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FLEET 50 ARCHIVES FROM 2010Last posted 06/24/2010
PRSA Spring Series # 8, Sunday June 6! The last one for the Spring Series. Albacores did RC. The AccuWeather forecast called for mostly cloudy skies, a high of 91 degrees, and westerly winds at 19 - 22 MPH. A few thunderstorms were possible, some severe. The river flow was below normal for this time of year, at 6.310 CFS (gage height 3.5 ft) and the water had warmed to 82 degrees. Low tide was at 10:34 AM and high tide at 4:21 PM. Actual winds were from the SSW at 13 MPH up until 2:00 PM when a front came through, kicking up 29 MPH winds with gusts to 45. PRO Nathan Marsh and his crack Albacore RC set up an Olympic course with the leeward mark close to (but outside) the channel near the green channel mark off East Potomac Park, and got off four races in quick succession. All but 4 boats had retired by the end of race 3 and were back at the docks before the front came through. For the four (Nabeel; Rick; Pat; and Peter Lallas) there was a wild ride home after race 4, but they all made it back without capsizing. Results here. Championship Series So Far. Spring Series Final Results.
PRSA Spring Regatta, Saturday and Sunday, May 29-30!
The PRSA Memorial Day Weekend
major event has come and gone!
PRSA Spring Series # 7, Sunday, May 23! As Becky Mach described the day, if May 9 was Papa Bear (too strong); and May 16 was Mama Bear (too weak); then today was Baby Bear (just right)! The AccuWeather forecast had called for rain for most of the day with ENE winds 8 - 10 MPH, and we were delighted to see that the rain held off while the wind forecast held up. PRO Frank Gallagher and his Lightning-provided RC set up an Olympic course with the windward mark near the navigable channel, the leeward mark near the airport shore, and the reach mark far enough north to require a close reach on both the approaching and the departing legs, and ran 4 races in quick succession -- an O-2 and three O-3s. The four Lightnings were joined by 3 Hobies, 3 Albacores, and a Bucc and had a most enjoyable day on the water. Scores Here, Championship Series Results as of now here. PRSA Spring Series # 6, Sunday, May 16! Lightnngs did RC. The AccuWeather forecast (always subject to change) called for partly sunny and pleasant conditions, with winds from the NE at 7 MPH, and a high of 76 degrees. The river flow was currently well below normal, at 6,630 CFS (gage height 3.6 ft), and the water had warmed to 69 degrees. High tide was at 10:24 AM; low tide at 5:51 PM. This was a day when the weatherman promised much and delivered so little. We did have nice 10 MPH breezes as we were splashing our boats, and they held up on the way up to the race course, although after 11 AM some noticeable no-wind holes opened up, one of them capturing 15228 well south of the race course, delaying her arrival until Noon. PRO Bob Astrove and RC crew had set a windward-leeward course along an ENE axis, with the windward mark close to the deepwater channel and the leeward mark close to the airport shore, and got off one race before the wind died. At 2 PM the N flag went up and boats were towed back to the dock. Results here, Championship Series scores as of now here. PRSA Spring Series # 5, Sunday May 9! Strong gusty winds and extremely low water made it a challenge to get up to the race course, and before the Bayliner even got there the two Lightnings, one of the two Hobies, and one of the four Albacores that splashed turned around and went home. Consequently the PRO canceled racing for the day. Here are details. Next week will be better. Doc Gilbert Memorial Potomac Cup Regatta, May 1 - 2, 2010 - at Leesylvania State Park! The annual Doc Gilbert Potomac Cup Regatta was held this past weekend down at Leesylvania State Park on the Potomac River. This year, in addition to the 25 Lightnings on hand, we had 9 Flying Scots join us for two days of great racing. Saturday was mostly clear with breezes from the SSW at 6-12kts, and on Sunday we got 10-15 under mostly cloudy skies. The conditions were just plain ideal for some really tight racing at times. The Lightning class was won by Ed Adams in a tight match with John Faus. I have to point out, however, that young Justin Copan really dominated the weekend with 4 bullets and a third. Why didn’t he win? Unfortunately for him, one of those bullets turned into a 26 as he was OCS. DOH!! Other than that faux pas, he really put on a clinic for us. On the Flying Scot side, David Neff won the top honors with 3 bullets and 2 deuces. Another dominant performance. As usual, Fleet 50 put on an excellent regatta, with some great RC work headed up by Bruce Bingman. Of course the awesome weather didn’t hurt either! Lightning Results here. PRSA Spring Series # 3, Sunday April 25! Seven Lightnings came out along with 4 Hobies, 3 Albacores, and a Laser on a day with a NOAA forecast of heavy weather arriving sometime after 2 PM (which it did, but north and west of DC). Before 2 PM, the winds were predicted to be from the south at 8 - 9 MPH under cloudy skies, with a high temperature of 75 degrees, and that's exactly what we got, except that the clouds dissipated by the end of the first race. PRO David Thompson and RC set up a windward-leeward course and got off three races in quick succession, finishing the 3rd race at exactly 2:00 PM, then sending boats home to ensure a safe ride and retrieval at the cranes before the heavy weather hit (which never did here, except that winds increased to 20 MPH after 3 PM). We welcomed Chris and Jenna Kozel, sailing their new boat 14395, String Theory, but with sail number 13717; Mark and Katie Boaz, sailing the Potomac for the first time this season; also Alex Thomson, sailing with Will Phillippe and Brian Ganji in Red Fehrle's boat, with sail number 14932; and Mike Goudy, sailing with Pat and Paul. Results here. Leesylvania State Park Work Day Saturday, April 24! We assembled a work crew to work from 9 AM to Noon at the park, in exchange for free use of the Picnic Pavilion the following weekend - May 1 and 2 -- for the Doc Gilbert Memorial Potomac Cup regatta. Our sincere thanks to Bob Astrove; Will Phillippe, Red Fehrle, Suzan Humphrey, Rose Gentile, Joe Warren, John Hart, Doug and Shelly Kirby, and David Thompson for their work to scrub the floor of the picnic shelter, re-stain the fascia, and trim the plantings along the east side of the shelter. PRSA Spring Series # 2, Sunday April 18! The AccuWeather Forecast called for sunny skies, a high of 60 degrees, and winds from the NW at 14 - 18 MPH, and that's about what we got, except that it was cloudier and chillier than predicted. The river flow, at 9,150 CFS (gage height 3.9 ft) was below normal for this time of year, and the water temperature was down to 62 degrees. High tide was at 11:26 AM. 10 Lightings and 3 Albacores came out. Yates Dowell and the Hobie fleet set up a triangular course and got off three races in quick succession, and we were all back at the docks by 3 PM. We welcomed new crew Jessica Hovick, a W & M graduate, who sailed with Pat; Chris Kozel, new owner of 14395, String Theory, who sailed with Red; Rick Walsh who sailed with Frank; and Carolyn Dixon, daughter of Doug, who sailed with Bobby. See results here. Check Championship status here. PRSA Spring Series # 1, Sunday April 11! What an outstanding day, weather-wise, for the first race day of the 2010 season -- sunny skies, a high of 75 degrees, and gentle breezes made for Bermuda shorts attire and fun conversations. Erich Hesse and his ace Albacore RC crew got off three races in somewhat challenging wind conditions -- a 9 MPH southerly at the start of the first race, but dying off to an ESE at 3 MPH at 2 PM, then coming back up later in the afternoon, reaching 12 MPH at 6 PM, well after we were off the water. The river flow was slightly below normal for this time of year, at 12,500 CFS (gage height 4.2 ft) and the water temperature was 62 degrees. Low tide was at 1:42 PM; High tide at 7:31 PM. 8 Lightnings came out (Frank; Nabeel; Bobby; Rick; Red; Pat; Jeff; and David), plus Patrick McKnight and family were on the river doing practice sailing. See Results here. Southern Circuit News! Here are results from St. Pete. Here are results from Savannah. Here are results from Miami . Congratulations to Allan Terhune, who took first place in Miami and second overall, sailing with Sarah Evans, Collin Kirby, Sarah Mergenthaler, Joann Fisher, and Rich Bernstein!
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Ted Hunting. Ted passed away on March 4th. We are saddened to hear of Ted’s passing. Ted was a longtime owner/skipper of that infamous grey Lightning # 12081 Swill Dog and later co-owner of several other Lightnings' with Joe Warren. Ted was one of the good guys….we’ll miss him… More.
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The River was Roaring - 197,000 CFS on Monday, March 15! Normal for that time of year is 17,000 -- spring flows range between 20,000 and 25,000; fall flows usually around 5,000 CFS. The previous weekend's rains and melting snow in the watershed upstream contributed to the run-off.
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East Coast Flying Scots invited to the 2010 Doc Gilbert Memorial Potomac Cup Regatta! Per discussion and decision by the 2009 Fleet 50 Board, an invitation has been extended to the East Coast Flying Scott fleet to join us in the 2010 Doc Gilbert Regatta, May 1 - 2. Stay tuned for more on the regatta!
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The Truth about Cold Water! Mario Vitonne, a U.S. Coast Guard Safety Specialist, recently published an interesting article in which he states that it is not so much hypothermia that kills sailors who find themselves dunked in cold water, but rather several other factors that kill first. This is a very good argument for always wearing your PFD when on the water. |
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Fleet 50 Annual Awards Banquet and General Meeting, Saturday, Feb 20! This season's awards banquet was held at the Trattoria da Franco in Old Town Alexandria. See details here. 39 skippers, associates, and friends joined together for an evening of congeniality and remembrance and awards. Frank Gallagher was elected Fleet Captain for 2010; Bobby Astrove and David Thompson retained their positions as Fleet Treasurer and Webmaster respectively. Congratulations to winners of the skipper-nominated crew awards Best New Crew Brian Ganji; Most Improved Crew Brena Copeland; and High Impact Crew Bruce Heida. Congratulations also to the winners of the crew-nominated skipper awards: Team Spirit Skipper Red Fehrle; Mr. Congeniality David Thompson, and Skipper of the Year, Frank Gallagher. Nabeel Alsalam won the Bloody Rudder and the Iron Skipper award; Craig Huzway was named All-weather Sailor; and Laurie Duncan was awarded the Most Improved Skipper prize.
Blizzard of 2010 Dumps 3-foot Drifts of Snow at WSM!
Per Joe Warren's Sunday night (2/7) report, the marina roads were not plowed and snow had blown into 3' drifts in places. Many Lightings were covered in heavy, wet snow, putting stress on their covers. Skippers will want to check on their boats this week, but as of Sunday evening there was a problem entering the marina -- huge piles of snow from the plowing on the GW Parkway were blocking the entrance (since cleared). Here is Joe's report:
"Round 2" (Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday night, Feb 9, 10), dropped another 10 inches of snow and then whirled it around in 20 MPH winds with gusts above 40. Per Brian Pavlik, as of Saturday afternoon, 2/13, the dry slip area had been partially plowed. All rows except between A and B had a path. The rest were plowed by Monday morning (2/15). At first glance there appeared to be no damage done to the [dry-slipped] boats. The parking lot had been plowed and there was plenty of space to park. Time to Winterize your Lightning? Some savvy skippers, knowing that snow and ice can wreck havoc on their expensive summer mooring covers, have winterized their boats. Check them out on Slip A-13 and farther down towards the south end of the A row at WSM. David used a $60 12 X 20 12-mil tarp to provide water-tight and snow-tight protection, with the ends slightly open for ventilation. The boom, resting on double boom crutches, provided a ridge pole. David removed all boat contents -- sails, cushions, sheets, and spare lines, to reduce the likelihood of providing a mouse habitat. Jeff put on his one-piece travel cover and then set up a 10 x 18 blue tarp on top, using an old broken mast as a ridge pole. Without winterizing, occasional heavy snow will accumulate on the mooring cover, melt, freeze, re-melt, refreeze, and eventually tear the cover and begin leaking water into the bilge. When bilge water works into seams and then freezes, it can open up cracks. Save yourself the hassle of dealing with that. Winterize! 2009 Sydney-to-Hobart Regatta is now History! There were no Lightnings registered for this harrowing 600 + mile race, but it is still a really big deal in yacht racing circles. The handicap-scored winner was Two True, Andrew Saies’ newly launched Beneteau First 40 after a protest against him over an incident on Sydney Harbour soon after the start was dismissed by the five person international jury. Details here. 2009 news
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