It was another beautiful day for racing at Fishing Bay Yacht Club for the 3rd day of the Offshore Spring Series.  I was again on Wavelength for the 3 races on a mostly sunny day with temps in the high 70’s and wind that varied from 19-8.

5/10 FBYC Offshore Spring Series #2

The first race had the most wind and we started out with the No2 and a reef in the main.  We did well at the start by staying away from the faster boats that outpoint us and we were able to make progress upwind albeit a little under powered.   On a tack halfway up the beet we shook the reef out.  The rest of the way around the course went well, but we couldn’t catch the 3 boats ahead of us and settled for a 4th.

In the 2nd race we lined up next to Voodoo 2 and had to take their bad air off the starting line for a while until we could clear the B boats and tack out.  We kept up on the upwind leg, but it was the downwind legs where we shined and made up time on each leg.  By the 2nd upwind leg the wind had dipped even more and we put up the #1.  We barely missed 2nd place by 15 seconds.

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The 3rd race didn’t start so well for us.  We were over early and had to park it and let the fleet sail by so we could turn around and restart.  Starting so far behind everyone made us get creative on the first beat and we banged the right corner (photo above) while most of the rest of the fleet went left which had been working all day.  Sure enough the wind went right and we caught right back up to the fleet.  Unfortunately, we would get stuck with the bottom 2 boats trying to cover each other for a position and ended up as collateral damage never being able to break free and chase the boats ahead of us and we settled for 4th.

5/10 FBYC Offshore Spring Series #2

We’re currently in 2nd place for the series and we got one more race day left next Saturday.  With a good result we should be able to hang onto 2nd.

Jon’s Pictures | Andrea Zilinski Winner Photos |  Results | Video

Following racing a storm rolled through throwing a 420 into one of the RIBs onshore and bashing Mad Hatter at the dock.  I’ve seen some storms roll through and I’ve been at the club for some pretty serious tropical and nor’easters, but I’ve never seen a storm come up so quickly and with such intensity.  Thankfully everyone was ashore and safe.

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We had quite a day for the final day of the Annapolis NOOD Regatta – plenty of wind and plenty more excitement.  The forecast was for it to start into the low teens building with gusts into the 20s.  Only two races were planned.
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During the first downwind leg of the first race we had trouble with a gybe and broached.  Not fun seeing the cockpit coamings in the water and going sideways while the fleet sails by.

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I did learn a few things about J/22s this weekend – particularly how beat up a bow guy gets in a breeze!

Thanks again to Art Silcox for having me on his J/22.  It was a pleasure sailing with him and Mike Waters.

Here’s the highlight:

Results | Pictures | Video

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Today started with a dismal forecast for wind.  After being postponed an hour ashore we were sent out where we floated around for another 1 1/2 hours before some wind made an appearance.

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The wind eventually filled in with 4-8 out of the south and we went racing.  We had a good start and had good position and lane out front 1/3 up the first beat, but we fouled a boat, did our turns and had to suck air in the back of the pack for the rest of the race.  The current ripping down the bay didn’t make things any easier for us to try and claw our way back into the fleet.

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One of the things that has really hit home for me sailing on the J/22 this weekend is how important it is to have clear air and stay away from other boats.

Results | Pictures

Results | Pictures | Video

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Today at the Annapolis NOOD regatta was my first time sailing on a J/22, and for a first time, it went pretty well.  I’m sailing on Art Silcox’s J/22 along with Mike Waters out of Severn Sailing Association.  My training for this event consisted of watching 15 minutes of YouTube videos last night on J/22s to have an idea what I was doing.  For the most part the boat was pretty easy to pick up and I had my footing and got comfortable moving about a boat that doesn’t have any lifelines.

We started pretty early to get out and practice before the race.  We did some of the maneuvers and were ready to go by the time the first gun sounded at 11.  The wind was out of the west and a bit fluky.  We’d have 8 knots for a bit followed by puffs of nearly 20.  Add to that a building current going across the course due to the big storms we’ve had in the prior couple days.  At times we were dodging logs like telephone poles floating through the course.

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The first two race were where we did our learning.  As we adjusted to the boat and figured out how to sail it together we started to get faster and faster.  We didn’t beat a lot of boats in the first two races, but we figured out what we were doing.

The 3rd and 4th race were very different for us.  We figured out how to make the boat go, could hold our own with the boats near us and we were able to make our own decisions on where to go.  We ended up 20-23-9-12 for 15th overall in the first day.

Two more days to go – lets hope we can stay in the top half of the fleet.

Results | Pictures | Video

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Today turned out to be an absolutely beautiful day for racing.  With 22 boats in 4 classes we had great racing aboard Wavelength in the 5-boat PHRF-A fleet in the 2nd of the Spring Series at Fishing Bay Yacht Club.

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The wind started around 16-19 and was in the lower end of that range for the first race with mostly sunny skies and temperatures in the 60’s.  The wind started from the North East and by the end of the day had gone a few degrees further east. The first race was a single windward-leward 1.25nm.  We had a great start and just worked our way up the left side.  With the general trend of the wind going right – there were still nice lifts on the left and more importantly some relief from the currant.  We did well to stay with the fleet, be efficient around the course and not make any mistakes.  Being the slowest boat in the fleet handicap-wise we were 2nd at the finish and less than a minute behind Double Eagle on corrected time and took 2nd place.

The second race was 2 laps and went similarly to the first race.  We had good speed, went the right way and didn’t make any mistakes.  Again we were the 2nd A boat over the line and corrected to 2nd.

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For the 3rd race, another 2 lap race, we started well, rounded the top mark in 3rd and had good speed downwind.  We rounded right behind Nanuq and while everyone else went back to the left that had worked so well all day, we ended up going right.  That paid off when we got a 20-degree righty and found ourselves on the layline and rounding a short distance behind Double Eagle.  Our downwind went well and we held on to correct out 15 seconds ahead of Double Eagle winning the last race of the day and solidifying 2nd place overall.

We couldn’t have asked for better weather and it is so great to out racing again this spring!

Results

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After yesterday’s Opening Day Race, Fishing Bay Yacht Club started the offshore spring series on Sunday with some buoy racing.  We only had about half of the crew we had yesterday and had several new folks in new positions.  Overall we held our own going 3-2-3 on the day. Results.

3/13 FBYC Offshore Spring Series 1
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What a beautiful weekend to start the sailing season at Fishing Bay Yacht Club.  The first race of the season was a middle distance race of 12.8 nm from the mouth of the Piankatank out to the entrance to the Rappahannock River and back.  I was sailing on Wavelength, a C&C37, with Rob Whittet and Steve Utley.  We were among the 20+ other boats gathered in the 8-10 knot northerly breeze and mostly sunny skies.

We had a great start in the 5-boat PHRF-A fleet that consisted of a J/109 Double Eagle, J/105s Corryvreckan and Shamrock, and modified Quest 30 Chilcoot.  The first leg was a short upwind leg inside the mouth of the Piankatank.  We then sailed close-hauled out to the entrance to the Rappahannock followed by a spinnaker run down to the entrance of the Piankatank.  Up until this point we were hanging with everyone except Double Eagle who was starting to get away from us.  At the turning mark the J/70s and the C and non-spin fleets were also using this as a turning mark.

Most of the fleet who had asymmetrical spinnakers went low on their way back to the finish up the Piankatank.  They weren’t laying the mark, but making really good VMG.  With a symmetrical spinnaker, we elected to take the high route with the #1 up.   About halfway back we could see Double Eagle get significantly headed and then drop the spinnaker.  They had to beat back to the mark, while we just cracked off and came back down to the rumb line nice and fast and closed the gap.  We didn’t beat them over the line, but had enough to make up the difference and won the race on corrected time.  What a great way to start the season.

This season will be bittersweet for Wavelength and crew – this will likely be the last spring series for the boat.

Following racing the club held their blessing of the fleet and opening day party.  The food was great – as was the fun!

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Pretty cool – US Sailing named me their April 2014 Hobie Polorized Sailor of the Month.  Here’s what they had to say:

The influence of social media as a common mainstream promotional tool for sports is at an all-time high. Sailors around the world are using social media to capture special moments on the water, from stunning visuals to regatta results. Perhaps, nobody knows the power of social media in the sport of sailing like Jon Deutsch (Richmond, Va.). Jon received the One-Design Award for Leadership at the Sailing Leadership Forum Awards Dinner, sponsored by Old Pulteney and hosted by the San Diego Sports Hall of Fame in February.

For the past nine years, Deutsch has been the mastermind of the widely popular Chesapeake Bay Laser Masters Championship. Deutsch is known for his spectacular photography, energetic regatta reports and phenomenal website. He frequently provides on-water updates via Twitter while racing.

Deutsch SOTM profileDeutsch documents events with his omni-present GoPro and other cameras, and promotes through social media channels and the club site. Competing sailors arrive home after the event to find a “Thanks for Coming” email from Jon with the results and photos attached.

As with everything he approaches, Deutsch made himself into an expert, both on and off the water. His knowledge and service is in demand all over the Bay. He has served as the Laser District Secretary for the past seven years.

Jon has social media covered, from blogs to video and everything in between. “I stick to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram,” explained Jon. “I use them each a little differently to share the best kind of content for each service and the different audiences.”

Jon had some helpful advice for those who are starting to use social media to promote their sailing events and activities. “Pick one or two social media outlets and do them really well,” stated Jon. “Starting out trying to update too many, ends up being a waste. See what service your audience is using, connect with them and build before expanding elsewhere. The goal is to connect with your audience.”

Social media has been personally beneficial to Jon in his own sailing. “By sharing what I’m doing on social media, I’ve been able to meet up with friends, find carpooling opportunities, jump on last minute crew openings and learn about the events and sailing that my friends are doing. The best way we have to grow our sport is for all of us to share what we do.”

Jon has always been an avid sailor. He began his junior sailing career at Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club in Lakewood, NY. Jon is a now a self-described “weekend warrior,” competitively racing and tweeting from his Laser, usually in the Mid-Atlantic area. When not racing his Laser you can find Jon crewing on everything from PHRF boats, to J109s, J70s, and Flying Scots.

View Jon’s websites:
https://jdeutsch.com
http://facebook.com/jondeutsch
http://twitter.com/jondeutsch
http://instagram.com/jondeutsch
http://www.youtube.com/user/Jondeutsch5
http://facebook.com/fishingbayyachtclub
http://twitter.com/fishingbayyc

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Saturday I celebrated the wedding of my sailing buddies Mark Stephens and Melissa Orndorff.  The wedding was held at Hermitage Hill Farm and Stables near Waynesboro, VA.  Here are some of my favorite photos:

Bride and Groom Melissa and Mark.

My date to this wedding was a real nag:
My date to this wedding was a real nag.

Of course I had the GoPro up in a tower simultaneously taking video and stills:

Melissa walking down the isle.

Some of the sailing crowd
Double Eagle Crew: Jon Deutsch, Lauren DeSimone, Marie Schacht, Mayo Tabb, Melissa Stephens, Mark Stephens, Bruce McConnel, Bonnie Black, Sam Mitchener, Chris Tulip

This is also the first real photography opportunity I’ve had since I’ve switched to using back button focus on the D7000. I generally liked it.  My biggest fear was that I’d try to hand the camera to a non-photographer or someone would pick it up to take a picture and either get out of focus pictures or just get frustrated with it.  I’m looking forward to using this more and I really think it helped my hit % of properly focused pictures.

View the rest of the photos here.

 

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For the 3rd and final day of the Severn Sailing Association Soling Frostbite we had another day of light thermals and mostly overcast skies.  I was once again the middle guy flying the chute and calling tactics on Mike Waters boat along with bowman Al Tierney.

In the first race we were a little late to the start and wound up behind the other 4 boats.  We worked the left while the rest of the fleet went right and wound up rounding the first mark in last.  While the rest of the fleet took the rhumb line to the mark in wind that had shifted to the right looking upwind.  We instead went downwind for a bit, straight out into the bay to meet the new breeze coming in and then gybed  downwind in pressure and carried that to the downwind mark.  That new wind took a while to reach the rest of the fleet and we found ourselves in 2nd at the leeward mark.

Going upwind we picked the shifts and pressure well and passed a boat to round in first.  Again we headed out into the bay while the boat just behind us did a tight rounding and headed down the rhumb line to the finish.  We were out of the wind barely making headway to the left of the course while our competition was nearly halfway to the finish.  Other boats were rounding and following the other boat and making better distance on the finish than we were.  And just like clockwork, the breeze came in from the left and carried us right by everyone and we won the race.

Al and Mike Waters

In the second race we got a good start and just played the shifts and pressure upwind and kept ourselves between the other boats and the next mark and were able to win that race as well.

In the 3rd race we had a pretty solid lead using the same strategy as the 2nd race.  On the final run we just tried to just stay ahead.  Unfortunately, the wind didn’t cooperate and brought some of the boats behind us right up to us and one boat was able to squeak ahead of us at the line.

In the end a 1-1-2 was enough to win the day and pull ourselves up into 1st overall for the frostbite series.  In the last 43 years the winter series has only been won by 3 different guys.  Congratulations to Mike Waters on becoming the 4th person to win the series.  I was glad I could be along for a ride, I enjoyed getting to try some Soling sailing and I can’t wait to do it again.

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