Despite the forecast (how many times do we say that?) of no wind, we ended out sailing in a pretty consistent 6 kts out of the east.
With 10 boats racing, PRO Paul Norton and his RC did a nice job getting in three D1's.
For race one, an outgoing current helped the left side pay off nicely. Scott MacLeod and Team 506 took the greatest advantage of the current and got to the windward mark first. They were able to hold on to first the rest of the way and took the gun. Following closely behind in second was Team 418 (NOT a typo) with Geoff Durno, Bruce McArthur and Harry Milne. Third was Bruce Kirby and Team 633.
The second race was pretty much the same as the first. Once again Team 506 got to the windward mark in first and held on for the win. Second this time was Team Fast Forward while third went to Team 418 (OMG).
For the third and final race, the current was pretty slack. The pressure seemed slightly greater on the right so that side paid off. Ed Sweeney and Team 454 made use of that strategic change to get to the windward mark in first, followed by 418 (what's gotten into those guys) and Fast Forward.
Team 454 held onto first and took the gun while Fast Forward was able to pass 418 for second. 418 finished the race in third (break these guys up).
The overall for the day looked like this:
 |
| Bruce McArthur, Geoff Durno and Harry Milne |
2nd: 506 with 9 points (winning the tie-breaker)
3rd: 701 with 9 points
As always, full results can be found here: http://www.fleet1.org/
2013 SONAR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The World Championships are just four weeks away. Registrations are starting to grow with 24 boats currently committed from four countries. Among those are seven Noroton boats. I hope there are still several boats from fleet 1 who are planning on making the trip to Rochester.
If you have not already done so, please register online here: http://www.sonar.org/
The Morgan Cup is a varsity event held at New York Yacht Club's Harbor Court. This year's race was on August 9-11. Noroton was one of 12 teams to compete. The following are some thoughts by Vice Commodore Lee Morrison...
Reflections on the Morgan Cup
Quick reactions, precise tactics, and amazing boat handling make labeling the Morgan Cup "intense" a bit of an understatement. This event pits some of the best sailors in the country, including collegiate all-americans and olympians, in evenly matched Sonars and lets them duke it out in 15 minute races - 87 of them in 3 days. Its quite the experience. There are always new lessons to be learned. Here's one I won't soon forget: "Ace in the hole"
A team has an "Ace in the hole" when one boat on the team is in 5th and in control of an "enemy" in last place. If your team has the "Ace" and at the same time your team also has a boat in first, then your team is winning the race. Like all sport, when your team is winning, things are good. But, if you are the Ace being controlled by the enemy, things can get brutal.
We were sailing downwind with chute up in 10-15 kts of beautiful Newport seabreeze. But, unlike those that go to sea for relaxation, in team racing you don't go straight for very long. I'm focused on trimming the chute; gybing, luffing, diving, when seemingly out of nowhere comes a boat, without a spinnaker, luffing us hard. The enemy did it in a controlled deliberate way giving us just enough room and time to keep clear. It's chaos on our boat: pole to the headstay, trimming feet of spinnaker sheet while simultaneously slipping to leeward because the cockpit sole on which I'm standing is now heeled 25 degrees. But Windward must keep clear of Leeward - the rules are clearly understood. There's some yelling as each skipper pushes the rule's boundary pertaining to the inches of proximity between the leeward boat's bow and the windward boat's stern quarter. But, counter to some perceptions of team racing, the yelling isn't malicious. Its deliberate and direct. The leeward boat wants control not contact. We are the enemy's "Ace in the hole" and it's our opponent's job to keep us in last. As an added bonus, they disrupt our boat handling increasing the gap between us and our only salvation - a teammate that would come back to help us.
But, sometimes the best defence is a good offence. We're 50 yards from the leeward mark and have a chute up - the enemy doesn't. How hard can this be? It takes a few seconds but we get the boat back under control and headed for the next mark. The chute is barely full and we're rolling into a gybe. Its not unexpected. We need to get the enemy to our right and then gybe to back to starboard tack to take control. Of course, the enemy understands this as well, and without spinnaker is still more maneuverable than we are. So, before we can gybe they, in team race lingo, "give us a bump" - another hard luff. This time however, we never quite got the pole back on the mast and the boat is again practically head to wind, heeled, chute luffing, the boat is stalled and headed the wrong way. Not malicious, but effective.
As it worked out in this race, another enemy boat made a mistake and fouled giving our team a winning 1-2 combo with us in a distant 6. We got lucky.
Team racing in the Morgan is competitive sailing at its most exciting best: fast paced with frequent position changes. There is also a simplicity in team racing that is very appealing. The boats are supplied which means you hop aboard when its your team's turn to race and take a break when its not. With 18 boats, 6 teams compete simultaneously in three separate races. When things are rolling, there is only 3 minutes between starts - paying attention is critical. Finally and also important to how the game is played, when skippers can't agree, vigilant umpires are ready to step in with a definitive ruling.
There are no age restrictions in the Morgan, but the majority of participants are young - typically in or a few years out of college. The exact demographic that every sailing club in the country wants to attract. At Noroton this is the most at risk group for dropping out of sailing.
This year's Noroton team, the first ever to attend the Morgan Cup, finished 8th out of 12. A solid start on which to grow participation and the competitiveness of team racing among Noroton's younger sailors. Beyond Noroton providing a venue and equipment for practice, Noroton's successful Hinman and Grandmaster's teams benefited tremendously from the multi-generation sparring among the three teams. I am personally grateful for the opportunity to sail with our younger sailors and to hear their thoughts about sailing, team racing, and Noroton. It was a great experience and I hope to get a chance to sail in the Morgan again.
Lee Morrison
THE KIRBY CUP
The Kirby Cup, hosted annually by Noroton, is the Sonar Class Association team race championship. This year the race is scheduled for September 7-8. We have six teams participating: Noroton, Seawanhaka, NYYC, Vineyard Haven, Texas Corinthian and reigning champion Boston Yacht Club.
Please keep in mind there will be no fleet racing on September 7.
FLEET 1 COOKOUT
The fleet 1 cookout which was postponed from last Sunday due to the forecast, has been rescheduled for this coming Sunday, August 25. So far the forecast looks like a nice day so please plan on staying after racing to enjoy whatever the Infurnas and Orners have planned.
CALENDAR:
Fleet Barbecue: August 25 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Sep 1-2
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 7-8
2013 World Championships: Rochester YC, September 18-22
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