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Pastimes : The Short Story Laboratory -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: abuelita who wrote (17)	5/29/2001 7:21:10 AM
From: Clappy	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 83

Hi Rosie, You should let Harold use that keyboard of yours to write some of his sailing stories. I bet he has a million of them. I love reading stuff like that. It sure seems like you have a lot of fun at that yacht club. -Clappy

To: abuelita who wrote (17)	5/30/2001 1:29:55 AM
From: elpolvo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 83

Another Sailing Race Newsletter... Memorial Day Weekend Regatta Report: Great news! Other than a little sunburn, a few headaches and some minor rope burns, there were NO casualties! On Saturday afternoon there was a nice blow from the west. We rafted four boats together in the marina and bare-poled across the lake for the thistle and shamrock cruise. This is really a fun event. We had about 15 or 20 people aboard the raft sharing music, snacks, friendship and conversation. When the radio program ended, the great white cow broke loose from the heard and sailed around the others spraying water from a super soaker. We tried to sail the remaining three boats back en masse with one mainsail but made no progress for 45 minutes. Finally we untied and made our way back individually to the marina to set up an evening barbecue. Mr. Nims brought up a propane grill (donated by his friend Richard) that will stay on the dock for all to use. We'll have to figure out a way to keep the tank filled so we can all enjoy it. It works very well. Sunday morning brought a few more arrivals and people helped each other rig and launch. Meanwhile, race commander, Major Larson, had brought some homemade buoys to set out for the race and he headed out to sea to anchor them. When he returned he gave us the skipper's briefing at noon and declared 1 pm as the official start time. By one o'clock the wind was puffing nicely (15-20 kts) from the south giving us a nice run to the first buoy across from the Tetilla peak dock... on the shore! Either the wind blew it ashore or the race master was trying to play a nasty trick on us. I got a bit of a late start and was about the last boat across the start line - this gave me a great vantage point to pick out my victims. There must have been 10 or 12 boats start the race because I had both eyes open and they were full of boats (each eye holds at least five or six boats). I was closing fast and passed at least an eyeful of boats on the first leg. At the first turn (somewhere adjacent to the buoy on the rocks) I made a (semi) controlled jibe to head back down river. I caught a good gust and the sail slugs on my new sail started popping out like a teenage zipper opening up at the drive-in movies. I was now flying a 'main-aker' on a starboard tack. Come to find out, a 'main-aker' doesn't work very well on any tack. :-( But I had already promised the seven or eight people in the cockpit and some down below (I had more than an eyeful of crew) that we 'would not finish last' so with 'eggspurt' handling of the full genoa and the makeshift 'main-aker', I continued to keep the boat heeled over more than any of them appreciated. Meanwhile, the wind was increasing and so was Mr. Swanson's lead as he introduced his whole fam dambly to lake water over the rail. To make things even more challenging there was a yellow 'pirate' boat on port tack yelling 'PORT' and playing chicken with almost every other boat on starboard tack. We don't NEED no stinking rules. <grin> The second leg was a gusty, gutsy starboard tack almost all the way to the east side of the lake. The buoy at this end was navigable and was rounded in various directions almost simultaneously by the three lead boats, 'Querida Tu', 'Plenary Indulgence' and 'Moonwalk' followed closely by Mr. Mance in his Catalina 25 and then yourz trooley in the 'Blue Frog'. The final leg home was almost a beam reach on the port side (still not a great point of sail for a "Main-aker"). The first three spots went to 'Querida Tu', 'Plenary Indulgence' and 'Moonwalk' in that order and fairly close together. We made a valiant attempt at fourth place and actually passed Mr. Mance's Catalina 25 about 500 yards before the finish line but it just inspired him to unfurl the rest of his headsail and come flying back around us to edge us out by about a quarter boat length at the line. Fun way to finish! With the wind gusting to 25 kts. at times and many boats pushing close to hull speed, it was an advantage to the larger boats and except for the 24 ft. "Moonwalk", the 25 footers took the first seven or eight places (more than an eyeful). The pot-luck BBQ on the dock was as wonderful as ever and prizes were awarded by Mr. Nims to the first five people that walked within arms reach of him. The"Fulgy Phish Flag" is now flying humbly in the rigging of "Querida Tu", waiting to be claimed along with the coveted BOC Jacket by someone new on another day in another kind of wind. With only five and a half weeks to go till the Independence Day Rally (Saturday, July 7th) I have not heard of a June event being confirmed, though Mr. Simon has mentioned a desire to get a relay race organized. He said he may just get it going spontaneously, the next time he can find eight or more boats on a weekend that are interested. If anyone is interesting in making a weekend trip up to Heron lake during the next month contact Greg Simon. Thanks to everyone who participated in the Memorial Day weekend events - you made my weekend fantastic! To those who weren't able to make it... you were sorely missed... Sailor Chuck, Cindy Palley, Dan Jones and crew, Howard K., Charlie and Mary, Bill and Betty, Sally and crew, and others, and others, and their brothers and mothers. See you all soon on a Saturday afternoon for Fiona Ritchie and a Celtic tune. -the dust of blue frog