Tag: ILCA

ILCA sailboats and sailing. (Prior to 2021 known as Laser)

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We had a beautiful day for racing in the July 4th Long Distance Race at Fishing Bay Yacht Club.  28 boats ranging from J/70 to S2 7.9 to Flying Scot to Front Runner to Laser to 420 were on the starting line for a Portsmouth Handicap race of about 8 miles.  Being short of crew I took the Laser and did my best not to fall too far behind the fleet especially as one of the smaller boats.  I could do pretty well on the upwind and downwind legs, but on the reaches – the boats with 2 sails and especially those with asymmetrical spinnakers would just walk away.  In the end it was a respectable 13th – just above mid-table.

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Following racing there were over 200 people for a cookout followed by a little rain followed by fireworks well into the night.

PHOTOS | RESULTS

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Sprinter & Laser

After 20 years of hauling Lasers around on a trailer and later on top of a car – I’ve finally arrived at the ultimate Laser hauling vehicle – a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van.  The rear part of a 170″ wheelbase Sprinter is 14′ and just the right size for a 13′ 9″ Laser sailboat.  Not only does the van carry the boat – but it’s also got a queen bed, seating for 5 and plenty of space for all of the gear to go along with.

Laser in Sprinter Van Rear

As with sailing, as with life – there’s just not enough time to do everything and the ideas for this van were born over the last 5-6 years ago as I came up with ways to make going sailing easier. I sail almost every weekend April-September – and my boat lives in Richmond – far from the water where I sail.  So every event is a travel event for me whether I’m going to Deltaville, Annapolis or beyond.  Every Friday night I spend 1-1.5 hours loading the boat and pulling all of the gear out of the shed.  Same goes for Sunday night after a long day on the water and a long drive home – another hour+ of unloading gear before catching some shut-eye.  With the van – all the gear stays loaded and ready to go and I only have to pull cooler/food and clothes out.  I also save on tolls and the hassle of maintaining a trailer.

Sprinter looking aft

Key features

  • Laser
  • Room for mast/boom and spares
  • Protective storage for blades and other Laser gear (and spares)
  • Bed for napping on long trips or ‘tin tenting’ at venues with camping
  • Seating for 4-5 for sailing and non-sailing road trips including ECU tailgating
  • The ability to tow a J/70

Loading Hoist, Rail and Sling

Sprinter Laser Hoist & RailSprinter Laser HoistSprinter Laser Sling hardware

To load the Laser – there’s a jib track run along the roof of the van.  The track has a slide with a pulley that I can attach to the bow eye of the Laser (yes, I know this not recommended).  To load the laser the front of the boat is hoisted on the pulley system.  I lift the stern walking the boat into the van with the front of the boat/pulley sliding over the bed and the seat.  I use the sling to cinch the boat up to the roof and then ratchet it in for travel.

Spar Holder

The spar holder sits above the boat and holds 7 sections.  A bungee with a hook holds the spars in place for travel.

Blade Drawer

Sprinter Laser Blade Drawer

The blade drawer has room to fit 2 sets of parts.  The blades sit on their edge to prevent risk of them warping in a hot vehicle and the inside is wrapped in carpet to prevent scratches.

Bed

Sprinter Bed looking aft

The bed in the van was custom sized to fit – it’s 70″ long and 60″ wide.  That’s the same width as a queen and 5″ shorter than a double. That way the length of the bed goes across the van side to side – saving valuable fore/aft room in the van for gear.  This wouldn’t work for someone taller.  The bed is raised about 20″ off the ground leaving room for the blade drawer and more space for rolled sails and other gear underneath.  On top of the bed is a Sunbrella duvet cover to keep the bed dry should a dripping boat be hoisted overhead or wet clothes be thrown on top of it.

Curtains

Sprinter Curtains

These curtains have magnets holding them in.  They have a bit of cotton filler for some insulation and are black so they are completely unnoticeable from the outside.

Other

The van also features a roof air vent with a thermostat to hopefully keep the van a little cooler on hot days and nights.  In the future I’ll consider installing insulated walls, a house/shore power system and an AC/Heat Pump unit.

This has been a fun project and I’m looking forward to many years of fun and sailing with it.  Thanks to my Mom for help on the curtains. Dad and neighbors for help building and the Sprinter Forum for ideas.

 

 

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It was great to be back in a Laser today for what will likely be my last day of Laser racing at Fishing Bay Yacht Club‘s Laser Frostbite regatta.  The winds were light, but that didn’t stop us from getting 7 races in while the wind steadily shifted from West to North and then a little east as the day went on.

With 9 boats on very short lines I focused on just sailing well and not getting myself into a hole – wind-wise or situationally. We had great group of sailors out and everyone had a good game and so anyone had a chance to win races. After a few races Stephen Sparkman and myself started to make it a two boat race.  In the end he had the better day and got me by a point.  Clark Dennison, back in the Laser for the first time in a couple years finished up 3rd.

All in all it was a fun day sailing with Len, Keith, Brad, Luke, Mike W, Mike T, Stephen & Clark and was a perfect way to end the season – racing, drinking beer and sailing with my Laser buddies.

RESULTS | PICTURES

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This year’s Chesapeake Bay Laser Masters Championship was probably one of the best yet – good turnout, good weather and great food made for a smooth event.  It was also the year FBYC hosted it as the Laser Masters Atlantic Coast Championship and with it, a few more folks from New England and Kansas.

Ned Rennolds, Jon Deutsch, Mike RussomPhoto by Ned Rennolds

For racing on Saturday we had 7-12 and clear skies.  Ned Rennolds joined Mike Russom and me on the safety boat with his drone and we got some great photos and video of the fleet from overhead during the first and second races.

Photo by Ned Rennolds

For the rest of racing on Saturday I did my usual of floating around and taking pictures and video.  This year we even dress up the committee boat – Mr. Roberts as seen with the red lettering below.

By the end of Saturday we had gotten a good day of 5 races in for the sailors and we called it a day as the wind started getting light and fluky.  We had a few visitors join us for dinner including past fleet captain and chair of this event – David Hazlehurst.  Alain Vincey did another wonderful dinner followed by plenty of Laser stories and a viewing of some of the drone video for today.  Sailors hung out in the club house and later by the fire at their campsite well into the night.

Sunday’s wind was much greater than Saturday and a number of sailors, didn’t go out, took advantage of the rig-swap opportunity, or retired before starting a race.  Fortunately only one sailor needed any assistance and thankfully Mike R was onboard the safety boat and ready to get wet.  Three more races were sailed as the fleet slowly dwindled.  I didn’t get many pictures due to the waves and activities, but I did get some video of some screaming reaches.

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Once again it was a very successful regatta.  I really want to thank all of the folks on the race committee, Alain, Brad and all of the FBYC fleet for all of their help putting this event on.  This was my 10th one and I’m looking forward to just a few more years when I can join in!

RESULTS | PICTURES | VIDEO

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Today’s forecast looked even worse than yesterday so the postponement flag was hoisted in the morning.  We then proceeded to do all of the things that ensure wind – namely other things like packing the boats, going power boating and canoeing. And by 10:45 the faithful who stuck it out were treated to a 7-9 knot breeze from the SSE.

We got 4 more races in before the time limit.  I won the first race using a similar strategy to yesterday.  But as the conditions changed in the 2nd and 3rd races and as I went into lead-conservation-mode – I found that everyone else was suddenly just as fast as I was and there weren’t many passing lanes.  I settled for 3rd in the next two races and not knowing if there was a drop or not in the last race, I just figured I just had to be better than DFL.  A 6 in that race ended up being my drop and I ended up 1st by 5 points.

It was great for me to finally put more than a just few races together and get a good result.  Thanks Steve, Dorian and everyone else for doing everything they did to put on the regatta.  I enjoyed sailing with the SSA Laser sailors and look forward to sailing with them again soon.

2014 Crab Claw Standard Winners

RESULTS

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It was all doom and gloom on the forecast all week ahead of the Crab Claw Regatta at Severn Sailing Association and we were pleasantly surprised with the 3 races were were able to get in.  We headed out to the race course and got the first race off on time in a 6-8 easterly breeze just off Bembe Beach.  I had remembered sailing in this exact location and with this exact wind direction and I remember the strategy was to go right or to go left – I just didn’t remember which way.

At the start I wanted to be at the boat and to go right where there appeared to be more wind.  I took a second row start just behind Luke Shingledecker and tacked to the right as soon as I cleared the boat.  About a minute and a half later I realized it was the left that I wanted to be on because of the left-to-right current, so I tacked and continued, taking a few sterns, until I was left-most boat on nearly the lay line.  Once on the layline the current carried me to the mark in the lead.  I led the rest of the race favoring the right on the downwind and just doing my best to stay between myself and the pack of Jonathan Phillips, Luke and Bill just behind me.

2014 Crab Claw 1

After the first race was completed – the wind completely shut off – just as was expected.  We sat around in power boat chop for over 2 hours before the wind started to fill.  This wasn’t the 6-8 that we had earlier in the day but it was a solid 6 – enough to call it racing – and not punishment.

By the time we started the  current was supposed to have changed so I again took a second row start behind Luke and worked the right.  Once there I realized it hadn’t changed yet and again worked my way out to the left.  This time Luke came in ahead of me and I followed him downwind.  At the gate I saw some nice pressure on the lower right of the course so I stayed right while Luke went all the way to the left.  I came back to the left lay line and was 5-8 lengths ahead of him when we reached the top mark.  On the final downwind he closed the gap, but I was able to finish just ahead of him.

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For the 3rd race the pin was a little favored so I planned to start down by the pin with Carlos and Luke below me.  I got there a little too quick and was OCS and so was Luke so we both tucked around the mark and restarted.  I ended up with a nice lane and crossed behind most of the fleet on port until I got to clear air.  Once in clear wind I worked my way back across to left-most boat and rounded only behind one other boat who was ultimately tossed for OCS.

On the 2nd upwind of the 3rd race the course was moved to the left  and this time I played a conservative middle-left to stay ahead of the guys behind to finish 1st.

Despite the light wind and washing machine seas due to the power boat chop – it ended up being some fun racing.  I appreciate that the RC stuck it out and we were able to race. I had the upwind boat speed thing figured out and while there were some things I could have done better – I didn’t make any mistakes and that got me to the front and let me stay there.  It was a nice accomplishment putting a whole race day together after the mistakes I made last time I was racing at the Laser District 11 Championship in August.

The forecast for Sunday is even more dismal than today’s, but we do start an hour earlier so I’m hoping we get some more racing in and I can keep the streak going.

RESULTS

Photos courtesy of Carlos Linares

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The 75th Annual One Design Regatta at Fishing Bay Yacht Club got off to a bit of a slow start with hardly any wind to be found.  The Laser fleet sat on the shore, boats rigged and communicated with the RC for when to come out to sail.  Eventually a whisper of something showed up on the course and we headed out.  Once on the course it was another 2 1/2 hours of sitting around before admitting defeat that the wind wasn’t going to fill and calling it a day.

By race time on Sunday we had a nice 6 knot breeze out of the ESE.  We had 8 Standard Lasers in our fleet.

75th FBYC AOD

In the first two races of the day the wind was still what I’d call ‘light’ with some shiftiness.  Eric Roos did a great job picking the shifts and put a nice lead on the rest of us on the first beat and held that to the finish.  I never felt comfortable with the boat in the first two races and just didn’t like my setup or boat speed.  I was hanging within sight of the leaders, but had to work to stay ahead of Brad, Mike and others all around me and settled for 3 & 5.

By the 3rd, 4th and 5th race we had another knot or two of pressure and I had settled down and gotten the boat setup right.  At the starts I was careful not to get pinned to one side of the course and to have clear air.  Upwind with the boat finally moving well I was able to pick my head out of the boat and really start picking the shifts.  On all 3 first upwind legs I was really well in phase and had 10+ boat length leads at the windward mark.

In one of those 3 races I made the downwind work and actually pulled away in one of them.  On the other 2 I felt like I was in a hole and struggled to not loose too much ground on the boats behind me.  In the final beat to the finish  of race 3 and 4 I was able to just cover the fleet and finish comfortably in 1st.  In the 5th race I made a few mistakes getting out of phase early in the final beat and had to play some catchup to finish just ahead of James Jacob who had been consistently 2nd all day long.

By the 6th and final race of the day the wind started easing just a bit.  I had a bad start, let myself get pinned on the wrong side of the course and rounded the first mark in 6th.  I clawed back to a 4th, but James Jacob’s consistency and my 4 & 5 put me 2 points behind him settling for 2nd place overall.

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Having had the new Laser out 5 times and this being the 2nd race day for it – it was really nice to finally have some races where I felt good and had it dialed in.  Two weeks from now is the District 11 Championship at Tred Avon and I can’t wait to give it another go.

Thanks to all of the other Laser sailors who came out and sailed with us and thanks to Matt Lambert for putting the regatta together and to Alex Alvis, Geoff Cahill, Donna Alvis, Cindy Corbett, David Lennarz, Brad Miller and everyone else who helped on RC.

Results

 

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We started the day with steady rain and plenty of it and hoping for a clearing to enable us to get some racing in for Fishing Bay Yacht Club‘s Summer Laser Regatta.  After watching the weather for a bit we were going to have a break around mid-day so we made the call to race right off the dock in the 8-10 SSW breeze we had.

We got off to an on time start with 11 boats on the line.  The racing was fun and competitive.  The wind was shifty.  A few quick sprinkles rolled over the course before clearing later in the day.

Alex Jacob did a masterful job in the first 4 races and stretched out in all of them to take bullets.  Robert Suhay, Len Guenther, myself, Mike Moore, Brad Squires and James Jacob all sailed in a pack just behind with any one of us challenging for 2-6 in every race.

PRO Lud Kimbrough and his crew of Eliza Strickland, Anna Matchett, Clay Harris, Katherine Harris, Miles Kimbrough & Just Wilton did a great job being out there under threat of storms and adjusting the course as the wind flaked back and forth.  The course lengths were great allowing us to stretch out just enough, but still keeping the starts and the races close.

My day and my first race with my new boat – No Quarter – was a bit of a mixed bag.  I had the boat together well enough, but my lack of time in the boat this year clearly showed.  I stayed with the pack and had some great legs, but wasn’t able to put a whole race together.  I’ll be Laser sailing the next 3 weekends and should be ready by then for the District 11 Championship at Tred Avon August 23-24.

RESULTS | PICTURES

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I spent most of today at Fishing Bay Yacht Club putting the new boat together.  After 4 hours and 3 trips to West Marine and I had it all tricked out like I wanted and ready to sail.

6/14 drilling holes in and tricking out the new boat.

6/14 about to launch the new boat for the first time.

What really surprised me when I was sailing was how much stiffer the mast seemed.  I haven’t sailed many boats and am pretty used to the feel of the old boat.  I’m guessing after 17 years the old mast has been flexed so many times it’s lost a bit of stiffness.  Couple the stiffer mast with control lines that are just a little thinner than I’m used to and I really felt like a wimp trying to crank everything in.  I’m sure it’ll loosen up a bit as I get used to it.  The other difference was the all Holt-Allen fittings which were just a little different than the Harken ones I’m used to.  I’m not sure yet which I prefer, but I’m sure I’ll be able to tell in time.

6/14 first sail in the new boat.

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