SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

2014 SEASON WRAP-UP:

Another great season of racing is in the books.

We had three races on our final day of racing, October 5. Those races made a difference in the final standings of series 2 and the overall season standings, it was that close.

Our PRO for the day, John Geissinger, sent the 12 boats who made it out to the race course on a D1 for race 1, then a D2 for race 2 and finally back to a D1 for the final race. The wind was generally out of the west and a very puffy 6-13.

The standings going into the day had Team 506 with Scott MacLeod and TK in first for series 2 and the season. Team Fast Forward with Peter Galloway and Paul Steinborn Sr were nipping at their heels for the overall while Scott Harrison's team 772 was in second for Series 2.

That's not how it all ended.

For the day, team Team Fast Forward was almost perfect with finishes of 1, 2, 1 while team 506 came in second with 5, 1, 4. Third went to Bob Monro and team 605 with 4, 4, 3. Fourth was team 726 with Michael Aingorn and Paul Steinborn Jr who posted finishes of 2, 8, 2.

The strength of Fast Forward's finishes changed the overall results for both series 2 and the season.

Here are the final fleet race results for 2014:

Series 1:

1st: 701 (Fast Forward: Peter Galloway, Paul Steinborn Sr, Cooper Pellaton, Justin Marks)
2nd: 506 (Scott MacLeod and TK)
3rd: 500 (Bill Jayson, Randy Tankoos, Basil Lyden)
4th: 605 (Bob Monro, Fran Monro, Ian Monro, Janet Grapengeter, Michael Rudnick)

Series 2: 

1st: 506
2nd: 701
3rd: 772 (Scott Harrison, Adam Westerman, Warren Costikyan)
4th: 454 (Ed Sweeney, Alec Wiggin, Art Collins, Alan DeSantis and Leo Schlinkert)

Overall for 2014:

1st: 701
2nd: 506
3rd: 454
4th: 605

For full fleet racing results, click HERE

For final awards, including holiday and flag officer races, click HERE

RECAP:

Fleet 1 continues to grow. New this year is #690 Jaeger owned by John Bainton. We were also joined by Jim Gleason who purchased 616.

Rumor has it another boat from Manhasset is considering coming to NYC for 2015.

Big movers... two of our boats have to be recognized for considerable improvement this past summer... #654 with the core team of Jan Raymond, Morgan Connor and Craig Jones posted a number of strong finishes including three bullets.

Also in the mix was #726 with Michael Aingorn and Paul Steinborn Jr. who also had three bullets plus a number of other podium finishes during the season.

Eleven different boats took the gun in one or more races this year. They are:
701, 506, 454, 605, 500, 772, 654, 619, 726, 633, 360.
Add to that list another three boats that finished "in the money" with a second or third place finish: 733, 690 and 632.

The above list represents half the fleet.

Fleet 1 members who participated in travel events also did well. Here are the highlights:

Atlantic Coast Championship: 1st: Fast Forward, 2nd: 506, 3rd: 619 (Lee Morrison)
North American Championship: 1st: Fast Forward
New England Championship: 2nd: 674 (Rick Doerr)
Tappan Zee Challenge: 2nd: 674

Midwinter Championship: 1st: 810 (Andy Fisher)

2015 REGATTAS:

We are working on finalizing the Sonar class sanctioned regattas for next year. So far, it looks like this:

Sonar Midwinter Championship: Feb 13-15 St. Petersburg YC (in conjunction with the NOOD)
Tappan Zee Challenge: May 16-17 (exact date still TBD) Nyack Boat Club
Atlantic Coast Championship: June 13-14, Noroton YC
Marblehead NOOD: End of July or beginning of August (exact date still TBD)
Sonar World Championship: September 16-20, Falmouth YC, Falmouth MA.

Have a great winter.

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

ATLANTIC COAST CHAMPIONSHIP:

Saturday Sep 27-Sunday Sep 28

Noroton Yacht Club and Sonar Fleet 1 hosted the Atlantic Coast Championship last weekend. The forecast looked a little scary in that pretty much every prediction was for zero wind over the two days.

It would be sunny and warm so we knew Saturday's dinner on the patio would be great (and it was), but the racing was why we were there.

Thankfully, the predictions were wrong on Saturday. With breeze in the 5-7 range, PRO Briggs Tobin and his RC managed to complete four races. Sounds easy, right?

Leeward rounding.
Photo: Edward Steinborn

Well, add in a clocking breeze that, from morning to afternoon, made it around 270º, and you know the RC did an amazing job.

For the race, we had 20 boats on the line, including 5 travel boats... one from Manhasset Bay, two from Nyack, one from Vineyard Haven and one from Freeport ME.

As is typical for our fleet, at the end of the day, only 7 points separated 1st-4th. And only one of those boats finished every race in the top five. That consistency propelled team Fast Forward into first place for the day. Second was team 506 with Scott MacLeod, TK, JB King and Ben Cesare, while third was team 619 with Lee Morrison, Warren Costikyan and Adam Westerman.

Unfortunately, Sunday's forecast was accurate. We hung out on shore until 11:00 when we were teased with what looked like a building southerly. Once out on the race course the breeze died to where a race wasn't feasible. Still, we hung out until 13:00 hoping for something, when Briggs made the right call and abandoned racing.

Day 2.
Photo: Edward Steinborn

With that, the results for the day before became final, giving Fast Forward with Peter Galloway, Paul Steinborn, Sr, Ched Proctor the win.

Team Fast Forward: Paul Steinborn, Peter Galloway and Justin Marks. Missing: Ched Proctor

Team 506: Scott MacLeod, TK, JB King, Ben Cesare

Team 619: Lee Morrison, Adam Westerman, Warren Costikyan

Full results for the regatta can be found here: http://norotonyc.org/

Special thanks to those volunteers who helped make this regatta a success, including Briggs and his entire RC, David Sinclair, Frank Kemp, Jan Raymond, Kitty Brown and Jeff Eng and his staff.

We'd also like to thank the folks at Heineken for their sponsorship.

FLEET RACING:

Our last day of racing is this Sunday, October 5. We currently have 9 boats who are planning on racing. There are 2-3 more who could come out as well.

The forecast is for a perfect day:

Try to make it. It should be a memorable.

Season awards will be handed out after racing. Current standings are here: http://www.fleet1.org/

PACKING IT IN FOR THE WINTER:

After Sunday, we're done.

If you have Ed Morgan shrink wrap your boat, let him know when he can do his thing. 

Let's help him manage the inevitable last minute rush to get all the boats prepped for winter.

You can reach him at: 516-883-6700 or find him most days at the club.

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday September 21:

From the September 2nd newsletter: "Summer finally arrived on Long Island Sound this past weekend..."

That was a bit of foreshadowing as summer continued last Sunday with wind out of the east at 4-6 kts. After a half hour onshore delay, PRO Morgan Connor sent the fleet of seven die-hard, just-get-me-on-a-boat, wack... we mean dedicated sailors... out to ply their light air skills and test their patience on a D1.

In usual fashion, the fleet rounded the windward mark together. Then the fun really started.

The dilemma for everyone at the windward mark... slightly more wind but stronger adverse current out towards the middle (what would a light air day be without an adverse current sailing down to the leeward mark?) or less wind (how could it be any less?) and current towards shore.

Most picked option 2. Ed Sweeney and team 454 went for what little pressure there was and picked option 1. What seemed like an eternity later, Morgan made a good call, shortened the course and finished everyone at the leeward mark. Ed guessed right as he crossed the finish line several minutes (about 1/2 a boat length... just kidding) ahead of Scott Macleod and team 506. Third was Bruce Kirby and team 633.

Team 454 taking the gun.

Then we were all towed in.

As always, full results can be found here: http://www.fleet1.org/

Team 454: Tim Sickinger, Peggy Hersam's stand-in: Cassie Jones, Ed Sweeney and Alec Wiggin.

ACC REGATTA:

The Atlantic Coast Championship is upon us. We have 20 boats entered at this time with a couple of "maybes" still out there.

For those participating...

There will be chili and beer Friday evening for those who feel like avoiding the rush at 9:00am Saturday and launching on Friday.

 

The competitors meeting is set for 9:30am on Saturday, harbor start is 10:00am. 

If you want, you can order box lunches from Kitty. Let her know you are interested before Saturday and your lunches will be will be there for you Saturday morning.

Hang out after racing on Saturday for dinner on the patio.

Then we do it again on Sunday, with a harbor start of 9:00am.

Pray for wind.

TEAM RACING:

The club hosted the Kirby Cup on September 13-14. Congratulations to New York YC for their undefeated record to win event (the Team Race championship of the Sonar Class Association).

Final Results: 

1. New York (15-0)

2. Noroton YC

3. Vineyard Haven YC

4. Rochester YC

5. Marblehead YC

6. Seawanhaka YC

Team NYYC. How many Noroton members can you name?

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5 with season awards given out immediately after racing.

PACKING IT IN FOR THE WINTER:

Our remaining sailing schedule consists of this weekend's regatta and fleet racing on 10/5.

If you have Ed Morgan shrink wrap your boat, let him know when you're done so he can do his thing. 

Let's help him manage the inevitable last minute rush to get all the boats prepped for winter.

You can reach him at: 516-883-6700 or find him most days at the club.

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday September 7:

Photo: Mark Sullivan 

A shifty, puffy, northerly offered the nine boats that went out racing the toughest conditions of the season. Tough for competitors and tough for the RC. Still, PRO Steve Shepstone ran three races, two W2s and a W1 1/2.

Actually, we're told that what was happening was two separate breezes were competing for the same space. This meant, for the most part, if you went right, you'd sail into a righty. If you went left, you'd sail into a lefty. If you played the middle, you struggled.

Scott Harrison (happy birthday, Scott) and team 772 tacked onto port at the start of all three races and went right. Apparently that was the thing to do as Scott finished the day with only 4 points, taking second in the first race and winning races 2 and 3.

Fast Forward doubled 772's points with scores of 1, 3 and 4 and still finished second overall. Third went to team 506 who finished with 13 points by virtue of finished of 6, 4 and 3.

Scott's take on the day:

Tricky has been the word for this summer.  Team Shepstone did a great job getting 3 races off in an up and down northerly.

We got readings from 340-30 degrees with substantial changes in velocity.  Changing gears and finding the lifted tack were our primary mission.

We started 2/3’s to the favored pin side and tacked on to port in all 3 races to avoid the pin pile up as the fleet compressed  with the adverse tide on the left side of the line.  We found pressure on the right at the bottom of the race course and equal pressure at the top.  3 times we sailed off the race course given the severity of the shifts, and playing the edges was dangerous.

Down wind was about pointing the bow to the leeward mark and staying in pressure..  Sailing into a hole was death, as in the first race, when Galloway, Monro and Harrison stopped dead at the finish line and drifted across with the tide.

Given the lack of wind over Labor Day, we were happy to get 3 races completed.

Click the link for full results (be sure to select "Series 2"): http://www.fleet1.org/

Team 772: Adam Westerman, Scott Harrison and Warren Costikyan

TEAM RACING:

No fleet racing on Sunday, September 14 as the club is hosting the Kirby Cup team race next weekend.

Six clubs will be joining Noroton for two days of racing... Boston, New York, Rochester, American, Seawanhaka and Vineyard Haven.

For those owners who have volunteered use of their boats, please make sure you take everything off your boat as soon as possible. Take your sails, sheets, spin pole and any personal equipment like life jackets. There are bins in the junior sailing room with your names on them for storage. Leave only required equipment (bucket, paddle, etc).

ACC REGATTA:

The Atlantic Coast Championship regatta is coming up in three weeks, September 27-28. Online registration is open at http://www.sonar.org/.

Click the link for the NOR: http://tinyurl.com/qfaobb9

We've lowered the registration fee to $195. That includes chili dinner on Friday (for those launching), Saturday and Sunday continental breakfast, snacks and beer after racing and Saturday evening dinner for four. Where else can you get that kind of deal?

To have the best regatta we can, it is critical that fleet 1 boats register early. Our goal is to get 30 boats out on the water. That will only happen with your support. As we all know, the more boats that are registered, the more boats that are willing to travel.

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

"Labor" Day Series:

Summer finally arrived on Long Island Sound this past weekend... Just in time for the club's Labor Day Series.

With a forecast of 11 knots of breeze, 14 boats went out to the race course on Sunday, August 31, with high hopes of some nice racing.

Unfortunately, the current was moving faster than the breeze for most of the day. Add a 140º wind shift and PRO Peter Galloway and his RC really had their work cut out for them.

After a one hour postponement, Peter was finally able to get a W1 race in. Good thing as it ended out being the only race of the series.

For the race, 506, 605, a guest crew from Indian Harbor sailing in 701 (in fact, every boat who went left), stayed pretty much together and finished in that order. Boats that went right... cough, cough 500, 619, 418 cough, cough... well, let's say they wished they'd gone left.

Peter started a second race, a D1, but due to an approaching storm had to abandon the race right after the fleet rounded the windward mark. At that point it was a race to the dock to beat the rain.

Day two was worse. PRO Scott Harrison postponed on shore, then at 1:30 made the right call and abandoned racing for the day.

One race made the series giving 506, with Scott MacLeod, TK, Jan Raymond and Michael Aingorn the victory.

Full results here: http://www.fleet1.org/

Dr's TK and Scott holding the coveted Pepper award handed out for winning
a two day series without ever rounding a leeward mark.

Here is a short video taken (with an iPhone) yesterday. To be honest, we're not sure it's worth 3.5 minutes of your time but you can be the judge...

"Eyes up here!"
Photo credit: Basil Lyden

REGATTAS:

Time to start planning on sailing in the Atlantic Coast Championships being held at Noroton on September 27-28.

Remember, the bigger the fleet, the more travel boats are willing to come. Please register early. Our goal of 30 boats will only happen with fleet support.

Click the link for the NOR: http://tinyurl.com/qfaobb9

Online registration is now open at: http://www.sonar.org/

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

Wow... I can't believe it's been a month. Let's get caught up...

FLEET RACING:

August 3 (if I can remember that far back):

The first race was the Rear Commodore's race. 13 boats were on the line including a guest from Seawanhaka, #400 with Al Constants on the helm. With the breeze out of the SE at about 8, PRO Tom Ross ran a D2 giving everyone plenty of opportunity to win or lose.

In the end, the winner was Team 506. Team Fast Forward with Peter Galloway and Paul Steinborn finished second and Ed Sweeney's Team 454 finished third.

After that, Tom ran another two races, a D1 and a W1 to end the day.

Overall, with a very dominate performance, Team 506 won the day by taking the gun in all three races, finishing with just 3 points.

Second overall went to Team 454 who finished with 10 points while third went to Team Spitfire with 12.

Team 506: TK, Kerry Klinger and Scott MacLeod

August 10: No racing due to Noroton hosting the JSA Opti Championship (won by Noroton's own TJ Danilek)

August 17:

With many of our fleet 1 sailors in Newport for the Hinman Masters team race, we still managed to get a respectable 8 boats on the line.

Here is a write up by Scott Harrison, the day's winner...

Sunday fleet racing was tricky as ever as the Southerly and Northerly battled all day.  8 boats showed up and Pro Howard Vickery got 2 races completed. The first race was  a D2 in the Southerly which was fluky with velocity and direction changing often.  726, skippered by Paul Steinborn, Jr,  got pressure on the right edge on the first beat and gapped out to a true horizon job.  The Northerly arrived on the second downwind leg and we changed gears again.

The second race was a D1, with the 30 degree lefty at the start, which allowed the fleet to tack at the gun and lay the windward mark.  Downwind started as a skewed bare away, but the right filled in and the fleet was jibing to get to the lower mark.  772 got to the top first and lead the way.  Jack, 726, was a close second.

For the day...

772      3-1    4

633      2-2    4

726      1-5    6

Team 772: Peter Bang, Adam Westerman, Scott and Warren Costikyan

August 24:

The Grand Masters team race took a good number of fleet 1 sailors to Newport again this weekend, still, we managed to get 11 boats out racing. 

Here are two write ups, first by Scott Harrison, the second by winning helmsman Morgan Connor...

Scott: "Wow… what a day.  We left the harbor with a 10+ knot breeze out of the East.  Paul Norton set up a D2 which was proved to be a long race as the wind velocity declined to 6-8 knots with short, periodic shifts of 10 degrees.  The shifts were too hard to predict, and thus, either side of the course worked.  Mike Aingorn got the bullet followed by Harrison and Sweeney.

The 2^nd race was a D1, and equally tricky, with the left and right working and  4 boats reaching the top within 5 boat lengths.  Team Raymond, with Morgan Connor at the helm, rounded first and held on, followed by Jason and Harrison.

In the end, 3 boats had 5 points,  with the tie breaker going to Raymond"

Morgan: "Eleven boats participated in this past Sunday racing.  There were two races the first at D2 and the second a D1. 

Race 1

With a short line and the current going out, it set up the fleet for a general recall as the majority of the boats were over.  On the restart the one minute rule was in affect and the RC extending the line.  The fleet was able to hold back and get off cleanly.  The pin was slightly favored, but the majority of the fleet tacked off the line and headed to the right side of a long first beat.  The top boats came out of the right hand side as the breeze shifted to the right.  Team Aingorn led around the first mark and held on to the lead for the entire race.  Ed Sweeney moved his way up the fleet and finished a close third with Scott Harrison and crew crossing ahead at the finish.  Team Raymond finished fourth with Team 360 in fifth.

Race 2

With the wind strengthening a little, and time running out on the afternoon, the race committee shortened the course and posted a D1.  The first beat was similar to the first race, with the majority of the fleet tacking off of the line and heading to the right-hand side.  Team Raymond and Team 360 found lanes across the middle on port tack and converged with the leaders out of the right about 2/3 up the beat.  With a slight shift to the left at the top of the beat, Team Raymond and Team 360 rounded the weather mark in first and second with Team 500 rounding third.  On the run, Team Raymond stayed out as much of the fleet continued on starboard jibe and headed towards the shore.  Team Raymond rounded the leeward mark in first with Team 500 rounding about 4 boat lengths behind.  The last beat was a fetch to the line with the current pushing us to windward. 

Team Raymond finished first with Team 500 second, Scott Harrison third, and Team Aingorn in fourth.

Team Raymond, Team Harrison and Team Aingorn all tied for first place on the day with 5 points.  The tie-break went to Team Raymond, with Team Aingorn in second and Team Harrison in third.

Thank you to PRO Paul Norton and his team for two fun races."

Team 654: Back row: Ryan Jones, Craig Jones, Morgan Connor, Jan Raymond.
Front Row: Future JSA Opti Champ Lila Connor.

Full fleet 1 scores can be found here: http://www.fleet1.org/

REGATTA NEWS:

The Sonar North American Championship was held on August 8-10, hosted by the Lunenburg Yacht Club in Lunenburg Nova Scotia.

21 boats, representing seven countries competed in this year's championship. Noroton's own Team Fast Forward (701) with Peter Galloway, Paul Steinborn Sr., Cooper Pellaton and Justin Marks won the event with just 13 points in 10 races (including two throw outs).

Team Fast Forward leading the fleet at the leeward mark.

Second place went to Eric Voss, the current World Champion from Rochester YC. Third went to a team from Great Britain.

While all boats sailed together, a group of boats in town for the IFDS World championships were scored separately, sailing in a non-spinnaker division. Winning that group was a team from Ireland.

Full results for the regatta can be found here: http://lyc.ns.ca/racing/racing2014/2014SonarNA.htm

Speaking of the IFDS Worlds... 18 boats competed in the Sonar class division. Winning the event was FRA's Bruno Jourdren. Second went to CAN Paul Tingley and third was Colin Harrison from AUS. The top USA boat was Noroton's Rick Doerr who finished in eighth place. The other American racing was Andy Fisher, also a Noroton member, who came in 11th.

Full Results here: http://www.ifdsworlds2014.ca/images/ifds/results//Sonar%20Overall%20Final.htm

TEAM RACING:

As mentioned above, Noroton participated in two major team race events this month in Newport, the Hinman Masters and the Grand Masters.

For the Hinman, 11 of the best teams in the country competed on August 15-17. Teams included New York, St Francis, Southern, Texas Corinthian, Seawanhaka and Eastern. A strong first day helped propel Noroton into the final four round. From there the competition was a little too much for our team, ending the regatta in fourth.

The Grand Masters was held August 23 - 24. Eight teams competed in this, the 4th year of the event.

The press release from the event says it best:

The NYYC Grandmasters Regatta has been held four times since 2010 (the event wasn't sailed in 2011 due to Hurricane Irene) and the team from Noroton YC, in Darien, Conn., has won it each time. This year it wasn't even close. After a double round robin, where each team raced every other team twice, Noroton stood atop the overall standings with a 14-0 record.

The road to winning the Grand Masters definitely leads through Noroton.

The 2014 Noroton Grand Masters team: TK, Kevin Sheehan, Susan Morrison, Steve Shepstone, Warren Costikyan, Karl Ziegler, Lee Morrison, Melissa Shepstone, Britt Hall, Jim Linville, Peter Wilson, Carolyn Wilson

The full press release can be found on the Noroton website: http://norotonyc.org/

AUGUST SUMMERY:

JSA Opti Champion, North American Champion, Grand Masters winning team, strong finishes in the IFDS World Championship and Hinman Masters... Noroton has had a very successful August.

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday July 27:

Ahhh... summer on Long Island Sound. A beautiful SW breeze at 5 kts. Adverse current. Does it get any better? Yes.

11 boats raced. PRO Kevin Sheehan did a great job getting two D1 races in. He tried for a third but it wasn't to be.

Team 605 was fast, really fast. Of four marks (in two races) they were first at three. More importantly, they were first at the finish line in both races.

Team 619 with Lee Morrison, Susan Morrison, Don Vasta and Mark Sullivan (BTW, Mark was a crew training participant this year) finished second while team 506 with Scott MacLeod, Bruce McArthur and Harry Milne finished third.

In Race two, team 772 with Scott Harrison, Warren Costikyan, Adam Westerman and  Peter Bang (also a crew training participant) finished second while 506 ended out third once again.

It's no surprise team 605 won the day.

Team 605: Bob Monro, Janet Grapengeter, Michael Rudnick, Ian Monro and the birthday girl Francesca Monro

Second went to team 506 with six points while third was team 454 with Ed Sweeney, Leo Schlinkert, Alec Wiggin and Timothy Sweeney. They finished with eight points.

This ends the first series. Our overall winner for Series 1 is Peter Galloway and Paul Steinborn on Team Fast Forward. Second is TK and team 506, third is team 500 with Bill Jayson, Basil Lyden and Randy Tankoos.

Full results can be found here: http://www.fleet1.org/

SONAR REGATTAS:

The Marblehead NOOD was this past weekend. The Sonar class had 10 boats racing including two from Noroton... Rick Doerr and Andy Fisher.

Local sailor Dave Curtis won the event with 12 points (including one throw out) in 7 races. Second went to Rochester sailor and current world champion Eric Voss. Third was Skip Shumway, also from Rochester.

Rick finished fifth, Andy ended out ninth. Full Results: http://www.yachtscoring.com/event_results_cumulative.cfm?eid=941&RaceClass=Sonar

Next comes the North American Championship on August 8-10 in beautiful Lunenburg Nova Scotia. It's a long drive but we hear it's worth it. There are currently 24 boats registered including 12 IFDS international crews.

The NOR can be downloaded here. Register at http://www.sonar.org/

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

North American Championship, August 8-10, Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

North American Championship: Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg Nova Scotia Aug. 8-10
Opti Championship: Nototon YC, August 10 (no fleet racing)
Fleet Barbecue: August 17 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday July 20th

We set a new record for boats on the line this summer... 18 boats came out to play.

PRO Chris Zaleski ran three races, two D2s and a D1. The weather cooperated too. Sunny with wind out of the east at 14 for the first race. With the tide change, beginning to flood at ~1:00pm, there were plenty of good sized waves to work around as well.

The D2s were about 3.5-4 miles in total. In 14 kts, it only took Team Fast Forward (701) 50 minutes to complete the track. They were followed by Team Spitfire (360) with John Bainton, Doug Stowe, Cathy Hoyt Schulz and Sam Barron-Fox in second and Team 506 with Colin Gordon, Karl Ziegler, TK and Anne Patin in third.

Race two started in 11 kts out of the east. The wind was beginning to lighten up but not the waves. Once again team Fast Forward showed the fleet the way around, finishing the D2 in about an hour. And once again, team Spitfire finished second followed by Team 454 with Ed Sweeney, Art Collins, Leo Schlinkert and Alan DeSantis in third.

By race three, the wind was down to 7-9 still out of the east. The D1 took about 40 minutes to complete. Team Fast Forward completed their domination of the day by taking their third gun. This time followed by team 454 in second and team 506 in third.

Pretty easy to see who won the day. It's tough to beat a boat who has only three point after three races.

Team Fast Forward: Cooper Pellaton, Paul Steinborn, Peter Galloway and Justin Marks

Overall, second went to Team Spitfire with 8 points while third went to team 506 with 10.

Full results and season standings can be found here: http://www.fleet1.org/

This coming Sunday, July 27, is the final week for series 1. We have a close race between Fast Forward and 506 for first place with Fast forward slightly ahead. Team 500 is currently in third followed by team 454 in fourth.

SONAR REGATTAS:

The Marblehead NOOD is this weekend. There are currently 156 boats registered in 10 classes including 9 Sonars. This is always a fun weekend. It's not too late to make plans and register.

After the NOOD comes the North American Championship on August 8-10 in beautiful Lunenburg Nova Scotia. It's a long drive but we hear it's worth it. There are currently 24 boats registered including 12 IFDS international crews.

The NOR can be downloaded here. Register at http://www.sonar.org/

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Marblehead NOOD, July 25-27, Eastern YC, Marblehead, MA
North American Championship, August 8-10, Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Marblehead NOOD: Eastern YC, July 25-27
North American Championship: Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg Nova Scotia Aug. 8-10
Opti Championship: Nototon YC, August 10 (no fleet racing)
Fleet Barbecue: August 17 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Fleet Barbecue: September 7 after racing
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Time to

4TH OF JULY SERIES:

This year's 4th of July series took place on Friday July 4 and Sunday July 6. Friday's forecast looked ominous with a hurricane off the coast and lots of rain predicted. Not many boats showed up. Those that did, eight in all, ended out having three great races in 10-15 knots of breeze and only a little liquid sunshine in one race.

PRO, Commodore Lee Morrison's first race was the Commodore's Race. The top finishing boats were:

First: Team Fast Forward (701)
Second: Team 506 with Scott Macleod on helm
Third: Team 633 with Bruce Kirby on helm

After three races, going into Sunday, Team Fast Forward held onto their lead with a total of six points, followed by Team 506 with seven. In third was Team Spitfire (great to see them out on the line).

Sunday's PRO was KC Hart. KC ran two races, a D2 followed by a D1. With a beautiful forecast, we doubled Friday's turn out with 16 boats starting in race 1. A new high for boats sailing this season.

For the day, the top finishers were:

First: Team 506 with three points
Second: Team 654 with six points
Third: Team 500 with seven.

For the series:

With varying conditions, and number of boats racing over the two days, it was difficult to get consistent finishes. That is for most boats. One exception was Team 506 who won the series with just 10 points over five races.

Team 506: TK, Karl Ziegler, Scott Macleod. Not pictured: Brooks Daley

Second place went to Team 605 who finished with 20 points.

Team 605: Bob Monro, Ian Monro, Francesca Monro, Janet Grapengeter and Michael Rudnick

Third was Team 701 Fast Forward with 21 points.

Full results here: http://www.fleet1.org/

On Sunday, we had four starts for the two races (two general recalls). Onboard with KC was Devin Hart who turned 13 this year.

Devin shot some great video of our starts. The following is a short edited compilation:


SUNDAY JULY 13:

Another great turn out for Sunday's races. Once again we had 16 boats on the line for the first race. The forecast was for 14-18 with gusts in the 20+ range. The reality was boats had trouble getting to the race course in light air. Thankfully the wind picked up a little. The first race was our Vice Commodore's Race, PRO Vice Commodore Peggy Hersam decided to run a D2.

At the finish, the winning team for the Vice Commodore's race was #726 with:

Paul Steinborn, Jr (helm)

Edward Steinborn (jib/bow)

Antonia Fong (pit)

Michael Aingorn (spinnaker)

Second place went to Team 500 while third was Team 632.

For the day, we had three races. After the D2, we had a D1 and a W1. Our overall winner was Team 506 who finished with eight points.

Team 506: Karl Ziegler, TK, Kerry Klingler and JB King

Second place went to Fast Forward with 9 points. Third was Team 500 with 12.

FLEET 1 COOK-OUT:

Our next cook-out is coming up this Sunday, July 20, hosted by Harry and Maribeth Milne. Plan to stay after racing to enjoy each other's company in a (slightly) less competitive environment (depending on how hungry we are).

SONAR REGATTAS:

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Marblehead NOOD, July 25-27, Eastern YC, Marblehead, MA
North American Championship, August 8-10, Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Fleet barbecue: July 20 after racing
Marblehead NOOD: Eastern YC, July 25-27
North American Championship: Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg Nova Scotia Aug. 8-10
Opti Championship: Nototon YC, August 10 (no fleet racing)
Fleet Barbecue: August 17 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Fleet Barbecue: September 7 after racing
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday June 28

A fleet of 15 boats made it out to the starting line this past Sunday. The following is a write-up of racing by Ed Sweeney:

The wind did not look good from the patio at noon. RC Chair Scott MacLeod sent mark boat Tim Sickinger out to sample the wind on the Sound and at 12:30 we postponed ashore. At 1pm there was a light 3-6 kn southeast wind yet Sailflow still predicted 10-12 kn at 3 pm so the RC decided to head out with a 1:07 pm harbor start. The RC chair was heard to comment “…don’t blame me if this doesn’t work out” as he headed for Volunteer.

Race 1 was a D-1(normal upwind start with port roundings!) and we started in the light southeasterly. Knowing there was a long port tack with the mark a bit to the right, we wanted to sail in clean air in the light breeze so we started 1/3 from the boat and tacked early. (yea!-not over early!) On the way upwind there were a number of holes in the 6 kn breeze. To the south we could see cruising boats sailing in a southerly. All the more reason to stay right. It was a slow drag race with 701 and 605 to the first mark with 701 rounding first in front of us as the wind shifted right slowly. Legs 2 and 3 proved to be tight reaches in the new wind with a parade to the finish.

The wind came in strong from the southwest at 12 kn for Race 2. The RC set a D-2 course. At this point we adjusted things for the increased wind and we were glad to have an experienced 4 man team including Alan DeSantis, Leo Schlinkert and Alec Wiggin. The goal was to start in an open spot near the boat end betting that the boat would open up with the now outgoing tide and increased wind and associated boat speed. Instead what happened was the early boats piled up primarily near the boat. We got to the line with some momentum and found a lane to live in before tacking fairly early into an open port tack lane. It was a drag race to the 1st mark on port tack. Our weight helped to maintain height. I believe we rounded 5th. Downwind we tried to stay in a clear lane and we managed to catch a few waves. The next upwind leg was a slog into the waves on starboard with port being smoother allowing for better height. We rounded the top mark and last leeward mark I believe 5th, with everyone very close. We went for a clean fast rounding and paid attention to the better end of the finish line allow us to pick up 1 boat to finish 4th.

Race 3 was a D-1 in the same 12 kn souwesterly. We started midline with speed in very similar race conditions to Race 2.  Again the boats were grouped tightly (surprise?) and we rounded marks 1 and 2 5th. With good boat handling and limited tacks we edged out 2 competitors on the final leg to finish 3rd. Consistency paid off. Thanks to the RC team and fellow competitors for a fun day. 

Ed

The top three finishers were:

Team 454:        2, 4, 3 = 9
Team 654:        3, 6, 1 = 10
Fast Forward:   1, 1, 10 = 12

Full results here: http://www.fleet1.org/

Team 454: Ed Sweeney, Alec Wiggin, Alan DeSantis and Leo Schlinkert
Photo: © Randy Tankoos

PETER WILSON'S RULES QUIZ:

Here are some rules questions we can appreciate... and should know.

Leeward mark – How do the rules apply?

Assume the mark is to be passed to port.  Yellow and Blue are overlapped at the zone.  Blue owes Yellow mark-room and as port-tack must keep clear.  At position 4 Blue is rounding the mark correctly and Yellow is not rounding on the required side. 

1.     Is Blue breaking rule 10 (p/s) but exonerated because she is sailing within her entitled mark-room?

2.     Is Yellow breaking rule 24.2, while not sailing her proper course, interfering with a boat sailing on another leg?

Assume the mark is to be passed to starboard.  At position 4 Yellow is rounding the mark correctly and Blue is not rounding on the required side.

1.     Is Yellow breaking any rules?

Now assume that there are 6 boats on starboard, some overlapped outside Yellow and some behind her, and the same numbers/positions on Blue’s side of the mark.

1.     What is the most important rule at play?

2.   How the hell do you ever sort this out?

2014 SONAR NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIP:

Saturday June 27 - Sunday June 28

The New England Championship, hosted by Falmouth Yacht Club, took place this past weekend.

13 boats representing five clubs raced in this year's New England Championship.

Saturday started slow with a postponement on-shore until about 10:45 am when enough breeze came in from the SE to start a race.

After the first race, the breeze clocked to the SW and built to 12-14. Once things settled in, the RC was able to get an additional four races in. Tired but happy, the fleet sailed in for pizza and beer on the FYC deck overlooking Vineyard Sound.

Day two began with enough breeze to get going at the scheduled harbor start time of 9:00am. A steady 7-9 knots out of the SW allowed the RC to run three more races and have the fleet in by 1:00pm.

The challenge for the second day was the flood tide which can run 2+ knots towards the middle of the sound.

***Heads-up*** For those of you interested in sailing in the Worlds next year... SW breeze, flood tide... in Falmouth that means the current is running with the wind... Stay right. Overstand. Seriously.

Eight races, one discard, and the winner was Alex Meleney out of Vineyard Haven (and Noroton) with 18 points. Second place went to Noroton's Rick Doerr with 20 points while third went to Falmouth YC's Ryan Richards with 21 points.

Full results: http://www.regattanetwork.com/event/7844#_newsroom+results

Channel to Vineyard Sound

SONAR REGATTAS:

Here is the remaining Sonar Class regatta schedule for 2014:

Marblehead NOOD, July 25-27, Eastern YC, Marblehead, MA
North American Championship, August 8-10, Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

DUES:

***Last call*** If you want to be scored, and participate in the fleet cook-outs, Fleet 1 dues is $50. If you have not already done so, please send a check made out to "Sonar Fleet 1" (include your name, boat number and partner's names.) to:

Jean Galloway
26 Friendlee La.
Wilton, CT 06897

Just a reminder, fleet 1 dues is separate from SCA membership. SCA membership is required to race in sanctioned regattas like the Atlantic Coast Championship this fall.

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

July 4th Series: Fri July 4, Sun July 6
Fleet barbecue: July 20 after racing
Marblehead NOOD: Eastern YC, July 25-27
North American Championship: Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg Nova Scotia Aug. 8-10
Opti Championship: Nototon YC, August 10 (no fleet racing)
Fleet Barbecue: August 17 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Fleet Barbecue: September 7 after racing
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday June 22:

Thankfully the breeze was a little more than forecasted. We saw 5-7 knots out of the SE for most of the afternoon.

PRO Luke Raymond ran two races. The first was a traditional D1. The second was new to the sailing instructions this year, also a D1 but with an "R" Flag  meaning a reverse course beginning with a downwind start. More about this in a minute.

The first race saw the fleet close together in a race that lasted just under an hour. In the end, Team 506 with Karl Ziegler, TK, Britt Hall and Scott MacLeod took the gun, followed by Team 500 in second and Team 619 in third. All pretty much status quo.

Then the fun started.

Race two was our first attempt at a reverse course. The downwind start was interesting and was pulled off without a hitch. No OCS, no fouls (that we know of). But the real fun started at the leeward mark. Actually "fun" is a subjective term. The reality was it was fun for some, not so for others.

It started when most of the fleet forgot or didn't realize we were to round the marks to starboard (thus a reverse course). The confusion was exacerbated by the leeward mark location being only a couple hundred yards from the start, not giving any chance for separation.

So now we have some boats rounding (properly) to starboard while simultaneously most rounding (improperly, but as we normally do) to port. Not a pleasant sight. When realizing their mistake, some boats "unwound" properly while others did not (see rule 28.2). Then one boat hooked the mark, making it a little harder for others to correct their mistake. All in light air. You're probably starting to get the picture. It was messy.

Once that was sorted out, the fleet started its course to the windward mark where most boats rounded (properly) to starboard. Then down to the finish.

In the end, of 15 boats on the line, two DNF and three RAF. The winning boat was Team 633 with Howard Seymour, Curt Altmann, Bobby Lawrence and Anna Seymour

Coming in second was Team 605 while third went to Team Fast Forward.

For the day we had two boats tie for first, each with seven points. Team 506 won the tie-breaker over Team 605 on the strength of their bullet in the first race. 605 had Bob Monro, Lianna Gordon, Francesca Monro, Ian Monro and Chris Olmstead. Team Fast Forward came in third.

Full results here: http://www.fleet1.org/

Team 506: Karl Ziegler, TK and Britt Hall. Missing is Scott MacLeod.

Lots of interesting discussion about the D1 "R" course during our afternoon "debrief." Some liked trying something new, others would be happy to just mothball it.

It will be interesting to see what happens if any future PRO's decide to try it again.

SONAR REGATTAS:

The New England Championships are this coming weekend. This year's regatta is scheduled for June 28-29 and is hosted by Falmouth Yacht Club in Falmouth MA.  Falmouth is also hosting the 2015 world championship so you might want to consider registering to pick up some local knowledge.

Plus, registration is only $125. How good is that?

For more information and to register, Click here: http://www.regattanetwork.com/event/7844#_home

Here is the full regatta schedule:

New England Championship, SA-SU June 28-29, Falmouth YC, Falmouth MA
Marblehead NOOD, July 25-27, Eastern YC, Marblehead, MA
North American Championship, August 8-10, Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET COOKOUTS:

Sunday was a beautiful day for our first cookout. Huge thanks to Glenn and Laurie Morrison for arranging and hosting the event. We had a good turnout, great food and a beautiful Sunday evening.

Our next cookout is scheduled for Sunday July 20, hosted by Harry and Maribeth Milne.

DUES:

Fleet 1 dues is $50. If you have not already done so, please send a check made out to "Sonar Fleet 1" (include your name, boat number and partner's names.) to:

Jean Galloway
26 Friendlee La.
Wilton, CT 06897

Just a reminder, fleet 1 dues is separate from SCA membership. SCA membership is required to race in sanctioned regattas like the Atlantic Coast Championship this fall.

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

New England Champ: Falmouth YC, June 28-29
July 4th Series: Fri July 4, Sun July 6
Fleet Cookout: July 20 after racing
Marblehead NOOD: Eastern YC, July 25-27
North American Championship: Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg Nova Scotia Aug. 8-10
Opti Championship: Nototon YC, August 10 (no fleet racing)
Fleet Cookout: August 17 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Fleet Cookout: September 7 after racing
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5

SONAR FLEET 1 NEWSLETTER

FLEET RACING:

Sunday June 8:

No wind, no racing.

Sunday June 15: 

Father's Day was an amazing and challenging race day.  Shifty wind out of the NNW (340º) ranging between 5 and 13 knots. No lead was secure.

PRO Peter and Carolyn Wilson were kind enough to offer use of High Noon for the RC signal boat as the Lightning regatta was using Volunteer.

With 11 boats on-the-line, Peter ran two W2's.

After racing was over, we had three boats tied for second place, each with seven points.

Lee Morrison and Team 619 ended in fourth overall with finishes of 2 and 5. Bill Jayson and Team 500 won the tiebreaker over Lee with finishes of 5 and 2. Team 500 won the tiebreaker by winning the last race. Second went to Morgan Connor and Team 654 with a 1 and 6. Winning the first race gave Team 654 the overall tiebreaker.

Just one point ahead, and winner for the day was Scott Harrison and Team 772... Warren and Deirdre Costikyan and Adam Westerman.

Team 772: Scott, Warren, Deirdre and Adam

Here is Scott's take on the day:

"The second day of a northerly proved tricky for Father's Day. As most know and taught multiple times, in a northerly, stay on the lifted tack and in pressure.  Easier said than done. We set up for a higher wind setting for the first race, which proved too aggressive, as the wind varied from 5-13 knots with flat water.

Lead changes were frequent, and as a testament to the fleet, the top 4 boats had 6-7 points each. The next group of three finished within one point of each other.

Changing gears and keeping the team's head out of the boat were key ingredients to saying with the pack.

The wind was very welcome to all."

Full results can be found here: http://www.fleet1.org/

Carolyn Wilson took some great shots of our day racing. Here are three. The rest can be found in the Photo Gallery on the club website.

Click on the photos below to enlarge them:

CREW TRAINING:

We had another successful crew training seminar on June 7. This year's class had 15 participants including a few students who participated last year. 

Scott Harrison explaining the finer points of racing

The "debrief."

Class of 2012 alums

We love that we've seen a number of our grads come by on subsequent Sunday's looking for an opportunity to improve their skills. 

If you need crew, there is a crew list which can be found in the Member's Only section of the club website. Just click on the Sailing tab, then select Crew List.

SONAR REGATTAS:

The New England Championships are just two weeks away. This year's regatta is scheduled for June 28-29 and is hosted by Falmouth Yacht Club in Falmouth MA.  Falmouth is also hosting the 2015 world championship so you might want to consider registering to pick up some local knowledge.

Plus, registration is only $125. How good is that?

For more information and to register, Click here: http://www.regattanetwork.com/event/7844#_home

Here is the full regatta schedule:

New England Championship, SA-SU June 28-29, Falmouth YC, Falmouth MA
Marblehead NOOD, July 25-27, Eastern YC, Marblehead, MA
North American Championship, August 8-10, Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
Atlantic Coast Championship, September 27-28, Noroton YC

FLEET COOKOUTS:

This coming Sunday, June 22 is our first fleet cook-out. Hang out after racing and enjoy dinner on the patio, hosted by Glenn and Laurie Morrison

DUES:

Fleet 1 dues is $50. If you have not already done so, please send a check made out to "Sonar Fleet 1" (include your name, boat number and partner's names.) to:

Jean Galloway
26 Friendlee La.
Wilton, CT 06897

Just a reminder, fleet 1 dues is separate from SCA membership. SCA membership is required to race in sanctioned regattas like the Atlantic Coast Championship this fall.

FLEET 1 CALENDAR:

Fleet barbecue: June 22 after racing
New England Champ: Falmouth YC, June 28-29
July 4th Series: Fri July 4, Sun July 6
Fleet barbecue: July 20 after racing
Marblehead NOOD: Eastern YC, July 25-27
North American Championship: Lunenburg YC, Lunenburg Nova Scotia Aug. 8-10
Opti Championship: Nototon YC, August 10 (no fleet racing)
Fleet Barbecue: August 17 after racing
Labor Day Series: Sun-Mon, Aug 31-Sep 1
Fleet Barbecue: September 7 after racing
Kirby Cup: Noroton YC, Sat-Sun, Sep 13-14 (no fleet racing)
Atlantic Coast Championship: Noroton YC, September 27-28
Last day of racing: Sunday October 5