Race Clinic at Golden Gate YC April 8, 2006

John Melton pulled on wet gear and powered Freedom won through the back end of nasty cold front Friday evening to get to Golden Gate Yacht Club. A microburst even heeled him 30 degrees under bare poles. But he arrived safe and sound and by Saturday morning the sky was bright, blue and wearming for our 2006 Sail Trim Clinic.

Rick & Kathy Egan brought Kapai over Friday night too, and Saturday morning Pacific HIgh (Harry Farrell), Tenacious (Chris Youngberg), Luna Sea (Dan Knox), and Amante (Frank Mayo) had joined the crowd. So did boats-loads of crew and other owners arriving by car to bring the eventual total to 49 people for the April 8th Sail Trim Clinic. Here's a link to the list of attendees, the boats they were assigned to and the mentors on each boat: Attendees

Josh Anderson and his crew at GGYC had the downstairs room set up with a table for each boat, a projection screen and whiteboard, and then surprised us with a wonderful upgrade for the lunch menu - from soup and sandwich makings, to crab, salmon, beef and asparagus - largesse from under-consumed dinner the night before! Three cheers for Josh!

The fun got under way at 1000 with Jocelyn Nash of Quantum Sails talking us through the particulars of modern sails. The improvement in cloth and technique mean that shape is now built into the sail - but that also means the geometry of the rig becomes critical in both the design of the sail and how it sets. She reminded us that reading a sail takes some practice to read where the draft is located, and the critical need to get the "slot" between the main and jib even from top to bottom. That also matches the twist of the sails and can help control heel angle in heavy air.

Rich Shoenhair, of Windwalker fame, picked up the theme with the details of main trimming. He walked us through the trimming sequence: 1) set Twist; 2) amount of draft (depth); 3) position of draft; and 4) helm balance. When going upwind, use medium twist in light air, little twist in medium air, and then use twist again in heavy air to reduce heeling. Use a medium draft for light air, then flatten the sail for moderate to heavy air. Position the draft forward for pointing and aft for power, but keep the teltales flowing off the battens, particularly the upper batten. In general, set trim by the front of the jib and back of the main. Here's a link to Rich's PowerPoint slides - it's big (2.8 MB), and you probably need PowerPoint on your computer to make it work: Sail Trim. You can also check out the Quantum main trim guide the Jocelyn provided: Quantum.

Barry Stompe, of Tom Cat, wrapped up the classroom session with jib trim. Set your lead position to get an even slot from top to bottom, hopefully with the same distance off the shrouds at the bottom and the top, and so the sail luffs evenly from top to bottom as you turn toward the wind. Again, draft depth and position works like the main, and a straight flow off the leech is critical. Move the lead out to the rail in very heavy air or on a reach. In heavy air, you can move it aft to increase twist and reduce some heeling, and move it forward to the rail when reaching to reduce twist.

Sure, we've heard this before, but the trick is to put the words and a mental image of allo this together. So we moved to the dock and set Luna sea's main and jib so Jocelyn and other mentors could demonstrate what we tlaked about. The wind was only partly cooperative, and Michele Williams did a valiant job of try to adjust bow, stern and spring lines to keep the boat angled to the light, shifting southerly wind.

Additional handouts were included in the folder each person had. These included the Crew Position guides, and some pieces on how to be a good crew, or (not) skipper, and some quizes for generating discussion about various trim and sailing topics. These are similar to handouts in past years, and here is a link to them: http://www.islander36.org/raceclinic04/raceclinic04.html

Then it was time to eat Josh's terrific lunch and get out on the water for practice. Chris Boome had annnounced there was a major ebb and we should stay east of the clubhouse to avoid being far away from the starting line when practice starts began at 1400. Well, we think Chris may have been pulling something, but the current actually was a strong Flood right in front of GGYC and boats were soon clear over near Alcatraz.

Also parked just east of the starting area was the 197' Ronin, one of Larry Ellison's (smaller) motor yachts. The Man himself arrived in his Bentley, was greeted by the tender crew, and promptly ferried out to Ronin. She departed the starting area and our fun began.

After a few practice starts, the fleet headed for a windward-leeward race to Blackaller Buoy and back. The current was so strong that an approach from the windward side of the line proved to be vastly superior, and Kapai, with Chris Boome as the Mentor, executed it perfectly. They were still on the wrong side of the line with 30 seconds to go, but managed to dip below it and cross the fleet on port tack.

Traditional wisodm on a flood (which is what was flowing along the shore) is to short tack along the City Front, catching southerly puffs as they come off the shore. Kapai however held on way out into the Bay until they caught the real ebb that was racing west on the north half of the Bay. Just like riding an elevator, they were swept toward the Golden Gate, and finallly tacked back to the south shore and the buoy with a long lead over the rest of the fleet.

Freedom Won with Jocelyn as Mentor, and Tenacious with wily Lou Zevanov as Mentor, fought a close downwind battle from the buoy to the finish - check the pictures below to see how it ended!!!

Then it was back to the docks for a round of libations and the presentation of Quantum duffel bags to Kapai and Tenacious. It was another successful Islander Sail Trim Clinic - hope you can make it next year!!!

Luna Sea arrives.	Jocelyn Nash of Quantum Sails kicks off the meeting	A great audience ...	is following along...
at 49 strong	The Kapai table	Freedom Won's table	Pacific High is riveted
Bill Higdon (80's) & Love Zevanov (70's)	Understudies	Madame LaFarge (!!!) knows all	Did I get that right?
Eager learners	Goodies too!	A passel of ...	Islanders ...
ready for fun ...	while skippers & crews...	follow Barry's jib trimming tales	Jocelyn Nash steps aboard Luna Sea
to point out leech tension	Everyone is ...	paying...	attention.
Lots to watch ...	as Bonnie sets ...	the jib	Paying close attention ...
all around, with ...	a little relaxed attitude	Gary & Rick watch too	Michele "trims" the boat's angle
The slot & leech cord	Lead positions	Lots of angles to look at	It's even nice to watch...
from the race deck	A GREAT lunch	Kapai ready to sail	Luna Sea gets set
Ready here too	Pacific High is ready too	Getting under way	one at a time
all clear	Get those fenders in	Freedom Won heads for sea	Tenacious leaves
Amante too	Larry Ellison arrives	His tender is waiting...	they get aboard ...
he's the man.	Arriving aboard ...	Roninis ready to go.	The Race Deck
Islanders strut ...	their stuff ...	and practice starts.	Lots of adverse current...
Makes timing tricky	Crossing on port	A good angle	and others follow
They get closer with practice	Pacific High astern ..	but coming fast.	Freedom Won ...
practices pole sets	Approach above the line	Making a run	Splitting tackes
Looking close ...	as they clear the line	But where's Kapai?	Way ahead!
Testing the shore route	Pacific High crossing	Looking for inshore lifts	Real concentration ...
"Ready about"	Luna Sea	A schooner diversion ...	sails past...
and gybes away.	Kapai finishes first	It's going to be close...	between Tenacious and Freedom Won
Will Freedom Won make it?	It's Tenacious on a surge.	"Right this way"	Kapai winners ...
celebrate	Amante ties up	Happy John	2nd place - Lou congratulates Chris
Kathy Egan & Peter Szasz	It was another great ...	San Francisco Bay day!