RECAP CYC Turkey Bowl 2023

The turnout was a great for the CYC Turkey Bowl Regatta on November 18-19. The regatta drew 103 competitors across 10 classes. CYC set two separate race areas to spread out boats and expedite starts. The ILCA 4.7s and 6s were on the South Course along woth Opti’s, FJs and 420s. The ILCA 7s and RS AEROs were on the North Course along with the Star and J70 classes. We were pleased to have participants from Vancouver BC to Portland/Vancouver and “all ports” in between.

Included among the participants were 11 RS Aeros, 10 ILCA 7s, 18 ILCA 6s and 6 4.7s.
Light and spotty wind on Saturday morning prompted a few postponements but a steady southerly breeze did come in time to get two races completed before calling it a day. Sunday started with a few races in a southerly, which died then came back in from the north and continued to swing to the east, at 5-10 mph on both courses. At the completion of the regatta the 4.7s finished 4 races and the 6s finished 5. The ILCA 7s and RS Aeros finished 7 races in total.

To everyone’s delight CYC resurrected a long past tradition of providing a Turkey Thanksgiving feast on Saturday night. A great idea which was prompted by CYC Youth Program Director and Regatta Chair Jack Killalea, and was made possible by Alison Pease who prepared turkey, gravy, stuffing, potatoes, corn, apple sauce and Rice Krispy Treats. Thank you Alison!!

The Jay Winberg Perpetual Trophy, awarded to the winner of the ILCA 7 class, was presented to Alex Zaputil. The top 3 finishers in the ILCA and RS AERO classes are listed here. Complete results can be found on the CYCSeattle.org website.

Congratulations and thank you to ALL competitors, parents, race committee and CYC staff and volunteers for participating in the regatta.

ILCA 4.7 1st  Noelani Li (Seattle YC), 2nd Ethan Lee, 3rd Noah (Willamette SC)

ILCA 6 1st  Kaitlyn Beaver (Seattle YC), 2nd Adam Turloff (SYC), 3rd Alex Shemwell (SYC)

ILCA 7 1st  Alex Zaputil (Royal Vancouver YC) and recipient of the Jay Winberg Perpetual Trophy, 2nd Mattias Parker (West Vancouver YC), 3rd John Hodges (CYC)

RS AERO 1st Keith Hammer (CYC Seattle), 2nd Dan Falk (CYC Seattle), 3rd David Brink (Seattle Laser Fleet)

ILCA 4.7 Noelani Li (1st) and Ethan Lee (2nd) with Wanda Creitz presenting trophies.

ILCA 6 Top three finishers (L-R) Adam Turloff (2nd), Kailyn Beaver (1st), Alex Shemwell (3rd)

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ILCA 7awards presented by Commodore Wanda Creitz to Alex Zaputil (1st), Mattias Parker (2nd) and John Hodges (3rd)

RECAP Frostbite #5, February 5, 2023

Thanks to Mark Reed for running RC for Frostbite #5 and providing the following RECAP: 
Five tightly matched RS Aeros raced on a W/L course, 5 races. Breeze looked barely sailable as we rigged but patience was rewarded and we saw maybe 4-8 from the SE with one particularly light race in the middle of the series. Very flat water. Generally left was favored and a couple times people got skunked by current going high and too far right on the downwind. Smooth tacks and boat handling definitely helped and there were gains to be made finding pressure and staying aware of the shifts. Decent all-around racing and it’d be wonderful if we could get a few more boats jazzed to come out as the fleet has been a little quiet lately. Light winds can still be quite tactical and a lot of fun. Glad people were willing to get out and give it a go.

Continue reading “RECAP Frostbite #5, February 5, 2023”

FRIGID DIGIT REGATTA January 21-22, 2023

Miserable weather from start to finish…but I’d do it again in an instant! We rigged in pouring rain and it continued all day right through racing and de-rigging. Apparently it was sleeting at some point but I never noticed. I was soaked-through after the first two races and was surprisingly chilly given the mild (mid-40 degree) winter temperature. 

On the other hand the wind made it well worthwhile. RS Aeros, ILCA 6 & 7s and Optis shared the course in a gusty 15-20 mph southerly, veering slightly southeast through the first two races. Both races favored FAST. Those who jumped out ahead at the start on a short starboard beat, tacked onto port and dialed in the speed on a direct fetch to the windward mark were surely to lead the rest of the way. It was a breezy broad reach downwind to the turn at the pin of the start/finish line, twice around, concluding with downwind finishes. (course AFAF)

Continue reading “FRIGID DIGIT REGATTA January 21-22, 2023”

CYC TURKEY BOWL REGATTA & DISTRICT 22 GRAND PRIX SERIES FINALE November 19-20, 2022

Perfect day for racing (photo courtesy of John Beaver, from ashore) 

CYC Seattle’s annual Turkey Bowl Regatta kicked off with 34 ILCAs (four 4.7s, twenty-two 6s, eight 7s) sharing the course with RS Aeros, FJ, 420, 505 and Star classes. A total of 76 boats competed. This regatta also served as the finale of the ILCA DISTRICT 22 Grand Prix Series 2022 sponsored by West Coast Sailing.

CYC Seattle’s RC skillfully managed to get 5 races completed on Saturday for each fleet as they simultaneously and continuously started and finished fleets. The light wind on Sunday allowed for only 3 races before retiring for the day. After Saturday racing CYC welcomed us with hot chili and refreshments. 

Continue reading “CYC TURKEY BOWL REGATTA & DISTRICT 22 GRAND PRIX SERIES FINALE November 19-20, 2022”

RECAP Frostbite #3 and #4

Frostbite #3 December 4, 2022

It was a light breeze sailing out to the course which RC Joe Burcar had ready on our arrival. A couple short races and what little wind there was got even lighter and dissipated to nothing. Rarely do we embrace a tow into the dock but on this day there was no hesitation. Looking forward to the next Frostbite in January 2023!

Frostbite #4 January 9, 2023

Seven Aeros and 1 Laser made it out to the course. Air temperature was in the mid 40’s and some rain. While rigging it didn’t appear to be much wind and then suddenly a sporty breeze came in from the south delivering a lively 13-18 knots for the afternoon. The wind was gusty and shifty and the water started flat and built to small waves. There were about 12 races in all, traditional frostbite short, windward-leeward course of one or two laps, which made for lots of starting practice and boat handling skills. All in all a great practice session leading up to the Frigid Digit Regatta just a few weeks away. 

RECAP SLF Frostbite #2, November 6, 2022

SLF LASER & AERO FLEET

The following recap from Alex Zaputil—great write up Alex! And thanks to Coach Kaitlyn Van Nostrand of Meydenbauer Bay Yacht Club for bringing sailors over and running starts. The next Frostbite (#3) is December 4.

Today was a great day to be out on the water even though it was a little bit chilly. It started as a nice 12-14kt Southerly. We started with rabbit starts to keep everyone close. There were some interesting  and variable shifts heading up to the green “upwind” mark. Staying more towards the shore seemed to be the most successful option for the upwind leg with more easterly influence. The shifts were greater the closer you got to the mark. Downwind was a by the lee day to stay on that side too.

Continue reading “RECAP SLF Frostbite #2, November 6, 2022”

RECAP SLF Frostbite #1, October 16, 2022

88 degrees Fahrenheit. Imagine that! A record high temperature to start off The Seattle Laser & Aero Fleet Frostbite Series for 2022-2023. A somewhat hazy sky from forest fire smoke infiltrating Shilshole Bay and the Sound, although a little less than on land and not nearly as dense as could be seen in Mukilteo and north.

The wind was light at about 5 mph NNW, but plenty enough for the 8 Aeros and 5 full rig Lasers to have a very competitive afternoon of racing. We started off with a few short warm-up races to the windward mark and directly back to the start-finish line (downwind finish). Then the Race Committee dropped a leeward mark making for a relatively long course by Frostbite standards. Wasting no time, the next starts came immediately after each finish making for about 7 races each fleet. It appeared to me that the boats heading out from the start toward deeper water and then a long port tack to the windward mark tended to make out better. The tide was short and outgoing which may be what made the difference presuming the current to be faster toward the middle of the Sound. Regardless, the windward mark roundings were tight, and with the long downwind leg there was a surprising amount of position changes getting to the leeward mark.

Continue reading “RECAP SLF Frostbite #1, October 16, 2022”

PSSC Small Boat Regatta, October 1-2, 2022

For some fleets the Puget Sound Sailing Championship Regatta, or PSSC, is the annual year-end wrap-up of the Corinthian Yacht Club Seattle buoy racing season. For the Lasers and RS Aero fleets it is the start of the Frostbite season. In recent years participation in PSSC has not been large in numbers but it is surprisingly rewarding in that it remains competitive yet carefree and a very fun way to spend the weekend.

Continue reading “PSSC Small Boat Regatta, October 1-2, 2022”

FROSTBITE SCHEDULE 2022-2023

AERO & LASER SAILORS, SAVE THESE DATES

The Seattle Laser & Aero Fleet FROSTBITE SERIES schedule for 2022-2023 is as follows “SLF Frostbite #”.

The CYC Regattas are CYC events and included for your reference; CYC regatta registration is through CYC Seattle.

Sat-Sun October 1-2, 2022 CYC PSSC Small Boat Regatta

Sunday October 16, 2022 SLF Frostbite #1

Sunday November 6, 2022 SLF Frostbite #2

Sat-Sun November 19-20, 2022 CYC Turkey Bowl Regatta

Sunday December 4, 2022 SLF Frostbite #3

Sunday January 8, 2023  SLF Frostbite #4

Sat-Sun January 21-22, 2023 CYC SLF Frigid Digit Regatta

Sunday February 5, 2023 SLF Frostbite #5

Sunday February 26, 2023 SLF Frostbite #6

Sunday March 12, 2023 SLF Frostbite #7

What a lovely start to frostbite sailing (a stream-of-consciousness write up).

Seventeen boats made it out for a lovely afternoon of racing on Shilshole Bay this afternoon. Wendy and I ran a mix of races, using the Sloop Tavern start mark and one of our own buoys as the starting line, with a mark to weather. The fleet enjoyed 10 to 15 knots of northerly, with the tide going slack towards the middle of the series. We used the starting line as a leeward gate for several of the races. This made it possible to keep the whole fleet to windward of the chase boat- a safe way to run races with one boat. On a couple of races, we ran the Grady White offshore for the fleet to use as a reaching mark. The final race was on the longer side for the day, with a beat to Meadow Point, followed by a port rounding of the original weather mark, and a reach into Shilshole. We sailed for about two hours.

A couple of things we noticed about folks who were sailing well.

Andrew L. favored starting at what would be the boat end of the line. Although the leeward end of the line was slightly favored, Andrew preferred being free to tack to the break-water when he chose rather than risking being hung out to the left by boats to weather. At the tide change, Andrew made the most of a lane of upwind current, tacking often to stay in the favorable current.

Jay sailed flattest of everyone upwind and had very good speed. His vang was one of the tightest. Downwind, Jay favors deep broad reaching angles. While lots of other sailors hunted hard for waves and did lots of S turns, Jay’s sailing was notable for his lack of turns and good speed. Mike Johnson continues to impress with his ability to drive waves downwind.

Charles, Jay, and John sail with the backs of their legs pressed hard against the deck of their boats. There isn’t any daylight between the backs of their knees and the deck. This looked fast to me.

Finally, the best insurance each of us has of the continued strength of this sailing fleet is merely showing up to race. It’s great to see every single one of you on the racecourse!

Joe B will be running the races on November 7th. Anyone else interested in running the boat, please drop me a line and I’ll work with you to set it up.

Finally, a big thank you to Wendy for showing up and lending a hand. I’m a very lucky man.

Dan