It was another chilly and breezy day last Sunday. Eleven brave diehard Laser sailors braved the frigid temps and blustery wind. It was very exciting racing! Dave Schoene won the day. His report is below. I will have full results for you next week. Luke Shingledecker won the raffle prize, a Laser baseball hat provided by APS.
This Sunday is the last day of Frostbiting. You need to have competed 8 days out of the 16 day season to qualify for scoring. Everyone who has participated for 8 days receives a trophy and the trophies are in!!(etched pint glasses)... so if you qualify see me on Sunday after racing!
Thanks to everyone who participated in the Laser Frostbite Series this season. Now spring is here and we can think about warmer sailing!!!
Don't Forget ---- Laser District 11 Championships will be held at SSA May 5-6.
Also- below is a request for a Laser instructor for a camp on the Magothy this summer.
See you on Sunday!
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Another breezy day. Probably the windiest in terms of sustained velocity that we have sailed in quite a while. It was cold but, at least for me, I was so active in the boat that I didn't notice the chill. Over the last four to five weeks we have had good breeze and I think all participants have learned a lot and significantly improved their game.
The courses were not particularly long but it was shifty enough that lots of gains and losses could me made. After one windward-leeward course we sailed triangles for the rest of the day. There were some great rides on the second reach. In particular there was a blast that came through in one race that held for the entire leg. I was hiking off the aft deck as far back as I could and just hanging on. The forward two thirds of the boat must have been out of the water. Spray was everywhere. I have no idea how fast I was going but it must have been in the teens.
After the races I was asked about control line management. I dead end the vang, outhaul and cunningham to the handle on my centerboard. My handle consist of a piece of old mainsheet that is lead through a hole in the board and whipped together with twine to essentially form a post (approx 6") that sticks straight up. I believe all boards have a dimple molded in for the purpose of drilling through. The outhaul and cunningham are led through a small triangular hole formed between the top of the centerboard and the point where the whipping starts. This hole is small enough that a simple figure eight knot holds these two lines in place. For the vang I tie a loop on the free end and place it over the rope post. Luke stated that he ties all three to the front of the board where the shock cord attaches.
Before the start I preset the cunnigham and outhaul. Prior to my final approach to the line I tension the vang part way to facilitate easy tacking and gibing and make sure that the vang line is laying on the starboard deck. Ideally at about ten seconds before the start, the vang goes on the rest of the way. However, if I am fighting to maintain my line space, this does not always happen. But once started and the mainsheet is tensioned it is easy to reach for the vang and snug it up with a quick lean in from the hiking position. It is helpful during the course of the beat to get the vang line back on the starboard side so that it can be easily grabbed and eased during the final starboard approach to the weather mark. Prior to the leeward mark I put the vang line on the port side so that I can tighten it up after rounding and sheeting in the main.
Generally I rig the cunningham so that the single line that goes through the grommet comes up on the port side of the boom and ties to the purchase on the starboard side. With port roundings having the purchase on the starboard side seems to work best, especially in light air. We typically start the first downwind leg on starboard, so in light air when the cunningham needs a little assistance to loosen up it is easy to get to it. In heavy air I rig the whole assembly on the starboard side of the boom which allows me to get the cunningham on a little tighter. Hope this helps at least a few of you. Dave
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The Magothy River Sailing Association is looking for an instructor to
run a week long Laser racing clinic, either the week of June 18th or
June 29th. The clinic would run Monday through Friday, from a location
here on the Magothy River near Gibson Island.
If anyone knows of a Laser sailor that would be interested in coaching
some 12-15 year old sailors on their Laser racing skills, please email
or give me a call soonest possible. This is a paid position (!) and
does not require US Sailing credentials, they are looking for an
experienced Laser sailor to help jump start these juniors in the boat.
thanks in advance for your help!
Mike Schmidt
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