Sail Column June 25, 2002

LIGHT AIR CHALLENGES SAILORS

By Dan Muss

On Saturday the winds were very light and out of the Southwest… sometimes. The Race Commander, Dave Bertsch, set a reasonable course out in the middle of the lake where the wind seemed most reliable. But still it seemed we went from a beat to a reach on every leg of the course. My fearless crew was busy elsewhere and Sue Case did yeoman service in her stead.

We got off to a good start and had a lead of about 50 yards around two marks when we sailed into a complete dead spot. We watched in agony as the wind came up behind us and the rest of C Fleet came barreling down on us. We finished out of the money.

Ray Miller told me that his skipper, Darlene Miller, was also out in front of B Fleet when their boom vang broke. He was able to jury-rig a fix but they had lost concentration and thus position.

I wondered, when I heard this story, why Darlene and Ray had the vang on so tight (in light air) that it broke. In fact the boom on the Flying Scot is so heavy that, in very light air, some skippers will try to lift up on the boom to prevent the top batten on the main from hooking in.

Remember that in light air everything should be eased. Sailing close-hauled the boom should be out over the quarter and the top battens of main and jib out a bit. The main and jib halyards should not be as tight as for heavy air and the main outhaul should be only snug. Another bit of advice for light air is that, after you get the spinnaker up and drawing going downwind, have your crew drop the jib. It doesn’t have to be pulled all the way down so the crew can pull it most of the way down without having to climb up onto the deck. Just remember to put it back up before you take the spinnaker down.

On Sunday we left the mooring with about 30 minutes to get to the starting line but the winds were so light we were still a few hundred yards away when we heard three horns which is the signal for abandonment of the race. Most of the sailboats were towed back in by kind motorboats and a cool drink really felt good on the deck when the sailboat was put away.

Race Results

Saturday, Race 1

Laser A Fleet: First Place, Tom Johnson; Second Place, Peter Frey; Third Place, Bruce Spinnenweber.

Laser B Fleet: First Place, Ryan Schubert; Second Place, Lauren Spinnenweber.

Flying Scots A Fleet: First Place, John Meredith with crew Sally Moore; Second Place, Joni Palmer and crew Ray Gauthier; Third Place, Tom Wolffe with crew Frank Wolffe.

Flying Scots B Fleet: First Place, Heidi Kammer and crew Tom Kammer; Second Place, Larry Anderson and crew Debbie Anderson; Third Place, Frank Vandall with crew Sheila Vandall.

Flying Scots C Fleet: First Place, Phil Hanna and crew Helen Hanna; Second Place, Ted Rissell with crew Carol Muss; Third Place, Barbara Elster and crew Jim Munford.

Saturday, Race 2

Laser A Fleet: First Place, Bruce Spinnenweber; Second Place, Tom Johnson; Third Place, Peter Frey.

Laser B Fleet: First Place, Ryan Schubert.

Flying Scots A Fleet: First Place, John Meredith with crew Sally Moore; Second Place, Jane Mahan and crew Dave Mahan; Third Place, Meredith Dodd and crew Ashley Dodd.

Flying Scots B Fleet: First Place, Gary and Alice Schubert; Second Place, Sally Ericsson with crew Tom Garwin; Third Place, Heidi Kammer and crew Tom Kammer.

Sunday 

Races Cancelled