003-04:00

Du 27 au 28 Août 2011

Chimère compte rendu - par Nicolas LeMarchand,

(foredeck dans le photo, avec Marion LeMarchand et Peter Rahn)

L'édition, cetteannée, a été marquée par la venue d'une invitée surprise nommée Iréne. Sonarrivée a obligé le comité de course à annuler la journée de dimanche.

Nous avons donccouru samedi quatre manches pleine de rebondissements, de départs pleind'actions, de passages de bouée serrés, de croisements limites mais le toutdans une ambiance assez sportive. Le plan d'eau généralement avantageuxsur la gauche réservait toujours une petite surprise. Les variations de pressionet de direction offraient à tous les bords un nouveau chalenge pour tous. Maisles meilleurs étaient souvent en bonne position à la fin.

Nuisance, Crisis etKetchup, vont vraiment vites et régulièrement au bon endroit. Il reste pournous, cette saison, nos trois bateaux imbattables, nous terminons donc à laquatrième place.

A bord de Chimère,nous avions un invité de marque Peter de "Stimulus package" qui nousfait partager son expérience du Shark 24. En effet, petits nouveaux dans cetteClasse, chaque nouvelle régate est un découverte pour nous. Lors de cette finde semaine, nous avons ainsi découvert un nouveau club chaleureux, des nouveauxcompétiteurs.

Merci au CNDM pourson accueil chaleureux, son superbe jardin et aussi à l'ensemble des Sharks et,en particulier, ceux du BYC qui nous ont adopté.

Bravo à Nuisancequi fait une très belle saison et remporte le titre de champion du Québec. A lasemaine prochaine pour la Longue Distance.

Star 2011 Montreal Open

2011-08-21T14:20:00.000-04:00

Much thanks to Brian Cramer for passing on this super report, so we can all keep abreast of the news from an important Montreal one design fleet. I look forward to sailing at CNDM next week, a jewel of the Montreal clubs. - Ralph

Every year for the past 7, Star boatsgather at Vaudreuil-sur-le-lac for racing on Lac des Deux-Montagnes. The special nature of the club, the lake andthe local Star Fleet has made the trip one of the good regattas in a summerseason.

This past weekend was no exception.

Friday was a perfect day for setting upthe boat. Boats started to arrive atnoon with the goal of getting the mast up and some practice time on thelake. Local Star sailor Philippe Hofergreeted the travelers with an open tool kit, combinations to gates andwashrooms etc. There was a plan to geton the water as soon as crews arrived for some speed training, important set-upfor any regatta.

Saturday morning started with askippers’ meeting on the front lawn of the Club Nautique Deux-Montagnes. Threeraces are planned for the day with a start time of 10:30 am. Everyone gets tothe starting area, but unfortunately the wind disappeared for 30 minutes. Like magic, the breeze fills in from 210degrees and the first race sequence begins.

Sometimes the decision to travel up theport or starboard side involves wind strength and angle. On this lake, there is a current flowing fromthe west to east which also must be considered and for race 1 it looked like aport side favoured windward leg. Most ofthe competitors recognized this strategy and fought for the pin end. A couple of tacks up the first leg and theleaders were in the left side of the course. Rick Shousha went the farthest to the left and was rewarded with a firstplace rounding. On the first downwindthe pattern of jibing on the shifts began to show its advantages and theleaders gained some big distance on the fleet. Two more legs with mostly the same pattern and the first race is complete. Rick hangs on for a fourth place finish, hisbest of the regatta.

Race two waits for a shift in thewindward mark but once started it is a repeat of the first. Fight for the pin end and protect the leftside of the course. A much bigger bunchup at the first mark but again jibing at the right moment paid big dividends onthe first downwind. Race 2 ends with theleaders enjoying a big lead but Hendershot and Folsetter fight for position 2and 3.

Still good winds (8-10kts) so a thirdrace is planned. As the afternoonprogressed the wind shifted to 220 and finally 230 degrees. That changed the starting strategy as thecommittee boat became favoured. Againthe fleet recognized the advantage and there was a collection at the right endof the line. John Draper who wascompeting in his first Star regatta had a great start and pushed the fleet tothe left. Once he tacked the rest followedand waited patiently for the first shift. One minute into the last race and a right shift hit the leaders. Tack on the headers and the first groupstarted to separate from the back markers. With the breeze starting to shift more to the north the downwind winningformula was to pass on the north side of the course. Folsetter passed Cramer on the first downwindusing the north pressure to his advantage. Some tacking and covering resulted in Folsetter getting a big lead. Cramer recognized the advance of third placeHendershot and tacked to the left side to cover. Both these two were close to the port laylinewhen the wind shifted 30 degrees in their favour. Folsetter immediately started to race to theleft side but arrived on the Cramer/Folsetter line two boat lengths late givingup the lead for the leg and race.

Saturday night dinner was hosted by theHofer’s at their lakeside summer home. Very good food with all the competitors and some of their families made itan event highlight.

Sunday was going to be tricky racing asthe forecast was for thunderstorms but the committee planned for two races.

After setting the starting line, itbecame apparent that the left side was favoured and again a fight for the pinend started with about a minute left. Rick Shousha, Brian Cramer and Doug Folsetter all positioned near thepin and with 10 seconds left the three powered up and drove to the line. Within 2 minutes a small left shift signaledthe first tack and Cramer gained a small but significant advantage. Twice he protected the left side firstcovering Folsetter then Hendershot. Those two began their own duel as the result of race four wassignificant in the overall positions. Inthe 10 knots of steady breeze the passing lanes were tough and the positionsheld until the end. There was a dramatic moment on the finish line betweenDraper and Hofer with a jibe, jibe and twirl maneuver perfectly executed byDraper for the enjoyment of the watchers and with Hofer winning the duel. At this point overall positions first andsecond were settled so Cramer and Folsetter left for the dock.

Race 5 repeated the pattern of leftside for the first leg and cover the fleet on the downwind. Two groups separated and Will Hendershotscored his first race win with Philippe Hofer close behind.

A short award ceremony wound up theregatta. Special thanks to the QuebecStar Fleet for providing great races on a great summer weekend.

Sail #	Skipper	Crew	Race 1	Race 2	Race 3	Race 4	Race 5	Total
8143	Brian Cramer	Rick Burgess	1	1	1	1	DNS	4
8024	Doug Folsetter	Chris Danner	2	2	2	2	DNS	8
8361	Will Hendershot	Gary Soules	3	5	3	3	1	10
8236	Philippe Hofer	Olivier Teisserenc	5	3	5	4	2	14
8401	John Draper	Larry Scott	6	4	4	5	3	16
7506	André Marcotte	Xavier Marcotte	7	6	6	6	4	22
4	Rick Shousha	Stéphane Barbeau	4	7	7	7	5	23

11th Annual Coupe du Quebec Martin 16 Regatta

2011-08-09T09:10:00.002-04:00

Here is a report from Jen Davey on the recent action sponsored by the AQVA and PCYC. Thanks Jen!

The 11^th Annual Coupe du Quebec Martin 16 regatta tookplace at the Pointe Claire Yacht Club this weekend, hosted by the Associationquébécoise de voile adapée (AQVA) in conjunction with PCYC. 25 competitors fromacross eastern Canada and the US joined together for two days of racing inSilver and Gold fleets.

The weekend kicked off with a special ceremony to launch the newestaddition to AQVA’ s fleet of accessible boats: a 2.4mR, the single-handedParalympic class. The acquisition was made possible through a generous grantfrom the Canadian Paralympic Committee’s Paralympic Equipment Fund. The boatbelonged to Nigist Legesse-Sewnnet, a 2.4mR sailor from the Disabled SailingAssociation of Ontario who passed away this spring. Nigist was dearly belovedby many and the boat was christened “Abyssinia”, a nod to her Ethiopian roots,and the name she had chosen for her boat. Abyssinia will be a club boat used toexpose developing competitors to the Paralympic class and offer the opportunityto engage in high performance regattas that might not otherwise be within reachof developing racers.

At the end of two often light and shifty days, the final score sheetrevealed the tight level of competition currently at play in the east coastMartin fleet. Gold fleet was won by Pierre Richard of AQVA/PCYC, just ahead ofNepean Sailing Club’s Christine Lavallée, with Erick Poirier, also of AQVA/PCYCin 3^rd. The top 3 were separated by just 1 point before the droprace added a slightly wider gap of 4 points. Silver was close as well: BrianCuerrier or Belleville, ON took top place followed by Basil Katsivalis(AQVA/PCYC) and Karell Regnier (Nepean Able Sail), all three within 2 points ofeach other.

A big thank you to PRO Madelaine Palfreeman and her crew who, asalways, provided excellent racing in a variety of conditions. Thanks also tothe staff and support from the Pointe Claire Yacht Club and the many AQVAvolunteers who made the whole weekend possible.

Sailweek 2011 great fun in PHRF 3

2011-08-02T07:47:00.001-04:00

In PHRF III, where the largest competition is taking place, Sailweek's podium placers are:

Ketchup
Encore Une Fois
Nuisance

The PHRF III fleet winners: Ketchup, the Shark skippered by George Stedman. Ketchup is on a roll this year. They took third at the Shark World's last month, also making them the highest Montreal team. Now they have added Sailweek to their 2011 credentials. Hold on though, it may still be too early in the season to pronounce Ketchup as Montreal Sailing's Top Dawg. While it certainly looks like Stedman's #422 is the Dominator, Nuisance (another PCYC Shark) actually beat Ketchup in most of the races it sailed. If Nuisance had not been absent the first day of Sailweek, the BYC Annual Regatta, we might be telling a different story. So, it is still possible that the chest-pumping of Montreal Sailing is not over yet! Indeed, there are other sailors out there who could legitimately hold bragging rights. While the two aforementioned Sharks battled it out, the Tanzer 22, Encore Une Fois, actually sailed to second overall in Sailweek. Now there is a usurper! The Lintons and team aboard Encore Une Fois are having a very, very competitive season thus far. Three other Sharks, also took bullets during Sailweek. Kaos, and Crisis are always in the top ranks, of course. The only other bullet belongs to .... drumroll please... wait for it.... Ambitious! Yes, the boat formerly called Mainsail, of yours truly, the long suffering backpacker, the cheerful but sometimes bald-faced bum, the ever-trying... Okay, that's enough. But, Whoo-hoo! Team Ambitious took first in Race #2 of the BYC Annual.

The picture above was taken during a return from a club race. Our boat still had bow numbers from the Shark World Championship, #51. After our bullet during Sailweek, Jin peeled off the 5, and left on the 1. I didn't realize until we returned from a race. I have to admit, I appreciated the generous humour and left the number on.

Photo taken by Francesca Frati.

Two teams at 2011 Lightning Canadian Open

2011-06-29T07:35:00.000-04:00

This past weekend must have busy on the highways with lots of boat trailers. Yet another regatta attended by local road warriors was the 2011 Lightning Canadian Open, hosted by Buffalo Canoe Club. It was sailed this past weekend on the eastern end of Lake Erie. BYC sailors did very well:

5th, Jamie Allan, Jay Deakin & Stephanie Boucher
8th, Michael Holly Jr, William Hall & Valerie Tardif-Holly

24 teams sailed 8 races over the two days.

Full results

Congrats all!

Fireballs win at NOD

2011-06-28T07:11:00.000-04:00

Tom Bird has sent us this great report on the PCYC Fireball fleet's local road warriors. They have just competed in one of my favourite regattas, the Nepean One Design in Ottawa. Thanks Tom!

The Fireball fleet including a 3 boat Pointe-Claire armada consisting of Pierre Carpentier & Tom Bird sailing on Friarballs, Steven Waldie & Nicola Mocchiutti sailing on Pontificate and keen newcomers Ancilla Rompala & Valerie Knight were looking forward to their first sail after countless hours reviving Wildchild.

The 10 boat fleet was treated to an array of shifts, swirls, impossible lifts and devastating headers; all things typical of sailing on the Ottawa River. The temperatures on the water were average and quite comfortable. Saturday featured an imminent threat of rain with mostly light winds. Clearing skies and a more exciting breeze was served up for Sunday’s racing.

The 7th and final race turned into a battle of inches for the lead boats. At the starting signal of the last race, the top three teams were separated by only 0.75 points in the standings (a shocking 0.25 point gap for scores including drops!!).

When the top half of the fleet rounded the lee mark only seconds apart, it was clear that the regatta would come down to 2 final marks. On the last beat, a slippery lead changed hands often and the boats were even tighter rounding the top mark. Friarballs made it around first to secure the regatta. Pontificate fouled at the mark but managed to get ahead of NSC’s Rocket Science for second overall, despite making penalty turns with the spinnaker up on the last leg.

NOD always marks the beginning of the Fireball’s regatta season and this one’s close finish will be one to remember. Thanks to the organizers and our gracious hosts. Results are available at;

http://nsc.ca/web2/sites/nod/results/nod-2011-results.htm#fireball

Cheers!

Tom Bird

Jospe and Egli compete at Fireball Worlds 2011 in Ireland

2011-06-26T00:56:00.000-04:00

Two of Montreal's finest have just done one of the more competitive world-level championships, the Fireball World's. Veterans of the class, and its international competitions all over the globe, this year Joe Jospe and Tom Egli (PCYC) traveled to the Sligo Yacht Club on the northwestern coast of Ireland to race for two weeks. They placed 3rd overall in the International Week which was the precursor event and 26th out of 59 boats in the World Championship. Curiously, the standings show DNCs in the last two races. Another Canadian team, Guy Tipton and Mathew King did superbly finishing 21st overall.

Photo from regatta website

Wind Rocks Competitors in Surprise Turn

2011-06-22T22:45:00.000-04:00

We had motored out of the harbour, and by rote of habit raised the sails. I didn't really expect a race to happen. The wind was so light, even the shallowest of ripples had disappeared from the water surface. However, I did not take into account Wally's (Stephen Waldie) persistence on race committee, and my new crew member, Collette's determination to make some air pass over the sails.

In search of some moving air, the RC moved further west, and thankfully away from the construction dump zone. Miraculously, the air got fresher, and we were able to move about the start line quite nicely. Still, it was not enough to release the wind indicator from some grippy cobwebs atop the mast. As we moved up the first leg, I watched our foredeck crew's eyes get larger, as looking back, he said "Whoah, there is something very black coming in fast... maybe we should head in." That seemed ridiculous to me, as I declined to even look back, while I focused on keeping the dying breeze flow over the tell tales in a limp fashion. Then, I saw Jin with sails on deck, motoring at top speed for harbour... hmmm.

We continued to slowly proceed to the windward mark, when Collette began a countdown. It's going to hit us in 45, 30, 20 10! WHAM!

Okay, I had no choice now but to believe, but I must confess being confused on the helm. Not only did we get hit with a whole new force, but the wind was all over the place, and then directly behind. I uncleated the mainsheet and let the sail run out. The wind was still squirrelly, though at the extreme, and the genny was flapping all over. Very confusing. Then, I saw the skiff sailors on Bill Lynam's Shark hoist the kite, and take off like a jet! They were sailing a tighter reach while our approach to the mark was a direct run with a swirling wind. I heard Collette shout out something about watching out for the possibility of an accidental jibe, which thankfully didn't happen.

I opted to not call for a chute, and a good thing that was. As we approached the mark, Nuisance came storming down on us, bow in the air, moving more like a surface missile then a sailboat. Collette saw them first, and called it, but by the time I peered around the main, and prepared to tack it was already too late. I feared a panic tack and dumping my crew in the water in heavy, fast traffic, so opted to shove the boat sideways along Nuisance, "distancing" from the mark, until they passed. It was a race-tosser but felt safe. Toby on Nuisance was not impressed, but everybody lived to recall the event later, and Toby was philosophical about it all too.

After we rounded the formerly windward mark, now a leeward mark, the difference between our boat's progress, and the Nuisance missile momentarily permeated my brain's activity. We heaved and tossed about constantly blowing sail in the gusts, tugging sheets back in, only to get blown over again seconds later. Repeat constantly was the order for the evening. It did get better when I dropped the traveler to the extreme leeward end, and the crew got some more cunningham on the genny, but clearly, I have yet to acquire heavy air helming skills. It was fun to ride the edge between pinched and over-powered, and we had a very exciting ride. The crew worked their butts off. Tavish muscled the genoa, and Collette hiked all 85 pounds of her weight over the side of the hull, blowing the pressure-cleated main with her foot when needed. Yee-hah! I felt like we were cowboys on a bucking bronco, not fast, but hoo-wee, exciting.

Our racing steed, navy-blue hulled Shark, #901, has now finally been re-named to follow our previous racing boat and teams, and to recognize the long, crazy course we have been on! The name is again, "Ambitious"

Photo from our racing in the Shark World Championship last week, taken by Peter Lavender.

Peter Hall wins 2011 World Masters Soling Championships in Lake Iseo, Italy

2011-06-22T06:55:00.000-04:00

This news from the CYA website yesterday.

Fresh from his victory at the Audi Soling World Championships in April, Peter Hall from the Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club in Montreal, together with Berend Vree from Holland and Frank Lavrsen from Denmark won the 2011 World Master Soling Title at Lake Iseo, Italy from June 17 - 20. Going into the last day, Peter was in fourth place, but in strong winds of 12 - 18 knots, CAN 225 finished with a second and two firsts, for a total of 14 points to win a tie breaker with Gyorgy Wossala of Hungary and Jorg Hermann from Germany. 20 boats from 5 nations competed in the Masters Championships. Roman Koch was 4th and Gustavo Warburg 5th. Peter did not know they had won until one hour after coming ashore. "Simply amazing," says Peter, "I was very surprised and happy with the gold medal." We have had a fantastic sailing season racing in Germany, Hungary, Sweden, Denmark and Italy!.

Day 5 at Shark World's 2011

2011-06-17T15:21:00.000-04:00

Our Shark racing in the World Championship this week, Photo by Jen Davies.

Day 5, the final day of the Shark World Championship at Beaconsfield Yacht Club did not feature any sailing due to no wind. So, the championship goes to the leaders as of yesterday's overall results. That would be Crazy Ivan from Ottawa, one of the most frequent teams in the winners' circle of the Shark Class. A mere one point behind was Shark Poop, also of Ottawa. In third overall, and top Montreal team was Ketchup.

Tonight is the big party night, and awards. Lobster on the menu, and a good time to be sure. It has been a great week, and this will be a fun way to top it off!

Top Ten

Crazy Ivan, CAN 815, Dave Foy, Jamie Foy, David O'Sullivan, Britannia YC
Shark Poop, CAN 1495, Johan Koppernaes, Doug Brown, Michael Lee, Nepean SC
*Ketchup, CAN 422, George Stedman, Etienne Portelance, Robert Levy, Pointe Claire YC
Bedlam, CAN 723, Kevin Piper, Tom Nelson, Jordin Clark, Royal Hamilton YC
Jonathan Livingston Seagull, CAN 276, Peter Van Rossem, Julian Walker, Peter Van Rossem JR, Kingston YC
Heavy Fuel, CAN 193, Paul Davis, Matt White, Brandon Tattersall, Kingston YC
*Nuisance, CAN 324, Toby Bryant, Pierre Carpentier, Stephan Waldie, Pointe Claire YC
Freak on a leash, CAN 185, Jeremy Crowder, Connolly Aziz, Steve Mazza, Royal Hamilton YC
Eager for More, CAN 1481, Greg Cockburn, Hal Ebert, Andrew Barlow, RCYC
Tiger Niles, CAN 1489, Peter Aker, Jeff Mitchell, Dave Giles, Bay of Quinte YC

*Montreal boats in top ten

Top from Each Montreal club:

Ketchup, CAN 422, George Stedman, Etienne Portelance, Robert Levy, Pointe Claire YC
Blue Shark, CAN 804, Jin Frati, Vince Lehman, Lenore Lewis, Beaconsfield YC
Gear Up, CAN 1493, Stefan Aebi, Bruce Timmons, Peter Wellington, Baie D'Urfe YC
Gran Blan, CAN 1463, Daniel St-Onge, Sylie Gagnon, Stephane Demers, CNDM

Shark World's Website

Final Results

Day 4 at Shark World's 2011

2011-06-17T07:16:00.001-04:00

This is a pack finish from a little earlier this week. Thanks for the photo Jenny!

Day 4 of the Shark World's featured near-perfect weather. The sun was bright, the temperature hot, but the breeze always on with a light southwest direction. The boats always moved along nicely, letting fears of competitors endlessly sitting out there in the hot sun for the distance race dissolve.

The Distance Race, a long-time feature of the Shark World Championship, spanned the length of Lac St. Louis, along with crosses to the other side. The breeze stayed turned on, getting all competitors into shore mid-afternoon.

Ambitious had it's usual difficult start, being caught behind too many sails. With so many competing Sharks, 54 to be exact, the starts are pretty tough. Everybody goes to the front of the line, thick and deep, and parks on it. Then the jostling, drifting, and fun (read shouting) begins. The first day, Ambitious was up with the best of them, but driven over the line early by other competitors. We were lucky to have one of the many general recalls that occasion. However, it made me more cautious on the start line. Now, instead, we hold back a bit, and that is enough to just get covered by a mass of sails and dead in the water with no wind getting through. Our best races have been when we can tack over in a gap and get clean air on port tack.

So, now Tavish our foredeck crew has decided that today, we shall venture forth once again into the melee, take the risk of seeking fortune at the front of the start line.

Trying to recover from the start of the distance race, we flipped onto port which brought us along shore. Within just a few minutes, it became clear that the breeze hitting the shore was very, very soft compared with going out towards open water. I did some zig-zagging to get clear, and took Crescendo's stern to head out. Tof on the the other hand kept Crisis on a shore side search for lifts that became a destructive path.

Once clear, we had a fantastic race that lasted about 4 hours. We could not re-coup the distance lost to the leading pack, but we moved very nicely with excellent speed. We took a few boats along the way, and only lost one of the boats from behind (Tof with Crisis of course, about half-way through the race). Michael Andersen and crew on Yin Yang had an amazing race moving ahead of about 20 more boats than usual. Lets give them the Montreal Sailing tip of the ball cap for best personal performance.

Yesterday, another local boat that did superbly was the Spiderman and crew sailing Ketchup. They took second place in the distance race behind Freak On A Leash. That bumped Ketchup up to 4th place. How fantastic if a local boat is on the podium of the Shark Worlds! That will benefit all of our sailing in Montreal, since we can compete with these same boats in club racing too. The two top local boats are Ketchup, and Nuisance, both from PCYC, and both strong podium possibilities.

It was a glorious day to be out there. We are privileged to be sailors!

Distance Race

Results so far

Regatta website

Day 3 at Shark World's 2011

2011-06-16T07:02:00.000-04:00

Much thanks to Jen Davey who got this shot of us after popping the chute.

It was a very light air day at the Shark World Championship today. Nevertheless, the Race Committee got off two races, thanks to the breeze holding up till till early afternoon. Our team on Ambitious had a great first race where we managed to sail closer to the front of the fleet for a change. While I still do not manage to get good starts, we were able to tack away from the fleet pretty quickly, and find our own clear lane of undisturbed breeze. All too often, I find myself sticking to the less traveled port layline to the mark. It is nice and fast until you hit the thick groups of leaders coming around the offset and popping chutes, or boats coming upwind into the mark on starboard with the right of way. Then it gets pretty hairy. On this occasion, we were on the port layline with Paul Davis and Heavy Fuel just ahead and to leeward. It still makes me smile to recall Paul taking a double-take, wondering what that backpacker was doing beside him, and probably whether he was doing worse than he thought! We held onto our great position through the race, and finished 19th out of the 54 boats, a very good score for us.

It would not be a championship without some mishaps of the best teams taking it on the chin while letting it all hang out. We passed the regatta leaders, Crazy Ivan while they were doing penalty spins right after rounding the top mark. Then we heard a significant BONK noise somewhere in the vicinity of Gran Blan. Back on shore, the results showed Blue Shark got a DSQ for some reason. We had our own special type of mishap in the day's second race. Right after the start, the cannon fired two blasts, indicating a general recall. We stopped racing, but little did we know, the Race Committee was simultaneously calling "All Clear!" over the radio. It was a misfire. The race was on! We spent the whole 2nd race playing catch up, which we did well, picking our way through about 12 boats. Still, that ate away at our overall result which had improved.

The wind held up enough to just barely get all of us over the finish line. Two more races in and this day is done. Next, Thursdays Distance Race.

Results Thus Far

Regatta Website

Day 2 at Shark World's 2011

2011-06-15T07:25:00.000-04:00

Day 2 at the Shark Worlds threw different conditions at the competitors in 2 races. The first race of the morning was held in high winds with many boats sporting the blade up front. However, by the time of the second windward leg, the wind was dropping rapidly, and those, like us, with a small sail were in trouble. A good compromise would probably have been the in between 150% genoa, but who can ever figure these things out for sure. In the second race, conditions were very light. On the final run, more wind swept in from behind, allowing the boats farther back to catch up, and compress a very large pack at the finish. The race committee had set a very small finish line, and with the large number of boats not able to fit through, and in several rows, it got very hairy.

Top Montreal boat right now is Nuisance in fifth.

Leaderboard:

Crazy Ivan, CAN 815, Dave Foy, Jamie Foy, David O'Sullivan, Britannia YC
Bedlam, CAN 723, Kevin Piper, Tom Nelson, Jordin Clark, Royal Hamilton YC
Shark Poop, CAN 1495, Johan Koppernaes, Doug Brown, Michael Lee, Nepean SC
Tiger Niles, CAN 1489, Peter Aker, Jeff Mitchell, Dave Giles, Bay of Quinte YC
*Nuisance, CAN 324, Toby Bryant, Pierre Carpentier, Stephan Waldie, Pointe Claire YC
*Ketchup, CAN 422, George Stedman, Etienne Portelance, Robert Levy, Pointe Claire YC
Freak on a Leash, CAN 185, Jeremy Crowder, Connolly Aziz, Steve Mazza, Royal Hamilton YC
Duck Soup, CAN 1456, John Dakin, Kyle Dakin, Morgan Dakin, Mimico CC
Heavy Fuel, CAN 193, Paul Davis, Matt White, Brandon Tattersall, Kingston YC
Devil in a Blue Dress, CAN 176, John Brunt, Rod Gardner, Andrian Pustam, Ashbridges Bay YC

* denotes Montreal boats

More windward-leeward racing today, and the distance race is scheduled for tomorrow. The forecast for the rest of the week is light winds.

Complete Results So Far

Regatta Website

Thanks to Jen Davies for the photo of us on Ambitious and Judy Weil's Crescendo having it out.

Day 1 at Shark World's 2011

2011-06-14T07:35:00.000-04:00

The Shark World Championship opened yesterday to strong winds and eager sailors. It was a repeat of yesterday's practice race with a lot of over-early calls, and black flag starts. 54 one-design keelboats all right on the line jostling early for position, and a little current to boot, meant a lot of on-course-side boats. Most boats went left looking for the best combination of pressure, wind direction and current, although going too deep often meant soft spots too. For the runs, there was enough pressure to catch good rides on waves with the right angle, and have great rides. The wind probably hit around 20 knots with plenty of higher gusts, so boats were moving well.

Top ten results:

Shark Poop, CAN 1495, Johan Koppernaes, Doug Brown, Michael Lee, Nepean SC
Ketchup, CAN 422, GeorgeStedman, Etienne Portelance, Robert Levy, Pointe Claire YC
Nuisance, CAN 324, Toby Bryant, Pierre Carpentier, Stephan Waldie, Pointe Claire YC
Heavy Fuel, CAN 193, Paul Davies, Matt White,,Brandon Tattersall, Kingston YC
Crazy Ivan, CAN 815, Dave Foy, Jamie Foy, David O'Sullivan, Britannia YC
Bedlam, CAN 723, Kevin Piper, Tom Nelson, Jordin Clark, Royal Hamilton YC
Cap'n Crunch, CAN 1767, Josh Wiwchartk, Martha Rafuse, Chris Clarke National YC
Eager for More, CAN 1481, Greg Cockburn, Hal Ebert, Andrew Barlow, RCYC
Tiger Niles, CAN 1489, Peter Aker, Jeff Mitchell, Dave Giles, Bay of Quinte YC
Flitatious, CAN 382, Louise Cannon, Ian Brown, Jay Nicholson

Regatta website

Preliminary Results

Excitement High For Shark World's 2011

2011-06-13T07:52:00.000-04:00

Our boat and team from earlier regatta.

BYC is hosting the Shark World Championship for 2011. Volunteers have been very hard at work managing traffic, at registration tables, and measuring, weighing, and launching boats.The practice race was held yesterday in winds that fluctuated considerably with the rain clouds above, and some thunder in the distance. Race Committee had some challenges, which is good, since that's why a practice race is beneficial. The competitors also needed to get it together, needing three starts, and a black flag in order to get the race off and running.

Our Shark, #901 is being christened with a new name as of this World Championship. Having gone through an evolution of changes in sails, rigging and hardware, it shall now be called "Ambitious", the name of our previous boat. Essentially, our first ambition is a very tough challenge in the past, to not be DFL! Then, we shall see what pinnacles we climb from there.

The practice race was helpful in clarifying some critical areas in order to reach our ambitious goal. First of all, getting out to the racecourse in plenty of time. Yesterday, we were still the last boat out of harbour. Next, is be more fearless on the start line, and stake a claim up front alongside the bad boys. With more than 50 keelboats jostling for position, it is a daunting task. I was happy to get three starting attempts.

We chose the left side of the course, closer to shore, believing more wind to be found. That search for stronger air meant banging the corner, then coming in to the windward mark on the port layline. With a fleet of 50 plus Sharks, that inevitably means serious traffic, and tense mark roundings. We lost a number of boats, slamming into the layline parade, getting blanketed below them, and pinching to squeeze above the mark. We made it, got our better wind earlier, but toughed it out in the mark rounding. As the racing gets intense, we won't always get away with that king of strategy.

Launching the chute, displayed our most embarrassing goof, no halyard attached... nuff said.

On runs, we are doing well enough, but I am having difficulty figuring out how to fend off attacks. Boats trying to sneak up from behind to windward, are fought off, but having to deflect from the preferred course to the mark is frustrating. Then, caught in a sandwich, sailing too high a course, I decided to slow the boat a bit by snaking, then jibing away. I felt we had good boat speed after, and a better course, but we still lost the boat most to windward in the sandwich, so without the finishing results, I am uncertain how we did vis-a vis other boats sailing around us, and whether it was worth it.

While tough in a large fleet, the best possible route is the one sailed alone with undisturbed wind and course.

The most dramatic moment came when we were closing in on boats at the leeward mark. One boat, a rival of ours from CNDM, named Tiger Shark, hidden from my view behind our sail, dropped its chute early, and practically stopped the boat in the water. Seeing them at the last second, it was too late to jibe, and we veered right, behind their stern and also Toy-Yacht. Right at the mark, Bill on Toy-Yacht generously advised me there was no room to sneak between them and the mark. Shouting, and with Tavish furiously stowing pole, while David pulled the chute down, I spun the boat in a 360, and desperately looked for another hole to squeak into. We found it without a collision, the most important thing, but of course lost boats in the process,

Back on shore, we enjoyed drinks and dinners included in the registration fee, and a blues band. All in all, it was an exciting day. The boat has weighed in competitively, the sails are not half-bad, and the team is hyped for a week of intensity on the water.

Here we go!

Fireball Mid-winters' 2011

2011-03-21T17:40:00.000-04:00

Here is some news passed on by Joe Jospe. Great to have the news with the snowfall outside today. Much thanks! The North American Fireball Class had their Mid-winter racing in Florida last week. This post first appeared on the Fireball NA website.

Sixteen Fireballs participated in the 47th edition of the Fireball Midwinters at Davis Island YC. Participants traveled from Arizona, British Columbia, Colorado, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, Ohio, and Nova Scotia to join the local Tampa Fleet. The regatta was preceded by a three day training camp under the tutelage of Andrew Davies, Secretary of Fireball International It was a relaxed affair with informal briefings on the shore covering boat set-up and tuning and discussion of various boat handling techniques along with current North American champion Guy Tipton. The briefings were then followed up with a variety of drills on very short courses to simulate a crowded race course and mark roundings. Given that many hadn't been on the water in several months there was a cloud of rusty red dust in the air much of the time! This was an early attempt at organizing a coaching session and we will learn and improve for next year.

The first day of the regatta was delayed due to a front moving through which resulted in gusts up to 30 knots. With a multi-class regatta it was deemed prudent to wait and see if the wind would moderate. Eventually we got two races in in winds in the 20 knot range.

Saturday and Sunday both proved to be a challenge for the race officer with light gradient winds in the morning which died and were eventually replaced with a sea breeze. Two more races were completed on Saturday and a final race was done on Sunday.

Guy Tipton and Matt King from the Shelburne Harbour YC in Nova Scotia defended their title from last year, followed by Tampa sailors Pat Crump and Jane Millman. Montreal crew Rob Levy and Nic Mocchutti placed third followed by Debbie Kirkby (Calgary) and Toby Bryant (Montreal). Joe Jospe and Tom Egli from Montreal rounded out the top 5.

DNs out for a Spring Blast

2011-03-20T18:55:00.000-04:00

It looks like the local DN class is getting in what might be the last day of ice sailing. These four boats were zipping along from Venture Sailing Base on Valois Bay, Pointe Claire. I noticed Hans Huber out there, probably sharing his wealth of knowledge. I wonder if I can get on the trapeze of his beautiful Flying Dutchman this summer, or maybe try one of their Lasers this year!

Wequaquet Speed Sunday: Wow, great ice! Lac St. Louis too please!

2011-02-18T18:33:00.000-05:00

Discrimination des assureurs envers les régatiers du Québec

2011-02-15T22:46:00.001-05:00

Here is a very important guest editorial by Philippe Hofer, Secretary of the Quebec Star Fleet. The Star sailors have been down to the Bacardi Cup in Florida numerous times, and Montreal Sailing readers have enjoyed great reports. Now, their adventures south have been impeded by insurance problems.

Le 15 février 2011

De nombreux québécois veulent aller en Floride en hiver pour faire l’une ou l’autre des régates hivernales que seule la Floride peut nous offrir. Je ne vais pas parler pour tout le monde mais pour les membres de la Flotte de Star du Québec.

Le Star est un voilier de classe olympique mesurant 22 pieds, sans moteur et sans instruments électroniques. Un de nos plus grand plaisir est de participer à la Bacardi Cup qui se tient à Miami depuis 49 ans (elle se déroulait à Cuba avant l’arrivée du castrisme) et fête cette année sont 84^ème anniversaire. Il s’agit d’une régate amicale où se rencontrent tous les niveaux de régatiers; des champions olympiques et mondiaux en descendant vers les amateurs passionnés dont je fais partie. Chaque année il y a entre 80 et 100 Star qui se réunissent pour cet événement unique.

Depuis la fondation de notre Flotte de Star en 2001. Un de nos membres y est allé presque tous les ans, deux autres y sont allés deux fois et moi-même j’y suis allé en 2004 et compte y retourner cette année. La régate a toujours lieu dans la Baie de Biscayne au début mars, du 7 au 12 cette année.

Seulement il y a un hic!

Nous les québécois ne pouvons plus avoir de couverture d’assurance pour aller faire des régates en Floride en hiver! Les mêmes assureurs qui couvrent les ontariens, Aviva par exemple, qui est aussi mon assureur et Marine Expert ne veulent pas couvrir leurs clients du Québec.

En 2004, Aviva m’avait offert un avenant, à un prix raisonnable, pour participer à la Bacardi.

Après ça fini. Mes amis qui sont retournés par la suite ont pris une couverture d’assurance par l’entremise d’un courtier américain en donnant une adresse de résidence aux USA! Je songeais à faire de même cette année mais je me suis fais dire que cela était parfaitement illégal (malgré que le courtier américain affirme le contraire) et qu’en cas de réclamation l’assureur ne tarderait pas à nous dire que nous avions fait une déclaration de résidence mensongère et refuserait de nous couvrir en cas de pépin. Inutile de dire qu’en connaissant les avocats américains, un petit pépin peut ruiner n’importe quel brave régatier non assuré.

Les organisateurs de la régate, exigent au moment de l’inscription, que chaque participant ait une couverture d’assurance adéquate. Cette année, il y a des participants qui viennent d’Italie, de Suisse, des Bermudes, du Canada (Ontario et BC), des USA bien sûr, de Suède, de Pologne, d’Allemagne, d’Ukraine, de Croatie, d’Angleterre, d’Autriche, d’Argentine, d’Australie, de Nouvelle-Zélande et de Finlande. Il y aura aussi probablement des Brésiliens et des Portugais qui ne sont pas encore inscrits. Ils sont bien entendu tous couverts par leur assureur… Sauf les gars du Québec. Pour autant que je sache, il n’y a jamais un seul de nous les staristes qui ait fait la moindre réclamation en Floride.

Nous faisons à tous les ans des régates de District avec des staristes du New Hampshire, de l’état de New-York et des ontariens. Nous n’avons pas de problème pour aller chez eux, nos assurances nous couvrent au nord du 40^ème parallèle. Nos amis ontariens n’ont pas de problème à obtenir une couverture pour la Floride avec la même compagnie d’assurance qui nous couvre au Québec. Je cite l’exemple de mon ami B.C. de Hamilton qui m’écrit ceci :

Le cas des assurances pour vous les québécois pue. Nous sommes assurés avec R&R qui nous couvre avec le plan Aviva. Mon plan me permet de naviguer n’importe où aux USA du 1^er novembre au 1^er avril plus la couverture usuelle autour des Grands-Lacs durant l’été. La clause « n’importe où » a été ajoutée ces deux dernières années. Avant la couverture était donnée au cas par cas.

La paperasse fut abondante! Pour un bateau de 45000$ et une remorque de 10000$ avec un déductible de 1000$ par réclamation aux USA (avec une couverture différente si les dommages sont causés par un ouragan nommé) je paie 499$ annuellement.

Voila! Nous avons affaire à un cas de discrimination super dégueulasse que je tiens à dénoncer. J’ai payé 250$ de frais pour la Bacardi, 250$ pour l’avance sur le condo, mon équipier a payé son billet d’avion et je me fais dire non par tous les assureurs. Ils nous couvrent jusqu’au 40ème parallèle (genre au nord de Philadelphie) mais pas plus bas. Si je n’ai pas d’assurance responsabilité civile je vais devoir canceller mon voyage, chose qui me fait déçoit royalement. En plus des frais encourus et non remboursables en cas d’annulation, je me trouve privé de la jouissance de mon sport favoris à cause de l’arbitraire des assureurs. Que je sache, il n’y a aucune raison qu’un résident du Québec n’ait pas les mêmes droits qu’un résident de l’Ontario.

Merci de m’avoir lu jusqu’ici.

Meilleures salutations

Philippe Hofer

NRO/SNRO RACE MANAGEMENT SEMINAR

2011-02-12T07:55:00.000-05:00

March 18th - 20th, 2011
Location: Royal St-Lawrence Yacht Club - Montreal, Qc
Course Leader: Paul Ulibarri , assisted by David Searle
Cost: $130.00 (Breakfast and lunch included)
Prerequisite: CYA CRO certification

This is a 3 day advanced race management seminar designed to prepare race officers for certification or re-certification as National and Senior National Race Officers
The course will be given in English. Participants will be able to write the exam in either English or French.
Registration with Ross Tellier, Montreal Sailing can provide contact info.

William Hendershot From Montreal

2011-02-04T21:29:00.000-05:00

What a coincidence! Will (CNDM) is sailing his MC Scow in the same regatta as the Rahns in the Wayfarer. Both classes are holding their Midwinter's on Lake Eustis in Florida. Much thanks to Montreal Sailing's roving reporter, Peter Rahn who recorded this footage of Will tuning up.

Wayfarer 286 practicing for 2011 midwinters regatta (Feb 1st)

2011-02-02T17:16:00.007-05:00

Peter and Alex Rahn have made it down to Florida and in this video have their Wayfarer out on the water practicing for the Midwinter's Championship. Meanwhile, Montreal seems to finally be getting some real winter weather. What a good looking little boat. Good luck guys!

Southward ho!

2011-01-29T09:56:00.000-05:00

The Rahn team is on their way southward for their big winter sailing break. The Shark keelboat sailors from BYC haul their Wayfarer dinghy out of storage every year for this occasion. The event is the Wayfarer Midwinter Championship in Lake Eustis, Florida, February 4th to 6th. So far 13 boats are pre-registered. Peter and Alex are always top spot contenders, so it will be interesting to see how this year's competition goes. Watch out for the gators guys.

Tornado sailing at 22knots +

2010-11-21T10:21:00.001-05:00

Here is a Tornado sailed out of PCYC by JP Mercier and Bruno Nolet. It was made last year. JP lamented the loss of cats from the Olympics. Now, it looks like a pretty good bet that catamarans will be returning to the Olympics, in a mixed class, in which each team is composed of both male and female. High speed sailing even if Lac St. Louis is giving moderate wind!

How to rig a Laser in under 7 minutes by Britain's Olympic Sailor

2010-11-06T08:26:00.000-04:00

District 2 Laser Class Championship Results

2010-10-18T22:34:00.000-04:00

Info and Luka's photo from the District 2 site.

After 7 races, including 1 drop, here is how it played out:

Jean-Pierre Kiekens
Pierre Jasmin
Denys Deschambeault
Gary Orkinen
Raymond Pase
Philippe Dormoy
Sally Sharp
William Kelly

Pumpkin & Club Captain's Broom Race - October 16th

2010-10-14T19:57:00.000-04:00

Hudson YC members are still racing. Most of us are packing up, but there are still diehards out there this coming week end. Here is a post from HYC's Sailors Advisory:

Pumpkin Race

Join us this weekend for some of the last official races of the season, and fun for sailors of all ages.

In the morning, come out for this seasonal family favorite. It's a fun race with a twist that throws your normal strategy to the wind.

After starting and before finishing a boat must pick up at least 1 pumpkin by any method provided all crew members remain on board (might be a challenge for certain individuals based on recent experience even without Pumpkins). After the finish bring your catch into the club and enjoy some lunch while the results are calculated. Each boat's corrected time will be adjusted according to their haul of pumpkins.

Skippers and pumpkin briefing at 09:30, first gun at 10:30

Club Captain's Broom Race

In the afternoon, all boats are invited to come out and "sweep the lake" as our Club Captain hosts a mystery course that will be revealed at the skippers briefing.

Skipppers briefing at 13:00, first gun at 14:00

The Season's Last is a Blast!

2010-10-10T15:04:00.000-04:00


Toby Jennings at left, and me still smiling post-race

The Lac St. Louis season closer, the Pas De Deux, is a fun race. That is dictated several times by the various documents for the race For example, written prominently under the map, "As this is October not July, there will be NO PROTEST HEARINGS arising from this fun race!" There you go, that is clear enough. Well, we aimed to comply, and sure enough, did these two kids ever have fun!

The breeze was strong, the race long. We would go the distance of Lac St. Louis, starting by Pointe Claire, going west to Baie D'Urfé, back across diagonally, southeast to the middle of the lake, then turning north towards Pointe Claire again, and finally east again to the finish. Wind at the airport measured 20 to 32 kph, and I estimate high teens to mid 20's in knots with more severe gusts for the wide part of the lake. Only two persons are allowed to operate the boat, but I did see quite a few more people doing a good job as rail-meat. Hmmmm... With the breeze piping, the waves hurling, Toby and I were definitely the over-powered flyweights of the competition. But what a blast! We were dressed well and it was a good thing. The water was cold, and any work at the mast made the fingers numb in short order. Fortunately, this fun race made spinnakers strictly verboten, so it wasn't too much of an issue. We were both wearing layers of sailing gear, nicely dry and breathable, and that was important for this was genuinely a frosty race in a wet boat.

The other aspect of the race is that it is a Pursuit format. Slow boats first, followed by faster boats with start times based on PHRF handicap. We are then all expected to finish at the same time, given no other variables. Well, of course the performance and finish are altered by other variables Some that come into play are related to skill, some to handicap-weather variations. The Shark has a handicap as the slowest keelboat, making us and Sudden Eclipse (the two Sharks from BYC) the first starters. Right on our heels are the Tanzers and such from PCYC, and on up to the Laser 28s and Etchells, along with some towering sails that are part of the RStLYC big boat Armada.


Toby driving home

Our Shark and Sudden Eclipse both got good starts, right on the line at the gun. Sudden Eclipse was to windward, but we both were moving well. We went with our largest genoa, figuring we would struggle upwind, and yield an advantage for the longer legs off the wind. Tough call because the wind had not peaked just prior to the start, probably up and down between 15 to 18 knots. Well, Sudden Eclipse chose the small jib, and they smoothly accelerated away, flatter and higher. While they made good gains, they would not be impossible to catch later we hoped. Certainly, as the wind strengthened we were way overpowered, but it was manageable. That is definitely a safe, strong point of the Shark.

Peter Vatcher's T22 seemed to get a bit of a late start. Vatcher tacked into the middle a couple of times, but then switched course. They, and many of the bigger boats appeared to choose going way, way out to the south open area. Sudden Eclipse chose to play the shifts of the north shore, and we pretty much conservatively played the middle.

I must admit, heavy air and waves are my downfall. I am much more content in the flat lake water and light winds we get in the more typical hot season. Summer squalls, and frosty fall honkers are not my experience and forte. The long upwind leg taught me why. If I don't anticipate a gust is coming, and get knocked over, it is too late. The mainsheet loads up, and I have my head down staring at it, yanking and yanking away on the jammed mainsheet. My steering goes to hell while I do this hip hop dance in the cockpit. The boat goes on its ear, slipsliding. Then, hull on its side, it moves closer to the wind, while I am pulling hard against the tiller to correct course. Both stages of this gust routine, the knockover, and the over-correction have an effect like hitting the brakes in a car. I did this, while with Nick Van Haeften, at the end of last year's Pas De Deux too, when the wind powerfully made the end very exciting. This year, the whole race had enough wind to continually expose my bad habits. Happily for me, the duration of sustained heavy air was a good thing! It was to be the long leg of practice I needed to finally improve. Well into the long upwind leg, we began developing a more appropriate racing technique. Toby starts calling the puffs and gusts before they are coming in. Usually by an estimate of how many boat lengths before the slam. Some are just puffs, but that is fine. As he calls it, my finger grips the traveler line, not the mainsheet. I pull the line out of the cleat, before the gust slams us. Then, when the boat slices into the pressure, I start releasing the traveler line and sliding the car and sail to leeward. The boat hardly heels more, the sail flaps less, and the boat stays powered up (not overly) and on course. Holy mother @#$%?! This is working! It is two thirds up the long windward leg, but hey that is okay, because this lesson is huge, and I finally get it. Why has it taken me so long to get it? Ya, I am slow, but after the race I realize there is another reason. This season I had a brand new Harken traveler set up installed. Everything new and smooth: track, windward sheeting car, bearings, line, all of it. Before, the traveler was always a laborious struggle. So, I used the mainsheet, which works, but as said above, is tough and jams with pressure when you need it most.

Another lesson for next season. Even if I don't understand why initially, every aspect of gear should work flawlessly, effortlessly. It isn't just a matter of being a gear-head, or compulsive where it isn't absolutely necessary. To race better, it is compulsory.

Now, about those other PHRF variables. First, the wind. While the Shark is handicapped as the slowest boat, it comes alive with the higher breeze, so today played in our favour against the other small boats. However, we did expect to be passed pretty quickly by the boats with longer waterlines that would be hitting their much faster max hull speeds. While we did stay ahead of other small boats for the whole windward leg, one of the Laser 28s, and one Etchells were closing in. Our sister Shark Sudden Eclipse rounded well ahead, us in 2nd, and the Etchells and Laser 28 hot on our heels, about 30 seconds back and reigning us in.

Then, two surprises, First, right after rounding the windward mark, senior Rahn sends young Rahn to the bow of the Shark, dragging the big whomper 180% sail with him. They manage a sail change pretty quick on the flat downwind course, as we are closing in. Before we can get close enough for our voices to carry over the wind and curse them, their new big sail is set, and they are pulling away again. I dunno how! Obviously there are other variables at play, and I suspect my helming is again part of the answer.

Still, my helming is not so bad as the other big, fast boats that should clean our clocks, don't! It is the next big surprise. The Laser 28 and the Etchells are not making much progress on us downwind. We butterfly our sails, as does the Etchells, and the Laser 28 does a broad reach. The Etchells with the tiny jib has trouble keeping it full, and the Laser 28 is reaching broadly enough, that they also have difficulty keeping the jib full. The butterfly run on the Shark was much more effective, and being watchful on shifts allowed me to keep working a bit of a higher course to make it most of the way to the next mark before jibing. Superman crew-mate Nick woulda been proud!

Eventually, the Laser 28, skippered by Paul Lhotsky works his way by, coming up on a higher course. Luc's Gloutney's Etchells finally gets us at the mark as we come in tight and out broad, while he comes in broad, and exits tight on the inside.

The next leg is pretty wild as the wind is now hitting peak. This allows the big waterline boats to make a charge at us, and I see a T26 gaining, but being run down by a train of a long boat driven by David Wisenthal. We complete that wild windward ride still ahead of them, and then turn for the final run to the finish. The Rahn Shark gets passed somewhere here by Lhotsky's Laser 28 and Gloutney's Etchells. The Wisenthall TRAIN has passed the Tanzer 26 (Keith Grassie I think) behind us, and is now looming up on us like a skyscraper. We are approaching the next mark which appears like a shortened course finish line, and it is a bit confusing for me. I find out from RCO Madeleine Palfreeman much later that the RC boat has motor failure and so sets the finish line there.

Our butterfly course points right at the RC and we are making good headway. As we near them it becomes apparent the RC boat is not a finish line mark, as is common practice. A permanent race mark becomes visible more to the right and needs to be left to port, and another smaller mark boat is holding a pin flag farther off. Oh no. I can feel the wind fading and I know David Wisenthaal's Tower-boat is shadowing us. Worse yet, Toby needs to flip the sail over from the butterly to broad reach as we alter course from RC boat to finish mark. This puts our starboard side crossing in front of the big boat's bow. From the corner of my eye, I can see a giant anchor rapidly approaching my head. I try not to freak and focus on coaxing more inches from the Shark, and we cross the finish line coasting with no wind, feet ahead of David's team. If not for the shortened course, he would have had us for lunch. Over the line and out of the wind shadow, I am somewhat aware of the Shark immediately surging back to top speed, as Toby and I are distractedly giving each other repeated high-fives.

PCYC served a great sausage chili and pumpkin pie. Hot food and a pint of cold draft go down so well after cold outdoor sports. Madeleine awarded the 1st place flag to Paul Lhotsky and the Pas De Deux trophy to his club, the RStLYC for its highest accumulation of points based on finishing positions as well as total number in fleet. A real participation trophy for a real fun race. And it was FUN!

Fireball Canadians

2010-10-01T22:34:00.000-04:00

Here is a post by MikeM from the Fireball NA website. Thanks to Eric for the heads-up! - Ralph, Montreal Sailing

The Fireball Canadians have concluded at the Pointe Claire Yacht Club in Montreal. Nineteen boats entered the event making this the largest turnout of Fireballs at any venue in North America this year. Crews from Nova Scotia, Alberta, Ontario, and British Columbia competed

Joe Jospe and Tom Egli are the Canadian champions after a clinic like display of sailing. Tom and Joe had seven firsts and two seconds on their way to the championship. Yet despite this impressive result Joe stated that he felt pressured in every race.

Robert Levy from Pointe Claire sailing with transplanted Alberta 470 sailor Jon Driver finished second followed by Guy Tipton and Matt King sailing out of the Shelburne Harbour YC in Nova Scotia were third.

Eric Owston and Hugh Strudwick finsihed fourth and Alberta skipper Debbie Kirkby sailing with PCYC sailor Toby Bryant rounded out the top five

PCYC had 5 boats in the top ten and the Nepean Sailing Club had three boats finish in the top 10 with Mike McEvoy and Jason Phillips in 7th followed by Rune Lausten and Jochen Mikosh in 8th and Jon Clark and Iain McEvoy in 10th. The Ontario contingemnt continues to narrow the gap with the Montreal Fleet

The Crew's Union made their customary acute observations of the various activities observed during the event which also doubled as the Screwball Regatta. This was the 29th running of the event and PCYC is shooting for 30 boats at the 30th event next year. It is amazing what can be acquired at a dollar store and made to serve as a "prize". Some of the more noteworthy "awards" were a set of dryer balls to a crew noted spending an inordinate time swimming; a strainer to serve as a bailer for the crew of Bruiser whose boat nearly sank on Saturday after a forward hatch cover failed and the tank filled with water; to the "space slime" award to Stephen Waldie for his ability to slime out of some bad situations!

The Montreal/Ottawa Challenge Trophy was awarded to the Ottawa Fleet due to their higher level of participation in the two designated traveling regattas this season

Final results are on the PCYC website

Some photos can be found here

Mobility Cup Regatta Report – AQVA

2010-09-27T14:27:00.001-04:00

Jenny Davey, who has had a long-time association with the Association québécoise de voile adaptée (AQVA) treats us to this report on the Mobility Cup, which was held where she has been hanging this summer, Vancouver. Thanks Jen! - Ralph, Montreal Sailing.

Just got back from the 2010 Mobility Cup, hosted by the Disabled Sailing Association of BC and held at the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club. I was holding sort of a dual role at this event: I was called in at the last minute to help AQVA with their large contingent of sailors, but having spent the summer working at the Disabled Sailing Association of BC in Victoria, I also pitched in to help the three athletes and new coach Hannah Brady from the BC program.

It was a challenging week of racing for both fleets as English Bay was stingy with her winds – not to mention sun - all week. Thankfully, the competent RC was able to eke out as much racing as possible from the fickle breeze and each fleet completed enough races for a drop – 5 in total for Gold and 7 for Silver.

AQVA put once again put on a strong show. Montreal’s Hafsa Chaar took home the title in Silver Fleet, with 3 bullets over 7 races (her drop was a lowly 3rd!). She sure looked proud hosting the Silver Fleet trophy known as the Coupe Dallaire, named after our own René, as well as the Debbie Donald Memorial Trophy for Top Female Skipper. Hafsa led a string of skilled female sailors at the top of the Silver leader board: finishing 2nd was Clare Adams of Ontario, followed by Sara Cooper of Calgary and Karell Regnier of Gatineau (who sails with our good friends at the Nepean program).

Philippe Lepage of AQVA sailed a consistent event to finish 5th in his first season racing. My Victoria rookies were right behind: Mike Carpenter had a great first-ever regatta finishing 6th and his teammate Mary Causton-Budac (also in her first event) was in 7th just ahead of long time AQVA sailor Pierre Yves Levesque in 8th.

It was thrilling to see the level of competition in Silver Fleet this year! The quality of racing has been steadily improving over the past few seasons as the sailors push each other more and more, and the first start of the regatta was a treat to watch as almost all 17 boats hit the line on time with speed – impressive considering it was a first season, if not first race, for many.

The whaat!?

In Gold, a strong fleet and fussy weather meant tough competition in the 18 boat fleet. The wind was particularly unkind to the Gold fleet, which had to battle hard to stay focused in drifter conditions during long waits between races. 3 of their 5 races were only squeezed in on the last day of the event when the breeze finally kicked in more steadily. Calgary dominated the top of the podium with Merle Hickey taking the Mobility Cup home, 3 points ahead of teammate Robb Lawrence. Upon accepting the trophy, Merle dedicated his win to Marc Landry, our dear friend and fierce competitor who passed away last spring. Christine Lavallee – another Gatineau sailor out of the Nepean Sailing Club – sailed well to clinch 3rd. AQVA sailors Marc Villeneuve and Pierre Richard tied for 4th, with Pierre taking 4th on the tie breaker and Marc rounding out the top 5, in his first season in Gold Fleet. Sip n’ Puff sailor René Dallaire struggled somewhat with equipment and consistency, but had strong moments and eventually finished 15th.

AQVA’s solid performances really speak to the coaching of Jean-Felix LeBlanc and Emilie Leonard, who ran the Race Program at Pointe Claire this season.

And of course, no Mobility Cup could be re-capped without mention of Dock Bitch extraordinaire, Paula Stone (can you write that in the blog, Ralph? It is her official title!). Paula once again stepped in to volunteer her expertise in boat charter and companion assignments, and let me tell you the regatta would not have gotten off the ground without her tireless efforts.

Way to go AQVA! Now we look forward to the winter 2.4mR events and planning next year’s Martin circuit...

Fireball Screwball To Be Canadian Nationals and Feature Coaching

2010-09-19T00:04:00.000-04:00

The upcoming Fireball Regatta is the big racing event in Montreal this coming week, and it all starts on Thursday. Here is a call out from Joe Jospe, probably the pre-eminent Ball booster, and the fleet's hottest sailor. As of last week, they have some super initial numbers that look like about 21 teams for the regatta. Joe and the fleet are looking for any closet Fireballers, or so-far undeclared teams from near and afar to get in touch. It looks like it'll be busy! Having a talented Fireball competitor and coach, who also happens to be a Director of the International Fireball Association, coming all the way from England to help everyone improve their game is brilliant. What a great way to make a regatta a more special event. Given the Limey connection, I thought I'd include some pics of an event Joe and Tom Egli did pretty well at, the 2008 National Championship in England. - Ralph, Montreal Sailing

Based on early responses, rumors, and an absence of confirmed denials, we have a preliminary list of attendees for the combined Screwball/ Canadian Nationals coming up in less than two weeks time. If your name is missing from the list below, please contact me as soon as possible to get in on the action. This should be the best attended event this year in North America, and you really want to be there. We really want you to be there. There might even be a boat available to borrow. In addition to what will inevitably turn out to be excellent racing, we are offering much more this year.

Coaching

Andrew Davies will be providing coaching beginning on Thursday, September 23^rd, at 1 p.m. and throughout the afternoon and the weekend. The plan is to go out on the water and participate in drills. Andrew will be on a coach boat, and will be providing feedback to help every boat improve their boat handling, sail trim, starting, and tactics. He will be equipped with a video camera, and we will have an opportunity to review the afternoon’s action later on shore. Andrew has agreed to analyze the action on the water throughout the racing and comment on every boat’s performance after sailing. This is an invaluable way to step our respective games. Andrew has extensive experience coaching at top competitive levels in the Fireball class. He has coached the Swiss and Czech teams and others, in addition to an impressive racing resumé in the Fireball class. Andrew is the Secretary of Fireball International, and always a welcome guest.

The Bar

will be open to celebrate success, good company, or to help forget the inevitable mishap on the water. A gathering of this many Fireball sailors from across the country is guaranteed to be fun.

The Dinner

Our planning committee has put together a delicious menu for Saturday evening. We will be treated to a Greek feast, with a range of choices to suit all. We would appreciate knowing if you are planning on bringing any non-sailors, as space is limited, and we do not want to turn any Fireball crew or friend away.

The Entertainment

Screwball has developed some intriguing traditions over the years. John McGuinness has put together an entertainment plan for the evening that combines music and humour. Stephanie might even have written another musical ode to the Fireball fleet, as she has done for the last couple of years.

The Prizes

In addition to the serious stuff, Screwball is the one event on the agenda where we try and send everyone home with a prize. Our prize-giving ceremony is really quite unique. The Crew’s Union will reward all heroics appropriately. Andrew McCrae and Peter Kelly, a long-time team as prize-givers, have teamed up on the water as well. We can only wonder what the extra time together will yield. Their goal is to send everyone home with a smile and thanks for attending and being part of the fun.

The Dates

Coaching will begin on Thursday, September 23^rd at 1 p.m. Racing is scheduled to start on Friday, September 24^th at 1 p.m., and continue on Saturday and Sunday. The Notice of Race is available at http://www.fireball-international.ca/images/plumbing/2010screwball_cdn_nor.pdf.

See you there.

Joe Jospe

Let's go racing!

2010-09-11T21:17:00.000-04:00

Great day for our fall GNS series beginning in the morning with 3 races. The forecast is: wind light becoming southeast 10 to 15 knots late Sunday morning. Lets all go and have a super day! The first warning signal is 10:00 hours.

Photo by Heather Deeks

Ketchup: Meet Spiderman's Supermen

2010-09-06T23:08:00.000-04:00

Sigh, every now and then I forget that a lot of people who read this blog happen to be racing the same races I do. I get much needed blogger's ego building support, which compensates for my sailing performance. But also, if something doesn't seem quite right, or deserving of a different comment, I hear about it. And I am very happy that I do! Etienne Portelance noticed that the recent picture of Ketchup and crew was not the same victorious crew as the race I was reporting on: "It's the wrong crew on the boat!!!" True enough the photo was from the previous week end, and George was sailing with Jake and Peter. Etienne and Courtney were the supermen on board when they won the Hudson Distance Race in the big blow this past Saturday. Etienne also helped me out by finding a dead link in the directory at left. I appreciate the heads up. Several regular readers have said they would like more frequent posts too. Every now and then, a guest article saves the day for me! Here comes Etienne to the rescue with some more feedback on Hudson's big race, and the guy some of his old buddies call Spiderman. (Hey, maybe someone else can explain the spidey reference some time!) - Ralph, Montreal Sailing

Hi Ralph, here is a short article on Ketchup (to be pronounced Catch-up) George and me.

I met George 14 years ago. I sailed against him before sailing with him. I sailed on a Fireball he had sold and wondered at how he could make it go so fast as nothing worked very well. Then he came up with this big orange boat with faded color. A Shark was OK as a second boat, one to have picnic with the family, but certainly not a racing boat. He had an emotional attachment to it as the boat had been in the family since it had been built.

14 years later, the Shark Canadians are in Beaconsfield and the Shark worlds are in the same place a year later. I've participated in two world championships before and it has been a great learning experience both times. I wanted to sail both events without sacrificing too much family time. The compromise: Noé, my 4 year old son is often with us on the boat, and I only sail Tuesdays. George's 4 year old son Mathew is also a regular crew.

George decided his most regular crew would be with him for the Hudson annual long distance race: Paula and Courtney. I had told George I had never sailed in this race, that I was interested. When Paula said she was unavailable, I was pleased I could sail with Courtney and George. Courtney is a big guy, who had not had the chance to sail when he was young. He modestly calls himself a puppet: "When somebody asks me to pull a rope, I pull a rope." He understates as he knows what to do in a lot of situations on the boat, but an illness has left him less mobile and agile than most people, so I took the foredeck position this time.

The start of the Hudson long distance race was a confused place. Without a VHF, we had no idea when the countdown started. I looked at the line and contradicted George when he wanted to get a closer look at the committee boat: "Better to start two minutes late at the pin than right on time at the boat." So we looked at the fleet and tried to guess what was going on when we decided to go for it. George said it was probably 4 minutes late. It felt like all the fleet was over the line, but they were still below us, so only a few boat were far ahead of us at the start. It's a long distance race in boats where the corrected time is most important. The bigger boats have an advantage: potentially they sail in better wind as they should get it first. On
a small boat like the Shark (possibly the slowest boat in the race) we sail in air that has been bent around the sails of lots of faster boats, so it is difficult to sail as fast as the boat's potential.

George is a lot tougher than he looks, he played the main, traveler, backstay and rudder for the first two thirds of the race. I was never bored though I didn't have much to do, we stayed in the middle, looking at boats catching up to us from one side, then from the other. It always looked better away from where we were. Then there was a really big gust. The first boats rode that gust all the way from the top mark to the end. We were on a close reach while they were on a broad reach. After the top mark, the wind dropped a notch so we decided to fly our chute. George had an old spinnaker from the days when triangular courses were the norm. It was stealthy silent, but narrower, so we could point higher than those with the pure downwind chutes that are used today. When a stronger gust came, the chute came down, but it went back up when the gust was over.

The boat's newest sail in heavy air is the 5 year old main. (The genny and running running spinnaker are a little more recent). One important modification was done to the backstay recently: it now has a cleat on both sides. It has inherited 40 years of tools and parts that have their home in the cabin. A big bucket was not enough to empty the water that had leaked in during the three hour race. "Why three oars George?" "Because I own three." I have sailed on boats where a person on board would inspect the duffel bags of the other crew to make sure nobody brought too much stuff. Not George.

George called me today to say that we had won the race by 24 seconds on corrected time. He was very happy as it was the third time he had won this race. I'll keep sailing with the skipper who tolerates all the questions and moods of two vivacious 4 year olds. Thanks George!

Etienne

Hudson's Annual Distance Race Blew Us Away

2010-09-05T19:30:00.000-04:00

Ketchup,from files, CNDM One Design 2010

Saturday, the wind blew pretty darn hard for the Hudson Annual Distance Race. In fact, it was the highest blow I have seen so far this season. Windspeed recorded at the airport ranged from 35 km/h to 43 km/ according to Environment Canada (Don't let the file photo above fool you). It was far, far higher on the open water of course, jumping around between 20 and 30 knots according to the more sheltered BDYC. On wider waters like L2M, and in the frequent, powerful gusts it was much higher yet.

The impact of heavy air on the racers was clear to the eye. There were fewer boats on the start line as the most sane stayed away. 88 boats registered, down from the usual 100 or so. Of the boats racing, just 63 finished the race. The carnage was plentiful. On Mainsail, we were probably having our best race ever, since the high winds gave our Shark an advantage. Unfortunately, near the Oka church, our mainsail halyard blew apart, and we were out of it. Paul Baehr's Shark suffered a similar fate when they lost their genoa halyard. Very likely the greatest indignance of all was a severe blow dealt to BlueShark. Jin Frati's Shark had just rounded the final windward mark for the run home when a lower shroud gave away, causing the mast to snap in two! No one was hurt, but Jin of course was in sight of top dawgs as usual when knocked out of contention.

The big winner is George Stedman and his team on the Shark, #422, Ketchup. This is the 2nd recent year that George has won this race if memory serves me correctly. George also won Sailweek earlier this season. George had an amusing comment for readers of Montreal Sailing. He says the race included "The longest 24 seconds I have ever experienced". Ketchup scores victory based on a lead of 24 seconds of corrected time over the next boat, David Lowther's Etchells. Ketchup crossed the finish line 18 minutes after David's Impudence to score the PHRF victory. Hence the long, nerve wracking 24 seconds!

Etchells, J22s, and Sharks dominated the top ten, and here it is:

Ketchup, George Stedman, Shark, #422
Impudence, David Lowther, Etchells, #931
Slim, Allan Gray, Etchells, #1053
Quill, Scott Lawrence, Etchells, #1089
Boy-Toy, Bill Lynam, Shark, #729
Jack, Ron Harris, J22, #1421
Jazz, Kathy Harris, J22, #693
Perceval, Serge Thiffault, J29, #92
Ying Yang, Michael Anderson, Shark, 438
Still Lost Boys, Paul Laflamme, Etchells, #321

Congratulations to everyone sailing the big air!

Montreal Shark Showdown: CNDM One Design Regatta

2010-09-01T22:00:00.000-04:00

The CNDM One Design Regatta is open to any class with enough boats, but one class showed, and made it a big and important event.

Shark Showdown. That is what this became. A lot of Montreal Sharks have been shoving each other around the course, vying for that leader of the pack designation, that heft to be head of the howling hounds. And it has taken a lot of shoving to be at the top of this competitive heap. The very first Lac St. Louis race of the year in the spring saw 10 Sharks out on the course right off the bat.

In the first major away-regatta, Trillium in Toronto, Tof Nicoll-Griffith and the Crisis team were the top Montreal boat. At the Canadian Championship at BYC, Crisis were again top Montreal boat. Would they always dominate? No! Then, Peter Rahn and the team on Eclipse gave Crisis a serious run for the top in the local racing, often putting into question who would win the series. In the end, Crisis took the first series with a razor-thin margin. But this was not just one mano-a mano battle for two. Jin Frati crashed that party and whooped both of the others in convincing fashion in one particularly notable race. VO2 Max took a race, Nuiscance was always hovering at the top tier. Eclipse took the last regatta of Sailweek in a nail-biter. George Stedman's Ketchup ultimately triumphed over everyone to take the highest overall standing for Sailweek. So many contenders and different victors! A showdown was needed to settle the score. Who could struggle through to the top, and could any one boat dominate this class?

Along comes the CNDM One Design Regatta. This is it, the final shoot out, the Shark showdown in the CNDM corral. Almost all the Montreal racing Sharks came. Environment Canada clocked windspeed for the region in the 20-25 knot range, but in the sheltered bay where racing took place it was probably in the mid-teens - perfect for Sharks. Perfect for a streetfight! Here, we would have it out. CNDM would be the place the score was settled. This would not be simply cruisin' for a bruisin'. Top dawgs tails were wagging because the wind was up and so were the rights for bragging.

Well who has the hots when the wind clocks? VO2 Max. They killed the fleet. Eight races, all in brisk wind, against the best Montreal competition, all at CNDM. Here were their scores. 1,1,2,1,3,7 (drop),1.They came, sailed, and conquered!

Don Osborne, Helm
Nick Van Haeften, Middle
Matt Osborne, Foredeck

Remember those names! How did they so convincingly take this climatic Shark regatta at CNDM? Well, it seems they had the geography figured out. They knew where the wind was bending, and were ready to tack when they hit the right spot. Me, I know when the wind picks up, this team is ready. When the white caps are rushing, they rock.

2010 Quebec Dinghy Championships

2010-08-30T07:21:00.000-04:00

This year, the 2010 Quebec Dinghy Championships will be hosted by the Royal St. Lawrence Yacht Club, on September 11th & 12th. Open category classes include; Laser, Laser Radial, 29er and RSX. The BIC OD 293 windsurfer is categorized as 19 and under. Youth classes include; Byte, Laser 4.7, 420 and Optimist. Come warm up as the fall racing season gets underway and see what RStLYC has to offer. It is also worth noting that the Quebec Dinghy Championships are being held right outside one of the most vibrant North American cities, Montreal! Link to the NOR/Registration info can be found on the club website homepage at: www.rstlyc.qc.ca . Jess Lombard

Sharks at CNDM One Design Regatta: Day One

2010-08-29T00:12:00.000-04:00

Wow, what a day. The CNDM One Design race had plenty of challenging wind. The velocity was fairly high, went up and down constantly, was puffy, gusty, and full of dangerous holes. Of course that kind of wind constantly shifted as well, so it was crazy at times trying to stay on top of it all. VO2 Max is sailing super well with plenty of bullets after the first day, so they have to be in first place. Kudos to Toy-Yot which is also having a great regatta, getting some of their best results as a Shark team. Paul Baehr's team is also hot sailing with higher results the pay off. They are in the hunt for podium positions.

CNDM is one of the most beautiful venues in Montreal sailing with a great view of the harbour, lake, and sunsets from Adirondack chairs in the garden, or from the social party happening in the big gazebo where the free beer was getting passed around very quickly. Supper was a very tasty meal, and a social event. Bill Lyman made not one, but two well received speeches, and got a standing ovation for the CNDM folk.

We sailed five races in hot sun and big breeze, so the crews were pretty thirsty and exhausted when we returned to harbour and partying. Tomorrow, we are expecting more of the same kind of action.

Sharks at CNDM One Design Regatta

2010-08-28T08:00:00.000-04:00

Today is an important day for the Montreal Shark fleet. As many of you know, it has seen rapid growth in the last couple of years. This year, that growth has made the difference in a new way, a new regatta. CNDM, the latest club with a good number of the new Sharks has organized the CNDM One Design Regatta and Sharks will be there. This regatta used to be a significant stop in the SLVYRA circuit, but hasn't been on the radar for some time. Now, it will be a very important event for Sharks.

I will even say it will be this year's most important regatta for the Shark fleet. Sure the Canadian Championship at BYC was a fantastic event. We all loved it. Next year BYC will host the World Championship. The CNDM One Design Regatta is not our biggest (but it is excellent with 15 or 16 Sharks). However, we now have a second one design stop to race in Montreal. We don't have to travel to the metro-Toronto area to race this week end. That is a really, really, big development! We now also have formal one design racing on both of the lakes around Montreal, Lac St. Louis and Lac Des Deux Montagnes. So, this is an important event for Montreal Sharks.

Today's racing should be intense with lots of wind, and some very competitive spirits out there strutting their stuff!

Montrealers At The High Performance Regattas

2010-08-14T09:36:00.000-04:00

Martin Robitaille, photo by A. Robitaille.

There are three active one design fleets in the Montreal area with sailors racing here and traveling too. So, lets check in on some recent performances. Montreal Sailors have been having some pretty exciting racing both here and beyond our pond, so to speak.

Jamie Allan, Lightning North American Championship, 15th
Peter Hall, Masters' Lightning North American Championship, 1st
Tof Nicoll-Griffith, Shark North American Championship, 3rd (Tof was tops, but 5 boats from Montreal competed!)
Jean-Pierre Kiekens, Canadian Laser Masters Championship, 17th
Martin Robitaille, Canadian Junior Laser Championship, 1st (and 6th overall in full-rig!)

Congratulations to our Top Dawgs!

Allan has a big win leading into Lightning NA's

2010-08-11T09:13:00.002-04:00

Flash from Jay Deakin:

"Jamie Allan of BYC just won the Lightning North American’s qualifier. Strong fleet of 78 boats including 5 time world champion Tito Gonzalez of Chile. The championship series starts today."

Racing is taking place at the Toms River Yacht Club, in New Jersey. The North American's run from today through Friday. Michael and Valerie Holly are crewing with Jamie Allan. Below are top five from the qualifiers.

Allan, Jamie
Terhune, Allan
Starck, David
Gonzalez, Tito
Adams, Ed

HYC Annual and Sharks at CNDM Both a Go

2010-08-10T10:36:00.000-04:00

Although HYC postponed the Womens' National Keelboat Championship to next year due to low water levels, the Annual Regatta for Labour Day week end is still on. So is the One Design Regatta at CNDM the week end before. At HYC, concern at the boat launch area was a problem, and some J24 owners were concerned for their boats being chartered to those unfamiliar with the troublesome areas.

Bernard Le Duc, HYC J22 sailor says "to be very careful about course setting and be aware of shallow spots". That is always a given for this event as I remember many years seeing boats coming into contact with the bottom or a rock. So, this year, some extra special attention to where we are going seems like very good advice! Still, I am confident the event will be a highlight of the season as usual.

The one design racing at CNDM is a very exciting development for that one design fleet. This year, the Sharks are the largest single racing fleet by far. Actually, for large-scale one design racing, it is fair to say the Sharks are the game in Montreal. To have another club and one design regatta on its calendar is a super development. I don't know what classes are attending, but hopefully those beautiful Stars will be out too.

That being said, the HYC PHRF distance race on the Saturday of Labour Day week end will be the climax of many sailors' season. It is a wonderful time out for both casual racers with a picnic and those shooting for their best race since their is usually about a hundred keelboats of all types. All of them want to have fun, and the harbour party and supper after are good evidence of what a social event it is for all.

See you out there!

HYC has to postpone 2010 CYA Women’s Keelboat Championships, grounded by low water levels

2010-08-09T10:00:00.000-04:00

Below is an article posted on the CYA website this morning. Although we have all been concerned about low levels of water, I had no idea it was this bad up by Hudson. If HYC has had to cancel a national championship, one has to wonder if it is safe to race in the upcoming Hudson Annual Regatta. This is such a popular event that so many of us look forward to, but of course no one wants to jeopardize our boats. It makes me wonder about the Shark regatta at CNDM the weekend before as well. I have heard no other news so far. Despite difficulties in the harbour, BYC was able to hold the Shark Canadian Championships earlier this season. Many of the Etchells at PCYC have also not been sailing this year. Our sympathies go out to HYC and to all the sailors looking forward to the upcoming Women's Keelboat Championship.

From the CYA website:

Due to extremely low water levels in the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Seaway this year, the 2010 CYA Women's National Keelboat Championships has officially been postponed to the Spring / early Summer of 2011. The hosting organization at the Hudson Yacht Club is disappointed to have had to make this critical decision. We remain fortunate to have gold level sponsors MacDougall, MacDougall and MacTeir Inc. stay onboard for the now 2011 event. Be sure to stay tuned to sailing.ca to see news of the new date for the event.

The CYA Women’s Keelboat National Championship is held annually by the CYA and hosted by a member club. This event provides an excellent regatta whereupon Canada’s Canadian Sailing Team members, provincial athletes, club members, and general sailing enthusiasts can come together and partake in a national event. The Hudson Yacht Club will run the event in J/24's with a maximum crew of 6 per boat. The CYA Trophy for Canadian Women’s Sailing Championship is presented at this event.

Ken's Favourite Race on Saturday

2010-07-29T09:08:00.000-04:00

From the HYC Blog:

A favourite of Ken Hodgson, the Single Handed Race for the Lake of Two Mountains Gazette Trophy will be run on Saturday 31 July, warning signal 11:00.

A race traditionally set to challenge the skippers boat handling skills with a very unusual course, it is open to all classes. There will be a single start for all competitors and the race is limited to white sail.

Copies of the SI's will be available at the club and on http://hudsonyachtclub.com/racing_documents.html

The Lake of Two Mountains Trophy was originally presented to the club in 1964 to be awarded for Club Championship in the GP14 Class. During the 1970's the participation in GP14's fell and the trophy was rededicated to the Class Winner, Miscellaneous Centreboards. In 1982 the trophy took on its current award to the winner of the Single Handed Race. Since then it has been won by such notable members amongst others as Greg Bowser, Ken Hodgson, Cork Winters, Ed Cowell and Ron Harris.

The Overall Champion of Sailweek 2010 is...

2010-07-24T09:55:00.000-04:00

Ketchup, under attack by two other Sharks, Blueshark and VO2 Max, yet another photo by wunderphotog Heather Deeks

drumroll please...

Ketchup, skippered by George Stedman!

Ketchup has won the largest, most competitive fleet, PHRF 3 which includes all the Shark hotshots and the leading Tanzer 22, Encore Une Fois. None of the top three ran away with victories over the competition. Ketchup, like the other Sharks, Crisis in 2nd, and Eclipse in 3rd overall, won just won race. The Sailweek glory came from sailing more consistently in the upper tier of results.

Hurrahs:
Cheer on the team of Silver Phantom who are now ghosting by the "Silver" fleet. You probably haven't noticed, but Silver Phantom, crewed by Jake Fichten, has with the completion of Sailweek, surpassed the rest of us doing battle in the 2nd pack. It takes a long time to figure out how to get a Shark going at its fastest, frustratingly more so than some other boats. This is the Phantom's first full season here, and they are moving up the fleet as they quietly work away at it. We still get the occasional race above them, but overall, they are now doing better! Personally, I don't intend to let them get away with being the Rolls Royce slipping by the Chevys, so watch out. Call us brash, but we're out to fight!

Sailweek closes with a Blowout

2010-07-18T12:01:00.000-04:00

The wind was blowing the dogs off the chains during the PCYC Annual Regatta Saturday. The Environment Canada Marine Forecast was calling for 20-25 knots and possibly up to 30. I am pretty bad at estimating these things but I would say it was strongest in the beginning, at least a good 20 knots, and then eased a little but stayed very strong through the second race. For the third race, everyone was switching from their blades to their largest genoas. I often look at the airport data and then raise their measurements from kilometers of wind-speed on land to the same number of knots on the water. I have found this often roughly works out as the larger expanse of open area on Lac St. Louis allows the wind to increase speed. Environment Canada reported 26 km at the airport at 10:00 am, and then dropping to 20-22 km. That seems about right for my formula.

In the largest fleet, PHRF 3 it was all Sharks with the exception of John Linton's lone Tanzer 22, Encore Une Fois. Given the high wind tipping the odds heavily in favour of the Sharks, Encore did remarkably well to place mid-fleet, ahead of many Sharksters. The odds they faced this day showed how good they have become. Susan joined their regulars on this day, and it is impressive how that petite frame projects a voice equally as well as John's. Ah yes, constant, good communication is a key! Well done Encore.

The unofficial winner is that unmistakable green boat, the Rahn-racer, perennial contenders for top dawgs, the Shark with a bark, ECLIPSE! By placing second in each race, they proved to be the most consistent performers of the day. No boat was unbeaten by them, or ahead more than once.

There were 4 boats that were realistically contending for the winners' circle. George Stedman's orange-red Shark, Ketchup won the first race. Whenever, I see that boat mixing it up with the green team I want to re-name the Rahn boat, Relish. George was sailing with a work buddy today, and my, they are getting good! I remember when they had foul-ups to rival our own, but no more. They are pretty smooth. Pierre Carpentier's team on Nuisance, another perennial top dawg, was constantly in the hunt and won the second race. I guess they should be nicknamed the Mayo-Shark. Tof Nicoll-Griffith was absent today. His Shark, Crisis, interestingly was being helmed by middle-man Hugh Strudwick who it seems can do a great job on the tiller. They were in the game each race and won the third and final go-around. Way to go Hugh! Che Guevara was on board which I think is very cool. Hold onto that look as long as you can Kai!

On Mainsail, we put the pressure on poor Chris Cartier, who despite never sailing on the boat before, manned up and took the heavy wind pressure, unfamiliarity with the boat and its procedures, and occasional !"/$%?&* from me! A very big thank you Chris! He just kept on going through it all, and still fed me to boot. It was a pleasure having someone upbeat like him onboard. David Bowen leaped around as fixer-extraordinaire. Despite some foul ups, we had the superior Shark, #28, Kaos in our sights the whole time, just couldn't catch them. We did duke it out with Silver Phantom, and Chimera at the back getting ahead of them for a couple finishes. Overall though, we held fast to our official Backpacker status. One boat I chase that did wonderfully was Toy-Yot. They had some different sailors on board, and I would like some lessons please.

I was happy to see Laurence Creuzet on an Etchells. She always has a keen focus, but she looks particularly happy on that boat. I hope I can get her to go slumming on a Shark again sometime!

My favourite sailors, whatever the fleet, because of what they contribute on and off the water, Chinook won the first White Sail race in honking winds! They suffer a bit in my opinion, because that sweet sailing boat needs more wind to get up to its hull speed. They got too much of it this day, but handled the big blow just fine. Despite the heavy air, John and Esther Maclean took the first race. Rick Cartmel on the C&C Corvette, the handsome and classic locomotive train from the RStLYC also won a race and a second. They score a tie overall with Chinook for second and third. I suspect they will take 2nd on the tiebreaker! Clearly, the team that is odds-on favourite in the White Sail class are the folks sailing with Steve Benedetti on the Niagara 26, Moonraker. Wow, that is one very fast cruiser-racer! Those guys are keen and out there all the time. For this regatta they took two 2nds and won a race to come out on top overall.

How great is it to have such close matches? The top spots have been changing every race during Sailweek. Also, there have been great matches throughout the fleets, front, middle and back, as boats that are closely in contention with each other mix it up. This has been making the racing such a pleasure no matter where one is in the standings. Everyone has made Sailweek a huge success this year.

Mainsail will haul out now to effect some repairs. I want the boat in good shape for the next Shark one design regatta with the new fleet hosting at CNDM! We will be back on the courses in about a week, and taking it up a notch. See you then!

File photos by the ever impressive Heather Deeks

Sailweek has Another Race and Another Winner

2010-07-15T07:38:00.000-04:00

Another team has come out on top during Sailweek. It's like they are taking turns in the PHRF 3 fleet. Tof Nicoll-Griffith and Crisis were beating the fleet in the recent Shark Canadian Championship. They also edged out Peter Rahn's Shark team on Eclipse which starred during the first Tuesday Good Neighbours Series. Then, Jin Frati's Shark pretty much ran away with the Beaconsfield Annual Regatta which are also the opening bouts of the week we call Sailweek. The next round for Sailweek was Tuesday evening and that race was canceled with the threat of electrical storms on the course. Last night, the racing resumed, and it was a very nice, light northeast wind that sustained itself throughout the evening. So who dominated last night. Another Shark. The latest winner, Vo2 Max.

Not only did they win the race, they pulled away from the fleet and stayed well ahead for the entire race. A number of Sharks and John Linton's Tanzer 22 mixed it up in the front, but Vo2 Max was so far ahead they essentially sailed there own race for the evening. Some speculated that they dug deep to the left on the first windward leg, heading to shore, deeper than anyone else.

Bravo to John Linton's team on Encore Une Fois for leading the pack after Vo2 Max. They fought off Jin Frati's Blue Shark and Tof's Crisis to hold down 2nd place. Kudos to the Fichten's Silver Phantom who also placed highly in the fleet last night. Jake, Cathy and Bruce now seem to be getting their newly acquired Shark moving well, and are moving back into familiar territory in the head pack.

On Mainsail, we were pleased with our progress. We are certainly not a threat to the top dawgs. Nevertheless, we are getting incrementally better and moving our boat speed and game along to compete well with the boats we consider better but approachable. My primary concern was to be right on the start line when the gun went off. In light wind, if I were to allow other sails to blanket us again, it would have been the kiss of death. It is a dilemna I have been familiar with, and I was determined not to let it happen to us last night. So, with a little less than a minute to go, I plunked the boat right on the line and rode down a bit till the gun went off. Like VO2 Max we kept left, and I think it helped. We did tack away about 3/4 up the windward leg, and may not have had quite as much pressure after that. We had a pretty good race, although boats we beat over the start, like Ketchup and Silver Phantom still managed to clobber us in the end. We fared well against many of the other Sharks. However, it was definitely a very nice, light but consistent wind suitable to the Tanzer 22s. So, not only did the T22 Encore Une Fois do very well, a hearty cheer has to be sent out to the T22 team Sorceress which capitalized on that and sailed very ably to place highly.

I'm not sure what happened in the other fleets, so I look forward to seeing the results when they come out. I can say it was pleasant to see boats we don't see often in our usual Tuesday and Thursday racing.. Being a Wednesday, the Lightnings were on the race course, and so were RStLYC boats. The quick boat out there has to be the J80 sailed by Peter Mcbride's crew.

Congrats to Don, his daughter on foredeck, and Nick, the killers on VO2 Max! See you all out there tonight for another go!

This is the Man!

2010-07-13T17:32:00.000-04:00

Yes sir! This man is the winner of the opening bouts of Sailweek. Jin Frati, the man! Not only did he win the Beaconsfield Yacht Club Regatta, he did it as if he was that General, "Stormin' Norman". He and his team on Blue Shark convincingly won the first two races, and only then was beaten in the third by Tof Nicoll-Griffith and Crisis. Two bullets and a 2nd place in the first regatta of Sailweek. I think we have a new contender for Montreal Sailing's Top Dawg category. The action continues tonight.

Picture from Shark Canadian's by Heather Deeks.

Second Outing of Sailweek this Evening

2010-07-13T07:59:00.000-04:00

Sailweek opened with 3 races of the Beaconsfield Annual Regatta last Saturday. Tonight, Sailweek continues with evening racing. Racing will continue tomorrow, Wednesday, then Thursday, and close with the PCYC Annual Regatta this coming Saturday. Pictured is Beverly Gilbertson's Tanzer 22, Sorceress returning to harbour after Saturday's racing. It will be interesting to see if tonight's racing in PHRF 3 becomes another battle between Blue Shark and Crisis.

Sailweek Begins with BYC Annual Regatta

2010-07-10T23:44:00.000-04:00

Today was the opening salvo of Sailweek 2010. 3 races of the Beaconsfield Yacht Club’s Annual Regatta. Then, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings are Sailweek’s evening races. Next Saturday is the Pointe Claire Yacht Club’s Annual Regatta to close things off.

Today’s regatta was typical Montreal mid-summer weather. Some threatening clouds initially, but the weather was most mostly sunny, hot, humid, and we sailed along via a light wind. Lots of shifting winds, little puffs, and swirly stuff kept the strategists guessing. Today's crew were regulars David Bowen (top pic) and Tavish McDonnell (pic below)

In the distance to the east were two very large fleets of boats on different racing courses. Oh yeah, the TRY dinghy regatta! I don’t think I have ever seen so many Lasers on Lac St. Louis. I sure hope some of them join the Good Neighbour racing series.

Our first race of the day was a disappointment. I had a poor start and trailed the fleet around the course unable to pick anyone off – DFL. Ugh, don’t wanna go back there again. Been there, done that. After the race, I discovered a huge wad of weeds on the rudder. My older Shark rudder is a little deceptive. Weeds can wrap around the lower squared section and not really be visible. I saw a few high up, and hung off the back of the boat to pull ‘em off. Yikes, I realized there was a large hedge hanging on the rudder lower down. It was larger than some of the bushes in my garden at home. We sailed backwards to be certain of getting everything off the rudder and keel.

The second race, we got a better start. I could feel the boat accelerate more as we crossed the line. I picked the right side, and we seemed to have a little more breeze for a while. With the wind being as fickle as it was though, I’m not confident one side consistently paid more than the other. The best side is an on-going debate between David and I!

On the downwind leg, I saw we could sail a higher course if we jibed right after rounding the windward mark. I also thought there was still a little more breeze on that side of the course (shore). We made good progress on both downwind legs. In fact, probably much more progress than on the upwind legs. We ended up ahead of 7 boats in this race, including a number of Sharks that I’m always measuring our progress against, because they are usually better. Sharks like Sudden Impulse, Toy Yot, Chimera, Crescendo, and Silver Phantom.

Indeed, indeed. Most of those boats re-asserted their supremacy in the third and final race. I think we may have held three off. The third race was more evidence of a repeated, significant weakness of mine: starts. We were approaching with good timing. However, I took Silver Phantom’s stern, instead of turning to beat windward of them. I was thinking I would have enough speed to come out the other side heading a little further from the committee boat. I figured there would be a large gap between the crowd at the RC and the Pin-heads. Instead, almost the whole fleet sailed down the line and blanketed us and we almost totally stalled two or three boat lengths from the line – argghh! I make this mistake over and over again, because I’m afraid of getting stuck in the middle of traffic, or worse, squeezed into the RC. Instead I get stuck in neutral gear, trying desperately to get out from under other sails to windward. We tacked over to the right again quickly for clear air... but the damage was done. We did a fair bit of tacking to catch up to a few boats. Catching shifts helped a bit. We caught three boats and were targeting Toy Yot on the final run. Several times on the last run we were blanketed by larger boats or J24s. Every time we jibed to clear our air, we ran into another chute to windward. We made our way on the shore side again, as I looked for more pressure. We did get some and made progress. The last jibe towards the finish was a bid to sail high and fast. We probably would not have caught Toy-Yot, but there was a small chance. Then the wind went way forward, and because we were already on a high course, we had to switch to the genny. Toy-Yot finished well ahead of us. Bravo Bill Lynam! Post-analysis of the today’s racing should be very interesting. Both Bill and I are using a GPS functioning knotmeter-compass called Speedpuck. We will be viewing our tracks on the computer soon. Cool.

Irregardless of the pressures and hard work racing against smarter, faster sailors, I feel we did pretty well today. We moved up the roster a bit from our usual place, and we are occasionally finishing up on the good gang. Many thanks to a sailor with real class, Judy Weiss, skipper of Crescendo, who recognized we had worked hard to catch up one leg to windward, and got them on one tack over their bow. She called out “Good on you Ralph” or some such comment. That felt good and it was generous of her!

Congratulations are in order to Jin Frati and crew on Blue Shark. I think they probably won the first two races and were close to first for the third race. They were on fire today! Tof N-G and Hugh Strudwick did very well today too, and probably won the third race. I suspect it is because they had one of my regular crew, Toby Jennings, working the foredeck for them. Dunno if they were third or not, but a Shark I like very much, VO2 Max was right up there too. Last two times I helmed that boat were winning occasions: First in last year’s Ishkoodah, first in this year’s RStLYC Annual. Nick Van Haeften played a bit of a role in that effort of course. At least, I didn’t cramp his style!

My apologies to Rob Levy, whose Fireball we unintentionally leebowed. We were not in the same race, so I felt bad.

Seems to me. and crew David Bowen and Tavish McDonnell, that we are getting it better and better as the season progresses. Watch out, Montreal Sailors, we are on the hunt and rising!

Sailweek continues Tuesday, and the drama of the series will continue to build.

Fireball Friday

2010-07-09T07:42:00.000-04:00

From the recent Fireball World's in Barbados. Looks like Peter on the wire. Photo by Urs Hardi.

Fireball Friday

2010-07-01T07:17:00.000-04:00

Registering with Race Committee for an evening race in the recent Good Neighbours Series A.

Top of the Top Dawgs

2010-06-29T07:27:00.000-04:00

Well, it appears we can celebrate, give a tip of the hat, call out a pip, pip, pip and a hearty cheer! The team of father and son Nicoll-Griffith's tied together in the middle by sailor-extraordinaire Hugh Strudwick have won the first completed Tuesday night Good Neighbours Series A racing. However the team sailing a Shark that we think just may be the Top Dawg of the exclusive "Top Dawgs of Montreal Sailing" almost didn't pull it off. Giving them extreme heat in the first GNS series of 2010 was another Shark team of Peter Rahn on Eclipse. It got pretty confusing due to a mix up in results, but the threat from Peter's shiny green Shark was unmistakable.

The third podium is owned by the ever-pressing John Linton and team on the Tanzer 22, Encore Une Fois. Once again, John breaks up the feeding frenzy of Sharks at the top of the heap. John beat out a large fleet of Sharks with his Tanzer 22, all trying but failing to take a bite out of his stern rear end.

Montreal Sailing congratulates all of the teams out there that have made the opening round of summer so much fun.

GNS critical race tonight!

2010-06-22T17:14:00.000-04:00

It's almost race time again this evening, but here is a quick post just to say, oh my gawd, look at the top of the heap in the Good Neighbours Series A racing! The family team on Eclipse is in first place, ahead of the top dawgs on Crisis! Could things be unraveling for the guys on the grey Shark. Has the green Shark shown they now have the right stuff? Are the guys on Crisis experiencing something akin to the boat's name? Will the Rahn family do in the Nicoll-Griffiths and Hugh tonight?

Eclipse is in first place with 4 points, Crisis just a spit behind with 5 points. On top of that, Encore Une Fois and Kaos our tied on points for 3rd and 4th. Who stays on the podium? Who will be toppled? Try and stay calm everyone, because tonight will answer our questions. This is gonna be some race!

From the Nearer of Afar

2010-06-20T11:02:00.000-04:00

There is a Laser clinic going on today at the Mallet's Bay Boat Club. That's on Lake Champlain, an area I have always wanted to sail on. I have a particular fondness for places like Burlington, and Vermont as a whole. However my experiences were of hiking in the Green Mountains not sailing. I have not been to this club, but it appears to be a very busy place. The club is all member run, a positive indicator of the participation. The clinics, courses and private lessons all seem very reasonably priced. Today's clinic is only $35. I occasionally get wind of various regattas and fleets from there. Martin 16, Laser, Lightning are a few examples. At the recent Shark Canadian Championship here, one of the entrants was from MBBC. It isn't really afar at all. More like just a little beyond the neighbourhood so to speak. Mallets Bay is north of Burlington, south of Grand Isle, Colchester. So who knows about this club? Has anyone sailed there? Since some of the Montreal classes also have fleets there, I know there is some cross-pollinating going on!

2010 Shark Canadian Championship, The Best of the Best Results

2010-06-19T09:56:00.000-04:00

Podium

Crazy Ivan
Can564
Shark Poop

Best Montreal Teams

Crisis (5th)
Ketchup (8th)
VO2 Max (10th)

Best BYC Teams

VO2 Max
Eclipse
Blue Shark

Best CNDM Teams

Vilebrequin
Gran Blan
Tiger Shark

Best PCYC Teams

Crisis
Ketchup
Nuisance

Super photo by Heather Deeks of Eclipse driving towards Ketchup. Note Peter sitting on the leeward coaming. Is he looking for the right light-air heel or trying to see if there is a boat just ahead!?

Fireball Friday

2010-06-18T06:58:00.001-04:00

Hey, Joe has got new crew!

I snapped this last night while doing RC duty. I'll post more snappies since the very able RC team allowed me to spend time peering into the pocket camera.

Shark Canadian Champions for 2010: Crazy Ivan

2010-06-16T06:25:00.001-04:00

Crazy Ivan has won the Canadian Shark Championship for 2010 just concluded at BYC. To my knowledge Sharks are Canada's largest keelboat racing class, and so this is a considerable accomplishment. David Foy and crew took 2nd at the last Shark World Championship in Switzerland, 1st at the 2009 World's and were also Shark of the Year.
Congratulations guys!

For all the results click here

Photo by BYC's photographer Heather Deeks

Mainsail's Last Race at Shark Canadian Championship 2010

2010-06-15T07:37:00.001-04:00

Sunday's racing got one more go around the marks in before the water resumed it's spottily rippled surface. Our team on Mainsail was pleased at having seen some progress.

I was determined to get a better start than my usual 2nd row. We accomplished that which was satisfying. I had wanted to go left at the start to take advantage of current and breeze. I also picked the middle of the line hoping for clear air. However it seems a large portion of the 40 boats racing also wanted to be there, because it was jam packed with Sharks! We crossed the start line right on the gun and were moving about the same pace as the others. George Stedman and Ketchup must've taken me for the marshmallow I am, because they were right to leeward and nose ahead shortly after crossing the line. I have always struggled to point with George. So when he managed to move ahead, we began to stall and fall off in his dirt. In no time his stern was ahead of our bow.

We drove the boat down for an instant to make some space around us, and tacked over in a nice gap to clear air, and headed up the right side of the course with no disturbance from other boats. The boat felt really in the groove and moving nicely. A number of boats played about behind us but relatively few nearby, and we had a free ticket almost to the windward mark on the right side of the course.

As boats who had gone left to shore started to come our way, it got interesting. A number were ahead, but hey, not a huge amount as normally expected! Several boats attempted to cross, but had to tack below our easy layline route. I could see them struggling, and clearly they would end up throwing in two more tacks. Then, Jin Frati and Blue Shark tacked right up tight on our leeward side as we called starboard. They were about 2/3 nosed ahead of us. That made me pretty nervous remembering Stedman's spitting us out earlier. I focused hard on steering as we still had more speed over them coming out of the light-air tack. That favoured us, and despite having to pinch, we managed to keep moving over the top of them and roll. A large pack of boats then came in behind us. We made the mark comfortably, and Tavish and Barry did probably their quickest, smooth prep and launch of the chute at the mark. The team was hyped over our good performance to that point. Perfect. Then, I got a quick idea.

With a crowd of Sharks about to blanket our wind, now seemed like a good time to quickly jibe the chute, get to the side of the course and away. Quick and smooth, we sped away all by ourselves. Smooth getaway, and nice full spinnaker. Except for one thing! We just missed rounding the offset mark! Jin called out and pointed out my goof. That's what happens when you think too fast! There ain't no offset in club racing, but of course that is no excuse. If Jin hadn't warned us, we would have had to withdraw and DNF. So,we dropped the chute, made our way back to the offset, rounded, and launched again, near the back of the fleet. Oh well, it is after all, a comfortable familiar place.

The crew were great, not dispirited. The crew performed a very good windward takedown in a group of boats at the leeward gate. Having plenty of clear air, and time to study the course, I elected to go for the shore side the next time downwind. There appeared to be more breeze there, and then after a jibe we would be sailing a course closer to the wind and faster. This proved to be one of those rare times I got it right. We made good progress and caught several boats before the finish line.

We had a fun time even though we could not sail much with the lack of wind. We indeed learned a lot during the regatta, made some minor but important changes to the cleats, and got things working more smoothly. The newer North sails are a big help in getting closer to the fray! I think the team had a good feeling about how we will go as we race again!

Clarke and Bjorn win Bronze!

2010-06-13T07:34:00.000-04:00

From the CYA website

Final - Bronze for Clarke and Bjorn

A 12th place finish in race 6 found the Clarke and Bjorn team tied for 2nd overall and on the tie breaker awarded the Bronze Medal. What an outstanding accomplishment for this Canadian team, now securely establishing themselves amongst the elite of the elite in the Star class. Clarke commented that "it was a little disappointing to lose one boat on the final run that resulted in a tie, and ultimately 3rd overall...but if you had told me at the start of the week we would win the Bronze, I would have been thrilled".

The next stop for the Canadian Star contingent is Weymouth, for the Skandia Sail for Gold event in August.

Shark Canadian's Off to Late But Good Start

2010-06-12T22:32:00.000-04:00

It appeared like the first day might have been windless at the Shark Canadian Championship being held at BYC. We floated about for a while, then went back to harbour. A little before 2:00 pm the wind finally started to fill in, and the club became quite active as racers scurried to their boats. 40 boats are registered which is a phenomenal number. Also remarkable is the 18 local boats racing. The highest numbers I know of. The newer owners of 711, Blue Heron brought her from the U.S. The highest numbers I know of. CNDM has come to the regatta in strong numbers.

The first race start caught us unaware and practicing upwind. We managed to just barely get back in time, but not really, since we crossed the start a line back. It appears the left paid off best but we were caught behind traffic, so had to tack to clear our air.

The second race started with a huge windshift that screwed things up and caused a pile up near the pin. A general recall was called. The next start we managed to do a little better, but we still had to tack over and go right because of traffic. We progressed well with both height and speed. Unfortunately, we lost a huge amount of boats on the final run when a CNDM competitor had us pinned to leeward and very slow.

Too bad we could not have wind in the morning, but after kibitzing around the club, we ended up having a pleasant afternoon on the water.

I will post results after the regatta conclusion tomorrow!

Pictured is Tavish after stowing our sails post-race today.

Sharks in Record Numbers in Montreal for Canadian Championship

2010-06-11T23:13:00.001-04:00

As of 9:30 pm this evening, 38 Sharks have arrived and registered for the Canadian Championship Regatta this weekend. At least one more was in the yard still to get measured, and then to register. Registration is also open Saturday morning. It is very exciting for the local Shark fleet which has seen very strong growth over the last couple of years. Sharks are now in bona fide numbers at quite a number of local clubs, including BYC, BDYC, CNDM, and PCYC. BYC is hosting this year's Canadian championship. Next year BYC will also be hosting the Shark World Championship. Last year, over 60 Sharks from Canada, the U.S. and Europe raced for the World Championship at Niagara on the Lake. There has been concern over the unusual, extreme low water levels hampering the racers. Indeed, several boats had scraped and perched on rocks in the harbour. Local boats that we expect to fare best are Crisis, Nuisance, Ketchup, Blue Shark, and VO2 Max. There are many other local veterans and newer competitors who will be mixing it up too. I am hopeful for the new boats from CNDM to join the fun!

Fireball Friday

2010-06-11T07:05:00.000-04:00

By Urs Hardi, this pic was taken at the recent Fireball World Championship in Barbados.

Art De Vries

2010-06-06T10:20:00.000-04:00

It was earlier this year when Art De Vries passed away. I did not know Art De Vries well, but when I served on the SYLVRA committee with him, he was immediately recognizeable as a "Do-er". I don't recall him adding a lot of commentary on topics. However, when action was required, he was that type of guy. When stuff needs to get done, that's who you wanted on your team. So, when I read of Art's passing on SYLVRA's website, I was immediately sad and recognized an important loss for the organization and all of us sailing in Montreal. Here are some words by the SLVRA President Chris Paynter and IPYC's Guy Legault:

``This winter the Saint Lawrence Valley Yacht Racing Association (SLVYRA) lost a long-time friend and member of the SLVYRA Executive. Every one of us who races on our Lakes has benefited from the many years now that Art has been quietly looking after the SLVYRA Marks and Buoys that we all use for our racing events. He gave a great deal of his personal time to making the Buoys in his garage, and ensuring every year that they were properly moored and in their correct places on the Lake. And as a dedicated supporter of our racing community, he could always be counted upon to join our meetings at the SLVYRA over the winter months, to give us good humoured and valuable support for our activities.

The last time I saw him was at our meeting at the end of January, when he was planing a number of new activities relating the the Marks and Buoys on the Lakes for this coming year. He was not there for the first time in my memory for the February meeting. It was with great sorrow that I heard later that he would not be with us again.

His Yacht Club, IPYC, has sent me the Eulogies that were read at their club meetings, and I am attaching them here.

May his soul rest in peace.

Chris Paynter

President SLVYRA

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Eulogy – Ile Perrot Yacht Club – by Guy Legault

If I wanted to describe Art in two words it would be commitment and passion.

Art was the best example of commitment one could find amongst the members of any Yacht Club. It was not enough that he was part of the Board of Directors of our Club for so many years; he was also present for all the drudgeries, such as clean up days, launch days, and more. As a matter of fact, Art was at the club almost every day of the year; summer and winter. During the season, he was always there, checking to see if there was anything that needed to be done and if there was, he didn’t worry about who’s responsibility it was to do it, he just did it himself.

You will not be surprised if I say that Art was a sailing enthusiast. He was not only the person responsible for the Club’s Races; he took part in each and every race on the season’s calendar. In fact, he so wanted to communicate his passion to others that, for several years, he organised the Sunday afternoon races; hoping, thereby, to develop the taste for sailing amongst members who only came to the Club a few times during the season.

For Art, the Ile Perrot Yacht Club had become his second home and the members formed his second family. It is for this reason that his departure saddens us all. Art…. You will always live for the enthusiasts and amateurs of sailing at the IPYC.``

J22 Fleet Travels to New York Finger Lake

2010-06-05T10:01:00.000-04:00

The newest fleet to start up in the Montreal area made its way from home base at Hudson Yacht Club to one of the Finger Lakes in New York for a class regatta. David Godin is one of the recent converts to the budding group, and is very excited by the boat and class. He was one of the editors of this article published in another newsletter first, then the HYC blog, and now here for the Montreal Sailing readership. - Ralph, Montreal Sailing

The inaugural Waterline Systems Great Lakes J/22 Circuit event was the Jackrabbit Regatta, hosted by the Canandaigua Yacht Club, May 15-16. The weather was great; sunny with breeze ranging from really light, to pretty $%&? windy. Typical for a Finger Lake, the wind direction varied from really shifty to psychotically shifty.

The racing was extremely close; the shifts lead to plenty of position changes. No lead was safe, especially if Travis was lurking anywhere near it. Travis and his team of John Newell and Billy Farmer sailed a great regatta, winning 4 of the 6 races sailed. They didn't win the races by a lot, but they won a lot of races!
Jimmy Barnash sailing with Gunnar Richardson and Mark Sertl aboard were 2nd. Vic Snyder, Kevin Doyle and Marcie Lake on Mo' Money completed the podium. Close behind was Canadian Ron Harris’s team in fourth. Sarah Enwright's team took home the wine and rum awarded to the mid-fleet finisher.

25 Teams from nine different clubs made it to the regatta. Special mention should go to Hudson Yacht Club in Montreal. 3 teams from their new fleet made it down and were very competitive. Overall a total of four Canadian boats attended the regatta and finished 4, 12, 15 and 20. Not so bad! CYC did their usual great job; the courses and hospitality were all first-rate.

Bully Hill Vineyards was the presenting sponsor. Admiral Nelson Rum and Waterline Systems also supported the event. Wine, Rum and boat service…could it be any better? Thanks to all the sponsors and organizers.
Please join me in congratulating Canadian Ron Harris and his team for their fourth position.

Re-edited from Waterline Systems news letter by Will Harris
David Godin

...and congrats to David and crew for his 12th in his first J/22 regatta
Bernard

Fireball Friday

2010-06-04T07:32:00.000-04:00

From the Fireball Worlds in Barbados by Tom Gruitt. Yahoo!

Not far from here...

2010-06-01T08:20:00.001-04:00

Sailor Profile - Andy Horton from Amory Ross on Vimeo.

Check out this beautifully produced HD video of Andy Horton training on Lake Champlain by Burlington, Vermont. It's one of my favourite places. Horton is training with the goal of the London Olympics in the Star class. The film is artfully produced by Armory Ross.

Ralph, Montreal Sailing

PS, Guide your mouse over the video and watch it full screen. Lovely.

Final Results from Trillium

2010-05-31T06:03:00.000-04:00

The final results have been posted and the RCYC folk were very prompt about it. The first stop on the Shark Class One design circuit took place in Toronto and had an impressive turn out of 42 boats. Tof Nicoll-Griffith's team on Crisis were the highest placed Montreal team finishing in 12th overall. They were one point out of 1st yesterday. Today, they scored 15th, 22nd, and 20th in the 3 final races, which set them further back. Way to go, Paul, William, and the Wolf, 31st overall, who brought Sudden Impulse across the line in 19th position for the final race, their best of the weekend. Skippers Frati and Andersen combined talents on Blue Shark along with Muradali finishing just ahead in 30th overall. Podium places were:

Eager For More, Greg Cockburn, Peter Eagar, John Fraser
Duck Soup, John Dakin, Dakin, Dakin
Frankly Scarlett, Jeff Mitchell, Davis, Fricker

--------------------------------------------------------------

So now it's the Canadian Championships at BYC next. Yikes, that is only 2 weeks away! I just got my Shark, #901 out of the driveway and to the club last night. Rigging, crew, and hopefully a little practice all still to work out. I am not the only one with some issues however. The DNF scored by VO2 Max in the last GNS race was due to their mast coming down! A new one is being prepared by Masthead in Niagara on the Lake.

"Crisis" One Point Off Lead at 1st Shark Regatta

2010-05-30T10:34:00.000-04:00

The first Shark regatta of the season is this weekend in Toronto. The well-attended Trillium Regatta at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club off Toronto Island is one hot race. The regatta has a who's-who of Shark champions and top placers battling it out in the first major encounter of the season.

Jin Frati is there with Blue Shark. Paul Baehr brought Sudden Impulse. Both are top Sharkies of BYC. However, the big Montreal angle to this story has to be Crisis from PCYC, skippered by Tof Nicoll-Griffith, and crewed by Hugh Strudwick and Kai Nicoll-Griffith. In this fleet, so many boats are capable of winning a race that the key is consistency in the top ten. Crisis has placed 6th, and 3rd, in the 2 races held yesterday. This has put them in third place overall with 9 points. They are only one point behind Duck Soup and Bedlam who are tied with 8 points!

Racing concludes today. The next regatta on the Shark circuit will be here in Montreal with the Canadian championship being held at BYC on June 12th & 13th.

For This W.E.'s Laser Camp: Paul Goodison Rigging Tips

2010-05-29T09:12:00.000-04:00

Fireball Friday

2010-05-28T07:01:00.000-04:00

Here is a shot of local heroes from afar. It's Pierre Carpentier and Tom Bird competing in the recent Fireball Worlds, Barbados. That's them in 14768. Urs Hardi is the photographer.

Local Racing Begins!

2010-05-27T07:29:00.000-04:00

With last week's practice races and Tuesday's first race it appears that low water levels are not enough to prevent the fun from beginning. I was lucky to get out last week on Crisis as our Shark is still being prepared. We had good wind with depowering required in puffs. So far, it appears the upcoming Canadian championship has got the Sharks out shaking off the cobwebs in large numbers. Tuesday this week,10 Sharks raced off the same start with 3 Tanzer 22s.

The Shark Crisis got the gun followed by the Rahn family on the green Shark, Eclipse. John Linton's T22, Encore Une Fois took the third spot. The T22 breaking up the Shark feeding frenzy gives cause to consider John Linton and crew will keep things interesting again this year. Next finishing were the Sharks Nuisance, Chimera and Rub-a-Dub-Dub. Does anyone know what happened to VO 2 Max which DNF'd? Racing took place in 13-20 kph.

A J24, 3366 took first in a mixed PHRF 1 & 2, while T22, Oasis won the white sails.

I find it fun to keep track of the large fleets and see who Montreal Sailing's Top Dawgs are. With the first race having begun, the first large fleet out there are the Sharks. Tof noted on the Shark email list that lots of Sharks raced, but that the numbers could get even larger with a number of boats still to race. We should have our Shark out next week. Tuesdays are usually the largest attendance so lets track it! Here are the top contenders after the first race:

GNS Shark Points
1 Crisis
2 Eclipse
4 Nuisance
5 Chimera
6 Rub-A-Dub-Dub
7 Chimera

We'll track any substantive fleet as boats competitors start their season.

BYC did a great job quickly publishing the results which are here.

Fireball Friday

2010-05-21T06:43:00.001-04:00

Good Gravy, is it already Friday again? Where did the week go? In keeping with my newly established routine Fridays are for Fireballs. Here is another pic from the Fireball World Championships in Barbados. I saw some of the guys during the pre-season practice race last night. Although they have lost their tans already, they would still grin chatting about the great racing and perfect conditions.

Another great pic by Tom Gruitt

Fireball Friday

2010-05-14T07:28:00.000-04:00

There were many super photographs taken at the recently concluded Fireball World Championship in Barbados. On Fridays I will feature some of them, kind of an end of the work week treat. This one was taken by Tom Gruitt.

CRUISING SEMINAR

2010-05-10T21:39:00.002-04:00

MAY 13 - 7 p.m.

Topic: Cruising 101

by C.Bilodeau and Keith Beange

Location:

Beaconsfield Yacht Club

26 Lakeshore Road, QC

H9W 4H3

Tel: 514-695-1272 Fax: 514-695-9794

administration@byc.qc.ca VHF Channel 68

www.byc.ca

Fireballs in Barbados Done

2010-05-08T16:51:00.000-04:00

Photo by Noah Purves-Smith

The Fireball World Championship has concluded. Looks like it was pretty amazing sailing in Barbados. The highest placed Canadians were Guy Tipton and Matthew King from Nova Scotia. The Brits dominated the regatta taking all three podium spots and most of the top ten. Congratulations to the highest placed Montreal sailors, Joe Jospe and Tom Egli.

Fireballs in Barbados

2010-05-04T21:21:00.000-04:00

RACING SEMINAR

2010-05-04T07:26:00.000-04:00

MAY 6 - 7:00 p.m.

Topics:

2010 RULES UPDATE

by P. Baehr

STARTS
by J.Frati

This event is open to all sailors!

Location:
Beaconsfield Yacht Club
26 Lakeshore Road, QC
H9W 4H3
Tel: 514-695-1272 Fax: 514-695-9794

administration@byc.qc.ca VHF Channel 68
www.byc.ca

Montreal Sailors warm up in Barbados for Fireball World's

2010-05-01T09:34:00.001-04:00

Some of Montreal's finest are toughing it out in Barbados right now. While we scrunch under our hulls prepping for launch, a group from the Fireball class are racing in a clime of about 30 degrees. This week wrapped up the "International Week" which is a warm up to the class' World Championship. Joe Jospe and Tom Egli placed highest of the Montreal sailors in the warm up series.

Last year at the Fireball NA's, Joe and Tom edged Guy Tipton and Matt King from the Shelbourne Harbour YC in Nova Scotia by one point for the win. Now, during this week's warm up in Barbados, the Nova Scotia team are besting them. That sets up an interesting competition for the coming week.

Regatta website

Lightnings Congregate in New Jersey For Long John Regatta this Week End

2010-04-25T16:50:00.001-04:00

I am fortunate to have family on my wife's side living in a pretty part of coastal New Jersey. Nearby on the Navesink River is the Monmouth Boat Club which I have visited a number of times. It is a wonderful old club established in 1879 with an old natural wood clubhouse. They have some sharp small boat one design fleets. Relevant to Montreal Sailing is their notable Lightning Fleet. It is a bit far, but I believe some Montreal sailors from the local Lightning fleet made it down there for the popular Long John Regatta this week end. Many Lightning sailors from around the northeast congregate there for early spring racing. Hope it's been a great week end for everyone.

Pic from MBC website.

Clarke and Bjorn Win the 2010 Star Western Hemisphere Spring Championships

2010-04-19T00:53:00.000-04:00

Picture from CYA news article, and article from SCUTTLEBUTT 3073 - Monday, April 19, 2010 (www.sailingscuttlebutt.com)- Ralph, Montreal Sailing

BIG BREEZE, BROKEN MASTS, HOLED BOATS, RIPPED SAILS
Nassau, Bahamas (April 17, 2010) - Strong winds characterized the Star Class Western Hemisphere Championship on Wednesday through Friday, claiming five masts among the 29 entrants. The breeze eased to 10-16 knots for the final races on Saturday, providing "conditions that are more usual for this time of year," explained Regatta Co-Chairman Paul Hutton. Early event leader Richard Clarke and Tyler Bjorn (CAN) posted their worst scores in these final two races, but had enough margin to take the title over second place Augie Diaz/ Bruno Prada (USA) and third place Mark Mendelblatt/ John von Schwarz (USA). But it didn't all come easy for the winners, as Clarke share this story from the second to last day on Friday:

"Now it wouldn't be a natural day if we didn't have a little drama to make things interesting. While we lined up to start the second race the taper on our jib sheet failed and as Tyler pulled the jib in all he managed to do was milk the cover off the rope. He quickly dived down to leeward grabbed the sheet by the core and quickly wrestled it into the cleat. This was going to make it very hard to play the jib as his choices were to use the very thin core that would barely cleat and would chew up his hands or the quickly fattening cover that was like trying to pull on a snake that is shedding its skin.

"Time to man up and play the jib by the core. So we stick to the play book lead left off the pin wait for the fleet to tack and tack, but wait when we tack the core won't un-cleat and we flounder with the jib backed in 20+ while Tyler frantically tried to un-cleat it. Thankfully Tyler got it un-cleated quickly and the damage was not that bad. We found our jets again on the first beat and rounded 1st, extended on the reaches while trying to baby the tiller the best we could and then cruised the rest of the way to win comfortably."

Full results: http://star2010.nassauyachtclub.org/results/star_2010.htm
Daily event reports: http://tinyurl.com/y37naqp

New hardware for the Shark

2010-03-27T12:21:00.000-04:00

Regular readers may remember my jamming mainsheet system when the wind blew up during last season's Pas de Deux race. It was not the first time I had trouble fiddling with my mainsheet controls. Once, during a broach right at a crowded windward mark, with the spreader not coming out of the water, I couldn't release the main until the boat finally rotated into the wind. Less exciting but also performance robbing: every tack my head is looking down in the boat, as I struggle with traveler car lines. It would be much better to look at where the boat is going. Anyway, after putting it off on my previous boat, and this one, I decided overhauling the system was way overdue. Cost be damned. I want the absolute minimum of fuss, so I can focus more on pointing the boat where I want it to go. This week, all my new parts arrived. One part of the new system is pictured to left. It's a windward sheeting car. It is very, very expensive. I'm hopeful it will help make my tacks smoother. I also received a shiny new black track, and various bits and pieces to keep the whole affair smooth and mindless. I get pretty excited about go-fast toys. Most of the go-fast Sharks already have this hardware, so I think I am getting a little closer to equipment parity. A notable exception is the Shark, Nuisance. That boat has the regular traveler set up with manually operated lines. To catch that boat I'll need parity in a different category, the brain.

My goal is to eliminate every distraction, small and large that gets in my face when I should be focusing on smooth, precise tacks, or powered-up steering. So here goes another hindrance to sailing sharp and fast!

Clipper in a good breeze

2010-03-20T14:23:00.000-04:00

Here is a good looking photo of one of our regular racers in the Good Neighbours local racing series. It is Clipper, a Kirby 25 from BYC. I cropped it from one of the many great photos taken by Heather & Brent Deeks

Fireball for Friday

2010-03-19T07:09:00.001-04:00

Okay, I know we just had a Fireball video, but these are pretty good. Here is one with great music. It's made by Joel Coultas of him and helm Robin Inns working the Australian Fireball Nationals, heat #8 last October. Hey Tom, can we get one of your Montreal magic too!?!

Wild Wednesday - Fast Fireball Sailing

2010-03-17T07:20:00.001-04:00

Whoooo-weee! Check out this video for a fast and fun ride.

Bacardi Cup 2010 Concludes

2010-03-16T08:59:00.000-04:00

Wow, check this out. Canadians Richard Clarke and Bjorn Tyler have had a very rewarding regatta! They took 5th overall, and 2nd in the last race which was held in heavy, gear-busting winds.

Star Class - final results (top 5 of 84)
1. Rick Merriman/ Phil Trinter, USA,
4-2-(23)-2-1, 9
2. Peter O'Leary/ Stephen Milne, IRL,
(15)-10-1-3-3, 17
3. Andy Horton/ James Lyne, USA.
(8)-5-4-6-5, 20 pts
4. Richard Clarke/ Tyler Bjorn, CAN,
(85/BFD)-7-7-5-2, 21
5. Diego Negri/ Nando Colaninno, ITA,
13-(20)-12-1-6, 32

Here are the final installments from Alain. Thanks Philippe for passing them on! - Ralph, Montreal Sailing.

Saturday March 13, 2010
Day 6 – Course 1 WNW, 15-20 knots

With the postponement from yesterday (turns out there was a tornado warning. How cool is that!!) there is now 2 races scheduled with the start of the first one at 10:30. This meant an early exit from the condo, and off to the yacht club to put the boat in the water for 9:00. Quick stop at Starbucks for the caffeine fix, and we were ready (as a side note, I’m starting to get a bit creeped out about the people hanging out at Starbucks…triple this, double that, extra stuff…some of those coffees look like something from Dairy Queen…but that’s for another report). Our quick scan at weather reports was calling for a lovely day on the water. 9-13 knots, with sunny skies. As we got to the YC we noticed that they got half of that story right. It was somewhat sunny, but the wind was kicking a little stronger than 13. We made it out in time to the race course, basically on a reaching surf two thirds of the time, which usually mean winds over 15. As the starting time was getting closer, we were getting solid puffs in the low 20s. That’s usually the wind speed when the short masts make their appearance. Sure enough, maybe 5 minutes before warning we saw a mast bent in half hanging over the bow of a boat. If my count is right, the total of the day was four broken masts.

The RC did not want to waste any time and put up the black flag on the first attempt. While myself and André were discussing strategy (or maybe we were discussing the talent we saw by the pool at the Delano, I’m not sure…) on the windward side of the RC, we missed the big left shift that suddenly made the pin end of the line look pretty sweet. We headed in that direction as best as we could but when the start gun went off, we didn’t quite make it to the middle line mark. After a reasonably clean start, we started our way up the course and rounded in the cheap seats. We made it around an ugly triangle (again, not impressed with the RC work), i.e. one leg too high and the other too low and decided that this was not quite the conditions we would excel in, and pointed the boat in the direction of the YC, which at that point was about 3.5 miles from the start line. Considering that our chances of winning this regatta were slim, and facing a 30 hour drive back to Montreal in time for work on Monday, we opted to go in early and pack up the boat for an early start on the road. As it turns out the RC decided to cancel the last race and sent everybody in to the YC after the first race.

By the time the boat was packed up and ready to go it was 14:30, and off we went.

Final thoughts…

So there you go, another Bacardi Cup under our belts. Driving back, André got an e-mail from the organizers announcing the winner for this year, Rick Merriman with crew Phil Trinter. Rick is from what I understand a Corinthian sailor, which means there’s hope for all of us. You don’t need to be a pro or an Olympic campaigner to win in this class. I would feel a whole lot better though knowing how to get from the back of the bus to the front, or even mid-fleet for that matter. But, even in the cheap seats, it’s still a pretty cool boat to sail. No big lessons at this regatta apart from realizing that there is no short cuts to performing in this class. The little 45 minute club races won’t get you anywhere close to being a contender in the STAR. You need to race in big fleets again and again, and maybe move your mast butt every once in a while…

Big Daddy out…