Spring Has Arrived! - Spring Shakedown Race 3-24-2012

Today was the Spring Shakedown Regatta sponsored by Port Orchard Yacht Club. This is the second race of the seven race West Sound Sailing Association(WSSA) seiries. This race is a two lap, 11.7 NM race in the waters of Sinclair Inlet between Bremerton and Port Orchard.

The warning gun was scheduled for 1100, but a submarine departed Puget Sound Naval Shipyard with it's entourage of Coast Guard boats. It would not have been a problem for the submarine to leave the shipyard, and depart through Rich Passage except this one announced on the VHF that they would be conducting testing in Sinclair Inlet for about an hour before  they would depart. Almost the whole width of Sinclair Inlet is blocked off when this happens. The warning signal was sounded at 1200 even though the submarine was still within the confines of Sinclair Inlet. We hoped that it would be gone before we sailed to its vicinity.

When we finally started, we had a good start near the pin end. The wind was up to 10 knots. We started on port tack just below several boats in clear air and just above "Blackout" (Santana 30/30 GP). The wind was NW and port tack was favored. The first tack took us to Port Orchard Marina before we had to tack. "Schock Therapy" (Schock 35) and us started pulling away from the other boats in Div I. We also started closing with the submarine and its escorts. They were still setting off the shipyard. The Coast Guard was sending it's boats to the racers that were closest to the submarine warning them to stay to the right side of Sinclair Inlet. Most of the offenders were from the previous classes that started ahead of us. But during the entire beat any boat that wandered to far toward the center of Sinclair Inlet was challenged.

"Schock Therapy" and us traded tacks from Annapolis to the weather mark. When we rounded we were right on their transom. We set the spinnaker on a beam reach along the shoreline. "Schock Therapy" went higher before they set their spinnaker. I was watching the boats still sailing closehauled towards the mark when "Carmanah" (C&C43) went by laughing about a sideways spinnaker set. Not us, but when I looked to weather, I could see that indeed "Schock Therapy" had hoisted the spinnaker by a clew and were sheeted to the head. By the time they had fixed the problem, they had fallen behind. Since they had wandered out toward the center of the channel, one of the Coast Guard boats came alongside them to escort them past the now moving submarine(chuckle, chuckle).

We reached down the east shore until we were past the submarine/Coast Guard flotilla and then reached toward the Bremerton Waterfront, getting a boost from the still ebbing Port Washington Narrows. The wind came forward and we had a nice spinnaker beam reach to the next mark. After a great takedown and rounding and a close reach through the start/finish line, we were close hauled paralleling the Port Orchard shoreline. We made one short tack at Annapolis and then reached into Radar Target #3. We kept pulling ahead of "Schock Therapy" and then they seemed to stop. Seems that they may have run aground on the shoal off Black Jack Creek. That wa strange as I though they were in our track and we had plenty of water. Before they got going again, "Carmanah" and "Dulcinea" (J105) passed them.

We rounded the mark and set the spinnaker. The wind had shifted more northerly and lightened so our reach turned more into a run. I stayed high and sailed toward the shipyard expecting to jibe toward the leeward mark. But once again, the wind came forward (even though it was light by now)and we made it to the mark without jibing. Another great takedown and rounding and we had a short beat to the finish where we crossed the line at about 1437. The next group of boats finished about 20 minutes later with "Dulcinea"  recovering from an earlier grounding to finish just ahead of "Carmanah".

We were first boat to finish and should have corrected to first in class and overall. Results when they are posted can be found here: Spring Shakedown Results 2012

The day was great. We had winds north to NW from 5-12 knots. Halfway through the race, the sun came out and winter attire was shed. Even though it was frustrating waiting for the submarine and the Coast Guard to let us race, they really were good about working with us. And thanks to the crew of Jim and Michael.

 Dulcinea, Carmanah and Shock Therapy rounding the last mark before the finish.

 Tantalus reaching along the Shipyard waterfront.

 Shenanigans

 Blackout

 Here, we are leading Carmanah

Photo Credit: Steve Nelsen

Reaching along the shipyard waterfront.

Photo Credit: Steve Nelsen

Our course for the day. The first lap took us from Port Orchard Yacht Club to the radar target at Waterman, then to a temporary mark near Ross Point and then through the start/finish. The second lap went to Radar Target #3, to the Ross Point temporary mark and then to the finish.