MRA Series #4 - LABOR DAY REGATTA - Day #2 of 2 - August 31, 2008

Howdy from Bob Duff, August 31, 2008 2100 hours,




In breaking with the sailing season, I present here an invitation to "An Exhibit of New Watercolors and Children's Fantasies By Benneville Strohecker Marblehead Arts Association Henrick Gallery October 4-30, 2008". The watercolor portrait on the invitation is of a grandaughter of Jane and Tim Hunt who are the two people in the upper right-hand corner of the invitation. The granddaughter is Jianne Zagarri whose nickname is Gian-Gian as noted by her song in the little poem. Her twin brother is the "T.J." also mentioned there. Tiger and Beemer are pets. Mom is Lindsay Hunt Zagarri if I have all this at least partially correct. Dad is Ron.






Ben Strohecker was a long time member of the Eastern Yacht Club Race Committee as have been the Hunts including service during several summer months with me at the OLYMPIC YACHTING GAMES in Savanna, Georgia 1996. Ben has an outstanding racing record as captain of the SWEET SLOOP Herreshoff 12.5 when she was the corporate yacht for Harbor Sweets Handmade Chocolates. Ben could single hand SWEET SLOOP through a spinnaker jibe by using his own knobby knees. He has written a new , as yet unpublished illustrated children's book about "the day the ocean turned to chocolate". We think that you should enjoy Ben's artistry. Click on these images for an enlarged view.









The saddest day of the year is when we dock the signal boat after her last race of the summer. ETO will be hauled this week and it is all over but the shouting after a great season 2008. We managed to run two races each today for the four fleets at the TINKERS Line before heavy winds caused us to cut it short and "head for the barn".





We saw twenty-three knots of wind, a broken boom and a spinnaker pole bent like a pretzel. On the MIDWAY Line Herb Motley's IOD KUNGSORNEN #49 was "T-BONED" by another yacht and lost the top one-third of her mast. I assume that it was an ETCHELLS who rammed her since no self respecting IOD would hit another IOD. But, this is just my slightly biased view about the yachts that I love. Another mis-guess by me yesterday was the imagined lead by #46 IOD EDEN. I was deceived by the fact that Bruce Dyson and Norm Cressy in #7 GYPSY seemed to have lapped her. Oh my! And here it is the last night of August with no official scores posted on the MRA site.





My brief unofficial notes show Douglas Trees & Chris Small with a first and second today in Rhodes 19 #1680 SWING ROOM. Then came Mike Lane in WAY #3038 with a second and a first. I noted RONDAR #1 Viper (Rondar Race Boats Limited) with a first but missed the other Viper scores. Martha & Sam Altreuter pushed their Sonar #787 RESONANCE to a 1st and 2nd. Frank McNamara dominated the J-24s with two firsts in ZOT #4202.

MRA Series #4 - LABOR DAY REGATTA - Day #1 of 2 - August 30, 2008

Howdy from Bob Duff August 30, 2008, 2200 hours,




Ever since the Junior Olympics Festival in Rockport earlier this summer I have wanted to show this artistic display of starting flags created by Mariah Dunn for us on the race signal boat. Left to right are the 420 Champion flag, the Green 420 flag, the Laser flag, The Susie Schneider "BLACK FLAG" which discourages early starters and the blue "Preparatory 'P'" flag used during more genteel start sequences. I was so impressed with the artistry of Mariah's display that it is now a part of my own start flag organization. As reported earlier, my timing partner Brad Marvin just says harrumph, harrumph.





Speaking of timers, this again is me imitating Brad Marvin at the J.O.s in full race committee uniform complete with Brad's famous harrumph, harrumphs. Brad let me experience three days of the pressure and voice exhaustion that goes with yelling start times over and over. I was happy to go back to my normal job of quietly hoisting and dropping flags at the loud commands of Brad the Timer.





Today was another glorious day for sailboat racing here off Marblehead. We had 36 boats in 4 fleets with three races each for Vipers, Sonars and J-24s with the Rhodes 19s heading home after only two races. The "C" courses (double sausage windward leeward windward leeward) had 0.8 knot legs in a fairly steady breeze around six knots at 205 degrees magnetic.





I was a slacker today recording just a small piece of the race results in my personal notes. I got Viper #55 PLAYSTATION with Paul N. Zimmerman getting one gun. Martha and Sam Altrueter got a first and a second in #787 RESONANCE Sonar. Peter DeWolfe and Bill Kuall had a first in Sonar # 374 PDSquared. Official scores are not yet posted as I write. These may be available for tomorrow night's blog.






I am personally anxious to see the IOD scores as one of my favorite IOD yachts #46 EDEN owned by Jennifer and Greg Mancusi-Ungaro appeared to be leading #7 GYPSY with Bruce Dyson and Norm Cressy on an extremely long beat staged by the Corinthian Yacht Club. I hope that a Mangusi-Ungaro was on the helm of EDEN and one can never be certain but what the eight or six year old daughter was driving the boat. Hopefully we will get all the news Sunday.





Especially nice for me today was my son Stephen Duff working with David Soule on the pin boat. He will be back Sunday with Paul McCauley on the mark boat. Jim McCully and Art Saulsberry did the mark Saturday. Rear Commodore Phil Smith was our honored guest on the ETO signal boat. Jennifer Tegfeldt was our recorder with Susie Schneider PRO, Ross Peterson operator/gunner, Brad Marvin timing and me on flags. I have not heard other changes possible for Sunday.




See you tomorrow night!

PHRF NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIPS - Day #3 of 3 on August 24, 2008 - Race for 38 Yachts on Line #1

Howdy from Bob Duff Sunday August 24, 2008,

Above Jim Ayer pictures our favorites for 2009 RACE COMMITTEE LEADERS!  It's TRACEY & RICK for our next pick and they don't yet know it!  That is the Meyers if you had not figured it out! Her IBM background should help clear up some of the EYC web site mess and they both know sailboat racing.  The web's problem is one of data management.  Jack Cochrane and Jeff Wargo operate alone in what appears to be a vacuum of computer effectiveness.  Please join me in opposing expenditure for a new web which will be no improvement if data management continues as at present. 

Below are three more of Jim's photos catching the spirit of this wonderful sport.

These are the Junior Olympics Festival in Rockport earlier this month.  The bottom one should truly be titled "ARE WE HAVING FUN YET?".   As noted previously, I cannot tell you names since "management" controlled scratch sheets in such a fashion to exclude DUFFSTUFF.  It certainly was not an intentional act!  Any questions?

The seventh PHRF NE race for Line #1 could not have been much better except for a mix up for David Hoyt and his Melges 32 #141 GOAT.  Enough confusion drifted from the protest hearing about the proper windward mark in race #7 to drop GOAT into second place for Class 2 - (YELLOW) behind Cindy and Jud Smith sailing AFRICA # 50141 into first place.  I believe that this was the only protest on our line for the regatta with David initiating action against the race committee.  Official details are seldom laid out  for us "outsiders", but the posted scores tell the story. 

 When I was a youngster racing boats at my old Chicago Yacht Club,  anyone was welcome to sit quietly at a protests hearing to expand their racing knowledge.  It is rumored that this is not the practice here in the East.  It certainly is not obvious that people are welcomed to observe.  I really found it rather boring after a while, but several people today expressed that sailors  should be welcomed to sit in without comments!  Why not ask "the boss lady" about it?

SHOUT #51918 a Farr 40 owned by Shout Racing was first in RED Class 1 followed by Tom Linkas' INDRA #522354.  In Class 3 YELLOW John Downey was first with his GAMBLER #41711 followed by Bruce Dyson's 8 meter PLEIONE #38.  Phil DiCarlo took first in GREEN Class 4 on HOTSPUR #40656 throwing out a second trouncing the fleet with Peter Engel's GOLDENEYE #40180 getting the second.

Joel Gardner and Cheryl Byrne served on the race committee mark boat while "Questy" Gringe  and Ashley Boyle handled  the pin boat.  PRO Susie Schneider summoned Ashley to help on ETO with the confusion of scoring thirty-nine PHRF yachts which seem to hit the finish line simultaneously.  Ashley helped Jennifer Tegfeldt and timer Brad Marvin support Susie's finish line calls.  Susie directed me to help with a small task which I enjoyed doing (even though I muffed it).  I was flattered to be noticed.  During a brief lull,  I jokingly asked how I was selected for this job.  Her very serious answer was "you are the bottom of the barrel!"  No smiles!  Any questions?

See you next Saturday for our final sailing weekend this year.  Maybe I will find some additional pictures by then!    I might just scoop a shot or two from the uncommented EYC webb site since none of them are available for DUFFSTUFF directly.  Any questions? 

Please note that MADDIE's SAIL LOFT OF MARBLEHEAD has re-opened after being closed for several months.  The POOPS recently met the new owner Loretta Lang and her very cute bar maid Ashley Valentini with her interesting tattoo.  I told her I would mention her in DUFFSTUFF and try to make her famous.  You know like "wanna be in the movies, honey?".  Jim Ayer used that line for years between marriages.  She said "I make myself famous!".   Anyway, Maddie's is the building where Ted Hood operated his first sail loft.  They are open daily for lunch downstairs and again at 1730 hours for dinner upstairs.  Further, POOPS is a group formed by Jim Ayer and Roger Drumm for luncheon with an invited guest each week.  They invited me a while back and cannot get rid of me.  Prosperous Old Obnoxious People Socializing is the translation of POOPS. 

With summer sailing ending, Gaele and Jim McCully suggest that DUFFSTUFF write about sailing things like "How to Time the Starts for Yacht Races".  That should give Susie S. something else to think about. But of course, she does not have time to read anything I write. 

PHRF NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIPS - Day #2 of 3 - August 23, 2008 - Fourth, Fifth & Sixth Races for 38 Yachts on Line # 1

Howdy from Bob Duff August 23, 2008,

Another near perfect day of PHRF racing for Line #1.  Three full races for four classes makes for twelve additional starts and timer Brad Marvin still has enough voice left to yell down four more on Sunday to wrap it up.  Remarkable!  That will be twenty-eight five minute start cycles in three days if all goes well.  We have had remarkably few OCS starts requiring individual recalls AND NO GENERAL RECALLS AND NO "BLACK FLAGS".  Again, remarkable!

I apologize for the lack of PHRF yacht details so far.  My delicate new relationship with this APPLE MacBook Pro is evolving slowly.  Maybe tomorrow will see more comfort and better reporting of the final results.  I must locate the source of yacht detail reports which elude me right now.  That is my objective for this report Sunday night.

PRO Susie Schneider again had Jennifer Tegfeldt with Bard Marvin and Ross Peterson  and me on the ETO signal boat.  Cheryl Burne was back on the mark boat with Susie's son Andrew working like the All American Sailer that he is.  Andrew called our attention to the fact that our blue "RC" flag was hoisted upside down.  My bad joke that it means "everybody must capsize" met again with the usual stoic looks from some of our crew.  "Questie" Gring ran the pin boat with new friend Jay Perry.

Gaele McCully motored out all alone to visit with us on her new motorboat.  Husband Jim raced with Seamus Hourihan on RUFFIAN #51373.  Notably, David Hoyt sneaked past the finishing gang in first place on  #184 GOAT in race #5 WITHOUT GETTING THE WINNER'S CANNON.  We heard Judd Smith's informative call from AFRICA that "The Melges" (#184) had not gotten her well deserved first place cannon.  Susie Schneider talked about giving her "two guns" when she won the next race.  That gratuity was omitted after recognizing the confusion surrounding a "two guns" yachting signal. 

Wind rolled around from 225 degrees magnetic at 1000 hours to 155 degrees at 1500 hours going further counterclockwise to 142 degrees as we wrapped up the day.   Velocity grew from some 6.5 knots to around 12 per my notes.  All in all a glorious time!

No current photos available again today despite the quiet clicking away of my censor.  See you Sunday night!

PHRF NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIPS - Day #1 of 3 - August 22, 2008 - First, Second & Third Races for 38 Yachts on Line # 1

Howdy from Bob Duff long after midnight during this first day of the three day PHRF N.E. REGATTA,  August 22, 23 & 24th,

This picture is a big big fleet of little little Optis recently at the Junior Olympic Championship we helped manage with the Sandy Bay Yacht Club in Rockport, MA.  I will not try to estimate the hundreds of kids and parents involved.  Hundreds of Optis were on other race lines.  We had over fifty 420 Championship boats and over thirty 420 Greens (beginners) on each of 17 starts attempted.  Nine of these ended up under "black flags".  The last start began with "black" in a dying breeze.  Susie Schneider (PRO) announced her purpose of avoiding more delays from General Recalls.  By this time the kids knew what was happening. We were trying to get in just one more race for the 420 Green fleet.  They needed it to qualify for just one throw out.  I thought it was handled very nicely except that the wind died completely before the "drop dead" time.  

One of our knowledgeable critics expressed displeasure with "black flags" for such youngsters.  However,  I feel that its use here was most beneficial.  These kids are very competitive and experienced starting in very big fleets.  They saw the "black flag" work very well in Rockport.  If that drives away a few of these young veterans, well....................! 

Circumstances have conspired to keep me up rather late to produce at least a modicum of information about the start or this great PHRF regatta.  I was precluded again today from current pictures and it looks like I must improvise without them.  Picture prospects are slim now and probably will be for the rest of this summer.  Maybe next year under a new administration?  At least I can hope!  I will try to be creative without any on-water help. The mysteries of politics confound me!  It is comforting to know that my tormentor promises never to read anything I write.

So much for pictures, beautiful file transfers and amazing APPLE improvisations!  It took me an hour or so tonight to figure that I had to fully reload my new APPLE browser SAFARI which worked (sort of) before I loaned this new box to APPLE for file transfers.  Watch your TV to see how simple and cheap this process is supposed to be!  I say the browser "sort of worked" because many web things I tried to review through SAFARI gave unsatisfactory results on the EYC web site.  The "big boys" at EYC say this is APPLE's fault.  I am beginning to think that these "boys" might be right.  I will figure that out and let you know in the future.  No one owning an APPLE admits to me anything but love and APPLE adoration.  I  will get there soon - I hope.  I will not regret leaving behind all those viruses!

 This ever so wonderful APPLE does not seem so wonderful just now.  It balks at loading the very few pictures APPLE's "geniuses"  migrated over from my virus infested antique DELL.  I asked these nice young people how much of my "priceless" data they brought over.  Like good sales people who tied me up 3 days doing a 30 minute job ( I would guess), they said "someone else did it and that they brought over everything that they could".  I had experienced withdrawal symptoms with my ONLY TWO COMPUTERS quarantined. Here I am all downhearted, paid $4,000 to .................. well, you know what I mean!  Like everything else, I will get over it.

Principal Race Officer Susie O. Schneider did her usual masterful job managing all the variables for three quite good races for four fleets totaling 38 yachts on Line #1 today.   Our yachts are PHRF's biggest "ladies" ranging from handicaps of negative six to plus 102.  There were two other lines for the smaller and the cruising yachts.  As an old one-design sailor, these PHRF folks still seem like "private jokers" to me, but what do you expect from a Texan who should be doing rodeos not yacht races.  Nevertheless,  I am delighted to be right here.  

Jennifer Tegfeldt functioned beautifully as "assistant PRO" while Brad Marvin and I did our little things as Timer and Flag Man.  Ross Peterson handle the Operator/Gunner job so well that Brad and I almost forgot how much we enjoyed working with Rebecca Bennett much of the summer.  She is out west at Arizona State studying to be an airline pilot.  Ross was driving us south today to our designated area on the chart.  I ask him if he were taking us to Boston.  With a wonderful grin he said, "No Sir! Texas"!  I liked that!

Tom Brennan  and Cheyrl Byrne ran the mark boat with a lot of hustle managing weather marks on a double sausage courses of 1.8 then 1.2 nautical miles for the smaller boats.  We had some VERY light breezes (3, 2, and then hardly any knots) at 220 magnetic.  Later it came back over 12 knots and Susie gave all but the smaller of our four fleets a 2 mile windward course. Wind moved from the 220 direction to 135 and then back to 150 magnetic.  

Jack Cochrane ran the pin boat with the able assistance of Rear Commodore Phil Smith. Susie took some interesting pictures of Phil hauling marks.  I would love to show one of them here, but Susie made it clear this morning that the race committee is for her boat races and not DUFFSTUFF.  The only brief verbal conversation we have had about my writing is something like "I have no time to read you".  That sounds like I am doing something wrong. Comment if you like!  I find it imponderable!  N.I.H.?

Two interesting things came up today.  Susie told everybody about the background of Cindy and Jud Smith's yacht named AFRICA.  It stands for "Another Friggin' Racer I Can't Afford".

The other fun thing was a hail from an old friend racing on KATABATIC about a mutual friend. The three of us have sailed together on a very big yacht and some smaller ones all over the western world.  Some of this was in "blue water" and two of us shared Hurricane Hugo at sea in 1989. Upon advice of council I am withholding both of their names for the time being.

From KATABATIC he yelled "I SAW ----------------------------ON TV".  I yelled back "WHERE WERE YOU?".  He said "ON A PLANE!".  I asked "WAS HE IN JAIL?"  as KATABATIC sailed away with the answer blowing in the wind!  I will try finding this friend tomorrow and let you all know what I hear.  Maybe!   I would bet that many of you know who both of these people are already.  Maybe I should have a contest!  Reply here in "comments" please!

See you again Saturday night! 

2008 Chandler Hovey Race - EASTERN YACHT CLUB - Sunday, August 17th

Howdy from Bob Duff, August 17, 2008, 2250 hours,

On the right is Jim McCully hauling inflated marks out to the race course earlier this week.  Jim, Susie and Rebecca Bennett had motored  our boats to Rockport last weekend for the Junior Olympics Regatta.  This makes an unusual picture taken by J. P. Dunn of Eastern Point Yacht Club while at Sandy Bay Yacht Club in Rockport for that regatta.

It was another beautiful day on the water for eighteen "big" yachts racing a 10 mile long course starting near TINKERs gong.   Weather could not have been nicer with wind at around thirteen knots from a little south of west and temperature in the mid 80s.  The corrected handicap results below are "provisional and subject to modification" for these PHRF Divisions:

3  Multihull starters  - winner Ted Grossbart in SUI 27 - AUDRA  ;second #7 TRIAD for

 Tom Cox.  It was a rare site to see them and their exciting speed.

3 Class "A" yachts - winning in 2 races was Tom Linkas  with # 52354 INDRA: second #9393 KATABATIC for Gordon Hall.  Third was Seamus Hourihan in RUFFIAN #51373. 

For 7 Class "B"s - Ward Blodgett #29 SIROCCO  finished first but dropped to second on corrected time by about 1 minute behind Vern Polidoro in VIGILANTE #51563. Third was Gary Weisberg in #144 HEAT WAVE.

Jack Cochrane of EYC race committee had two other RC people, Joel Kinney and Russ Wells pulling strings to help him take home a couple of trophies which went with a first for #157 Class "D" FALL LINE.   Jim Hosking got a first place gun in class "F" Cruising #30078 ARES.

Susie Schneider was her usual calm and effective PRO person.  She squeezed in a second race for the big Class "A" boats and would have done that for Class "B" but their radio-con failed to get agreement.   They just sailed home for the "prize giving".

Susie, Brad Marvin and I scurried around doing lots of jobs at once.  Ross Peterson was our operator/gunner and will be with us for the rest of the season.  Rebecca Bennett leaves tomorrow for freshman year at Arizona State.  

Cherly Byrne was with Bill Schoenberg on the pin boat.  Todd Sparling  and Michael Costello handled the mark boat.  The "lifting was quite light" for most of us.

Many of us will rturn next Fridayfor the three Day New England PHRF Championship.  We expect most of today's yachts with an additional number joining in.  We will run Line #1 which means that we get all the bigger boats.

I am calling it a day before midnight.  See you back here Friday night!

    

MRA Series #3 Day #6 BRIMBLES Line & Comments - SATURDAY August 16, 2008

Howdy from Bob Duff Saturday August 16, 2008, 2345 hours,

No photographer today and my scanner does not want to work.  So, without too much choice I decided on a J. P. Dunn picture of  yours truly making like Brad Marvin. In his absence I did Brad's timer job at the Junior Olympic Regatta in Rockport earlier this week.  We had 34 individual race starts (including those recalled or postponed before the last minute horn) in three days with six "Black Flags"  by Susie Schneider, PRO.  I am still hoarse!  I do not know how Brad does it day in and day out.

We had seven starts today (no "Black Flags") for seven TOWNIES and two LASERS.  We will be out there again for the CHANDLER HOVEY big boat race tomorrow.  We will have fewer than seven starts for as many classes and Susie may elect to run them a second race which would be a total less than fourteen starts.  Then next Friday, Saturday and Sunday we run the PHRF New England Championship for a greater number of big boats.   Brad will be a little tired and hoarse before heading back to New Hampshire after Sunday's races.

The other picture above is from a rather peaceful day when Jim Ayer's camera caught  "Questie" Gring and Steve Jeffries  waiting for action in our pin boat.  Today Bill Schoenberg did the pin alone while Brad, Susie and I ran the signal boat for the eight races.  We three may do that again tomorrow unless some lonely nice person shows up to give us a hand.

For the seven TOWNIES today, David W. & Tracy Anderson had what looks like the best performance in WABI SABI # 2091 for a first and two thirds.  Arthur O'Neil & Bob McGillivray had two seconds in FROLIC #2049.  Martha and David Martini had a first and a third in PATIENCE #558.  David Cooke(I think) got a first in AUF BLITZEN #3 without his mom, Jane.  JEAN #77 took a second for Peter and David Maitland.

The two LASERs matched each other in four races with Wayne Colahan victorious each time in noname #192032 over Adam Dubitsky sailing close seconds in ICE PLANTER #154091.

All in all this was a delightful day getting most everyone back on shore before the storm rolled in.  Sheila Widnall did not quite make it.  She came in soaking wet with a great big smile after taking two firsts in their #130 IOD JAVELIN.  Sheila was particularly proud of her husband Bill's two port tack starts getting them exactly where they wanted to be.  They liked especially the victory over Bruce Dyson and Norm Cressy in #7 GYPSY.  The Widnall's are heading for San Franciso this fall for the IOD World's Championship if I have the stories right.  It also looks like the GYPSY crew will be going to Sweden for the 2009 World's which will be in the Spring.  Wow!  What a wonderful sport this is!

See you again tomorrow night!

USA JUNIOR OLYMPIC SAILING FESTIVAL-Massachusetts Bay Junior Championship-August 13, 2008-SANDY BAY YACHT CLUB, Rockport, MA

Howdy from Bob Duff August 14, 2008,

I waited overnight to get regatta pictures from  Jim Ayer and J.P. Dunn who worked this event on ETO along with J.P.'s daughter Mariah and her mom, Andrea.  Son Jared is one of triplets with Mariah and was sailing a Championship 420 in the regatta.  His dad and I teased him about "I PROTEST THE RACE COMMITTEE" quoting him from Marblehead Race Week. He was caught over the start line under Susie's BLACK FLAG; he protested and was thrown out a second time. No Dunn protests were logged in this regatta.   Susie used so many Black Flags that I lost count.  (I really know the exact count,  but I am humble tonight!)

 

For some unspecified reason Susie withheld my access to scratch lists; so I cannot identify any names of sailors or pick out Jared among the fifty-three Championship 420s in 88 pictures given to me by our "flag man" Jim Ayer and those from J.P..  Jim did that remarkable series above of the capsized 420.  Notice the water spray as the boat was righted.  These shots are not in exact sequence so you can "puzzle" about Jim's "puzzling" pictures.  Would anyone like a custom wooden jigsaw puzzle?  I believe the top picture should be second, but the blog software is very stubborn! 

  

J.P. sent many nice shots including those above of the Optimist Prams and the one of our RC group waiting in the barn at THE WHARF RAT YACHT CLUB.  It is a VERY VERY exclusive private private club owned and operated by Mary Ann and Ken Novak next to their beautiful home.  A giant rat shape with big tail perches on top of the barn cupola. 

We rafted our RC boats on the Novak's dock. This picture from there shows Susie interrupting John Rando, Andrea Dunn, Alison Becker, Jim Ayer and me who were looking at my blog on the new APPLE.   If  I did not know better, I would think that Susie does not appreciate my writing about her committee.

I somehow lost a  picture showing me shouting my throat raw as timer imitating my old friend Brad Marvin.  Brad had another commitment when we found out about this regatta.  We really missed his presence.  

Since I have only finish numbers, I will forgo listing scores for this JO.  It would have been fun showing their names, but I could not get them.  Wind was light and current very strong.  Only one race could be started prior to the 1330 hours deadline.  First placers were #5731 in 420 Champs, #94 in 420 Green, #185517 in LASER Radials and #175101 Full LASERs.

We heard today from Charley Cook at the Olympics canceling his promised blogs.  Charley cites problems with people showing links to his stuff.  Jim Ayer called to guess that Charley was referring to me.  I removed my two links and added one recommended by Charley for the ISAF site.  My many yachting links are shown at the bottom of each DUFFSTUFF blog.

We will work the BRIMBLES line Saturday if any racers show.  The CORINTHIANS have not raced this summer to my knowledge.  TOWNIES were somewhere else last week.  One rumor has the LASERs being sent to TINKERS as was done last weekend.    Cheryl Byrne is seeking a PRO so we do not know much.  Brad and I plan to be there Saturday and again on Sunday for the Chandler Hovey big boat regatta.  Joel Kinney tells me that he plans to see skipper Jack Cochrane's name on the big Sunday trophy.  They race Jack's FALL LINE Colgate in Class "D".

See you Saturday night or Sunday!

 

USA JUNIOR OLYMPIC SAILING FESTIVAL-Massachusetts Bay JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP-AUGUST 12, 2008-SANDY BAY YACHT CLUB, Rockport, MA

Howdy from Bob Duff August 12 about midnight,

Another rewarding day on the water where drizzle fell and weather did major ups and downs.  The wind was strong and seas were choppy in the morning.  Decisions were made to hold Green 20s and Green Optis on the beach for the day.  I personally doubted the wisdom of sending sixty-six other little boats into such challenges.  Susie pulled off four competitive races which ended up in a foul current with little or no wind.  A fair number of boats were scored Did Not Finish (DNF) because the specified time limit expired.  My caution was wrong!

The first scheduled warning gun at 1100 hours was postponed until just after 1145.  Some aggressive Green 420s were caught and sent home after they tried to sneak in with the "bigger kids".  We ended up with a count of fifty-one Champion 420s and fifteen LASER Radials.  The full LASERs chose the beach over the blustering wind and seas.

 

420 #5731 took the first day 1st and 2nd into a 5th, 1st, 3rd and 5th. Pretty good in a rather big fleet.  #4647 also scored a 1st and 2nd in the three races Monday. They got a 5th and a 3rd before fading from the top boats in the 6th and 7th races.  #4589 started with a 1st and bounced around  behind the top leaders.  Again, things were organized to preclude my getting even a soggy scratch list to show names with sail numbers.

In LASER Radials, #175930 dominates with six wins and a second in seven races with the prospect of more glory in the two additional races hoped for on Wednesday.  After that the USA JUNIOR OLMPMIC SAILING FESTIVAL fades into history.   The top scorers so far lack evidence of candidates for the 2nd and 3rd overall for the fifteen competitors.

The same race committee crew worked well with J.P. Dunn replacing Patti Page who is expected back Wednesday.  Jim Ayer came aboard to do the flags in place of Mariah Dunn, daughter of J.D. and Andrea Dunn.   John Rando came to add another level of "chiefs" over all of us "indians".

We all hope for better weather so that the "green team sailors" can get more racing.  Green 420s need two more races to qualify for throwing out their worst score.  That often yields some new surprises.

Come back after my Wednesday night blogings when I hope to have names to go with numbers.

 

USA JUNIOR OLYMPIC SAILING FESTIVAL-Massachusetts Bay Junior Championship-August 11, 2008-SANDY BAY YACHT CLUB, Rockport, MA

 

Howdy from Bob Duff about August 11, but it is now August 12 at 0230 hours,

We had a delightful time for the opening day of the JUNIOR OLYMPIC SAILING FESTIVAL.  I will be brief tonight (this morning!) as it is very late and I have had a nice experience (in the drizzle) timing  three full races for three starting fleets, 4 finish guns each and a total of about 80 or so little yachts.  That would tally to about 143  youngsters on our line for forty-eight 420 Champs, fourteen 420 Greens and nineteen LASERs mostly Radial with  3 or 4 "full" types.   I have not got a count of what looked like 100 plus Optimist Prams on the other lines. 

My numbers and names today are vague or missing because of a large/lovely signal boat crew and a leader who seems to go out of her way to impede my  writings.  She says she never has time to read anything I write.  Maybe it is just my imagination.   I do not suffer from paranoia as far as I can tell.

 

My friend Brad Marvin was not here for this 3 day regatta and I was told to do his timing job.  It went pretty well except for two mistakes made by me for which I was soundly scolded in many more words than "Duff, YOU ARE A BAD CHILD".  The message is familiar.

I really enjoyed timing and coaching Mariah Dunn doing flags which is my regular job.  I joked with Mariah about the dangers of hoisting a class flag upside down which does happen in the heat of battle.  I said that if she did that, the entire fleet starting would have to capsize.  Those of us downstairs were enjoying a chuckle at my silly joke when "someone" upstairs commented with authority that this was only DUFF's rule.  No smiles from upstairs where the burden of leadership seems to take its toll.

I was denied access to scratch sheets so I have no names to report.  In Champion 420s out of about 48 boats #4589 had one first and #4647 and #5731 each had a first and a second.  Out of about 14 Green 420s we saw firsts for #15, #2559 and #94.  #5082 had a second and a third.  In LASER Radials, #175930 had two possibly three firsts.  The scorers were using all of the data sheets so I gave up on my low priority interest. #180082 and # 190457 each had a second and a third in the data I could collect.  My timing sheets were soaked beyond recognition.  I "invented" a plastic covering sheet tonight to try out tomorrow.

 

We had Emerson T. Oliver (ETO) signal boat which Susan Oliver Schneider drove up to Rockport  as her Principal Race Office (PRO) platform. Our regular operator/gunner Rebecca Bennett drove up with Susie. We had Andrea Dunn (EPYC & SBYC) as an assistant PRO ,  her daughter Mariah on flags, Patti Page doing auxiliary flags and Alison Becker (CYC) also assistant PRO.  Andrea & Alison were with us in Marblehead for Junior Race Week and it was a pleasure working with them again. 

 

Our Stephen Jeffries came as a Judge for the regatta on his rib M-JULIP which is the creative composite of his childrens' names.  Jim McCulley had his wife Gaele's boat for mark duty assisted by a Rockport local  Alexa Jorgensson.  Anthony Santos of SBYC served as the second mark boat on the trapazoid course designated here as "F" which is "J" at Marblehead.  We did not post directions or distances since the kids have no compass and can see the marks on the relatively short course.

Tuesday's racing call is 0900 hours for Race Committee.  Jim Ayer is coming with his camera and Patti Page will sing at home and maybe rejoin us on Wednesday. 

See you again tonight!

 

MRA Series #3 Day #5 TINKERS Line & Comments - SATURDAY - August 9, 2008

Howdy from Bob Duff - August 9, 2008, 2350 hrs, and again Sunday PM when by wireless router came back up,

 This is a new challenge as my old DELL computer developed a terrible virus and I am trying to create this blog on a new APPLE MacBook Pro.  It is different and quite a challenge.  So far I am impressed with APPLE.  Time will tell if the Spyware/Malware follows me in this happy journey away from Bill Gates.

We ran the TINKERS Line Saturday where two late arriving Vipers joined four others for a total fleet of thirty boats.  Six Sonars, six J-24s, ten Rhodes 19s and two Lasers raced in individual fleet starts under PRO Rick Myers' leadership and Rebecca Bennett's cannon blasts. Assistant PRO was Alex Myers, Rick and Tracey's 11 year old Opti racer son.  Mom did check-in, recording and helped with finishes.  Niece Elizabeth Myers(age 10) and Alex's 9 year old sister Anne Myers kept Brad Marvin, Jim Ayer and me on our toes with questions. Jim Ayer's picture here is Anne on the left with Elizabeth.  One question was, "Mr. Duff, why do you wear that blue blazer out here on a beautiful hot day like today?".  My traditional answer was "breeding" which no one seems to understand.  Another part is being a Texan who seldom feels the heat. Finally,  I have worn a jacket since my military training in uniform beginning at age 13 during WWII. 

"Chuck" Angle and Russell Wells ran the pin boat like old pros.  Roger Drumm had the mark boat with three teenagers who showed him a few tricks known only to very experienced young Opti sailors. These kids were Christopher and Michael Drumm with Ian Barrows on a visit from the Virgin Islands. I met his mom who talked a little about an older brother, Thomas Barrows. He is in China racing a Laser for the USA in the Olympics.  All four of these outstanding young sailors are products of Marblehead's PLEON YACHT CLUB.  

Before leaving talk of the Olympics, "Chuck" Angle is traveling shortly to watch his son race n a Sonar in the para-Olympics next September.  WOW!

The VIPERs had a disastrous 3rd race with three boats over at the start.  All were disqualified as they failed to come back for a needed re-start.  One was #55 PLAYSTATION Paul Zimmermann who had a 1st and 2nd before the DSQ.  #60 noname John McCormack had a 2nd and two 3rds.  #74 TUSKER Justin Scott had a 3rd, 1st and DSQ.  #50 RATTLER Michael McCloskey got 1st after the 3 DSQs in the last race.  #41 GERONIMO Duncan Mcintyre picked up a 2nd place.

Peter Frisch took the day for Sonars in #547 PENN PACKET with 2 firsts and a second without his regular super-helm Dru Slattery.  Very well done!  Larry Ehrhardt took a 1st and a 2nd in #690 RALLIE.  Tyler Doyle #564 had a 3rd and a 2nd and did not finish the last race in noname.  Sarah and Jon Sheldon recorded a 2nd and a 3rd in SHEARWATER #566.  A 3rd each went to #362 BLUE STREAK for Miriam Jaffe/Marty Browne and for #374 PDsquared Peter DeWolfe/Bill Kauff.

J-24 #3525 VITAMIN J dominated the class with three firsts for Ted Johnson.  Jeffrey Earl got a 3rd and two 2nds in #4119 USUAL SUSPECT.

The two Lasers got three minute dinghy starts with Wayne Colahan winning all four close races with noname #192032 over Adam Dubitske in ICE PLANTER #154091.

On Monday a group of us journey to Rockport Massachutts to manage a 3 day Junior Olympics Regatta.  We will have our own ETO signal boat for PRO Susie Schneider, Andrea Dunn (EPYC), Rebecca Bennett(EYC-O/G) and me.  I probably will be the timer since our regular Brad Marvin has another commitment.  Jim Ayer will join us for Tuesday and Wednesday. John Rando will take over as PRO Tuesday afternoon when Susie rushes back to run the Betty Pleasants Memorial Women's Race.

Jim McCulley is taking Gaele's fancy motor boat for doing marks all three days.  We will use regular 5 minute start sequences and run as many races per day as weather permits. 

 

We anticipate about sixty Championship 420s with about forty Green Fleet 420s.  The Lasers will be somewhere near that number. A couple hundred Optimist single hander prams will be managed by other people on other lines.

I plan a blog every night.  Maybe my APPLE printer/scanner will be working for more of Jim Ayer's pictures by Monday night.

The APPLE gets better and better with a little practice.  Do not forget to check the two Olympic links at the bottom of this blog!  Charley Cook had a publication waiting for us when we got home from racing on Saturday.

See you all again Monday night!