"I think you're over-analyzing," my younger son told me when he called me on Sunday evening to wish me a happy Father's Day and I started to tell him why I thought I had done so badly in the regatta this weekend.
He may be right.
So here is my account of day 2 of the Saltmarsh Trophy Regatta in which I will attempt to avoid over-analysis. I'll just give you my gut feelings about why stuff happened.
It was a cool, drizzly, light east wind kind of day. It was decided to delay rigging until the rain stopped which was promised by noon. About half an hour after noon it was still raining. So we rigged in the rain. We sailed out to the course in the rain. In honor of the cooler weather I was wearing my famous sailing socks.
The first race went off in a lull. I started near the committee boat, tacked on to port right away and was soon in better pressure as I headed directly away from the shore. I checked out the fleet and saw that I was leading the pack going right and looking good compared to the pack going left in the lighter winds near the shore. I can't really discuss tides without being accused of over-analysis but I figured that they would help me too.
About three-quarters up the first beat I decided to dig back in to the middle. I had my reasons but to tell you them would be over-analysis. I was crossing the usual fleet leaders ... everyone it seemed except that rogue former All-American out on the left. As it always does, things started to go downhill a bit for me in the top quarter of the beat and one day when I'm in a mood for over-analysis I'll write a post on that topic too.
In any case I rounded the windward mark up with "the names". You know, those guys who always win the regattas in this district. Downwind I was going well, hanging in there with the names and extending my lead over that guy. I should note why I was fast downwind in these conditions but that would be over-analysis.
Anyway I ended up finishing with my best result of the regatta, just behind that other guy, so he was happy too. Gut feeling as to why? The socks of course
Race 2. Total disaster. Tried the same strategy. Right was wrong. Left was right. Rounded the windward mark at the back of the fleet with some kid and one of the Newport fleet regulars. Downwind things got worse.
After the racing I was commiserating with aforementioned Newport sailor and asked if he had noticed that even "that kid lolling in the back of the cockpit with his feet in the air" was faster than us downwind? He had, and pointed out that "that kid with a loose traveler up and down-wind" was also faster than us on the run. Gut feeling as to why? Not socks.
The race committee attempted to start a third race. Huge wind shift. General recall. More rain. Threatening clouds. RC abandoned racing for the day.
The RC was holding out cans of beer so I took one and drank it while we sailed in. Cleated the mainsheet. Tiller in one hand. Can of beer in the other. I was chatting to that other guy but, all of a sudden, I noticed I was sailing so much faster than him. By the time we arrived back at the beach I was 200 yards ahead of him. He wasn't drinking a beer while he sailed.
Now I don't want to over-analyze but there's something about this sailing one-handed while drinking beer that's really fast...
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
Hostile Takeover
I followed a link to this blog back to Blogshares, the fantasy blog stock market, and discovered not only that the valuation of this blog is B$3,168,403.90 (whatever that means) but also that TAHOEJimbo420 performed a hostile takeover of this blog at a total cost of B$1,276,932,897.04 on 20 Apr 2008.
Apparently TAHOEJimbo420 now owns 80% of this blog. And, if those staggering B$ sums are to be believed, he made an amazingly bad investment having paid about 400 times market valuation for his new toy.
Anyway in light of this new situation I need to go and check my bank account to see if that transfer of B$1,276,932,897.04 to my account has gone through yet. I will then be taking a well-deserved retirement from blogging while spending my B$ somewhere on a Caribbean island with Tillerwoman and a bottle of tequila. Hope you enjoy reading what TAHOEJimbo420 has to say here about Laser sailing.
So it's Goodnight from me and it's Goodnight from him.
Apparently TAHOEJimbo420 now owns 80% of this blog. And, if those staggering B$ sums are to be believed, he made an amazingly bad investment having paid about 400 times market valuation for his new toy.
Anyway in light of this new situation I need to go and check my bank account to see if that transfer of B$1,276,932,897.04 to my account has gone through yet. I will then be taking a well-deserved retirement from blogging while spending my B$ somewhere on a Caribbean island with Tillerwoman and a bottle of tequila. Hope you enjoy reading what TAHOEJimbo420 has to say here about Laser sailing.
So it's Goodnight from me and it's Goodnight from him.
An End to Goals
There were eleven participants in our recent group writing project about Sailing Goals... not counting one person who emailed me originally to tell me how excited he was about the subject, but then emailed me again today to say he had failed in his goal to write about sailing goals. Oh well.
As I had anticipated some of you decided to challenge the whole concept of having goals in relation to a relaxing pastime like sailing.
Captain JP asked Sailing Goals - What Goals? and protested that the concept of a goal "is slightly against the whole spirit of just doing it for the fun of it."
Likewise Pat thinks that "the whole notion of goals seems a bit too Type A" for the kind of sailing he enjoys and in sailing-goal-like-thingies told us about his plans for a hammock.
Likewise in My Goal Post Carol Anne explained why she has a "goal not to have a goal".
Mondale just wants to get back on the water and talked about his plans to do some Warm Beering, Cold Beering.
Bonnie pointed out that "boating is something I do for the enjoyment" and said she has Little Goals for her kayaking this year, including paddling ten miles a week.
Soulsailor wondered how to set his priorities for sailing this year, particularly the balance between Open Meetings vs Club Racing, and how to spend more time with SoulCrew.
David Anderson wrote in Lessons from Race 4 and Some New Training Goals about his training goals for an upcoming regatta.
Zen had a whole list of goals in Goals 08' and a big one for 2011.
I contributed some Muddled Musings on Sailing Goals.
Jos told us in a unique style about Sailing toward a Goal?
And last but not least we have Edward who puts us all to shame with his goal to cross an ocean this year. However he also has some Secondary Sailing Goals, including seeing his daughter sail by herself and taking a moonlight sail.
Thanks to everyone who contributed. Now I have a goal to think of a subject for next month's project.
As I had anticipated some of you decided to challenge the whole concept of having goals in relation to a relaxing pastime like sailing.
Captain JP asked Sailing Goals - What Goals? and protested that the concept of a goal "is slightly against the whole spirit of just doing it for the fun of it."
Likewise Pat thinks that "the whole notion of goals seems a bit too Type A" for the kind of sailing he enjoys and in sailing-goal-like-thingies told us about his plans for a hammock.
Likewise in My Goal Post Carol Anne explained why she has a "goal not to have a goal".
Mondale just wants to get back on the water and talked about his plans to do some Warm Beering, Cold Beering.
Bonnie pointed out that "boating is something I do for the enjoyment" and said she has Little Goals for her kayaking this year, including paddling ten miles a week.
Soulsailor wondered how to set his priorities for sailing this year, particularly the balance between Open Meetings vs Club Racing, and how to spend more time with SoulCrew.
David Anderson wrote in Lessons from Race 4 and Some New Training Goals about his training goals for an upcoming regatta.
Zen had a whole list of goals in Goals 08' and a big one for 2011.
I contributed some Muddled Musings on Sailing Goals.
Jos told us in a unique style about Sailing toward a Goal?
And last but not least we have Edward who puts us all to shame with his goal to cross an ocean this year. However he also has some Secondary Sailing Goals, including seeing his daughter sail by herself and taking a moonlight sail.
Thanks to everyone who contributed. Now I have a goal to think of a subject for next month's project.
Delusional
"I believe you may be delusional," wrote an anonymous commenter here a few months ago.
I'm beginning to believe that he or she may be correct. In my profile over there on the sidebar I wrote that, "Even though I am rapidly approaching 60 years of age, I suffer under the delusion that it is not too late to discover how to sail smarter and faster." It was meant to be a joke. But maybe it really is a delusion?
This weekend I sailed in the Saltmarsh Trophy also known as the Championship of Buzzard’s Bay. I had high hopes of a decent result. After all in the last few months I have...
But every day on the water is a learning experience, right? So what did I learn?
Oh yeah, there was one other important lesson. After racing I was chatting with a bunch of other Masters sailors and someone mentioned the sudden death last week of Tim Russert at the age of 58. Everyone in the group was around that age or older. After we all agreed how shocking and sad the news was the oldest guy in the group said, "And you know what the lesson is? Sail as much as possible while you still can."
How true.
I'm beginning to believe that he or she may be correct. In my profile over there on the sidebar I wrote that, "Even though I am rapidly approaching 60 years of age, I suffer under the delusion that it is not too late to discover how to sail smarter and faster." It was meant to be a joke. But maybe it really is a delusion?
This weekend I sailed in the Saltmarsh Trophy also known as the Championship of Buzzard’s Bay. I had high hopes of a decent result. After all in the last few months I have...
- attended a racing clinic in the Dominican Republic
- attended a racing clinic in Florida
- raced in the Laser Masters World Championship in Australia
- raced in the Caribbean Midwinters
- raced in a couple of local regattas
- practiced on my own 16 times in the last couple of months
- sailed 37 days this year.
But every day on the water is a learning experience, right? So what did I learn?
- Solo practice does nothing for your boatspeed.
- Beer and pizza and hanging out with friends after racing is often more fun than the racing. Actually it's usually more fun than the racing these days.
- I believe I may be delusional.
Oh yeah, there was one other important lesson. After racing I was chatting with a bunch of other Masters sailors and someone mentioned the sudden death last week of Tim Russert at the age of 58. Everyone in the group was around that age or older. After we all agreed how shocking and sad the news was the oldest guy in the group said, "And you know what the lesson is? Sail as much as possible while you still can."
How true.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Top Three Things I Hate About Sailing
Regular readers of this blog (all four of you) will have gathered by now that I am somewhat passionate about the sport of sailing. But there are some things about the sport that I totally abhor. So here are the top three things that I hate about sailing...
So that leaves three things I hate about sailing. But wait. All those things are just obstacles that prevent me from sailing. Whether it's waiting to sail, or not being able to sail because a bit broke on my boat, or not being being able to sail because a bit broke on me... I only hate them because they are stopping me from sailing. I guess I really like everything about sailing, after all..
What about you? What do you hate about sailing?
- Waiting. I am a very impatient person. I hate to wait in any situation. My wife doesn't like going shopping with me any more because of the various highly embarrassing (to her) ways in which I display my impatience if we have to wait in a store checkout line for more than thirty seconds. Apparently deep sighs, rolling of the eyes, and glaring fiercely at the enormously overweight, painfully slow checkout clerk are not acceptable husbandly behavior at our local Stop-and-Shop.
But the waiting I hate most of all is the waiting I am doing when I think I could be sailing. I think one of the reasons I am enjoying all the sailing alone that I have been doing lately is because there is no waiting. I look out of the window and see wind; I hitch up the boat and drive to the launch site; I launch; I sail.
Whereas if I travel to a regatta I might have to...- wait on shore for the wind to come in, sometimes all day
- wait on the water for the wind to come in
- wait on the water for the race committee to get their act together and start racing
- wait on the water in between races while the race committee try and square up the course and the line because of a two degree wind-shift
- wait after racing for the results to be published and trophies to be awarded.
- wait on shore for the wind to come in, sometimes all day
- Breakdowns. Why do things break on my boat on the rare occasions when I'm doing well in a race? The classic example is the day at my old frostbite fleet when my gooseneck broke on almost the only occasion I was leading a race by enough to have a legitimate chance of still being ahead at the finish.
I suppose I shouldn't really complain. The Laser is a pretty tough little boat and if I only took the trouble to check fittings for corrosion more religiously I would have even fewer problems. In twenty-five years of racing I can only recall one example each of breaking a mast, breaking a boom, pulling out a traveler fairlead, and pulling out a boom block. Of course that could be a case of the old geezer losing his memory. In any case, however infrequently it happens, I hate it when bits on my boat break. - Injuries. And the third thing I hate about sailing is when bits on my body break. Actually it's not so much a problem of stuff breaking but of stuff hurting too much to allow me to sail. It never seemed to be a problem when I was in my thirties, but now I am pushing sixty various body parts seem to be complaining more often about the treatment they are receiving. The back seems to have all sorts of excuses for saying it's hurting too much to go Laser sailing. There was the time I hurt my back shoveling snow and missed a frostbite season. There was the time I hurt my back putting on my socks of all things and missed a frostbite season. Currently I'm trying to pretend that the twinges in one ankle (probably caused by running) and one elbow (probably caused by too much digging in Tillerwoman's garden) are not really serious and not good enough reasons to miss any Lasering.
Wait. All these injuries were caused, not by sailing, but by other pursuits such as shoveling snow and putting socks on. There's a lesson there somewhere.
So that leaves three things I hate about sailing. But wait. All those things are just obstacles that prevent me from sailing. Whether it's waiting to sail, or not being able to sail because a bit broke on my boat, or not being being able to sail because a bit broke on me... I only hate them because they are stopping me from sailing. I guess I really like everything about sailing, after all..
What about you? What do you hate about sailing?
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Yet More Sailing Goals
I was eagerly anticipating what Zen would make of my Sailing Goals writing assignment. I was wondering... do Zen followers have goals, or are they mutually incompatible concepts? As usual Zen surprised me with his article on Goals 08'. It made me feel tired just reading about all of his short-term goals, not to mention the big one for 2011.
Pat is another one of those who thinks that "the whole notion of goals seems a bit too Type A" for the kind of sailing he enjoys. But then he reels off a whole list of sailing-goal-like-thingies even if one of them has to do with a hammock.
And then we have Jos who writes a fascinating blog Look to Windward about the Racing Rules of Sailing and has come up with what surely must win the prize for the most creative way to communicate on the issue of goals in Sailing toward a Goal? Hmmm. After reading it several times I'm still not sure what his goal is. I think he's just going around in circles.
There are still a few more days for you to contribute to this group writing project. I'd love to hear your take on this whole topic of sailing goals. You don't have to have a blog to participate. It doesn't have to be a long story. Surely you have at least one sailing goal? Full instructions are at Sailing Goals.
Pat is another one of those who thinks that "the whole notion of goals seems a bit too Type A" for the kind of sailing he enjoys. But then he reels off a whole list of sailing-goal-like-thingies even if one of them has to do with a hammock.
And then we have Jos who writes a fascinating blog Look to Windward about the Racing Rules of Sailing and has come up with what surely must win the prize for the most creative way to communicate on the issue of goals in Sailing toward a Goal? Hmmm. After reading it several times I'm still not sure what his goal is. I think he's just going around in circles.
There are still a few more days for you to contribute to this group writing project. I'd love to hear your take on this whole topic of sailing goals. You don't have to have a blog to participate. It doesn't have to be a long story. Surely you have at least one sailing goal? Full instructions are at Sailing Goals.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Dale Webster
OK. I give up. I recognize I have met my match.
I have this rather pathetic little goal to sail my Laser 100 days in 2008. Less than one day in every three. For just one year.
Then there's Dale Webster. He has surfed every day, every single day for the last 32 years. And he's still going. This dude is my age. I salute the master.
Of course it takes some sacrifices to achieve a feat like this. "I have no retirement plan, no house, no four-oh-ten-K or whatever those numbers mean," he says. "My attitude was always, If I can just get to the beach, the rest of the day will take care of itself."
Indeed.
I have this rather pathetic little goal to sail my Laser 100 days in 2008. Less than one day in every three. For just one year.
Then there's Dale Webster. He has surfed every day, every single day for the last 32 years. And he's still going. This dude is my age. I salute the master.
Of course it takes some sacrifices to achieve a feat like this. "I have no retirement plan, no house, no four-oh-ten-K or whatever those numbers mean," he says. "My attitude was always, If I can just get to the beach, the rest of the day will take care of itself."
Indeed.
Unqualified!
Regular readers of this blog (all three of you) will know that I have occasionally sailed in the Laser Masters World Championships. I've done it five times in the last eight years, most recently in Spain in 2007 and in Australia earlier this year.
Just to explain, the designation Masters in the Laser class means the event is for sailors over 35 (old geezers by Laser standards) and we race against other sailors in our own 10-year age group... 35-44, 45-54, 55-64, 65+. Up until now the Laser Masters Worlds have been open to anyone who wants to sign up. No need to qualify in any way. But this is about to change.
I do confess that attending a Masters Worlds is very much an excuse for a superb vacation for my wife and myself. We only go if the event is being held in a country that we will enjoy visiting for reasons other than the championship and we usually tag on a few extra days (or weeks in the case of Australia) to explore that country. It's the perfect getaway for us... an interesting trip with a week or so of Laser racing thrown in for me. I suspect I'm not the only one who looks on the Masters Worlds in this light... and therein lies the problem.
There has been talk in the last year or so about introducing a qualification system for the Masters Worlds, and not allowing them to be completely open as they are now. There appear to be two reasons for this...
This year the Aussies were very savvy to this and signed up for the Worlds in their own country in huge numbers in the first few days the entry was open. By the end of the first week, and before many sailors in other regions had woken up to what was happening, the entry was full. Regular readers of this blog (all three of you) will recall how I beat the system and got my entry in on time.
So our intrepid Laser Class leadership has decided to fix these problems. There are going to be quotas for each region to try and address the need for good representation from each part of the world. And if any region has more potential entrants than their quota then that region will have to decide how to rank its sailors to decide who will qualify to attend.
I must admit to mixed feelings about this...
On the one hand if more sailors want to attend a world championship than the host site is prepared to handle, then I think it's only fair that the best sailors should be allowed to attend. And we really shouldn't allow sailors to attend a Worlds who can't sail competently in the prevailing conditions.
On the other hand I was concerned that I could be one of the sailors squeezed out of the event by any qualification system. I'm not at the front of the Worlds fleet by any means. I was even DFL in a race at the last Worlds (once). Would I conclude that my life is worthless and give up Lasering if I am told I am unqualified to attend a Masters Worlds? No. But it is kind of cool to have the option to go.
So I waited with some trepidation to see what qualification/ranking system would be used for Masters Worlds entries from the North American Region. It was announced a few days ago on the class website. For the 2009 Masters Worlds in Canada next year the number of berths for North American sailors is apparently not yet known. But the qualification system for we North American sailors will be as follows...
So what to do? Well, it seems that our esteemed North American leaders are favoring using results at major North American Masters events as a factor in the qualification. That seems as fair a system as any. So just in case anyone changes their mind about the "if you sailed a Worlds in the last five years you're fine" test, and just in case the five years rule doesn't apply to the "top 75% in your fleet at a major NA Masters event", and just in case that generous 75% bar gets raised higher in future years, it seems that if I want to keep my options open I should start sailing more of these major national Masters events and chalking up some results likely to pass any more stringent qualification rules that might apply in the future.
Let's see what's coming up... US Masters in New Bedford in a couple of weeks, Canadian Masters in Novia Scotia in September, Masters Midwinters East in Florida in February.
I will just have to sail in these regattas. It's a hard life but somebody's got to do it.
Just to explain, the designation Masters in the Laser class means the event is for sailors over 35 (old geezers by Laser standards) and we race against other sailors in our own 10-year age group... 35-44, 45-54, 55-64, 65+. Up until now the Laser Masters Worlds have been open to anyone who wants to sign up. No need to qualify in any way. But this is about to change.
I do confess that attending a Masters Worlds is very much an excuse for a superb vacation for my wife and myself. We only go if the event is being held in a country that we will enjoy visiting for reasons other than the championship and we usually tag on a few extra days (or weeks in the case of Australia) to explore that country. It's the perfect getaway for us... an interesting trip with a week or so of Laser racing thrown in for me. I suspect I'm not the only one who looks on the Masters Worlds in this light... and therein lies the problem.
There has been talk in the last year or so about introducing a qualification system for the Masters Worlds, and not allowing them to be completely open as they are now. There appear to be two reasons for this...
- Some sailors are treating them just as an excuse for a vacation. Shock horror! More specifically what apparently has been happening is that a few chaps with little or no Laser experience look at the location for the next Laser Master Worlds and think, "Hey, I've always wanted to go to Brazil. All I need to do is charter a boat and buy an air-ticket and I can sail in a World Championship. Wow. Count me in." Then they show up at the Worlds, get totally blown away in 25-30 knot winds, spend most of the time upside down, are a danger to themselves not to mention an unnecessary burden for the safety boats, and everyone else has to sit around and wait for them to try and finish every race within the time limit.
- Sometimes the entry is totally dominated numerically by sailors from the home country or region. This happened this year where the vast majority of the sailors were from Australia with relatively small contingents from other continents. There is a school of thought that a true World Championship should have an entry list more representative of all regions of the world.
This year the Aussies were very savvy to this and signed up for the Worlds in their own country in huge numbers in the first few days the entry was open. By the end of the first week, and before many sailors in other regions had woken up to what was happening, the entry was full. Regular readers of this blog (all three of you) will recall how I beat the system and got my entry in on time.
So our intrepid Laser Class leadership has decided to fix these problems. There are going to be quotas for each region to try and address the need for good representation from each part of the world. And if any region has more potential entrants than their quota then that region will have to decide how to rank its sailors to decide who will qualify to attend.
I must admit to mixed feelings about this...
On the one hand if more sailors want to attend a world championship than the host site is prepared to handle, then I think it's only fair that the best sailors should be allowed to attend. And we really shouldn't allow sailors to attend a Worlds who can't sail competently in the prevailing conditions.
On the other hand I was concerned that I could be one of the sailors squeezed out of the event by any qualification system. I'm not at the front of the Worlds fleet by any means. I was even DFL in a race at the last Worlds (once). Would I conclude that my life is worthless and give up Lasering if I am told I am unqualified to attend a Masters Worlds? No. But it is kind of cool to have the option to go.
So I waited with some trepidation to see what qualification/ranking system would be used for Masters Worlds entries from the North American Region. It was announced a few days ago on the class website. For the 2009 Masters Worlds in Canada next year the number of berths for North American sailors is apparently not yet known. But the qualification system for we North American sailors will be as follows...
1)To be eligible you must have:Hmmm. Interesting. My immediate reactions are...
a) Competed in a Laser World Championship (Master, Senior or Radial) in the past 5 years, or
b) Competed in a major North American Master's event (North Americans, US or Canadian Nationals, MMWE, etc.) AND finished in the top 75% of your fleet.
2) If, after satisfying the above, there are more applicants than spots available then entries will be taken in order of registration.
- You are in if you have sailed in any Laser world championship including the Masters in the last five years. This is good for me having sailed in the Masters Worlds in 2003, 2007 and 2008. But is this really a good test? Could folk who don't qualify under this heading see this as protecting the interests of the relatively small clique of sailors who always attend this event? Who's to say that other sailors who haven't been to a Worlds before aren't more worthy than an old duffer like me?
- You are in if you have competed in a major North American Masters event and finished in the top 75% of your fleet. It's not entirely clear to me if they mean you must have achieved this in the last five years (as per the first qualification) or whether this test has to be passed in more recent events. I haven't sailed many of these national masters events but if the five year span does apply to this rule then I am OK on this test too, having finished in the top 25% of the grandmaster fleet of the last such event I did sail, the US Masters Nationals in 2005.
- Apparently this is the system for the 2009 Worlds only. But I also have more than a passing interest in going to the 2010 event in England (if only for the chance to go and visit my mother during the trip) and the 2011 event in Perth/Fremantle Western Australia (birthplace of Tillerwoman and one of the most awesome places on the planet for sailing.) It's not at all clear what the qualification system for these regattas will be.
So what to do? Well, it seems that our esteemed North American leaders are favoring using results at major North American Masters events as a factor in the qualification. That seems as fair a system as any. So just in case anyone changes their mind about the "if you sailed a Worlds in the last five years you're fine" test, and just in case the five years rule doesn't apply to the "top 75% in your fleet at a major NA Masters event", and just in case that generous 75% bar gets raised higher in future years, it seems that if I want to keep my options open I should start sailing more of these major national Masters events and chalking up some results likely to pass any more stringent qualification rules that might apply in the future.
Let's see what's coming up... US Masters in New Bedford in a couple of weeks, Canadian Masters in Novia Scotia in September, Masters Midwinters East in Florida in February.
I will just have to sail in these regattas. It's a hard life but somebody's got to do it.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Top Five Questions From Brave Novice Laser Sailors
From time to time I receive emails from folk who are interested in taking up Laser sailing. Typically they stumble upon this blog and after reading a few posts develop the dangerous impression that when it comes to Laser sailing I know what I'm talking about. So they fire off an email to me with a few questions. This is fine with me. I love to talk about stuff even when I don't know what I am talking about. It's genetic. I caught it from my son.
Here's an inquiry I received a few weeks ago...
Well, at least this guy learned from this blog how important socks are to Laser sailors. (Only joking.)
The email goes on with "the questions". I have started noticing a trend in "the questions". To wit, they're the same ones over and over. Again, I don't mind answering, but I really should share.
Strangely enough nobody bothers to ask the question that my friend Edward, the brave oceanic sailor, often receives from folk who are curious about his brave oceanic sailing, "How do you go to the bathroom?" Maybe because I already answered it here.
Here's an inquiry I received a few weeks ago...
I have sailed a Laser exactly 5 days in 2008. I (and the mast) spent about equal parts above and below the water during this time. This is 5 days more than the previous 46 years, and approximately half the total amount of days I’ve spent in any kind of sailboat. So clearly the next step made sense: I acquired a used Laser about 3 weeks ago and hope to get it into Long Island Sound this weekend, although I’m still gear short – no wet suit and certainly no dry suit (and none of them fancy schmancy socks you write about).
Well, at least this guy learned from this blog how important socks are to Laser sailors. (Only joking.)
The email goes on with "the questions". I have started noticing a trend in "the questions". To wit, they're the same ones over and over. Again, I don't mind answering, but I really should share.
- Are there any good books, or other resources, about Laser sailing?
Indeed there are. And a great place to start is to browse through the books and DVDs available at Laser Library on the International Laser Class website. The international office is based in the UK so all the prices on this list are in pounds sterling. But you don't have to buy them from ILCA. You can find most of these books at amazon.com, APS and other sources. (Hmmm, why does that link to an amazon.com search for 'laser sailing' display an Anne Cole Halter Mio with Laser-Cut Detail? Weird.)
Anyway, my own brief comments on the list...
Dick Tillman's book is a classic. Been around for a while but has been updated. A good choice for someone new to Lasering.
Ainslie's book is excellent for racers, but perhaps the best all-round book on every aspect of Laser racing is the one edited by Ben Tan.
The Goodison book is new and I haven't seen it yet, but ideas on Laser racing technique do change a bit from year to year so it may be worth taking a look at the newest book from one of the top Laser sailors in the world.
And if you really want to learn the secrets of Laser technique, especially in heavy air, you have to see Steve Cockerill's Boat Whisperer DVD's. - What should I wear for sailing?
A good starting place could be to read the advice in Steve Cockerill's article on All Weather Clothing. Of course he is promoting his own Rooster Sailing gear but it gives you an idea of how you will use layers in different temperatures.
To simplify, in warm weather you will need a rash-guard or similar top, hiking pants, and hiking boots. As it gets colder you will add more layers to keep warm, perhaps a spray top, a wetsuit, and in the coldest weather a dry-suit. Don't forget PFD (a.k.a. life jacket), hat and gloves... and of course socks (only joking.)
But talk to other sailors in your area. See what they are wearing in different conditions. Some of those books above also give advice on clothing. - How do I transport my boat?
You basically have four options.- Upside down on a roof rack on top of your car.
- Upside down on a trailer with suitable supports for the deck.
- Right way up on a purpose-built Laser trailer that supports the hull under the gunwhales. Trailex and Kitty Hawk make excellent trailers of this type and I have used them both.
- Right way up on a launching dolly on a trailer, so you can just slide the dolly off the trailer and you are ready to go. There is a Seitech set-up for this but many Laser sailors make their own slides and supports.
Each method has pros and cons which are pretty obvious. (Or if they are not obvious to you fire me an email and I will write a post on Top Five Questions About Transporting a Laser.) Personally I have a Trailex trailer with a swivel front support which means I can unload the boat by myself. But I'm thinking of switching to option 4 which has the same advantage and is slightly more convenient to load and unload. - Upside down on a roof rack on top of your car.
- Where can I sail?
Almost anywhere with a suitable beach or a ramp to launch your boat into a puddle, pond, lake, river, bay, sound, sea or ocean. That's one of the beauties of a little boat like a Laser. You don't need a marina or a hoist. You can do it by yourself if that's your thing. If you don't know where there are launching sites in your area use The Google.
But do check out your local Laser fleet and go sail with them too. To find them go to the Laser Class association website for your district or region. In North America go to the ILCA-NA website where there is a clickable map of Districts in North America which will lead you to information about fleets in your area. Or find out who is your district secretary and ask them. - How do I find out about regattas near me?
Same as above. Your local class website should have a schedule. Here, for example, is this year's regatta schedule for the New England district.
Strangely enough nobody bothers to ask the question that my friend Edward, the brave oceanic sailor, often receives from folk who are curious about his brave oceanic sailing, "How do you go to the bathroom?" Maybe because I already answered it here.
Monday, June 09, 2008
While Cruising Round Yarmouth
While cruising round Yarmouth one day on a spree
I met a fair damsel, the wind blowing free
I'm a fast-going clipper, my kind sir, says she
I'm ready for cargo, my hold is quite free
What country she come from I could not tell which
But by her appearance I thought she was Dutch
And her flag wore its colours, her masthead was low
She was round in the quarter and bluff in the bow
I gave her my rope and I took her in tow
Yardarm to yardarm towing we'd go
We both towed together till we came to the head
We both towed together through to Calgary Bay
She took me upstairs and her tops'l she lowered
In a neat little parlour she soon had me moored
She laid in the foresails, the staysails and all
With her lily-white hand let me reef-tackle fall
The watch being ended I said, Maid give o'er
'Twixt wind and water you've run me ashore
My shot-locker's empty, my coal is all spent
I can't fire a shot for it's choked at the vent
Well here's luck to that girl with the black curly locks
Here's luck to that girl who ran Jack on the rocks
Here's luck to the doctor who eased all his pain
He squared his main yards - he's a-cruising again
I met a fair damsel, the wind blowing free
I'm a fast-going clipper, my kind sir, says she
I'm ready for cargo, my hold is quite free
What country she come from I could not tell which
But by her appearance I thought she was Dutch
And her flag wore its colours, her masthead was low
She was round in the quarter and bluff in the bow
I gave her my rope and I took her in tow
Yardarm to yardarm towing we'd go
We both towed together till we came to the head
We both towed together through to Calgary Bay
She took me upstairs and her tops'l she lowered
In a neat little parlour she soon had me moored
She laid in the foresails, the staysails and all
With her lily-white hand let me reef-tackle fall
The watch being ended I said, Maid give o'er
'Twixt wind and water you've run me ashore
My shot-locker's empty, my coal is all spent
I can't fire a shot for it's choked at the vent
Well here's luck to that girl with the black curly locks
Here's luck to that girl who ran Jack on the rocks
Here's luck to the doctor who eased all his pain
He squared his main yards - he's a-cruising again
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